European Homeland Heritage Tour D

Enjoy shopping and modern exploration in Hong Kong, relax in scenic spots in Guilin and Yangshuo, and then start your meaningful trip to orphanage visit, which can be customized according to your preferences. After such wonderful experience, travel to Shanghai and Suzhou for even more! Shanghai, known as Pearl of the East, is a modern metropolis and the financial center of China, while Suzhou is very famous for its fine gardens and embroidery. Join us and enjoy the beauty!

Itinerary

Day 1: Depart for Hong Kong En Route
accommodations: n/a
meals: n/a
Take flight to Hong Kong.
Day 2: Hong Kong
accommodations: Salisbury Hotel
meals: n/a
Arrive in Hong Kong. Take taxi to hotel on your own.
Day 3: Hong Kong
accommodations: Salisbury Hotel
meals: D
Have a sightseeing of Victoria Peak, Stanley Market, Repulse Bay and Aberdeen. In the evening, enjoy Pearl’s Harbor Cruise with buffet dinner.
Day 4: Hong Kong/Guilin
accommodations: Guilin Ming Garden Apartment
meals: B/L
Free activity on your own. Take taxi to airport.
Hong Kong/Guilin   by air 
Your English-speaking tour guide and driver will transfer you to hotel.
Day 5: Guilin
accommodations: Guilin Ming Garden Apartment
meals: B/L
After breakfast, visit to the Reed Flute Caves (Ludi Yan). Inside the caves, the cool atmosphere and colorful lighting displays provide a beautiful backdrop as you pass by many fanciful shapes (don’t forget to look for the Monkey King). In the afternoon, visit Children’s Palace or the art gallery under Duxiu Peak where you can learn the basic techniques used for centuries to create Chinese calligraphy and landscape painting, making this a fun activity for all.
Day 6: Guilin/Yangshuo
accommodations: Yangshuo New West Street Hotel
meals: B/L
Enjoy Li River Cruise. The landscape surrounding Guilin is noted as being the most beautiful in China with sparkling clear waters, magnificent green hills, and the occasional fisherman fishing with his trained cormorant birds. Your children will be excited to watch for water buffalo either grazing along the riverbanks, or perhaps taking a lazy afternoon swim. Arrive in Yangshuo this afternoon and check into your hotel. The day of balance is free activity on your own.
Day 7: Yangshuo
accommodations: Yangshuo New West Street Hotel
meals: B/L
Enjoy bike riding in Yangshuo.
Day 8: Yangshuo/Guilin/Province
accommodations: Deluxe Hotel
meals: B/L
Travel to the capital city of the designated province 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 9: Province
accommodations: Deluxe Hotel
meals: B/L
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 10: Province/Shanghai
accommodations: Holiday Inn Vista
meals: B/L
This morning take some final glimpses around your child's province to capture your special memories. Then depart for Shanghai.
Day 11: Shanghai
accommodations: Holiday Inn Vista
meals: B/L
Begin your adventure with a relaxing walk along the Bund near the Huang Pu River. Then visit the Yu Yuan Garden and enjoy its intricately designed pathways, pavilions, koi stocked pools and quiet courtyards; then pass by the shops and restaurants in YuYuan Bazaar on your way to lunch. In the afternoon, visit the Jade Buddha (Yufo) Temple. As you enter the temple grounds, you might hear prayers of the monks and glimpse the smoke of incense curling toward the sky.
Day 12: Shanghai/Suzhou
accommodations: Suzhou Bamboo Grove Hotel
meals: B/L
Shanghai/Suzhou    by train
Tour the Master of Nets Garden (WangShi Yuan), perhaps SuZhou’s finest garden. This afternoon visit the Embroidery Research Institute. As one of the four major schools of Chinese embroidery, SuZhou embroidery has a history of more than 2,000 years. You will have the opportunity to observe and purchase the delicate work of the artists as they embroider on silk in intricate patterns. 
Day 13: Suzhou/Shanghai
accommodations: Holiday Inn Vista
meals: B/L
Explore the Humble Administrator’s Garden (ZhuoZheng Yuan) located at the Loumen Gate of SuZhou and regarded as one of the four major gardens in all of China. Continue on to the Taoist Temple of Mystery (XuanMiao Guan), founded in the third century AD. Return to Shanghai by train.
Suzhou/Shanghai    by train
Day 14: Leave Shanghai
accommodations: n/a
meals: B
Meet your private English-speaking tour guide and driver at the hotel lobby and transfer to the airport for your flight back home.

You may extend your tour to visit other cities in China, such as your child’s birthplace.

Inclusions

  • Hong Kong/Guilin air ticket
  • Shanghai/Suzhou/Shanghai train ticket
  • Airport (or bus station) /hotel/airport (or bus station) transfer as listed in 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 in itinerary. (B = Breakfast, L = lunch, D = Dinner)

Exclusions

  • International Airfare. [Airlines have not released price or renew contract for 2009].
  • Side trips to the designated provinces on Day 8-10 and the airfare of Guilin - province city – Shanghai which can be arranged with extra cost by us
  • Orphanage visit filing fee to the Provincial Civil Affair Bureau.
  • 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
  • Some meals.
  • Tipping to tour guide and driver.
  • Chinese visa.
  • Expenses of a personal nature.

Terms and Conditions:

  • Deposit: 20 percent of the total tour cost deposit is due at the time of registration
  • Balance: Balance is due 60 days before departure
  • Terms & Conditions: Our terms and conditions are listed on

    Lotus Travel Terms and Conditions

Remark:

  • To qualify for a child discount, a child has to be under 12 year old on last day of tour.
  • In China, a child over 3’10” tall is charged adult fare for admission tickets, transportation fare (except for airfare) and meals in restaurant. Lotus Travel’s assumes all children under 12 years old to be under the height of 3’10” and quotes you a child’s fee. If your child exceeds this height limit, you might be asked to pay for transportation fare and admission ticket difference by your tour guide while in China.
  • 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 state “free time” or “free day”, no activities will be planned for you, neither will you have a tour guide or driver.
  • It might be worthwhile purchasing travel insurance; the Travelex plans we recommend covers children under 16 for free with an adult coverage. Please see attached document for detail.
  • A Chinese visa is good for 3 months only. We can apply about 2 months before your departure. If you want our service, a regular visa-processing fee is $100, which include consulate application fee and express mail fee.
  • Lotus Travel offers a very affordable cell phone rental package to help you stay in touch with families while in China. Please contact us for detail.