Private Solo 35 day Tour of China from Beijing to Shanghai Stopping in Sites – Some Well-Known and Many Rare Places

This 35 day private tour through China was set up by Martha Fu and her team. The trip was more than unbelievably fantastic and if I could rate it a 10 I would! I had some very specific places I wanted to see that were the typical tourist attractions, but several that I read about that were off the tourist radar and amazing to go to. Martha spent about a year with me to customize every detail of this trip, which I kept adding and deleting. Originally it was set for 58 days so I ended up having to split it in two trips. In fact, I have already setup Part 2 for 2020 to finish what I have started.

Martha was incredible! I have traveled the world and this trip was tops!!! Martha and I discussed the best time to go and obviously avoiding the 70th Anniversary of the Republic of China Holiday week was a great idea due to the crowds, but yet, coming in at the end of this holiday, I was still able to see lots of celebratory flower displays everywhere, which was amazing. Martha helped me with everything so that this trip was smooth and memorable. She responded to my emails within 24 hours and if she was not available Lori or another teammate stepped in to answer all of my questions. This company is unbelievable!

Travelling solo was a concern, but not with this tour company. I felt very safe at all times. Every city I went to – from arriving by train or plane, I was met with an English speaking tour guide and a driver. All my guides (10 in total) spoke English well and were very attentive to my needs.

To give you an idea of the complexity of this tour, which included trains and flights, I thought I would list some of my trip highlights:
* Beijing (Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Summer Place, Mutianyu Great Wall, Hutong Tour, Temple of Heaven)
* Datong (Yungang Grottoes, Shanhua Monastery)
* Pingyao (Hanging Temple of Mount Hengshan, Wooden Pagoda in Ying County, Pingyao Ancient City Wall, Rishengchang Draft Bank, Qiao Family Compound, Shuanglin Monastery)
* Xi’an (Terra-Cotta Warriors, Museum, Small Wild Goose Pagoda, City Wall, Great Mosque)
* Dunhuang (Echoing-Sand Dunes, Crescent Lake, Magao Grottoes)
* Jiayuguan (City Gate, Overhanging Great Wall, Museum (Beginning of the Silk Road))
* Zhangye (Giant Buddha Temple, Danxia Landform (Rainbow Mountains))
* Wuwei (Leitai Tomb of Han Dynasty)
* Lanzhou (Binglingsi Grottoes)
* Chengdu (Wenshu Monastery, Giant Pandas, Wangjang Pavillion Park, Jinli Street)
* Leshan (Giant Buddha)
* Emei Mountain (Wannian Monastery, Baoguo Temple)
* Dazu (Rock Carvings)
* Yangtze River Cruise (Shibaozhai, Qutang Gorge, Wu Gorge, Shennong Stream, Three Gorges Dam)
* Zhangjiajie (Tianmen Mountain, Grand Canyon, Glass Bridge, Hallelujah Mountains (Avatar), Tianzi Mountain, Ten-mile Natural Gallery, Golden Whip Stream)
* Fenghuang (Stilt Houses on Tuojiang River)
* Hangzhou (Feilai Park, West Lake, Tea Plantation)
* Wuzhen Water Town
* Shanghai (Tongli Water Town, Master of the Nests Garden)

I highly recommend China Tours. I’m now very excited to go back to China and finish the rest of my planned trip in 2020! Thanks again for an outstanding tour!

About the author

ChinaTours.com

The ChinaTours.com blogger team brings you the best and most interesting information and China tour news gathered by our travel consultants, local travel guides, and partner providers. With our mission to create beautiful travel memories on your China tour, our travel guide provides ideas, tips, and insights to help bring your holiday alive.

Anto
1 contribution
Thanks China Tours

Jan 2026 • Couples • Couples

We used China Tours to plan a six day itinerary to cover the Great Wall and Terracotta Army. China Tours planned and executed a seamless experience that was just excellent! We saw and experienced far more than we had initially expected. The guides in both Beijing and Xi'an were excellent with an incredible knowledge.
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Derik H
1 contribution
Fantastic Family Adventure

Jan 2026 • Couples

What an amazing trip in China. China tours did a fantastic job planning out my 12 day trip in China! Dora was very helpful in planning the trip and making adjustments as needed based on what type of experience I was looking for. Not only was she accommodating but she also went out of the way to help me get in contact with the orphanage institution that I was from in China. The main goal of this trip was to visit my home town that I grew up in and to explore China. Dora helped achieve those goals and made a great itinerary. We went to Beijing, Xian, Shanghai, Lishui, and Hong Kong. Everything went seamless and smooth and the private tour guides were amazing. I would highly recommend using China tours for visiting China!
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Maxime M
1 contribution
Very good experience

Dec 2025 • Couples

I went on a family trip in China, going from Hong Kong (arranged by us), to Guilin, Chengdu, Xi'an, and Beijing (arranged by China Tours). The agency provided us with hotels, guides, and transportation, and was available to answer our questions (we used emails and WeChat to communicate, but other options might be available). We generally had a wonderful trip, with very nice attractions, nice guides as well, and a good balance between attractions and personal time. I will recommend China Tours to my acquaintances that want to do a tour in China.
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ErronW
1 contribution
Amazing trip to Beijing

Dec 2025 • Couples • Couples

We had an amazing time in Beijing and it was our first trip to China. Glad that we chose China tours to organise the trip, thank you Martha!

Our guide, Li, and the driver Sun, were very attentive and helpful and they are insightful! Every day was fantastic, we were taken to the Great Wall at Mutianyu point and took chairlift up. We then took the Toboggan down which was so much fun.

The experience around Forbidden City was also mesmerising. It felt like stepping back in time. We love all the historical stories. Li also took us to the Summer palace where we saw beautiful paintings along the endless corridor and we walked alongside the frozen lake. They were on time but never rushed, so it was relaxing. The hotel, The Regent Beijing was fabulous, the room, the food, location all was perfect. Thank you for organising this trip and we had precious happy memories!
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Dorothy K
1 contribution
Please Use China Tours, They Deserve It!

Oct 2025 • Family • Couples

China Tours was wonderful and I highly recommend them. Lora was very patient and thorough with all of our pre-trip emails and questions. I discovered that everyone in our group also received the same excellent pre-trip customer service. Our guides met us on time in every city and pleasantly accompanied us to our destinations. Hotels were great with awesome breakfast buffets!
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