China's Imperial Route: Beijing, Luoyang and Xi'an

Meet the local representative at Beijing International Airport and transfer to the city-centre hotel. After check-in, keep the day free to rest or begin exploring Beijing independently. If timing and energy allow, arrange your own visit to Universal Studios Beijing or choose another nearby attraction, with transport and admission handled separately.

Enter the Forbidden City, built from 1406 to 1420 and used by 14 Ming and 10 Qing emperors. Pass through ceremonial gates, courtyards and throne halls before continuing to the UNESCO-listed Temple of Heaven. Its ritual buildings and ordered spaces reflect the state ceremonies once performed for a good harvest. In the evening, gather for a Peking duck dinner served with thin pancakes, vegetables and fragrant sauce.

Travel beyond Beijing to a scenic mountain section of the Great Wall. Walk along its battlements and fortified passages as the structure crosses the ridges, then have lunch at a nearby restaurant serving northern Chinese dishes. Continue to the railway station for the high-speed train to Luoyang. Meet the local guide on arrival and transfer to the hotel, with the evening free to settle in.

Visit the UNESCO-listed monuments of Dengfeng at the foot of Mount Song. Explore Shaolin Temple and the Pagoda Forest, a memorial group of masonry pagodas linked to generations of senior monks. Watch the scheduled martial-arts demonstration, then enjoy a vegetarian lunch in the monastery restaurant. An afternoon walk through the Songshan landscape brings mountain scenery and sacred architecture together before the return to Luoyang and a free evening.

Travel to the UNESCO-listed Longmen Grottoes beside the Yi River. More than 2,300 caves and niches contain almost 110,000 Buddhist stone figures, along with inscriptions, stupas and reliefs created principally from the late fifth to the mid-eighth century. See the monumental Vairocana Buddha and follow the cliffside route through changing scales of sculpture. Afterwards, have lunch featuring Henan cuisine and keep the evening free in Luoyang.

Take the high-speed train to Xi'an and meet the local guide at the station. Continue to the UNESCO-listed mausoleum complex of the First Qin Emperor, where thousands of life-size terracotta warriors and horses stand in excavated pits. Return to the city and check in after the visit. In the evening, choose between a separately ticketed Tang music-and-dance performance with dumpling banquet or The Great Qin show, or simply rest.

Use the time before your flight for rest or a short independent walk near the hotel. At the appointed hour, meet the driver and transfer to Xi'an Airport. The route concludes after connecting Beijing's imperial monuments, Luoyang's Buddhist heritage and the archaeological landscape of China's first emperor.