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Day by day
Day 1: Arrive in Beijing
Flights land at Capital (PEK), where the Airport Express reaches Dongzhimen in 20-30 minutes for ¥25 (about $4), or at Daxing (PKX), whose express train reaches Caoqiao in about 20 minutes for ¥35 (about $5). Check in and keep the evening short.
Day 2: Forbidden City and Jingshan Park
As of October 2026, the Palace Museum closes on Mondays except public holidays and sells no same-day tickets. Each date goes on sale at 8 pm Beijing time seven days ahead (7 am in New York in winter); book in your passport name. Enter through the Meridian Gate, allow three to four hours, then climb Jingshan Park opposite the north exit for the view.
Day 3: Great Wall at Mutianyu
Leave around 6:30 am to arrive near opening time: 7:30 am, or 8 am from November 16 to March 15. A private car takes 1.5-2.5 hours each way; Express Bus 916 plus a local bus takes about 3 hours. Ride the cable car up, walk the restored towers, and come down by toboggan or cable car; by car you're back in Beijing by mid-afternoon. Book the ¥40 (about $6) entry up to 30 days ahead; our Great Wall guide has the details.
Day 4: Temple of Heaven and the hutongs
Go early to the Temple of Heaven, when locals fill the park for tai chi and card games. Spend the afternoon in the hutongs around Shichahai, or swap in the Summer Palace, and end with Peking duck.
Day 5: Morning train to Xi'an
Book a fast train from Beijing West to Xi'an North: in November 2026, four leave between 7 and 10 am and take 4 hours 10-21 minutes, while others in that window take nearly 6 hours. Leave your hotel around 7 am and you're at your Xi'an hotel by about 1 pm; Metro Line 2 runs from the station to the Bell Tower in 30 minutes. In the afternoon, rent a bike on the 13.7 km city wall at the South Gate, then eat in the Muslim Quarter.
Day 6: Terracotta Army and Shaanxi History Museum
The Terracotta Army opens at 8:30 am, about 1.5 hours away by Metro Line 9 and bus 613 or 602, or an hour by taxi. Entry is real-name and capped at 65,000 a day, so book with your passport; the pits take about 1.5 hours, and the free shuttle to the Lishan Garden adds as long again. In the afternoon, visit the Shaanxi History Museum: as of October 2026 it's free, but tickets are released on its WeChat account at 5 pm Beijing time five days ahead, passports accepted.
Day 7: Fly to Shanghai
Flights from Xianyang airport (XIY) take 2 hours 5-30 minutes, and most land at Hongqiao (SHA), 40-50 minutes from the Bund by metro. Allow about 6 hours door to door: an hour by taxi to the airport, 1.5 hours there, the flight, and an hour into town, so a 10 am flight has you at your hotel by about 1:30 pm. See the Bund after dark; its lights normally go off at 10 pm in winter and 11 pm in summer and on public holidays.
Day 8: Yu Garden and the French Concession
Start at Yu Garden when it opens at 9 am (closed Mondays except public holidays, so swap with Day 9 if needed), then walk the old town around it. Spend the afternoon on the plane-tree streets of the former French Concession, or at the Shanghai Museum East in Pudong, which needs no booking and closes on Tuesdays.
Day 9: Suzhou or Hangzhou
Trains from Shanghai station or Hongqiao reach Suzhou station in 25-40 minutes for ¥30-46 (about $5-7) each way. Book the Humble Administrator's Garden's timed tickets online 1-7 days ahead, then walk the canal lanes of Pingjiang Road. For West Lake instead, Hongqiao to Hangzhou East takes 45 minutes to an hour.
Day 10: Fly home from Pudong
Pudong (PVG), where most international flights leave, is 45-70 minutes from the center by taxi or 70-90 minutes on Metro Line 2, so leave about four hours before departure. With a late flight, take a last walk along the river.
Getting around
| Leg | How | Time | Typical fare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beijing to Xi'an | Train, Beijing West to Xi'an North | 4 hr 10-25 min (fastest); about 6 hr door to door | ¥494-618 ($74-93) |
| Xi'an to Shanghai | Flight, XIY to Hongqiao or Pudong | 2 hr 5-30 min; about 6 hr door to door | ¥550-1,000 ($83-149) |
| Xi'an to Shanghai by rail | Train, Xi'an North to Hongqiao | 5 hr 50 min on two trains, 7-9 hr on the rest | ¥652-783 ($98-117) |
| Shanghai to Suzhou | Train to Suzhou station | 25-40 min | ¥30-46 ($5-7) |
| Shanghai to Hangzhou | Train, Hongqiao to Hangzhou East | 45 min to 1 hr | ¥57-87 ($9-13) |
Train fares are second class on 12306 for weekday trains in November 2026; fares vary by train and date. Flight fares are Trip.com's monthly one-way economy averages as of October 29, 2026.
Most tour itineraries fly from Xi'an to Shanghai. Only two trains a day take under 6 hours, so with metro rides at each end the train takes about 7.5 hours door to door at best and 9-11 hours on most departures.
Book trains on 12306's English site or an app. As of October 2026, sales open 15 days ahead, and you book and board with your passport.
From Xianyang airport, central Xi'an is about an hour by taxi (¥70-150, about $10-22). In all three cities, ride the metro with the transit QR code in Alipay or WeChat and use DiDi for taxis; see how to pay in China. In Shanghai, stay near a Line 2 station such as People's Square for a direct ride to both airports.
When to go
April-May and September-October are the most comfortable months. Avoid May Day (expected May 1-5, 2027), National Day week (October 1-7) and the weeks around Chinese New Year (February 6, 2027), when trains and sights are packed.
Winter is cold and dry in Beijing, with January highs around freezing, but crowds thin and the Forbidden City drops to ¥40 from ¥60. Hours shrink: last entry at the Forbidden City is 3:30 pm, and the Shaanxi History Museum runs 9 am to 5:30 pm from November 15. Summer is hot, wet and crowded; see the best time to visit China.
What it costs
Typical costs per person, as of October 2026:
- Trains: Beijing to Xi'an ¥494-618 (about $74-93) in second class, ¥790-988 ($118-148) in first; Suzhou and back about ¥60-90 ($9-14).
- Flight: Xi'an to Shanghai about ¥550-1,000 ($83-149) one way, depending on the month; low-cost fares from about ¥440 ($66).
- Sights: Forbidden City ¥40-60 by season; Mutianyu ¥40 entry, ¥15 shuttle and ¥140 return cable car; Terracotta Army ¥120 (about $18); Shaanxi History Museum free; Yu Garden ¥30-40; Humble Administrator's Garden ¥70-80.
- Mutianyu by private car: typically ¥600-1,000 (about $90-150) for the day.
- Hotels (Trip.com averages for Beijing and Shanghai, per room per night): 3-star ¥690-780 ($103-117), 4-star ¥880-1,020 ($132-153), 5-star from ¥2,500 ($380).
- Typical private tour: $165-350 per person per day depending on hotels, group size and season.
For a fuller budget, see what a China trip costs.
Make it yours
- Reverse it: fly into Shanghai and out of Beijing, with the flight and train legs reversed.
- Add pandas (12 days): trains from Xi'an North reach Chengdu East in 3-4 hours for ¥260-316 (about $39-47); after two nights, fly to Shanghai in about 3 hours. See our family trip with pandas.
- Slow it down (12 days): add a night in Xi'an and one in Shanghai, for the history museum, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda and both Suzhou and Hangzhou.
- Beijing and Shanghai only (7 days): three nights in each; trains from Beijing South to Shanghai Hongqiao take 4 hours 18 minutes at best, for ¥525-692 (about $79-104).
If you'd like a trip designer at one of our partner agencies to adapt this route and quote it, send us your dates.
Questions people ask
Is 10 days enough for Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai?
Yes, for the main sights at a moderate pace: four nights in Beijing, two in Xi'an and three in Shanghai. There are only two travel days, a 4-hour morning train and a flight of about 2 hours 20 minutes, and you change hotels just twice.
Should I take the train or fly from Xi'an to Shanghai?
Fly, for most travelers. Flights take 2 hours 5-30 minutes and about 6 hours door to door, while only two trains a day make the trip in under 6 hours and the rest take 7-9 hours. Second-class seats cost ¥652-783 (about $98-117), close to typical one-way economy fares of ¥550-1,000 (about $83-149).
What do I need to book in advance?
Your trains (sales open 15 days ahead) and flight, the Forbidden City (on sale at 8 pm Beijing time seven days ahead, with no same-day tickets), the Shaanxi History Museum (5 pm, five days ahead), Mutianyu (up to 30 days ahead), the Terracotta Army and the Humble Administrator's Garden in Suzhou. Book everything in your passport name and carry the passport.
Is this itinerary good in winter?
Yes, if you dress for cold, dry days in Beijing and Xi'an. Crowds are thinner and the Forbidden City costs ¥40 (about $6) instead of ¥60, but hours are shorter, with last entry at 3:30 pm, and you should avoid the weeks around Chinese New Year, which falls on February 6, 2027.
Do I need a guide for this trip?
No. Trains, metros and online tickets make it doable on your own, though a guide adds the most at the Forbidden City and the Terracotta Army. Typical private tour: $165-350 per person per day depending on hotels, group size and season.
Sources
We checked these in October 2026. Rules and prices change, so confirm on the official sites before you book.
- China Railway 12306 (official): timetables and fares
- Palace Museum (official): ticket booking rules
- Mutianyu Great Wall (official): hours and booking rules
- Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum (official): visitor guide
- Shaanxi History Museum (official): hours and booking rules (Chinese)
- Yu Garden (official): visitor information (Chinese)
- Shanghai Landscaping and City Appearance Bureau: Bund lighting hours (2024 notice)
- Trip.com: Xi'an to Shanghai flight times and fares (checked October 29, 2026)
