6 Days Chongqing, Yangtze River & Zhangjiajie Exciting Tour

Welcome to Chongqing, the Port City of Yangtze River Cruise! Today, your guide will take you to fully experience the uniqueness of the Mountain City and culture of the Yangtze River!

First, visit Three Gorges Museum. The vast collection of over 280 thousand pieces of precious historical relics will let you have an amazing understanding of the great Yangtze River and formation of the magnificent Three Gorges. You'll also know the gradual thriving of Chongqing from 3,000 years ago, to its war defense in the 20th century, and developmental path to be one of the 4 prosperous municipalities in China. Step out of the museum for a nice look at the People’s Assembly Hall, popular with fancy classical exterior design and listed into the History of Architecture compiled in London in 1987.

Next, go to take Chonqing Rail Transit Line 2 from Huanghuayuan Metro Station to Liziba Metro Station to look at the city’s prototype from a different angle. Get off to have the never-seen scene of the train going through an 11-storey block of flats, which exists only in the fantastic mountain-leaning Chongqing!

Then, travel up to E'ling Park and embrace the impressive panorama of Chongqing City that has been highly praised as “Little Hong Kong” with its well-arranged row upon row of modern skyscrapers and two winding rivers flowing.

Go down to visit the must-see Hongya Cave to appreciate the layers of featured Ba and Shu regional wooden tilted houses overlapped leaning the mountain up to 11 storeys. The buildings look quite glittery with orange lights from nightfall.

In the late afternoon, be transferred to Chongqing Chaotianmen Port to board your ship during 18:00~21:00. Your 4-day relaxing Yangtze River cruise will sail at 21:00 and enjoy your first night onboard!

Tips for Cruise Boarding:
1) Please call the ship one day ahead or at least in the morning on the boarding day to know which specific pier to embark; 2) There are 13 sub-piers at Chongqing Chaotianmen Port, so tell your driver the exact pier to avoid too much walking; 3) The boarding time and pier may change based on the ship line, water level, season, weather, etc. Please pay attention to the important info sent from your travel consultants before boarding.

Erling Park

Three Gorges Museum

Board Yangtze Cruise Ship at Chaotianmen Port

Hongya Cave Night View

Liziba Metro Train Experience

Good morning! Wake up leisurely and enjoy the gentle sunshine over the tranquil Yangtze. You can either follow the Taichi master to play Taichi or enjoy a cup of coffee to start a beautiful day!

Enjoy various entertainment onboard, like attending a Yangtze River History and Culture Lecture, enjoying seasonal themed activities, meeting new friends at the Captain’s Welcome Party, having fun at the wonderful evening show, etc.

You will follow a local English-speaking tour guide to visit Fengdu Ghost City onshore, which is about 2,000 years old and called “the Homeland of Divine Comedy in China”. In this “City of Ghosts”, you will see a series of temples, shrines, palaces, pavilions, and more traditional styled architecture complex. The colorful statues and story scenes of afterlife in hell displayed show the underworld, cruel tortures, different kinds of devils, Chinese demons and the traditional Chinese belief: pure spirits would be rewarded, and sinful ones would be subject to severe punishments. (Please note: Fengdu Ghost City visit requires much walking and comfortable shoes are highly recommended!)

Optional Excursion to Feng Yan San Guo (Three Kingdoms Fire Show):
A reputable and impressive real landscape show telling the brilliant history during the Three Kingdoms Period (over 1,800 years ago) and praising the loyalty spirit of General Guan Yu. (with an extra fee)

Three Kingdoms Open Air Show

Play Taichi in the Morning

Fengdu Ghost City

Today, you'll sail through the spectacular Three Gorges! Soak up the breathtaking gorge scenery as you drift through Qutang Gorge, Wu Gorge and Xiling Gorge respectively.

You'll switch to a smaller boat to take an enjoyable shore excursion to Shennv Stream (Goddess Stream), a tributary of the Yangtze River. Sail down this primitive stream to closely marvel at steep mountains and hanging coffins high on the cliffs, hear local history, and appreciate featured dance and music by Tujia ethnic people!

At evening, enjoy the well-prepared Captain’s Farewell Party with all your mates onboard and have a whale of time of the last night onboard!

Optional Excursion to White Emperor City:
This cultural and historic site at the entrance of Qutang Gorge tells the touching stories of the “Romance of the Three Kingdoms” and is the best spot to appreciate the magnificent “Kui Gate” on the 10 RMB note! (with an extra fee)

Fengjie White Emperor City

Enjoy Gorge Scenery on Sundeck

Shennv Stream with Primitive Gorge Scenery

Magnificent Qutang Gorge

Breathtaking Wu Gorge Scenery

After breakfast, go through a check-out procedure and disembark at Maoping Port and take the arranged tourist bus to visit the global famous Three Gorges Dam. It is the largest hydropower station in the world, with an annual energy output of 84.7 billion kilowatt-hours. The Dam is about 2,300 meters (7,546 ft) long and about 115 meters (377 ft) wide. With a water capacity of 39.3 billion cubic meters, it can hold a huge reservoir to efficiently prevent flooding in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze. Take your time to appreciate this great project from different angles and learn more at the project museum.

Optional Experience of Three Gorges Dam Ship Lift:
Take a tourist boat to sail through this world’s largest ship lift with an elevation of about 113 meters (370 ft), which is totally fresh and exciting! (with an extra fee)

Notes:
1) Only Dam visit: take the bus from Maoping Port to visit Three Gorges Dam and arrive at Yichang downtown at around 12:30. 2) Dam visit + Ship Lift: switch to a tourist boat to sail through the Ship Lift and visit Three Gorges Dam. Then, take the bus and arrive at Yichang downtown at around 13:30.

After visiting the dam, your tour guide may pick you up at Three Gorges Dam Site or Yichang downtown area (depending on your train time to Zhangjiajie). Then, you will be taken to train station to catch a 5-hour normal train to Zhangjiajie.

Zhangjiajie is a remarkable destination, renowned for its distinctive iconic sandstone columns and peaks, which transport visitors to an otherworldly realm reminiscent of the enchanting world of AVATAR. Upon your train arrival in Zhangjiajie, a local guide will greet you at the station and escort you to your accommodation in the Wulingyuan District, close to the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, using a private, comfortable, and smoke-free vehicle. You are then free to spend the remainder of the day discovering the wonders of this fascinating city at your leisure.

Notes:
Should train connections between Yichang and Zhangjiajie be unavailable, we will ensure your journey continues seamlessly with a private car service directly to Zhangjiajie’s Wulingyuan District, which is expected to take 4~5 hours.

Three Gorges Dam Ship Lift, the Largest Ship Lift in the World

World-famous Three Gorges Dam

You must know the movie AVATAR, the Pandora World in the movie is so amazing that everyone wants to see it in real world.

Journey through the picturesque Ten-mile Gallery on a sightseeing tram, passing by remarkable landmarks like the Longevity Deity, the Ancient Medicine Gatherer, and the Triple Sister Peaks. This tranquil tour traverses a valley teeming with narrative landscapes.To fully immerse yourself in the experience, you’ll take a tram in and stroll back out, soaking in the beauty along the way. Following that, you’ll get into the real Pandora world by visiting Yuanjiajie, a naturally formed platform mountain situated in the north of Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. Take Bailong elevator up to Yuanjiajie and visit the foremost attractions in this area including the First Bridge, Hallelujah Mountain, Ecstasy Terrace, etc. After the visiting you’ll find some of these peaks have nothing that can be compared with, taking on every conceivable shape!

Next, take a sightseeing bus to Tianzi Mountain which boasts rocky peaks in grotesque shapes and shrouded in drifting mist. There are four highlights for the breathtaking sceneries: peak forest, cloud sea, sunrise and winter snow. A visit to Tianzi Mountain, you won’t miss the stone forests and peculiar peaks and the main tourist attractions including Imperial Writing Brush Peak, Warriors Taming Horse, Fairy Maid Scattering Flowers, etc. Conclude your trip by taking a scenic drive to the summit terminal of the Tianzi Mountain Cableway, where you’ll experience a descent through a breathtaking vista of sandstone formations that appear to speed by as you look out the window..

Optional Experience to Kong Zhong Tian Yuan, also known as The Field in the Sky:
Kong Zhong Tian Yuan is a less crowded spot with stunning views, ideal for photography. To get there, you’ll need to take a sightseeing bus (which costs an additional RMB 64/pp and isn’t covered by the entrance fee). The area offers a view of terraced fields among towering stone peaks and the impressive Bailong Elevator that seems to soar into the sky.

After the exciting scenic visit, our guide and driver will escort you to Zhangjiajie downtown for accommodation.

Yuanjiajie, a naturally formed platform mountain

Zhangjiajie Tianzi Mountain

After your breakfast, you’ll be greeted by your guide and chauffeur at your hotel, ready to set off on an incredible journey to Tianmen Mountain, a renowned national forest park in Zhangjiajie City.

The adventure begins with a transfer to board the Tianmen Mountain Cable Car, which will take you on an ascent from the city center of Zhangjiajie to the summit of Tianmen Mountain, soaring over 1,400 meters above sea level. You’ll traverse approximately 7,455 meters on the cableway, currently the longest in the world, offering breathtaking views of the meandering Avenue toward Heaven from the glass-bottomed sections.

Upon reaching the peak, you’ll switch to the Forest Sightseeing Cable Car to visit the Tianmen Mountain Temple, a historical site dating back to the Tang Dynasty. This temple is renowned for being one of the five Buddhist temples in the world that still preserve the Buddha’s body relics. As you explore the temple complex, you'll be surrounded by lush greenery and can admire the distinctive Qing Dynasty architectural style of the Buddhist structures.

Next, prepare for an adrenaline rush as you embark on two thrilling walks along cliff paths encircling the mountain. The first is the Glass Skywalk, a 60-meter long and 1.6-meter wide path made of transparent glass, suspended 1,430 meters above a seemingly bottomless valley. This walkway offers the sensation of walking on air on clear days and an otherworldly experience on days when the mist and clouds create a dreamlike atmosphere. The second is the Ghost-Valley Plank Road (Guigu Cliffside Path), a 1,600-meter long path that clings to the cliff face, providing a test of courage and a unique perspective of the mountain's grandeur.

Following these exhilarating experiences, you’ll take an escalator down to Tianmen Cave, where you can marvel at the natural wonder of a massive hole in the mountain. This cave, formed by geological processes, measures 131.5 meters in height, 57 meters in width, and 60 meters in depth, making it a rare and awe-inspiring sight. Afterward, you’ll descend along the extremely steep 999 steps, which have an incline of up to 45 degrees. These steps serve as the sole access route to Tianmen Cave from the base of the mountain, frequented by many worshippers. A short walk later, you’ll board an express cableway that descends to the Mountain Gate Parking Lot, where you’ll switch to a shuttle bus returning to the Tianmen Mountain Tourist Center.

After the exciting tour, your guide and driver will escort you to the airport or train station to catch the flight/train to your next destination or home.

Glass Skywalk, Zhangjiajie Tianmen Mountain

Tianmen Mountain Temple, Zhangjiajie Tianmen Mountain

Tianmen Cave, Zhangjiajie Tianmen Mountain