6-Day China Small Group Tour: Beijing & Shanghai Highlights with Imperial History and Modern City Life

Itinerary Summary: Arrive in Beijing – Airport Pick-up – Hotel Check-in – Free Time

Hotel Star Rating: 3-Star Hotels

Meals Included: No Food

Your driver meets you at the airport and takes you to your hotel in the city centre. Once you’ve checked in, the rest of the day is yours.

If you‘re not too tired, step outside and explore the neighbourhood. Beijing’s city centre is walkable, with wide avenues and smaller streets lined with shops and local eateries. Grab a coffee, take a walk, or simply settle in. No need to plan. The city will reveal itself at its own pace.

Itinerary Summary: Tian‘anmen Square – Forbidden City – Jingshan Park – Summer Palace

Hotel Star Rating: 3-Star Hotels

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

The day starts at Tian’anmen Square, one of the largest public squares in the world, capable of holding a million people. From there, you walk into the Forbidden City — the walled palace complex that was home to China‘s emperors for over 500 years during the Ming and Qing dynasties. It contains nearly 1,000 buildings and more than 9,000 rooms. Your guide leads you through the main halls, explaining the rituals and power structures that once defined this place.

A short walk takes you to Jingshan Park, an artificial hill formed from soil excavated during the Forbidden City’s construction. The view from the top gives you a complete overhead perspective of the palace layout.

In the afternoon, you head to the Summer Palace, a sprawling imperial garden built around Kunming Lake. The Long Corridor stretches 728 metres along the lake, its beams decorated with over 14,000 painted panels. This was a place for retreat, not governance — and it still feels that way.

Itinerary Summary: Mutianyu Great Wall – Bird‘s Nest & Water Cube (Exterior)

Hotel Star Rating: 3-Star Hotels

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Today you head to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, about 73 kilometres from the city centre. It’s less crowded than Badaling and offers a longer stretch of wall — 5.4 kilometres with 22 watchtowers. A round-trip cable car takes you up near Tower 14, saving your energy for walking along the wall itself.

You can head east for steeper terrain and more dramatic views, or west for a quieter, forested stretch. The stonework is original Ming Dynasty construction, worn smooth by centuries of weather and footsteps. On the return drive, the bus passes the Bird‘s Nest and Water Cube, the two iconic venues from the 2008 Olympics. There’s a brief photo stop before heading back to the city.

Itinerary Summary: High-Speed Train to Shanghai – Hotel Check-in – Free Time

Hotel Star Rating: 3-Star Hotels

Meals Included: Breakfast

Morning transfer to the railway station for the high-speed train to Shanghai. The journey takes about 4.5 to 6 hours. As the train moves south, the landscape shifts from the flat plains of northern China to the more developed, denser terrain of the Yangtze River Delta. Upon arrival, you‘re met at the station and taken to your hotel. The rest of the day is yours.

If you have the energy, step out and get a feel for Shanghai. The city moves at a different pace — faster, taller, and louder than Beijing. A walk along Nanjing Road or the nearby streets will give you an immediate sense of the city’s energy.

Itinerary Summary: Shanghai Tower – Shanghai Museum – Yu Garden & Bazaar – Nanjing Road – The Bund

Hotel Star Rating: 3-Star Hotels

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Start at the top of Shanghai Tower, China‘s tallest building at 632 metres. The elevator takes you to the 118th-floor observation deck in under a minute. From 546 metres, the city spreads out beneath you — the Huangpu River curving through, Pudong’s towers clustered below, and the older neighbourhoods of Puxi stretching west.

Then descend to the Shanghai Museum, housed in a building designed to resemble an ancient bronze vessel. Its collection of bronzes, ceramics, and calligraphy is among the best in China. Next is Yu Garden, a Ming-dynasty garden built between 1559 and 1577. Zigzag bridges, rockeries, and pavilions are packed into just 2 hectares — a masterpiece of space and balance. The adjacent Yuyuan Bazaar is a maze of stalls selling everything from tea to souvenirs.

Afternoon: Nanjing Road runs 5.5 kilometres from the city centre to the waterfront, Shanghai‘s main commercial artery since the 1860s. End at The Bund at dusk. The 1.5-kilometre promenade is lined with 52 buildings of varying architectural styles — neo-classical, Art Deco, Renaissance — built between 1860 and 1937. Across the river, the Pudong skyline answers with towers that didn’t exist before 1990.

Itinerary Summary: Departure from Shanghai – Airport See-off

Hotel Star Rating: N/A

Meals Included: Breakfast

Your driver picks you up from the hotel and takes you to the airport for your departure flight. Six days, two cities — from the Forbidden City to the Bund, from imperial history to modern skylines. The contrasts are what you‘ll remember.