About Athena Technologies

★★★★☆

• Destination: Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai
• Duration: 8 Days
• Starting Date: You Choose
• Special Experiences: Hike on the military defensive project Great Wall to feel like a hero; be amazed at the Terracotta Warriors and Horses, the 7000 life-size underground army protecting the first Chinese emperor’s tomb.

Day 1 Entry Beijing:

Today Arrangement: Welcome to China! Our private English-speaking guide and driver will pick you up in time at the Beijing airport and transfer you safely to the hotel. A paper board with the sign of BeijingToursGuide.com and your name will be held high at the airport exit. The rest of the day is free at your own leisure.

Day 2 Beijing:

Meal(s): Breakfast, Lunch at Wahaha Restaurant

Attraction(s): Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Hutong tour with rickshaw, Pearl Factory

Today Arrangement: Beijing, as the capital of China, has lots of places of interests worth sightseeing. We arrange two and a half days tour in Beijing in the itinerary and today, visit Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, and Pearl factory, and hold a Hutong tour with rickshaw. Tiananmen Square is the largest city square in the world and of great historical significance, where you could see the symbol of China-the ancient majestic Tiananmen Tower. Nearby the square, is the Forbidden City, a world reputed palace of Chinese 24 emperors in Ming and Qing dynasties. Read about the real life of the old Beijing city by a unique Hutong tour with rickshaw. In the Pearl factory, learn about Chinese pearl culture and appreciate the dazzling exquisite pearls.

Optional Add-on: Acrobatic Show, Peking Opera

Day 3 Beijing:

Meal(s): Breakfast, Lunch at Xin Shuang Quan Restaurant

Attraction(s): Mutianyu Great Wall, Temple of Heaven, Cloisonne Factory

Today Arrangement: Let's spend the morning in the Mutianyu Great Wall, one of the most famous sections of the Great Wall but less crowded. The section is well-known for its beautiful surrounding landscapes and the peculiar wall shapes integrated with the steep mountains. A round- way cable car takes you up and down the wall to avoid the steep climbs. The Temple of Heaven, much bigger than the Forbidden City, is a royal temple worshipped by Chinese emperors to pray to heaven for a good harvest. In the Cloisonne factory you could learn about the Chinese cloisonne processing crafts without paying a cent.

Optional Add-on: Chinese Kung Fu Show, Quanjude Roasted Duck Dinner

Day 4 Beijing-Xian:

Meal(s): Breakfast, Lunch at Baguobuyi Restaurant

Attraction(s): Hutong tour with rickshaw, Temple of Heaven

Today Arrangement: Spend the morning in the Summer Palace and the Olympic Green. Summer Palace is a world reputed royal entertainment garden of the emperors and their imperial families; a cruise in its beautiful Kunming Lake is included. Go to the Olympic Green and pay an exterior to visit the Water Cube and the Bird’s Nest, which rank among the top 10 architectural miracles in China appraised by Business Week. After lunch, leave for airport and fly to Xian. Upon your arrival, our guide and driver pick you up at Xian airport, transfer to hotel; the rest of the day is free.

Day 5 Xi'an:

Meal(s): Breakfast, Lunch at A Wa Shan Zhai Restaurant (Qinling Branch)

Attraction(s): Terracotta Warriors and Horses, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Xian City Wall, Xian Art Pottery Factory

Today Arrangement: Xian is one of the four major ancient civilization capitals, enjoying the equal fame with Athens, Cairo, and Rome. Today we will go to four tour destinations. The Terra cotta Warriors and Horses is one of the most significant archeological finds of the 20th century. These 6000 life-size painted terracotta warrior and horses-individually sculpted from real life models and arranged in battle formation have been protecting the mausoleum of the first emperor in Chinese history- Emperor Qinshihuang for 2,200 years. Big Wild Goose Pagoda is a symbol of the old-line Xian, a well-preserved ancient building and a holy place for Buddhists. Xian City Wall, as a main attraction of Xian, is one of the largest ancient military defensive systems in the world. At the Xian Art Pottery Factory, you could see the copies and souvenirs and Terra cotta Warriors and Horses as well as Tang Tricolor.

Optional Add-on: Dumpling Banquet, Tang Dynasty Dances and Music

Day 6 Xi'an:

Meal(s): Breakfast, Lunch at Qianzhou Restaurant (Xiao Yanta Branch)

Attraction(s): Shaanxi Historical Museum, Great Mosque

Today Arrangement: Two attractions we are visiting in the morning: Shaanxi Historical Museum is a good-sized modern national museum built with the architectural features of the Tang Dynasty. The museum houses the best cultural heritage of Shaanxi Province and shows the systematic development process of Chinese civilization; the Great Mosque is one of the oldest, largest and best-preserved Islamic mosques in China, built in 742 during the Tang Dynasty. It is a major spot for religious activities of over 60,000 Moslems in Xian and the only mosque in China that is open to visitors. After lunch, be transferred to the airport and takes the flight to our next tour city- Shanghai. Be met by our guide and driver at Shanghai airport and dropped at the hotel. The rest of day is free.

Day 7 Shanghai:

Meal(s): Breakfast, Lunch at Tai Restaurant

Attraction(s): Yuyuan Garden, Shanghai World Financial Center, Jade Buddha Temple, Silk factory, the Bund and Nanjing Road

Today Arrangement: Shanghai is a renowned international metropolis; moreover, the perfect blend of cultures endows Shanghai with a unique glamour-the modern and the traditional and the western and the oriental. Feel the distinct city though the flowing sightseeing. Yuyuan Garden is a famous classical garden in Shanghai, built in 1577 by Pan, a government officer of Ming Dynasty. The pavilions, halls, rockeries, ponds and cloisters all have unique characteristics. At 1,555 ft high, the top observation deck at the Shanghai World Financial Center is a great stop during your visit of Shanghai. Standing on a glass floor, you could have a bird’s eye view of the city and many of its main attractions. In the modern city, there is a venerable and famous old Buddhist temple-Jade Buddha Temple, famous for the two jade Buddha statues brought from Burma. In the Silk factory, we can watch the whole silk-making process and learn about Chinese silk culture. The Bund is a famous waterfront and regarded as the symbol of Shanghai for hundreds of years. It is the starting point where Shanghai walked into the modern times and a good place to know about the old Shanghai. In the east of the Bund is China’s premier shopping street, the Nanjing Road, 3.4 miles long, a must-see destination attracting thousands of fashion-seeking shoppers from all over the world.

Optional Add-on: Acrobatic Show