Touareg Activities
China
From Beijing
Availability - Now fully booked for 2008
No country evokes exotic images of the East like China. The Silk Road, the Great Wall and the imperial palaces, all combine to make this a country of great beauty, whose culture and history go back thousands of years. Striking a contrast to the languid beauty of the countryside, are the shining bright lights of modern day China. These satellite-style big cities seem to be constantly evolving. With their incomparable neon worlds and futuristic architecture, you would be forgiven for thinking you've stepped into a time capsule that's sent you hurtling into the future. But no, this is China at its brashest and brightest, providing a glittering backdrop to the start of your off-road adventure.
Running over 5,000 kms, the Great Wall of China traverses through some of the most heart-stopping scenery of this great country. Our trip will follow this amazing structure, leading us through the best the country has to offer, including UNESCO world heritage sites, amazing grottoes, the Silk Road, the Qilian mountain range and into the desert, where you can really test what the Touareg is capable of. This trip truly promises to be one mighty adventure, so strap on you seat belt, and get ready to see China like you've never seen it before.
Night flight from London to Beijing - directly into the rising sun.
Day 2The old imperial city welcomes you with a smiling "Ni hao". Hardly any other place on earth offers such a magnificent collection of culturally and historic significant places and buildings. The Hotel Kempinski Beijing Lufthansa Center will be our resting place for tonight, offering a night of luxury before we head off on our adventure. After lunch together, we visit the imperial palace (the Forbidden City) and Tiananmen Square. We will finish off with a tasty dinner feasting on local Chinese cuisine in the city centre.
Day 3The Touareg vehicles are ready and waiting to take us on our journey. After a generous breakfast, we will take over the vehicles complete with a full tank of petrol and begin our adventure. Going over the ring road, which was built at the point of the old city wall, we will drive to Badaling where the most famous landmark of the country awaits us - the Great Wall. After lunch, we will continue in the early afternoon to Datong. Dinner together and a night in the hotel end this eventful day.
Day 4After breakfast, we will visit the old town and the Yungang Grottoes. This world-famous Buddhist cave temple has been declared a UNESCO world cultural heritage site. We will then continue along the Wall to Yulin where we will be spending the night. The city lies on the tropic of Cancer and is blessed with a lush, fertile landscape. Dinner in the city will bring the end to an exciting day.
Day 5The Great Wall shows the way to the provinces of Shaanxi and Ningxia. The capital of Shaanxi is Xian. This famous, old cultural town used to be an important starting point of the famous Silk Road. After lunch, we continue in the tracks of the legendary caravan route at the edge of Inner Mongolia. That night our dinner and accommodation will be in Wuzhong.
Day 6Ready for another exciting day, we will continue our journey across different desert ranges into the province of Gansu to Wuwei. The Silk Road takes us along the Qilian mountain range and into Inner Mongolia, an autonomous region in the north and north-east of China. We will spend the night in a hotel in Wuwei and discuss plans for next day over a relaxed dinner.
Day 7The Qilian Mountains will be a constant sight today until we reach Jiayuguan, the place where the Great Wall ended in the Ming period. Today this is a city of a 100,000 inhabitants and is home to 14 different nationalities with a variety of different cultural backgrounds. We will immerse ourselves in this melting pot and check into a hotel, where we will be having dinner.
Day 8After breakfast, we will journey to the end of the Wall, and will get a chance to appreciate its full beauty in daylight. We will then cross the Qilian Mountains and head for the oasis town of Dunhuang on the edge of the Taklimakan. It was here, near the most famous historic and cultural town on the Silk Road, that the Mogao Grottoes were discovered - the "Grottoes of a thousand Buddhas". They are regarded as a masterpiece of architecture, painting and sculpture. This stunning location will be our resting place for the night.
Day 9Now it's time to go really off-road! An extensive desert tour into the Taklamakan will be testament to what the Touareg is really capable of. Late afternoon will find us returning to the hotel in Dunhuang where you will have some time to discover the historic places and bazaars of the oasis town on your own. Dinner together will, as always will bring the end to an eventful day. We will spend a second night in the hotel in Dunhuang.
Day 10Hami in the province of Xinjiang is our next destination. You will be welcomed with the Hami melon, which is offered everywhere here and is an incredibly delicious thirst quencher. The oasis town has little industry as yet and appeals to travellers with its impressive graves and original insights into the traditional life of its people. After a delicious dinner, we spend the night in a hotel in the town.
Day 11China's lowest lying point is in the Turpan Basin - the lowest point in the world after the Dead Sea. There is hardly any rain here and the basin is also known in China as the "oasis of flames". If there is a storm, hardly a single drop of water reaches the earth, as it evaporates in the atmosphere. We will visit the Flaming Mountains (Huoyan Shan) near Turpan. During midsummer, the brown, sandstone-coloured mountains glisten fiery red in the glowing sun and seeming to appear as though they are really on fire. The day ends here in Turpan with dinner and a night in a camp.
Day 12After breakfast, we will go on an extensive round trip. The Buddhist grottoes of Bezeklik, the ruins of Goachang and the Astana graves giving us three good reasons to stay another day here. We will spend another night in Turpan, and share our experiences over a relaxed dinner.
Day 13In the early afternoon, our small caravan reaches Urumqi. Located in a green oasis, China's most northwestern city stands at an elevation of 800 metres and is surrounded by the snow-capped Bogoda peaks, the vast Salt Lake and the Southern Hills. Here we will spend the night in a modern hotel before flying back to Beijing the next day.
Day 14In Beijing, the Hotel Kempinski Beijing Lufthansa Center will be expecting you. This last day can be used to explore the many exciting places that Beijing has to offer. Alternatively, you can relax in the comfort of your luxury hotel, exchanging experiences of the many adventures we've had over last two weeks with the rest of the group.
Day 15Today will bring the end to our Chinese adventure. After breakfast together, we will fly back to London.
The cost of this holiday is approximately £3,300pp (based on two people sharing). Because this experience is booked through Volkswagen Germany, there may be slight variations in price due to changes in the exchange rate. We can also arrange for individual requirements (e.g. business class flights). Please contact our information line for up to the minute prices.
This Touareg Unlimited holiday includes the following:
- 13 nights' hotel accommodation according to itinerary, including breakfast.
- 12 lunches including drinks. Unless stated otherwise, lunch will always be a packed lunch.
- 13 dinners according to itinerary, including drinks.
- Entry to sights listed in itinerary.
- Professional off-road instructors.
- A Touareg vehicle for each participant pair with everything needed for the tour (petrol, maps, etc.).
- Return flights London-Beijing-London are not included in the above quoted price, but we can arrange these for you at an additional cost. All additional charges from the bar, mini-bar or pay TV are to be settled by the guest prior to departing the hotel(s).
