8 Days Silk Road Tour with Chengdu Panda

Highlights: Welcome to Chengdu---home of giant pandas. Upon arrival, your personal guide will meet you and escort you to your hotel. Rest of the day will be free for you to relax.

Highlights: Today you will visit the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, followed by a trip to the Wenshu Temple, then wander around Jinli Old Street for shopping.                                                                                                           

Chengdu Panda Base: Which is 10km from Chengdu downtown, and takes 35 drive to get there. The panda based was founded in 1987 with with 6 giant pandas that rescued from the wild. Through 2015, it has had 161 panda births, and its panda population has grown to 108. Located in the base, the Giant Panda Museum is the world’s only museum that focuses entirely on the critically endangered giant panda.

Wenshu Temple: Located in the northwest of Chengdu, the Wenshu Temple is a famous Buddhist temple in China. The present temple grounds were built in 1697 of the Qing Dynasty. Wenshu is the Chinese word for the future Buddha Maitreya, whose presence was found during the construction of the original temple in the form of persistent lights. Here you can find a fine cup of green tea and the best vegetarian food in the city. A tourist district called Wenshufang is around the temple, it is great place for food, souvenirs ,etc. 

Jinli Old Street: Originally built in Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Jinli Street is 350m long and a concentration of Chengdu nightlife, snacks and folk culture. There are many cafes and bars here - including Starbucks. They blend modern elements with the old buildings harmoniously. It is enjoyable to sit on a wooden or bamboo chair with a cup of delicious coffee. When night falls, the whole street is decorated with beautiful red lanterns on the each eave of the ancient buildings. 

Recommended paid add-on Sichuan Opera show (RMB260=USD43/per): As one of the oldest and most interesting opera forms in Southwestern China, Sichuan Opera is an important part of Chengdu culture and a perfect combination of local dialect along with the customs, folk music, and dances from other regions. Besides the normal singing, and martial arts, Sichuan Opera has many unique features that set it apart, features such as fire breathing, changing faces, and juggling pottery. When enjoying the performance, visitors always amaze at different facial make-ups that are changed fast and mysteriously.

Highlights: On this day you will be driven about 2 hours to Leshan Giant Buddha, then drive 30 minutes to Mt. Emei, from where you will take 2 hours park bus from the bottom of the mountain up to the cable car station on the hill top, then take 10 minutes cable car up to the top, after the cable car ride, walk 20-30 minutes or so to your hotel at the summit.

Leshan Giant Buddha: Located 125km away from downtown Chengdu, and covers 2.5 square kilometers, the 71m-high Giant Buddha is the biggest Buddha statue in the world. It sits in a cliff overlooking the confluence of Min, Dadu and Qingyi River. A local saying goes: "The mountain is a Buddha, and the Buddha is a mountain".  Legend has it that an eminent monk Hai Tong of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) often saw boats capsize in the turbulent river. Shipwrecks were a common place. Wishing to protect passing boats and calm down the rough river currents, the monk vowed to build a Maitreya Buddha. He made great efforts to collect the funds for the construction.

Highlights: Today's morning you will get up early to witness the famous sunrise at Gold Summit, and walk around to see the other sites of the mountain. After the tour you will be take cable car and bus down to the bottom, then drive 2 hours back to Chengdu. 

Mt.Emei: Located 150 km away from downtown Chengdu, Mt. Emei is one of the four most famous Buddhist mountains in China due to its pleasant weather, gorgeous natural scenery, and ancient Buddhist architecture. With an elevation of the mount is 3,099m, around 1,000m higher than the other three Buddhist sacred mountains. The mountain is characterized by ancient pines, clean brooks, picturesque waterfalls and sea cloud. In 1996, it was listed as an UNESCO's Natural and Cultural Heritage site.

Highlights: Today you will be free until your guide escorts you to the airport for your flight to Xian. The rest of the day you will visit The Shanxi Provincial Museum---a large modern museum of the national level. Then move to visit the Muslim community for visit.

Shaanxi Provincial Museum: As the largest comprehensive museum in Shanxi province, the museum was built at the site of a former Confucian temple in the southern of Xian, it occupies an area of 70,000 square meters, and exhibits historical relics and stone carvings of ancient China. If you are history lovers, Shaanxi Provincial Museum is a must on your Xian trip

Muslim Quarter: Xi'an, was the capital in Tang Dynasty (618–907), Muslim merchants followed the silk road and settled down to start their business there, and their traditions and belief have been well preserved. Muslim quarter is the community of the Muslims, and a fascinating area where you can find exotic food, interesting people and great souvenir stalls.

Highlights: This morning you will visit the incredible life-size Terracotta Warriors ---a lifetime view of the extraordinary 2200-year-old terra-cotta Army of China' First Emperor-Qin Shihuang., and then pay a visit to the Ceramics Factory to learn the Chinese ceramics culture. Afterwards you will visit the Ancient City Walls--a symbol of great significance of the famous historic cultural city of Xian, you might have a biking tour on the wall, it could be very special experience. 

Terra Cotta Army: As the most important site in Xian and China, the Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses are the most significant archeological excavations of the 20th century. It took 11 years to finish, a group of peasants uncovered some pottery while digging for a well nearby the royal tomb in 1974. It caught the attention of archeologists immediately. The museum covers an area of 16,300 square meters, divided into three sections: No. 1 Pit, No. 2 Pit, and No. 3 Pit respectively. They were tagged in the order of their discoveries.

Ancient City Walls: As the first landmark you will encounter in Xi'an, the ancient city wall stretches round the old city. Xi'an was originally a walled city, and even today the wall is considered a landmark dividing the city into the inner part and the outer part. The wall is massive - tall, long and thick. The South Gate and North Gate are the two main entrances to the inner city. Having a biking tour on the wall is special experience you should not miss.

Highlights: Today you'll be escorted to the airport and for the flight to Dunhuang. After arrival, met and transferred to your hotel in Dunhuang. Rest of the day you will visit Echoing-Sand Dune, Crescent Lake. After the tour, you'll be escorted back to the hotel in the city.

Echoing Sand Mountains: Which is a mountain that echoes to the sound of sand as you slide down its slopes. The mountain is 5 km away from Dunhuang downtown. The sand has many colors ranging from red to yellow, green, black and white. Visitors can explore the sand dunes by camel, electric car, quad bike or by foot. Riding a camel on the desert of the Singing sand Mountains is a great experience. You can enjoy the beautiful wavy shapes of the smooth yellow dunes against the deep blue sky, and imagine you are traveling the ancient Silk Road. Step off the camel and listen for the singing of the sand.

Crescent Lake: Located 5 miles southwest to Dunhuang City, the Crescent Lake is a wonder in the desert. The lake is half-moon shape, hence the name. The lake is surrounded by sand and the Singing Sand Mountain approximately 100 meters from north to south, 25 meters from west to east, and 5 meters deep at maximum. Even though the lake was merely meters away from drift sand, it was miraculously never buried.

Highlights: Today, you'll visit the Mogao Grottoes, Dunhuang Museum. After the tour, you'll be escorted to Dunhuang airport and catch your flight to next destination.

Dunhuang Museum: Located in the downtown of Dunhuang City. The museum is a 3-storey building covers an area of 25,834 square feets. The items are displayed in three sections. The 1st section shows the written sutras from the No.17 cave of the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang. These sutras are valuable evidence of Chinese Buddhist activities. The 2nd section is the selection of the relics excavated from the graves in different ancient dynasties, including stone pagoda, pottery box and stone beast figure. The 3rd section is a number of exhibits such as exquisite silk floret brocade and bamboo writing slips, iron and bronze tools and weapons, etc.

Mogao Grottoes: Located on the eastern slope of Singing Sand Mountain, the Mogao Grottoes, first dug in 366 A.D.,  is one of three noted grottoes in China and also the largest, best preserved and selected as an UNESCO site in 1987. It has 492 grottoes , 2,800 sculptures and 45,000 square meters of murals. There are five grottoes with a wooden structure. From 2014, the Mogao Grottoes' management started implementing a new visiting model to protect the world famous ancient Buddhist artwork.