China, Newest First

Special Notes

A few things on this route follow the calendar, the season or a supplier's confirmation. Here they are, told straight.

• Bookings are not open yet — the remaining items have to be settled first: the four intercity legs booked against the actual fourth-quarter timetable with cabin and seat class named; a written answer from our ground partners on the three fourth-quarter outdoor items below; the national holiday week decision; and written confirmation from our Shenzhen partner on the day-one pickup and the day-three exhibition entry. Until those items are done we take no orders and no deposits. Tell us your dates and we write to you on the day it opens.
• Three outdoor items in the fourth quarter — at Mutianyu, the ticket and the full-day vehicle are included in your price, while the cable car, the open chairlift and the toboggan are not included and are not guaranteed. On the Xi'an City Wall, wall-top access is included in your price, while bicycle hire is not, and walking a section is the standard alternative. On Mount Qingcheng, the mountain ticket and the conversation with the resident priest are included in your price, while whether the tai chi session takes place outdoors or indoors is not fixed in advance. In all three cases, the arrangement for your departure date is stated in writing in your quote before you pay.
• A self-drive taxi ride on day two — a ride on a live commercial route is booked for day two and its cost sits inside your base price. We do not present it as a highlight of this trip, because its availability is not ours to promise: the operator can suspend service on the day and we would learn of it when you do. We book it against your dated itinerary in advance and re-check within 24 hours of your arrival in China. If it is not running, day two gets additional time in Huaqiangbei, or the Shenzhen urban planning exhibition moves up from day three. Both are already in your inclusions, so nothing that was named to you is lost, and no refund or surcharge arises.
• Departure dates — no departures between October 1 and October 7, the national holiday week, until the holiday-week plan and advance ticketing are settled. Saturday departures are not accepted either, because day ten would then fall on a Monday, when the Forbidden City closes; if you are set on a Saturday departure, day ten and day eleven swap places.
• Museum closing days — the Forbidden City closes on Mondays and the itinerary is built around that. For the National Museum of China, the Shanghai Museum and Temple of Heaven we check the closing days against each institution's own published calendar when your departure date is set, rather than assuming them here.
• Timed reservations — the Forbidden City, the National Museum of China and the Shanghai Museum all require a timed reservation, and the booking systems are difficult on a non-mainland phone number. We book all three on a mainland number using the details from your confirmation.
• Getting to Shenzhen — France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece have direct services into Shenzhen. The UK, the Nordic countries, Central Europe, Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand do not, or have only limited services, so guests from those markets reach Shenzhen on a connecting itinerary through a third city, arranged and paid for by the guest. We check that arrival time against day one before we confirm anything.
• Visa window — the 30-day visa-free policy currently runs through December 31, 2026. Because this is a 14-day plan, departures on or before December 18, 2026 finish inside that window; later departure dates are quoted only after the official renewal is announced.
• Not sold to United States guests — two reasons, each sufficient on its own. Shenzhen has no direct service from the United States, so a US guest cannot reach this route's entry port without a connection we do not sell; and the US is not on the 30-day visa-free list, while 14 days is longer than the 10-day visa-free transit policy allows. A US enquiry is answered with an alternative route, not with a workaround on this one. Guests who entered China under the 10-day transit policy cannot take this trip either, for the same length reason, and we say so before payment.
• Group — Private, just your party. From 1 guest. No fixed maximum party size.
• Confirmation and changes — the confirmation-time commitment and the change and refund terms are being finalised with our ground partners. Until they are settled, each quote states in writing its own confirmation deadline and its change and refund conditions. Worth knowing on this route: one domestic flight and three rail legs across five cities means a date change touches transport inventory as well as hotels and reservations.