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Itinerary for China Avatar Tour
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Included meals are indicated as B =
Breakfast, L =Lunch, D = Dinner |
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| 03.11.11 |
Depart Sydney at 9.15am on SQ212,
arriving in Singapore at 2.25pm.
Depart Melbourne at 11.00am on SQ238, arriving in Singapore at 3.45pm.
Depart Brisbane at 2.40pm on SQ236, arriving in Singapore at 8.35pm.
All passengers will be met and transferred to the centrally situated
Peninsular Excelsior Hotel or Equivalent.
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04.11.11
(L,D) |
Early morning
transfer back to Singapore airport, departing at 8.10am on SQ850,
arriving in Guangzhou (Canton) at 12.05pm.
Upon arrival, you are met and transferred to lunch, you are taken to
Beijing Road Pedestrian Street where you can explore this exciting city
or do some shopping as local people do. Tonight enjoy a welcoming
buffet dinner in Si Hai Yi Jia Restaurant. Stay overnight in Shunde. |
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05.11.11
(B,L,D) |
Today we visit the
wonderful Chimlong Safari Park and Chimlong Circus. Covering an area of
130 hectares. Chime-Long Xiangjiang Safari Park is considered the
biggest and best animal theme park in Asia. It is home to over 20,000
animals from 460 species including many rare and endangered species (an
example, 100 white tigers born in this park covers 50% of the whole
amount of this species on earth).
Animals include Giant Pandas, Polar Bears , Australian Koalas,
Norwegian polar bears, Black Rhinoceros, Giant Anteaters, Golden
Monkeys, Malay Tapirs, White Kangaroos, Sierra Leone hippos and a vast
collection of African animals, monkey species, and other Asian animals.
The zoo is divided into 2 main sections a 'Safari on Foot' where guests
walk through enclosed shelters to interact with animals, and a 'Safari
on Wheels' section where guests board road trains and travel through an
impressive open plains with three main areas: an Asian plains, African
Savannah and Predator zone.
At night we will see the Chimlong Safari circus and night show. This is
an amazing show with some of the worlds top circus and acrobatic
performers. It also has the largest number of performers and animals in
the world on stage for this one show. |
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06.11.11
(B,L,D) |
After breakfast we
drive to Panyu and visit Yu Yin Shan Fang. This famous garden was
constructed in 1867. Yuyin Shan Fang has an ingenious layout. The
pavilions, terraces, halls, bridges, lakes and hills are all included,
having been carved into the 300 steps around the garden. The brick
carvings, lime carvings and stone carvings are rich and varied, and
demonstrate Yuyin Shan Fang exquisite style and serving to justify its
reputation as a famous garden. Next we visit the Paoma Garden.
Continue to Guangzhou and visit Yuexiu Park, which is the largest
park in downtown Guangzhou. Covering an area of 212.5 acres, the park
is made up of three artificial lakes and seven hills of Yuexian
Mountain. Yuexiu Park is a perfect combination of cultural relics and
ecological tourism, reputed for its pretty water and hills. An
interesting feature includes the stone sculptures of the Five Rams.
The Five Ram Sculpture is one of the most famous structures in
Guangzhou. It has become the emblem of Guangzhou City.
This is followed by a visit to Zhongshan Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall. It
is really a magnificent building in an octangle shape. It is not
only one of the symbolic constructions in Guangzhou with its majestic
appearance, but it is also an important place for large scale meetings
and performances.
After dinner, transfer to the airport for your flight to Zhangjiajie
with China Southern Airlines. |
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07.11.11
(B,L,D) |
Located in western
Hunan Province, the famous tourist city of
Zhangjiajie is home of China's first forest park 'the Zhangjiajie
National Forest Park' and a World Natural Heritage site Wulingyuan. If
you vist Zhangjiajie, you will see this slogan: 'Pandora is Far
Away, but Zhangjiajie is easy to reach!' If you have seen the
movie 'Avatar, when visiting Zhangjiajie, your memory will be
reminded with the similar scenery of all the pillar-peaks formation.
You can't help exclaiming: 'Wow,was Avatar filmed here?'
The Huanglongdong Cave is the longest one is in Asia; it is an
incomparable realm of gigantic subterranean chambers, fantastic cave
formations, and extraordinary features. The inner recess is divided
into four layers, two dry ones and two possessing waterways. The tally
of natural wonders include; one natural reservoir, 2 underground
rivers, 3 pools, 4 waterfalls, 13 grand halls, 96 passageways and
hundreds of thousands of Stalagmites, columns and Stalactites. A
feature of the tour is an amazing boat ride on the larger underground
river. |
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08.11.11
(B,L,D) |
Today you will
visit Yuanjiajie by Bailong Elevator, Haliluya Floating Mountain and
Tianzi Mountain by cable car. The new cableway on Tianzi Mountain is
2,084 meters long. As the cable car runs across the dizzying peaks,
passengers get a full view of the spectacular landscape that cannot be
enjoyed any other way. Visit Baofeng Lake, enjoy the Lake cruise in the
National Forest Park and the pretty painting view of the mountains,
also challenge the local minority young girl and guy singing mountain
love songs. |
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09.11.11
(B,L,D) |
Visit Ten Mile
Painting Corridor by small train. Continue to visit Jinbianxi Brook
which is located in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park covering a
distance of 7.5km from north to south, winding across mountains and
valleys. The brook is limpid through the year, with many scenic spots
along the way. It is a famous Jinbian Cave, which has a height of 382m
and looks like a huge flying eagle.
Afterwards continue to visit the Shuiraosimen Scenery. Enjoy the
wonderful night show of the Fairy Tale for Woodman and Fox Lover which
is a magnificent outdoor show with mountains as background. The story
tells about a local woodman who falls in love with a fox lover, but
they are forbidden by local people and also the fox family. The show
has a cast of several hundred performers, and the special effects are
spectacular. |
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10.11.11
(B,L,D) |
In the morning,
you are have free time to do some shopping around the local shops.
After an early lunch, transfer to Yichang by bus for about 5 hours.
After dinner, you will board the five star cruise ship for your Yangtze
River cruise. With a rich Chinese cultural heritage of thousands of
years, the Three Gorges is not only a picturesque natural gallery, but
also a spectacular treasure house. |
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11.11.11
(B,L,D) |
This cruise will
depart Yichang Pier at 8.00am, then arrive at Yangjiawan Pier at
11.00am. Next we will see the Three Gorges Dam Project - Shore
Excursion from 2.00 to 5.00pm. The Three Gorges comprise of the
arresting Qutang Gorge (8km), the idyllic Wu Gorge (44km) and the
treacherous Xiling Gorge (66km).
Between the Three Gorges lay the wide valleys of Daning River and
Fragrant Stream. |
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12.11.11
(B,L,D) |
Today we pass
Xiling Gorge - West Part, which is renowned for being extremely
perilous and is the longest one of the Three Gorges. The water is full
of turbulent currents and whirlpools and dangerous shoals. Transfer to
smaller boats to see the Shannogxi Stream. In the afternoon, we will
pass Wu Gorge. The Wu Gorge boasts the most immediately beautiful and
spectacular scenery of the Three Gorges. Then we will pass Qutang Gorge
around 5.00pm. Although Qutang Gorge is the smallest among the Three
Gorges, it is actually the most powerful one and the water here flows
most rapidly at this spot. |
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13.11.11
(B,L,D) |
Fengdu is
traditionally known as the town of ghosts. Upon the Mingshan Hill above
the river is a temple with a number of halls and statues of ghosts and
devils. There is also a park with displays of the imagined lives in
hell. It is considered that all people's ghost, of whatever
nationality, will come to Fengdu after death. Today your on shore
excursion will visit the Fengdu Ghost City. |
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14.11.11
(B,L,D) |
The cruiser
arrives at its destination - Chongqing. Pay a visit to Panda House in
Chongqing Zoo to see the cute Pandas. Also included today are visit s
to the Second World War Museum, Erling Park, Stilwell Museum, and the
People's Hall. |
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15.11.11
(B,L,D) |
We visit Dazu
County, 162km northwest of Chongqing, is very popular for its stone
carving Buddha Statues - more than 100 locations and 100,000 statues.
These sculptures are a mixture of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism.
Two of the most noted: Beishan (Northern Hill) and Baodingshan
(Treasured Peak Mountain), listed by UNESCO in 1999 as 'the World
Cultural Heritage'. The first statue was created in late Tang Dynasty
(9 Cenury), with more than 10,000 statues. Baodingshan (Treasure Peak
Mountain) is 15km to the Northeast of the city, first sculpted in South
Dynasty (1179-1249). Centered at Dafowan, nearly 10,000 Buddha statues
are displayed along a 400 long U shape hill ridge, like a great picture
roll unfolding before your eyes!. Among these sculptures, you can see
the 31 meter-high Nirvana of Sakyamuni, the 88 meter-high 'Huayan Three
Buddhist Images' as well as the ordinary secular sculptures like 'the
girl flute player','the girl chicken raiser' and so on. All these stone
sculptures are well structured and vividly made. |
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16.11.11
(B,L,D) |
We visit Panda
base and Wuhou Memorial Temple. The giant pandas are not only a Chinese
national treasure but are also beloved by people the world over. They
are found only in Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces. In total there
are fewer than 1000, of which 80% are distributed within the territory
of Sichuan province. Therefore, when visitors from home and abroad come
to Chengdu, Sichuan Province one of their main objectives will be to
see the giant pandas for themselves.
Located just 10km away from downtown Chengdu, the Chengdu Panda
Breeding Research Center has been created and imitated the pandas'
natural habitat in order that they might have the best possible
environment for rearing and breeding. The Center cares also for other
rare and endangered wild animals. The Research Center covers an area of
92 acres. Giant pandas, lesser pandas, black-necked cranes, white
storks as well as over 20 species of rare animals are fed and bred
there throughout the year. Verdant bamboo, bright flowers, fresh air, a
natural hill scene and a beautiful artificial view are merged
ingeniously at the base.
In the evening enjoy a Changing Mask Show Sichuan Opera. |
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17.11.11
(B,L,D) |
Today you will
visit Tomb of Wang Jian, Jinli Lu Street, Tea House and Jinli Old
Street. |
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18.11.11
(B,L) |
This morning we
visit Jinsha Ruins and Museum. The Jinsha Ruins were discovered by
accident on February 8 2001, several builders were working at a
construction site in Jinsha Village. Suddenly they found ivory and jade
were amidst the mud dug out by two excavations. Since the
archaeologists have excavated more than 1000 precious artifacts made of
gold, jade, bronze and stone and nearly one ton of ivory in Jinsha
Village in the western suburbs of Dhengdu. Most of these pieces date
back some 3000 years.
After lunch transfer to Chengdu airport, departing at 4.05pm on Silk
air flight MI 933, arriving in Singapore at 9.10pm. |
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| 19.11.11 |
Brisbane
passengers depart Singapore at 12.45am on SQ255, arriving in Brisbane
at 10.00am.
Sydney passengers depart Singapore at 12.45am on SQ 231, arriving in
Sydney at 11.35am
Melbourne passengers depart Singapore at 12.45am on SQ 237, arriving in
Melbourne at 11.10am.
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| Note:
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This tour entails
a fair amount of walking and steps so a reasonable degree of physical
fitness is required. However it is well worth the effort! |