Flight to Shanghai on a scheduled flight. Night on board. Flights are not included. Please contact the agency for your flight tickets.

Discover the Yu (Yuyuan) Garden and its treasures in the centre of Shanghai's old town: the Dragon Walls, the Silent Gaze Pavilion, the Salon of Tenderness, the Exquisite Jade Rock, paintings, calligraphy and antique furniture.

Criss-crossed by numerous canals, Tongli is full of narrow streets, typical local restaurants and hidden gardens. There's no need to take a map - the best thing to do is get lost in the maze and wander around Tongli. Tongli is a lakeside city and part of the Venice of the Orient.

In Shanghai, take a stroll along the Bund, now known as Zhongshan donglu, the "Sun Yat sen E. street". This boulevard, which runs alongside the Huangpu river, was the landing quay where all travellers docked and was also the site of the first Western settlements in the mid-19th century.

The Temple of the Jade Buddha stands in the north-west of the city, near the intersection of Anyuan Lu and Jiangning. It owes its name to two Buddha statues brought to China from Burma by a monk called Weiging in 1882.

The Shanghai Museum was founded in 1952. It exhibits major collections illustrating the development of Chinese art in chronological order. Its eleven galleries house the finest collections of paintings, bronzes, sculptures, ceramics, calligraphy, jade, furniture from the Ming and Qing dynasties, coins, seals and minority art.

The Qing emperor, Yongzheng, decided to build himself a vast summer retreat in the north of Beijing. The Summer Palace was not completed until the reign of Qianlong (1736-1796). Some of the buildings, built on the advice of the Jesuits, were inspired by European palaces such as the Château de Versailles.

In December 1998, UNESCO included the Summer Palace in its list of world heritage sites. It described it as "an exceptional expression of the creative art of Chinese landscape gardening, integrating human achievements and nature into a harmonious whole".

Its real name is the Long Wall (Chang cheng), and for most Chinese it symbolises their country. This stone dragon stretches for almost 6,000 km, crossing steep mountains to the edge of the Gobi desert in the west of Gansu province.

Then visit the Changling Tomb and the Sacred Way Tomb:

Of the sixteen emperors of the dynasty, thirteen are buried in a necropolis. The Sacred Way, also known as the Way of the Esprites, is the entrance to the imperial necropolis. It runs for eight hundred metres between two rows of thirty-six stone statues of animals and mandarins, surrounded by vegetation.

Visit Tiananmen Square (the Square of the Gate of Heavenly Peace), the largest city-centre esplanade in the world.

You will then discover the Forbidden City, also known as the Imperial Palace, the most majestic monument in China. It was the residence of the 24 Ming and Qing emperors (between 1420 and 1911).

A cyclo-pousse ride will take you through the Hutong district. Finally, you'll discover Beijing's Temple of the Lamas, or Yonghegong (Palace of Eternal Harmony). This is the most beautiful Lamaist sanctuary outside Tibet and contains the wooden statue of Mitreya Buddha. This lamasery is the most spectacular temple in Beijing, with its five halls filled with exceptional treasures.

Visit to Beijing's Temple of Heaven, which dates back to the 15th century. The origins of this temple date back to ancient China. At the time, the emperor was considered to be the "son of Heaven", responsible for liaising with celestial authority to preserve good order on earth. To show his respect for Heaven, sacrificial ceremonies were therefore very important.

You will then take the TGV to Pingyao.

Pingyao is a town in China's Shanxi province. The city has undergone very few changes since the Ming dynasty. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997, it is completely surrounded by high ramparts.

You'll visit the city walls, the country's first bank, Rishengchang, the Temple of the City God, the Old City Government and the lively little shopping streets, to name but a few.

Discover traditional vinegar-making and folk art - Paper cut-outs.

Then take a leisurely stroll along Ming-qing shopping street to discover the bustling city.

You will then take the TGV to Xi'an.

The Wild Goose Pagoda is one kilometre south of Xi'an. It is a 45 metre high brick structure with a square base and thick canopies, the top of which was destroyed in an earthquake, reducing its height to 43 metres, and is one of the major vestiges of the Tang period.

This will be followed by an introduction to the art of Chinese calligraphy, which is divided into different styles based on the historical development of Chinese writing and the effects produced by the use of the brush.

The terracotta army of the Emperor Qin Shihuang (Bingmayong) is located 30 km from Xi'an, and was created to protect the Emperor on his journey to the afterlife, according to Chinese beliefs of the time.

The Xi'an mosque is one of the most important in China. It was founded under the Tang in 732, but the current buildings date back to the 14th century.

Stroll around the town centre, between the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower.

Then, after lunch, you will take the train to Chengdu.

Visit to the Chengdu research base on the breeding of giant pandas

Giant pandas are not only a Chinese national treasure, they are also loved the world over. In China, they are found only in Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu.

Located 10 km from the centre of Chengdu, the Chengdu base is home to just over 100 giant pandas in a large natural park covering more than 100 hectares.

In the afternoon, you will visit the Sanxingdui museum and admire some magnificent cultural relics.

This morning, you will take off for Guilin.

After lunch, you will visit Fubo Hill and a tea plantation.

The Li River is a tributary of the Xijiang River in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. It flows for 437 km before emptying into the Xijiang River at Wuzhou. The river flows through the towns of Guilin and Yangshuo, winding its way through a landscape that has inspired Chinese artists for over a thousand years.

Yangshuo is a small country town nestling in a sugar loaf landscape. Although no longer as picturesque as it once was, Yangshuo remains an excellent base from which to explore the surrounding villages.

The Grotte de la Flûte de roseau owes its name to the reeds that once grew near the entrance to the grotto. According to legend, reeds can be used to make flutes that produce a timbred, graceful sound,

Transfer to the station and TGV to Hong Kong

Visit Victoria Peak. Victoria Peak is 554 m high, the highest peak on Hong Kong Island. It is considered to be the emblem of Hong Kong.

Visit Repulse Bay, located to the south of Victoria Peak, which has been known for a very long time. In a piece of literature written by Eileen Chang, a famous modern Chinese writer, the setting is the Repulse Bay Hotel. It is considered to be "the first bay in the world", and "the Hawaii of the East". It is also the most beautiful and representative bay in Hong Kong, preferred by most Hongkongers.

Lunch (local speciality dim-sum meal)

Afternoon at leisure

Transfer to the airport and flight home