Four nights in the imperial capital, two in the city that looks like tomorrow, and a bullet train between them. The Forbidden City, the Great Wall at Mutianyu, and the Bund after dark.
FromUS$510per person, twin share — six nights' hotel with breakfast, and your Great Wall day including the round-trip cable car. Budget separately for flights, the bullet train and most meals. Compare the three hotel tiers
Fly into Beijing Capital (PEK) or Daxing (PKX), and home from Shanghai Pudong (PVG). An open-jaw ticket usually prices close to a return. Tell us your departure city and we will price the flights with the tour.
Confirmation
Tell us your dates and a hotel tier → we confirm both hotels and your Great Wall day within 24 hours → a deposit holds them → vouchers by email before you fly. Departs any day, but see the note about Mondays. Before we confirm we check your dates against anything the itinerary is built round — museums, markets and monuments keep weekly closing days, and we would rather move a day than spend one at a locked gate.
Two things that catch people out in China. First, the Forbidden City caps ticket sales daily, sells only online, and closes on Mondays — tickets are issued against your passport number and cannot be bought at the gate. We will book yours. Second, tell us which passport you hold early, because a Chinese visa is not a last-minute application.
The trip at a glance
Beijing
Days 1–4 · the imperial capital
01
Beijing
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Arrive Beijing AT LEISURE
Into Capital or Daxing. Transfers are not included — the Airport Express from Capital runs to Dongzhimen in about 25 minutes and connects straight to the metro.
Settle in Beijing, then walk Wangfujing, a few minutes from the Forbidden City's east gate.
Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay on day one. Both now take foreign cards, and China runs almost entirely cashless — taxis, noodle stalls, ticket machines. Doing this first makes the whole week easier.
Overnight in Beijing.
02
Beijing
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Tiananmen & the Forbidden City AT LEISURE
Tiananmen Square first — 44 hectares, the largest public square in the world. Bring your passport; there is security screening to enter.
North into the Forbidden City: 980 buildings, home to 24 emperors over five centuries, and the largest surviving wooden palace complex anywhere.
Tickets are capped, sold only online against your passport, and it closes on Mondays. There is no ticket window. We book yours with your dates.
Out of the north gate and straight up Jingshan Park — a hill made from the earth dug out of the palace moat, and the only place you see the whole golden roofscape at once. Best in the last hour of light.
Overnight in Beijing.
Add to this day — approximate gate prices
The Forbidden City¥40 in winterBook ahead¥60 from April to October and ¥40 from November to March, so a winter departure pays the lower one.
Tiananmen SquareFreeFree, but bring your passport — there is a security screening to get in.
Or let us book it — per person, in US dollars
Small group
The Forbidden City with a guide, ticket included
Tiananmen, then the great halls, the inner court and the imperial garden in a small group with the entry booked for you, ending at the north gate.
3 to 4 hours · morning or afternoon departures · meet by Tiananmen
Tell us which you want when you confirm. Gate tickets travel with your documents; anything we book goes into your price at the figure shown, and the voucher comes from us. Prices as at 10 September 2026.
03
Beijing
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The Great Wall at Mutianyu GUIDED
Coach out to Mutianyu, about 70km north — 22 watchtowers along 5.4 restored kilometres, and far quieter than Badaling.
Your admission and the round-trip cable car are both included. That matters: most advertised Great Wall prices cover the bus only, and the cable car is where the real cost hides.
A toboggan runs back down from tower 6 if you want it — a small extra, paid on the day, and genuinely good fun.
Back in Beijing by late afternoon.
Overnight in Beijing.
In your price today — with your guide
Great Wall at Mutianyu — coach from Beijing, admission and the round-trip cable car
04
Beijing
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Temple of Heaven & the hutongs AT LEISURE
Early to the Temple of Heaven — the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests is built entirely without nails, and the surrounding park fills at dawn with tai chi, calligraphy and very serious card games.
The Shichahai hutongs next: grey-brick alleys of courtyard houses around a chain of lakes, and what most of Beijing looked like before the ring roads.
If you still have legs, the Summer Palace — 290 hectares, three quarters lake, with a 728-metre painted corridor.
Overnight in Beijing.
Add to this day — approximate gate prices
Temple of Heaven, combined ticket¥28 in winter¥34 in summer. The combined ticket adds the Hall of Prayer; the park alone is ¥10. Go at dawn for the tai chi.
Summer Palace, through ticket¥50 in winter¥60 in summer. The plain entrance is ¥30 and skips the special attractions — the through ticket is worth it.
The Shichahai hutongsFreeWalk them. The lakes and alleys cost nothing and are the best hour in Beijing.
Or let us book it — per person, in US dollars
Coach day
Temple of Heaven, the Lama Temple and the Summer Palace
The day’s own three sights by coach with a guide and the admissions in the price, so nobody queues for a ticket.
About 8 hours · morning start · meet at the Temple of Heaven east gate
Tell us which you want when you confirm. Gate tickets travel with your documents; anything we book goes into your price at the figure shown, and the voucher comes from us. Prices as at 10 September 2026.
Shanghai
Days 5–7
05
Shanghai
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Beijing → Shanghai AT LEISURE
The G-series high-speed train covers 1,300km in about four and a half hours at up to 350 km/h. Not included — we quote it with your booking.
Into Shanghai, twenty-six million people and the fastest-changing skyline on earth.
Straight to the Bund in the evening — a mile of 1920s banking houses on one bank, the towers of Pudong lit on the other. This is the view you came for.
Overnight in Shanghai.
06
Shanghai
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Yu Garden & the French Concession AT LEISURE
Yu Garden, laid out in 1559 — rockeries, koi ponds and dragon-topped walls, with a bazaar and the zigzag Bridge of Nine Turnings outside. Go early; it fills fast.
Then the French Concession: plane trees, shikumen lanes, 1930s villas, and the best coffee in China. The most walkable district in the city.
Nanjing Road for shopping, or the Shanghai Museum on People's Square, which is free and excellent.
Overnight in Shanghai.
Add to this day — approximate gate prices
Shanghai Tower observation deck¥180The 118th floor, and the third-tallest building in the world. Dearer on public holidays.
Shanghai Museum, People's SquareFreeOne of the best museums in Asia and it costs nothing. Book a free slot online in peak season.
The French ConcessionFreeFree — there is no gate, it is streets.
Or let us book it — per person, in US dollars
Food tour
Eat like a local in the French Concession
Four or more sit-down stops in the old concession with a local guide, the beer and the soft drinks in the price, in a small group.
About 3½ hours · lunchtime or evening · meet at Jiashan Road Station
Tell us which you want when you confirm. Gate tickets travel with your documents; anything we book goes into your price at the figure shown, and the voucher comes from us. Prices as at 10 September 2026.
07
Departure
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Shanghai → onward AT LEISURE
A last breakfast, then out to Pudong.
Take the maglev from Longyang Road — 30km in 8 minutes at up to 300 km/h, the fastest commercial train service anywhere. It costs very little and it is the right way to leave China.
Restaurants worth trying
Breakfast is in the price. Every other meal is yours to choose, so here is where we would eat. We do not arrange any of these and you would pay for them yourself. They are simply places we rate, near where the trip goes. Tick any you like and they appear on the map.
Suggested, not included. Opening hours and prices are theirs, not ours — and a place that is busy at eight will be busy whether or not you booked through us.
Hotels & price
Four nights in Beijing and two in Shanghai, all with breakfast. Beijing is in Dongcheng or by Wangfujing — walking distance to the Forbidden City, which is the point. Shanghai is on or beside the Bund. Every property is independently rated 8.0 or better by recent guests, and chosen so you can walk to what you came to see.
Comfort · 3★
3-star hotel in each city
from US$510 per person · single supplement +US$330
Deluxe · 4★
4-star hotel in each cityFour-star hotels: a clear step up in room and address from Comfort.
from US$665 per person · single supplement +US$445
Luxury · 5★
5-star hotel in each cityFive-star hotels, the top of our list in each city.
from US$960 per person · single supplement +US$665
You will know exactly where you are staying before you pay a balance. We name the property in your confirmation, in writing, as soon as the room is held — and if it is ever unavailable for your dates we substitute at the same tier or better, never below it.
All prices are per person, twin share, in US dollars — the figure on each tab is what you pay us. The tiers differ by hotel only; the touring is identical on all three. These are website estimates — your written quote is confirmed against live availability for your actual dates.
Hotel tier
Per person, twin share
Single supplement
Comfort — 3★, twin share
from US$510
+US$330
Deluxe — 4★, twin share
from US$665
+US$445
Luxury — 5★, twin share
from US$960
+US$665
Seasonal pricing.November to March is low season in both cities and these rates come from it — Beijing in particular is cold, dry and startlingly clear, with the Wall at its most dramatic and least crowded. Avoid Chinese New Year and the National Day golden week of 1–7 October outright: the entire country travels at once, prices spike and every site is full. Spring and autumn are the pleasant seasons and priced accordingly.
Included
4 nights in Beijing and 2 nights in Shanghai with breakfast · the Great Wall day at Mutianyu — return coach from central Beijing, wall admission, and the round-trip cable car · a written self-guided plan for the other days, naming the metro lines, the stations and the fares
Not included
International flights · the Beijing–Shanghai bullet train, excluded and quoted with your booking · airport transfers · Forbidden City admission — small, but it must be pre-booked online against your passport · Temple of Heaven and Summer Palace tickets · the Mutianyu toboggan if you want it · most meals · travel insurance · any visa, though we can arrange it
How the flexi tour works. Choose any departure date and a hotel tier → we confirm availability and the exact price within 24 hours → pay a deposit to hold it → your final documents and vouchers arrive by email a week before you fly. There is no group to join and no fixed departure day.
Start your booking
Tell us who you are and when you want to go.
We’ll reply within 24 hours with the price and what’s available.
A deposit holds it, and comes back in full if we can’t get your dates.
✓
That is with us
If you do not hear from us, email
info@dltravel.net and we will pick it up.
