14-Day Three Gorges with classic China Tour

Much-loved summer retreat of the Imperial families, the lovely landscaped gardens, halls, pavilions and corridors are set around the lake and rivers in natural harmony. It is the largest and best preserved imperial garden in China, and also a World Heritage Site.

A brief introduction

The Summer Palace is located within the Haidian District, northwest of Beijing. It is the best preserved imperial garden in the world and the largest of its kind that still in existence in China today. It is mainly composed of the Longevity Hill and the Kunming Lake. The huge garden boasts about 3,000 garden architecture and is broken into three zones: office zone, living quarters and sightseeing area.

The Summer Palace occupies a total area of more than 290 hectares. The Longevity Hill covers one fourth of the total area while the Kunming Lake covers the rest three quarters. The beautiful former imperial garden is set off by a multitude of highly decorated buildings, halls, pavilions, bridges, towers, pagodas, isles, and courtyards. The harmonious layout of the garden is a Chinese architectural masterpiece that combines both the gorgeous landscape and the treasure of the traditional Chinese gardening art.

The history of the Summer Palace dated back to the Jin Dynasty, 800 years ago. However, it was during the prime time of the Qing Dynasty that the building of the imperial garden reached its culmination. The Summer Palace is reputed as the King of the Gardens though; it had undergone two nearly deadly devastations. In 1860 the Anglo-French Allied Forced invaded Beijing and the Summer Palace, together with many other imperial gardens and resorts, was burnt down to ashes. The invaders plundered the treasures from the garden and afterwards set fire on the buildings. In 1888 during the reign of Emperor Guangxu (1875 – 1898), Empress Dowager Cixi spent a fabulous sum of money having the Garden partly rebuilt and she gave it the new name – the Summer Palace. She actually pinched the funding from the navy. 1n 1900 however the Allied Forces of Eight Powers invaded Beijing and the Summer Palace was once again ravaged by these foreign robbers. This time Empress Cixi and Emperor Guangxu fled to Xian. Two years later, they returned to Beijing and ordered the garden rebuilt. In 1924, after the last Emperor Puyi was driven out of the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace was turned from an imperial garden into a public park.

Today tourist normally enter the park through the east gate where there is a very large parking lot and accessible by many public buses. Additionally there are many restaurants around that serve great food.

Tian'anmen Square is the largest city square in the centre of Beijing, named after the Tiananmen (literally, Gate of Heavenly Peace) which sits to its north, separating it from the Forbidden City. It has great cultural significance as it was the site of several key events in Chinese history. As the world's largest city square and enduring symbol of China's national pride, it is surrounded by many imposing buildings including the Heavenly Gate (entry to the Forbidden City), Museums, government buildings and Chairman Mao's Mausoleum.

A brief introduction

Tiananmen Square is one of the 16 scenic highlights of Beijing, called “the Shining Sun of Tianan.” Measuring 440, 000 square meters, Tiananmen is the most sizable square located in the center of a city in this planet and can hold about one million people for public celebration or gatherings. In the square tourists can climb the Tiananmen Rostrum, attend the national flag raising ceremony every morning (the time varies subject to the sunrise), visit the National Museum of China, and go to the Mausoleum of Mao Zedong in which one will see the body of the great Chinese leader.

Now the Tiananmen Square constitutes an important component of the so-called “Red Tourism” (Red Tourism refers to the tour in the historical sites of the new democratic revolution led by the Chinese Communist Party. The tourists can study the revolutionary history and the persevering revolutionary spirits during the tour). It is an essential par of the two “Red Tourism”: Beijing- Zhunhua- Leting-Tianjing and Beijing- Baoding-Xibaipo. The Jing Jing Ji Red Tourism Zone centered by Beijing and Tianjing contains the following major scenic spots: The China Museum of the Chinese Resistance against the Japanese Aggression, the Lugou Bride (Marco Polo Bride), the town of Wanping, the Memorial of New Culture Movement, The China National Museum, the China Revolutionary Military Museum, the Tomb of Li Dazhao, the Tianjing Memorial of Zhou Enlai and Deng Yingchao, the Memorial of the Pingjing Campaign, the Panshan Martyr Mausoleum, the historical site of the Commander’s Office of the Jing Cha Ji Military Zone at the south of Fuping County, Baoding City, the Memorial Pagoda of the Five Courageous s Soldier of Langya Mountain in Yi County,  Baiyangdian Scinic Area of Anxin County, the site of the Underground Battle of Ran Village of Qingyuan County and the historical site of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party at Xibaipo etc.

The Tiananmen Rostrum, standing to the north of the Tiananmen Square, precisely in the south – north central axis of Beijing, was the main gate of the royal palace of both the Ming and Qing Dynasty. It was initially called Cheng Tian Men or the Gate of Carrying the Heaven, which means that to shoulder the edict of the Heaven, and obtain the divine power form the Heaven. In the eighth year of emperor Shunzhi’s administration, the gate was refurbished and called Tiananmen. From then on nearly all the important imperial celebrations and events such as the enthronement of the emperor, the wedding of the emperor, the rite of going to a battle by the emperor himself, the famous “Imperial Edict Issued by Golden Phoenix, worshipping the Heaven and the earth, and worshipping the five sorts of grains among others. The magnificent gate has five passages. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the passage in the middle leading to the Forbidden City was particularly reserved for the emperor himself. The emperor went through the central passage on the way to the altars for rituals and other religious activities, for instance. The high-ranking government officials and the empresses, concubines, princess and princesses could only enter the Forbidden City through the side passages, while the ordinary subjects were absolutely forbidden to go inside the Forbidden City. It is why the city was “forbidden.” The 34.7 meters high Tiananmen Rostrum, with glittering yellow glazed tile on the roof and red wall and pillars, is more magnificent in the sunshine. Before the Rostrum are the Golden Water Bridge, the white Huabiao (a pair of ornamental columns made of white marble sculptured with dragon designs. They are also called “slander pillar” for in the ancient time it carried the ordinary people’s slanders and suggestions for the emperor) and a pair of big stone lions.