11 Days family tour Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin and Shanghai

This morning we take you to one of ancient China's most sacred sites, the majestic Temple of Heaven used by the Emperor as a place to mediate affairs between God and man. The Temple of Heaven is one of the best places to fly a kite! Each child will be given a Chinese kite, shaped like butterflies, dragons or phoenixes.

Then strolling across the impressive Tiananmen Square, an authoritative symbol of today's China, you will be awed by the majesty of the magnificent Forbidden City.

During dinner, you will be treated to a private performance of shadow puppetry, one of China’s oldest performance arts.

For shoppers, Beijing's largest open-air market will come close to paradise. Here you will mingle with Beijingers, overseas and local art dealers, and farmers who import goods from the countryside. For non-shoppers, this market can be thought of as China's largest museum of modern cultural life, where you can see, talk to, and photograph a wide range of local and regional Chinese conducting business. The children will be taken to have do Beijing Oprea face painting and they will be photographed wearing their work!

In the afternoon, we will visit theMutianyu Great Wall which has fascinated generations of travelers.

We begin the day with a visit to the delightful Summer Palace, a retreat built exclusively for the Dowager Empress Cixi. At the Summer Palace, you will glide along the lake on a traditional dragon boat.

We continue the day with a visit to Beijing's historic and intimate alleyways (or Hutong). During a rickshaw tour of Beijing's old quarter, you will be afforded a great insight into the everyday life of Beijingers.

This morning we will visit the Beijing Zoo where you will get a chance to see the famous giant panda.

In the afternoon, we fly to Xi'an, where in the evening you will enjoy a private dumpling-making and noodle throwing lesson.

This morning we visit Xi'an's most stunning Terracotta Warriors.

Afterwards you will be taken to the City Wall where you will be able to rent bicycles to ride atop the wall itself. In the early evening we fly to Guilin, whose beautiful countryside will soothe you of your urban cares. Craggy limestone towers, their caves appearing like windows in a sheen of vegetation, overlook lush plains of rice fields and fruit orchards.

The day begins with a ride on traditional bamboo rafts along a less visited stretch of the Li River. Children swim in the rippling waters, lined with overhanging clumps of bamboo. Local farmers rake the riverbed for reeds to give to their wives to dry out and weave. Fishermen click signals to their cormorants as they hunt the river bottom for fish.

After lunch, You will visit a local village, watch villagers prepare soy milk and tofu, and wander through the rice fields. The children will also have a brief lesson from the local kids in the art of the traditional Chinese lion dance if they want! This is a wonderful place to relax and really enjoy rural China.

This morning you will visit The Reed Flute Cave and Elephant-trunk Hill.

In the afternoon, we fly to Shanghai. Considered to be the most Western of Chinese cities last century. Upon arrival transfer to your hotel in downtown. Having advised you of Shanghai's best restaurant and bars, we will help make any reservations that you might require for this evening of fun. The rest of the day is free at your own lesuire.

Today we take you to visit the Shanghai Museum, one of the most modern in the country. Arranged by category rather than according to a chronology, its collection introduces and elucidates the gamut of Chinese arts from ceramics to jade and ivory carvings to paintings.

In the afternoon you will be taken to the Shanghai Children’s Palace where gifted Chinese children spend their afternoons learning to sing, play musical instruments and dance. (Please note that availability and visiting times will have to be reconfirmed closer to date.)

After dinner you will enjoy a great Acrobatic Show.

This morning we take you to visit the Yu Gardens, one of the best examples of traditional Chinese garden design in the country. Afterwards, you will have some time to stroll through Shanghai's Old Quarter.

En route to lunch, we will travel along sycamore-lined boulevards into the heart of the French Concession. This section of the “Paris of the Orient” now hosts many arts-based businesses and art galleries that we can visit if you so desire. The afternoon will be spent discovering some of Shanghai’s great shopping treasures in trendy neighborhoods.

Our farewell dinner takes place at our favorite Shanghai restaurant, boasting a magnificent view over the Bund and Pudong waterfronts.

Today is free of leisure till it is time to be transferred to the airport in time for your return flight home.