YunNan Children Reunion Heritage Tour

Yunnan province has the highest number of minority nationalities in China, with 25 ethnic groups, making for a culturally diverse population. Yunnan also has a diverse topography with mountains, snow capped glaciers, valleys, and beautiful farmland. Kunming, the capital city of Yunnan, is known as the Spring City for its spring-like climate all year round with its constantly blooming gardens. In the Stone Forest, you will see stones formed by millions of years of weathering and will definitely be amazed by the spectacular views. Lijiang is a UNESCO world heritage site and center of the Naxi minority culture. Its ancient city—Dayanzhen is a town carefully laid out around a central square with small cobblestone streets and lanes radiating out in all directions. It’s a perfect place to stay away from the bustling activities at metropolitan cities. Come to Yunnan with its thousands of years old cultures living side by side together.

Itinerary

Day 1: US/Beijing

accommodations: n/a

meals: n/a

Begin your YunNan Children Reunion Heritage Tour today when you depart from the US gateway city for Beijing.

Day 2: Beijing

accommodations: Deluxe Hotel

meals: n/a

Arrive at the Beijing International Airport. Your private English-speaking guide and driver will bring you to the hotel upon your arrival. Have a good rest tonight and soak in the arrival to your child’s birth country while you adjust to your new time zone and surroundings.

Day 3: Beijing

accommodations: Deluxe Hotel

meals: B/L

Begin your day with a tour at the Forbidden City. Listed as a world heritage site in 1987, the Forbidden City contains the largest group of intact palace structures in the world. The palace is 720,000 square meters in size and contains 9,999 rooms, numerous pavilions, gardens and courtyards. Then visit the Tiananmen Square. Noted as the largest city square in the world, the square was initially designed for political rallies and important gala events. Today the square is flanked by the Forbidden City in the north, the Great Hall of the People in the west, Mao TseTung’s Mausoleum in the south and the Museum of Chinese Revolution and the Museum of Chinese History in the east. This afternoon, stop by at the major 2008 Olympic Venues including the National Stadiums – “Bird's Nest”, the National Aquatics Center – “Watercube” on the way to the imperial gardens of the Summer Palace. The palace was originally built in 1750 and was rebuilt in 1886. Located in the western outskirts of the city, the Summer Palace is the leading classical garden in China and a UNESCO world heritage site.

Day 4: Beijing

accommodations: Deluxe Hotel

meals: B/L

Visit the UNESCO world heritage site today. Begin your day with a tour at the MuTianYu section of the Great Wall. Constructed more than 2,000 years ago by China’s first emperor, the ancient wall is the world’s longest man-made structure at approximately 4,000 miles in length.

Day 5: Beijing/Xian

accommodations: Overnight Express Train

meals: B/L/D

Explore the fascinating Hutong neighborhoods. Beijing’s oldest Hutongs were constructed during the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. Your tour will take you through some of the best-preserved Hutong neighborhoods, which represented the history, culture and lifestyle of old Beijing. After a special homemade lunch at a local family residence in the Hutong Lane area, your family can learn how to make your own kites under professional instructions, and then fly your handmade kites with others at the Temple of Hea ven which is China’s largest temple and altar. It is often regarded as the most recognizable symbol of China.
Early this evening, get onboard a luxury express train for your overnight journey to Xian.

Day 6: Xian

accommodations: Deluxe Hotel

meals: B/L

Arrive early this morning in China's ancient capital city of Xian. Known as ChangAn in ancient times, Xian was the capital city of China for 1,062 years (13 dynasties and under the reign of 73 different emperors); visit the Shaanxi Provincial History Museum for an in-depth look at China’s extensive history with more than 2,000 items on exhibit. In the afternoon, get on top the 950-year-old city wall and ride a bike; be sure to enjoy the panoramic view of the city. Built during the early Ming Dynasty with a core of mud covered by three layers of bricks, it is the only city wall that remained intact in China today.

Day 7: Xian

accommodations: Deluxe Hotel

meals: B/L

Embark on an amazing historical and cultural adventure today and begin with an exploration at the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum, where you will find lifelike terracotta soldiers, horses, chariots and weapons created more than 2,000 years ago to guard the first emperor’s tomb. Their vibrant painted details worn away during weathering, thus revealing their original earthy color. Learn to make JiaoZi (traditional Chinese dumplings) in a local restaurant and have JiaoZi lunch there. This evening, relax and unwind. Enjoy recording your experiences of the day in a journal or just lounging in your fine hotel room.

Day 8: Xian/Chengdu

accommodations: Deluxe Hotel

meals: B/L

You will fly to Chengdu from Xian today. Visit the SiChuan Embroidery Research Institute in afternoon.

Day 9: Chengdu

accommodations: Deluxe Hotel

meals: B/L

Embark on an extraordinary journey to the Panda Breeding Research Base this morning. A professional panda caregiver will give you a brief insight of the panda research findings and everyone will have the rare opportunity to hold and hug a baby panda; something everyone in the family is sure to enjoy. After lunch, visit the fascinating SanXingDui Museum. Little is known about the mysterious beliefs of the SanSingDui, yet visitors can gain a sense of the culture through intriguing displays of ancient and rare artifacts used in daily life and religious ceremonies.

Day 10: Chengdu/Guilin

accommodations: Guilin Ming Garden Apartment Suites

meals: B/L/D

Your local English-speaking tour guide and driver will meet you at the hotel lobby and bring you to the airport for your flight to Guilin. After lunch, explore the Reed Flute Caves. Enjoy the gorgeous views of beautiful backdrops created by the cool atmosphere and colorful lighting displays inside the caves as you pass by many fanciful shapes (don’t forget to look for the Monkey King). Visit the Duxi Peak for the Art Gallery in the GuangXi Normal University where where your family can learn the basic techniques of Chinese calligraphy and landscape painting; certainly a fun activity for both adults and children.
Tonight you will stay at the Ming Garden Apartment Suites, which is located within the local Chinese residents’ apartment complexes. Each unit is decorated in the Ming Dynasty Style with beautiful Ming furniture, an air-conditioning/heating unit, a private western-style bath, a kitchen equipped with microwave, refrigerator and cooking utensils; free Internet access, television and telephone. The apartment units are rated above five-stars standard and guests can also enjoy free late checkouts until 6:00 p.m. (all hotels request checkouts before 12:00 noon). All guests will have the rare chance to live among local residents within the same apartment complex. We can even arrange an assistant to make traditional Chinese meals for your family.

Day 11: Guilin/Yangshuo/Guilin

accommodations: Guilin Ming Garden Apartment Suites

meals: B/L/D

After breakfast, embark on a Li River scenic cruise and enjoy a delicious lunch onboard. The landscape of Guilin is noted as the most gorgeous in China, with sparkling clear waters and magnificent green hills; you will see fishermen fishing with their trained cormorant birds occasionally as well. Your children will be excited to watch water buffalos either grazing along the riverbanks or taking lazy afternoon swims. Visit the ShiWaiTaoYuan water garden on the way back to Guilin from Yangshuo.

Day 12: Guilin/KunMing

accommodations: n/a

meals: B

Depart Guilin and travel to KunMing for an orphanage visit. Lotus guides will sensitively and carefully assist your family as you embark on this most meaningful portion of your return trip. On this initial day of the city visit, one can spend time strolling the area and absorbing a sense of the city and locale.

Day 13: YunNan Province

accommodations: n/a

meals: n/a

Your orphanage visitation typically includes a lunch meeting with the orphanage director and staff. If your family wishes to be in touch with the foster family, Lotus can also arrange a time for you to reunite if contact information is available. After lunch, you may explore your child’s finding site. Record the day’s events in your journal or just relax with your family this evening.

Day 14: KunMing/Guangzhou

accommodations: Guangzhou White Swan Hotel

meals: n/a

Take some final glimpses around your child’s province to capture your special memories. At late afternoon, depart for Guangzhou by air.

Day 15: Guangzhou

accommodations: Guangzhou White Swan Hotel

meals: B/L

After breakfast, tour around Shamian Island: stop at the medical clinic where adoption medical exams are conducted and visit the photo shop where your child’s visa photo was taken. In the afternoon, take another trip down memory lane when you visit the American Consulate. Your guide will then escort you to a local park where you can linger and relax while enjoying a story-time of traditional Chinese folktales to deepen your understanding of the rich cultural heritage of your child.

Day 16: Guangzhou/US

accommodations: n/a

meals: B

Please meet your private English-speaking tour guide and driver at the hotel lobby and travel to the Guangzhou New Bai Yun Airport for your international flight back to the United States. Cross the International Dateline and arrive home on the same day.

Inclusions

Beijing/Xian soft sleeper train tickets.
Airfare between Xian/Chengdu/Guilin.
Airport/hotel/airport (or train station) transfer as listed on itinerary.
All listed sightseeing and tour programs with private English-speaking tour guide and private van or bus with driver.
Hotels and meals as stipulated on itinerary.
All prices are quoted in US Dollars and are subject to change without notice. Please check at time of booking.
All prices are quoted per person based on two people sharing a room (double occupancy). Single supplement applies for single travelers.

Exclusions

US/Beijing, Guangzhou/US international airfare. Please contact us for discount international airfare starting from your hometown.
Passport and/or China Visa Fees
Some meals
Tips to guides and drivers
Expenses of a personal nature
Provincial Civil Affair Bureau orphanage visit filing fee
Side trips to the designated provinces on Day 12-14 and the airfare between Guilin - KunMing – Guangzhou which can be arranged by us for an additional cost.
The cost of holding the panda and taking a picture is additional to the entry fee. The costs are USD185.00/per person for holding a baby panda. Although the Pandas are cute and adorable, they may inflict accidental injuries in their playful nature.

Important Remarks

For changes to the scheduled tour, please contact us for a price quote.
All prices are quoted in US dollars, per person, based on two people sharing a room (double occupancy)
A child has to be 11 years old or under on the last day of the tour to receive a discount.
Twin beds in China hotels, about 50 inches wide, are closer in width to the 54" double size beds in the U.S., and much wider than the 39 inches wide twin beds found in U.S. homes.
A soft sleeper train compartment is equipped with two bunk beds and sleeps four. If there are less than four people in your party, Lotus Travel highly recommends purchasing the extra seats in the compartment to ensure privacy.
If your itinerary states "free time" or "free day", no activities would be planned for you and your English-speaking tour guide and driver would not be present.
Lotus Travel highly recommends clients to purchase travel insurance. The Travel Plus Plan, offered by the Travelex Insurance Company, has excellent travel benefits and children 15 and under are free of charge when traveling with an adult.
A Chinese visa issued at the Chinese Consulate in Los Angeles is good for 6 months. We recommend applying for travel visas at least two months before your departure. For detailed information, please visit the Web page at http://www.lotustours.net/promo/visas/index.shtml
Lotus Travel offers a very affordable cell phone rental package to help you stay in touch with families while in China. Please contact our cell phone rental specialist Theresa for more details.
A $500.00 per person non-refundable deposit is due at the time of registration.
Balance is due 60 days before departure.