China Family Holiday: Pandas, Palaces, Warriors & Great Wall

Welcome to Beijing!

Your guide will meet you at Beijing Capital (PEK) or Daxing (PKX) airport with a sign, and take your family straight to your hotel downtown. The rest of the day is free. You can settle in, take a walk around the neighbourhood, or just rest up before the adventure starts tomorrow.

Dinner Ideas (Family-Friendly, Not Spicy)

• Dong Lai Shun: classic Beijing mutton hot pot.
• Huguosi Snack Street: try Lvdagun (rolling donkey cake), Douzhi (fermented mung bean milk), and Miancha (flour tea).

Evening Ideas

• Liyuan Theatre: a good introduction to Beijing Opera for kids, with colourful costumes and English subtitles.
• Houhai Lake: a relaxed walk around the lake for a first taste of local life.

Morning
Start at Tian’anmen Square, the symbolic heart of modern China. It is a good spot for your first family photo, with the Tian’anmen Gate as a backdrop.

From there, walk through the Meridian Gate into the Forbidden City. Rather than a straight history lecture, we turn this into a bit of a scavenger hunt, spotting architectural details and hidden bronze lions as you go. Explore the Hall of Supreme Harmony and the Imperial Garden, while your guide shares stories about the young emperors who once lived here to keep the kids engaged.

A short 10-minute walk brings you up to Jingshan Park. From the Wanchun Pavilion, you get a full view over the Forbidden City’s rooftops, giving the whole family a sense of just how vast the palace really is.

Afternoon
Take a rickshaw ride through the Shichahai area, one of the best-preserved historic neighbourhoods in central Beijing. You’ll pass old courtyard homes, the Yinding Bridge, and the lively bar streets nearby.

Visit a local Hutong family and hear firsthand what daily life is like here, how traditions get passed down, and how the neighbourhood has adapted over generations.

Afterward, kids (and adults!) can try a hands-on workshop, choosing from Chinese calligraphy, Peking Opera mask painting, or traditional paper-cutting.

(Workshop fees vary by activity. Please let us know your preferences in advance.)

Morning
Visit the Temple of Heaven, a UNESCO World Heritage Site where 22 emperors once came to pray for good harvests. As you walk through the park, you’ll likely see locals practicing Tai Chi or playing traditional music, a nice slice of everyday Beijing life.

(Interested in a short Tai Chi lesson with a local instructor? Just let us know in advance.)

Inside, look for the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests and its triple-eaved blue roof, along with the Echo Wall and Triple Sound Stones, both known for their unusual acoustics.

Afternoon
Drive about 1.5–2 hours to the Mutianyu Great Wall, one of the best-preserved sections, known for its 23 watchtowers and quieter paths compared to other parts of the wall.

Recommended route: chairlift up, walk the eastern route, toboggan down. Take the chairlift to the 6th watchtower and hike toward Watchtower No. 4 and No. 1, both good spots for family photos. Then finish with a 1,580-metre toboggan ride down, you control the speed yourself.

(Note: children under 10, or below the minimum height requirement, need to ride with an adult.)

Alternative for families with seniors or young children: a fully enclosed cable car covers the western route instead, just let us know if you’d prefer this option.

Optional Dinner
Round out the day with a Peking Duck dinner, the crispy skin and the process of wrapping it yourself in a thin pancake tends to be a hit with kids.

Morning
Your driver will take you to the station for the high-speed train to Xi’an (around 4–4.5 hours), a comfortable stretch to relax or watch the scenery change. Your local guide will meet you on arrival and take you to your hotel.

Evening (Optional): Hanfu Experience & Grand Tang Everbright City
After a short rest, head out for the evening. Try on traditional Hanfu or Tang-style clothing, then once the lights come on (around 7:30pm), walk through this open-air recreation of Tang-dynasty Xi’an. Tang-style performers and a musical fountain show round out the evening, which is good for photos too.

Morning
Drive about an hour to the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum. For kids, this often turns into a kind of giant historical puzzle, spotting the different facial expressions, hairstyles, and even the tread patterns on the soldiers’ shoes. We’ll guide you to the best viewpoints in Pit 1 to take in the full scale with fewer crowds.

DIY Mini-Warrior Workshop
Near the museum, join a hands-on workshop where kids can mold their own miniature terracotta warrior using traditional techniques, pressing clay into molds and carving in details, and take home something they made themselves.

Afternoon
Back in downtown Xi’an, visit the Ancient City Wall that is 14 kilometres long and the most complete of its kind anywhere. Standing 12 metres high and free of traffic, it’s a good open space for kids to move around while the rest of the family takes in the view between old and new Xi’an.

(Optional cycling: kids 8+ can ride their own bike; younger children can ride tandem with a parent. A 45-minute half-loop is usually the right length for families.)

Continue into the Muslim Quarter for its food stalls, colourful shops, and general buzz.

(Optional: a shadow puppet show at Gao’s Grand Courtyard which is a traditional Ming-style garden setting with leather puppets and live music telling old folk legends, a nice low-key break for younger kids.)

Morning
Board the high-speed train to Chengdu (around 3.5–4 hours). Your local guide will meet you at the station and take you to your hotel downtown, with the rest of the day free.

Free Time Ideas
Wander Kuanzhai Alley, lined with old Chengdu architecture and plenty of panda-themed shops. You’ll know you’ve arrived in panda territory. It is a good spot for a coffee break too.

Optional Dinner: Chengdu Hot Pot
For families, we’d recommend a “Yuan-Yang” twin-flavour pot, mild broth on one side for the kids, spicy Sichuan broth on the other for the adventurous.

Morning
An early start today and first stop is the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. Watch giant pandas lounging in the bamboo and red pandas roaming the trees. Kids especially enjoy the “Panda Kindergarten,” where the cubs tumble around.

(Tip: the base’s star panda, He Hua, draws long queues, often 1–2 hours. If the wait’s too much for younger kids, Swan Lake or the Panda Museum are good, quieter alternatives.)

Afternoon
Head to Chunxi Road and look up at the IFS Building for the well-known Climbing Panda sculpture that is a fun, slightly odd photo opportunity, and a good glimpse of Chengdu’s more modern side.

Spend some time at Renmin Park, where the city’s slower pace really shows. Sit in a traditional teahouse with a cup of jasmine tea while the family watches the local mahjong games unfold nearby.

(Optional: try a traditional ear-cleaning service, a genuine local specialty, or just enjoy the atmosphere around the park’s “matchmaking corner.”)

Evening
Finish the day at Jinli Old Street, lit up with red lanterns and old wooden buildings. Watch a Sichuan Opera performance, including the well-known face-changing act, and look out for sugar-blowing artisans crafting edible animal shapes along the street, a good note to end the day on, with snacks and souvenirs both close at hand.

Morning
Your driver will take you to the airport for your flight to Shanghai (around 2.5 hours).

Afternoon
Your guide will meet you on arrival and take you to your hotel. Take the afternoon to settle in or explore nearby streets.

Optional Evening: Shanghai Circus World
If you’re up for a lively evening, the ERA – Intersection of Time acrobatics show is worth considering.

Morning
Start at the Shanghai Museum. For kids, we focus on the Ancient Bronze Gallery, home to the Da Ke Ding that is a 3,000-year-old bronze vessel covered in intricate patterns and inscriptions.

From there, head up Shanghai Tower. Take the elevator to the 118th-floor observation deck for a wide view over the Huangpu River that is a genuinely impressive perspective for kids and adults alike.

Afternoon
Cross the river to Yu Garden, a Ming-dynasty garden where kids enjoy navigating the Nine-Turn Bridge, designed (according to local tradition) to confuse ghosts, who can only walk in straight lines.

Continue into the Yuyuan Bazaar for a xiaolongbao (soup dumpling) lunch, the trick is to sip the soup first before biting in, which kids usually find entertaining.

Head to Wukang Road, in the old French Concession, for a break from the skyscrapers. Take a photo at Wukang Mansion, shaped like a ship anchored at the corner, then browse the boutiques or grab some gelato in this quieter, tree-lined part of the city.

Evening
End with a walk along The Bund as the sun sets and the lights come on, colonial-era buildings on one side, the glowing Pudong skyline on the other. A relaxed way to close out your last full day.

Enjoy a final, relaxed breakfast at your hotel. Depending on your flight schedule, your driver will meet you in the lobby and take care of a smooth transfer to the airport.