[TJPORT 9]

Looking for a reliable and comfortable private transfer from Tianjin Home Port Xingang to Beijing with a two-day excursion in the city? Great Wall Adventure Club is here to help. We have a large fleet of cars and vans with licensed tour guides and professional drivers. We make sure that your private transfer will be safe, comfortable and relaxing.

Day 01: Tianjin Port Xingang - Beijing by car (L)

The Diamond Princess has assisted disembarkation starting about 07:30am with the last stragglers coming off around 09:00am. So you will leave your ship at a prearranged time. The main terminal consists of the custom house, luggage area and waiting halls. Your cruise ship will dock just by the main building.

Taking your handbags, you will go through customs. Then you go to claim your luggage at the check luggage area. If you have a lot of luggage and cannot carry or roll them on your own, you may ask the port terminal staff for help.

With the help of our representative or driver, you will be escorted to your waiting car or van, which will be outside the terminal. Tianjin Port Xingang is about 200 km from Beijing and the drive will take about 2-3 hours. Following lunch in Beijing we will head over to the political center of the country, Tiananmen Square. The largest public square in the world, Tiananmen Square is seen as China�s political center. Its grounds have seen some turbulent moments, from the May 4th Movement of 1919 to the political turmoil of 1989. The south of the square is marked by the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall, while the center of the square is dominated by the Monument to the People�s Heroes, an imposing 10-story granite obelisk. To the east is the National Museum of China, and to the west is the Great Hall of the People, home to China�s legislative bodies. The north of the square is dominated by the Gate of Heavenly Peace, known for its iconic portrait of Mao Zedong, and is the national emblem of China.

After walking across the street, we will enter what is perhaps the greatest attraction in China, the Forbidden City. After walking across the square we will enter the Forbidden City (known in Chinese as Gu Gong), the largest surviving palace complex and the former home of the emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasty. The Forbidden City is one of the greatest attractions in the world. Built by the third Ming emperor between 1406-1422, the Forbidden City served as the official residence to the Emperor of China until the last emperor, Puyi, was forced to evacuate in 1924. The Forbidden City is divided into two parts. The southern section, or the Outer Court was where the emperor exercised his supreme power over the nation. The northern section, or the Inner Court, was where he lived with his royal family. Consisting of 980 buildings and with 8,707 bays of rooms, the Forbidden City is the best example of classical Chinese architecture in the world, and is a wonder to behold.

Following our tour of the Forbidden City you will be driven to your hotel in Beijing.

Day 02: Beijing-Great Wall Excursion (L)

After being picked up at your hotel at about 8am, we�ll make the short drive to the Ming Tombs.  The Ming Tombs, about 50 km/31 miles from Beijing, are where 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) are buried. This site was carefully chosen for its feng shui principles by the third Ming emperor Yongle (who also moved the capital from Nanjing to Beijing and began construction on the Forbidden City). The tomb we will visit, Dingling, is the tomb of the Wanli Emperor. It is the only one of the Ming Dynasty Tombs to have been excavated. It also remains the only imperial tomb to have been excavated since the founding of the People's Republic of China. After viewing the tombs, we will head to the �Shenlu�, or the Spirit Way. The Spirit Way leads into the complex, lined with statues of guardian animals and officials, with a front gate consisting of three-arches, painted red, and called the "Great Red Gate". The Spirit Way, or Sacred Way, starts with a huge stone memorial archway lying at the front of the area. Constructed in 1540, during the Ming Dynasty, this archway is one of the biggest stone archways in China today.

Following lunch, we�ll then drive to the Great Wall at Mutianyu. As one of the best-preserved parts of the Great Wall, the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall used to serve as the northern barrier defending the capital and the imperial tombs. While it is restored, it is not nearly as crowded and commercialized as the Badaling Great Wall. Mutianyu offers some breathtaking views of the valley and wall below, and if you look to your right you’ll see a large sign engraved in the side of the mountain encouraging you to “Cherish Chairman Mao”. You can hike down to the parking lot or take a toboggan (highly recommended, and lots of fun!) down to the bus. (The price of the cable car/and or toboggan ride is not included in the tour price.) You are welcome to pay and try the optional Chair Lift and Toboggan for up and down the hill. Then we'll have our lunch.
 

Day 03: Departure from Beijing