ITINERARY IN DETAILS
A ten-day journey spanning North, Northwest, and Southwest China, linking Beijing (imperial axis + Great Wall + hutongs), Xi’an (terracotta army + Tang splendor + ancient walls), Chengdu (Dujiangyan + Qingcheng Mountain + Three Kingdoms sites), and Kunming (Dianchi Lake + Stone Forest + ethnic cultures). Fast trains and short flights keep the pace brisk yet allow ample time for immersion. Each day is divided into Morning, Afternoon, and Evening blocks, with added details to help you follow the plan effortlessly.

Day 1 First Glimpse of Beijing
Morning: Land at Beijing Capital Airport, take the Airport Express into town and head straight to Tiananmen Square. If timing allows, watch the flag-raising ceremony, then cross Jinshui Bridge and enter the Forbidden City from Tiananmen Gate. Walk the central axis through the Meridian Gate and Gate of Supreme Harmony to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, feeling the majesty of imperial power.
Afternoon: Continue through the Forbidden City: the outer-court Three Great Halls, the inner-court Palace of Heavenly Purity and Palace of Earthly Tranquility, then the eastern and western palaces and the Treasure Gallery. Pause in the Imperial Garden under ancient cypresses and listen to the wind in the treetops.
Evening: Climb Jingshan’s Wanchun Pavilion for a night-time panorama of the Forbidden City’s central axis glowing like a golden dragon. Afterwards, grab a “Thousand-Mile-River” latte at the Corner Tower Café, snap a night photo of the turrets, then return to your hotel.

Day 2 Great Wall Pride
Morning: Leave early by car or high-speed rail for Badaling. Arrive before 8 a.m. to beat the crowds. From North Tower Four to North Tower Eight, walk the ancient bricks and feel the pride of “He who has not been to the Great Wall is not a true hero.”
Afternoon: Continue west to North Tower Twelve where few visitors venture; the ridge views open wide. On the way down, stop at the Great Wall Museum to learn about two millennia of construction and frontier defense through dioramas, weapons and story panels.
Evening: Back in the city, head to Quanjude or Dadong for Peking duck. Watch the chef carve the glossy bird tableside, dip crispy skin in sugar, wrap meat in sweet-bean sauce and cucumber, and wash it down with osmanthus wine—your culinary “hero’s coronation.”

Day 3 Old-Beijing Flavor
Morning: Hop on a shared bike from Nanluoguxiang, detour into Yuer Hutong and Mao’er Hutong, stop in a real siheyuan to write the character “Fu” with brush and ink while grandpa explains the art of calligraphy and the cooing of pigeons echoes above gray-tiled roofs.
Afternoon: Switch to Shichahai. Glide in a black-awning boat around Front Lake and Back Lake, admiring weeping willows and wild ducks. Disembark and browse Yandaixie Street’s trinkets—clay rabbit figurines, snuff bottles, goat-hair brushes—soaking in old Beijing street life.
Evening: Catch an authentic Peking Opera performance of “The Drunken Beauty” at Huguang Guild Hall or Mei Lanfang Grand Theatre. After the final flourish, stroll Qianmen Street to see the “Eye of Beijing” neon reflected on wet cobblestones.

Day 4 High-Speed to Chang’an
Morning: Board a G-train at Beijing West; in 4.5 hours the landscape shifts from North-China wheat fields to Loess Plateau gullies. Enjoy a train-version Kung Pao chicken lunch box.
Afternoon: Arrive at Xi’an North, subway to Giant Wild Goose Pagoda. Climb the Tang pagoda for views over Qujiang Pool Heritage Park; inside Da Ci’en Temple, quietly copy a line of the Heart Sutra.
Evening: Taxi to Tang Paradise Ever-Bright City. Neon lights recreate a sleepless Tang capital. Trade couplets with a roaming “Li Bai,” high-five the wobbling “un-tippable” lady, and watch whirling Hu-Xuan dancers.

Day 5 Qin & Tang Splendor
Morning: Drive to Lintong’s Terracotta Army. Follow the 1-2-3 pit route, face thousands of life-size warriors, then linger in the Bronze Chariots hall to admire the Qin “sports-car.”
Afternoon: Move to Huaqing Palace. Climb Mount Li’s “Soldier-Remonstration Pavilion,” gaze over Guanzhong Plain; the Hibiscus and Star-Bathing pools still steam with history. Soak in an outdoor hot spring fed by the same source.
Evening: Back at Huaqing Palace’s Nine-Dragon Lake, take your seat for the open-air “Song of Everlasting Sorrow.” Fire, water, light and live actors retell the love story of Emperor Ming and Yang Guifei against the backdrop of Mount Li.

Day 6 Walls & Snacks
Morning: From Yongning Gate, ascend Xi’an City Wall at 8:30 a.m. Rent a bike and ride the full 13.74 km circuit, looking down on gray-tile courtyards and modern skyscrapers in one frame.
Afternoon: Descend and walk to Bell Tower via the underground tunnel for the viral “tower-through-hole” photo. Climb Drum Tower in time for the thunderous “Evening Drum.”
Evening: Dive into Muslim Quarter. Start on North Guangji Street and nibble your way to North Courtyard Gate: lamb skewers on willow sticks, hand-pulled biang-biang noodles, pita-bread mutton soup, Ice Peak soda, ending with sweet glutinous-rice balls in fermented rice wine.

Day 7 Slow Chengdu
Morning: Xi’an North to Chengdu East in 3 hours by high-speed rail. At Kuanzhai Alley, lunch on tofu-and-pig-intestine noodles so spicy it makes you cry happy tears.
Afternoon: Stroll Kuan Lane’s Qing-era courtyards, sip a hand-drip in Zhai Lane, read the history bricks of Jing Lane; let an ear-cleaning master ring his tuning-fork and “wake up your soul.”
Evening: Hotpot headquarters next to Heming Teahouse in People’s Park. Swish beef tripe seven-up-eight-down in a churning sea of chili, chase with iced soy milk while watching face-changing and fire-spitting Sichuan opera.

Day 8 Taoist Nature & Three Kingdoms Echoes
Morning: Bullet train to Dujiangyan. Stand on Fish-Mouth Divide, cross Anlan Suspension Bridge, hear the Min River roar and grasp 2,000-year-old irrigation genius still watering the “Land of Abundance.”
Afternoon: Route 101 to Qingcheng Front Mountain. Climb the moss-covered steps via Moon City Lake to Upper Clarity Palace and Laojun Pavilion, breathing pine-scented air. Back in town, pay respects at Wuhou Shrine and read the “Memorial on Sending Out the Troops” under red walls and bamboo shadows.
Evening: Jinli Ancient Street at dusk—red lanterns reflected in a canal. Snack on “three-cannon” glutinous balls, bobo chicken skewers, and sticky-rice cakes; buy a flask of bamboo-leaf green tea to carry Chengdu’s aroma home.

Day 9 Spring City Blooms
Morning: Two-hour flight Chengdu to Kunming. Subway to Dianchi’s Haigeng Dam—feed thousands of Siberian red-beaked gulls (Nov–Mar).
Afternoon: Ascend Western Hills Dragon Gate for a panoramic view of Dianchi’s 500 li of blue water. Ride the cable car down and explore Yunnan Nationalities Village—try Dai water-splashing and Yi torch-dance, learn to say “A-ah-cousin” in local tongue.
Evening: At 1903 Park, enjoy Crossing-the-Bridge rice noodles—scalding broth poured tableside over paper-thin pork, chicken, and chrysanthemum petals, finished with rose-papaya water under neon ripples.

Day 10 Stone Forest & Farewell
Morning: 1.5-hour drive to Stone Forest. Wander the Great and Small Stone Forests and Sentry Mountain, where karst pillars rise like stone swords. Pose with the “Ashima” pinnacle while Sani guides recount the legend of the Tiger-Howling Flying Stone.
Afternoon: Visit a Sani village, learn the three-stringed step-dance, taste cured ham and buckwheat cakes. Return to town for Dounan Flower Market—select a bouquet to “bring spring home.”
Evening: Transfer to Kunming Changshui Airport or South Station according to your flight or train, concluding the ten-day Beijing–Xi’an–Chengdu–Kunming grand traverse with memories and petals in hand.

Day 1: First Glimpse of Beijing's Timeless Grandeur

Day 2: Great Wall Pride and Ancient Marvels

Day 3: Old-Beijing Flavor: Hutongs and Traditions

Day 4: High-Speed to Chang’an: Arrival in Xi'an

Day 5: Qin & Tang Splendor: Dynasty Heritage

Day 6: Walls & Snacks: Xi'an’s Culinary Delights

Day 7: Slow Chengdu: Pandas and Leisurely Vibes

Day 8: Taoist Nature & Three Kingdoms Echoes in Chengdu

Day 9: Spring City Blooms: Kunming's Floral Paradise

Day 10: Stone Forest & Farewell to Yunnan's Wonders