4 Days Chongqing Essence Tour with Yangtze River Cruise

Welcome to the magical 8-Dimensional Chongqing! This morning, your local guide and driver will meet you at your hotel or the arrival hall of Chongqing airport / train station for your exciting exploration of the Mountain City! First, be transferred to Laojun Cave Taoist Temple that date back to over 1,400 years ago and boasts exquisite Taoist architectures to savor. Also, you’ll overlook Chongqing downtown and the Yangtze River from the platform! Next, visit the mountain leaning Longmenhao Old Street of 6 layers, which preserves around 200 precious buildings for Chongqing history seeking. Wander along the alleys to imagine the past decades and take contrasting photos of the present vibrant urban Chongqing.

In the afternoon, go to experience Chongqing Light Rail Line 2 from Huanghuayuan to Liziba Station (15 minutes’ riding) with the beautiful cityscape of streets, bridges, flyovers, and Jialing River. Get off at Liziba to watch the unbelievable view of a train traveling through a 19-floor building. Then, transfer to cyber-popular Kuixinglou that is a public square connecting with the road, but also is the roof of a 22-floor building where to see cars and passersby moving 65.8 meters below your feet. Finally, visit Chongqing’s landmark - Hongya Cave where 11 layers of traditional wood tilted houses overlapping against the mountain to create an antique flavor. (Note: Hongya Cave night view is usually available after 19:30 in summer and 19:00 in winter, so if you want to enjoy the nightscape, please discuss with your travel expert or tour guide to adjust the itinerary.)

After the visit, your guide and driver will send you to Chaotianmen Dock and help you board your Yangtze River cruise which will set sail at 21:00. Enjoy your leisure sailing trip!

Optional activity (extra payment): Go up to the open-air WFC Huixianlou Observation Deck of 339 meters high to appreciate the spectacular 360° Chongqing City nightscape!

Notes for Yangtze Cruise embarkation:

• 1. Chaotianmen Dock has 12 sub-piers for different ships. Please confirm your exact boarding pier with your consultant at least one day in advance.
• 2. Chaotianmen Dock is currently under refurbishment and has no escalators. There are some steps to walk, so please wear comfortable shoes and you can hire a local porter to help with your luggage.
• 3. Boarding time and departure piers vary based on the cruise line, water level, season, weather and other factors.

In the morning, wake up leisurely and enjoy the gentle sunshine shining over the tranquil and beautiful Yangtze River. It will be colorful and interesting whether you decide to stay onboard or go ashore at river stops. 

Onboard, you will enjoy different kinds of activities, like practicing Tai Chi on the boat’s sundeck, drinking a relaxing morning coffee, attending a Yangtze River history and culture lecture, or taking part in the Captain’s Welcome Party and evening shows.

Next, follow a local guide and make a shore excursion in Fengdu County. Fengdu County, a vital part of the Three Gorges Reservoir Region, boosts unique natural and cultural landscape, including Fengdu Ghost City, Mount Shuanggui, Snow Jade Cave, Jade Emperor Scenic Area, Xiaoguanshan Folk Residences, etc.

Out of all these sites, Fengdu Ghost City is the most famous and attractive one. It is filled with mysterious tales of the underworld, brutal tortures, and various types of demons and Chinese devils. Entering this ghost city, you will find many statues of demons and vivid scenes of their perfidious activities. Some cruise companies arrange the site visit as an included, and others classify it as optional, which requires extra payment; you may check with your travel consultant while booking.

An Optional Excursion: Leaving Fengdu County, your cruise will reach and dock at Zhongxian County in the late afternoon, where a marvelous large-scale real landscape show is coming. The Feng Yan San Guo Show brings a cultural feast for Yangtze River cruise visitors to know the brilliant historical culture of the Three Kingdoms Period and the spirit of loyalty of great military officer Guan Yu. With amazing effects of lights, sounds, and special effects during the show, historical scenes seem to return vividly in front of you.

More notes and tips regarding today’s itinerary:

• 1. Even sailing the same route through the Three Gorges, different cruises would have different shore excursion arrangements. The sites abovementioned refer to common and most frequent situations. The specific itinerary of the day depends on the ship you booked.
• 2. Physical demands and dressing tips: Comfortable shoes are highly recommended since there will be a long distance walking at Fengdu Ghost City and many stairs to climb up at Shibaozhai Pagoda!

Today, you will sail through the essential section of the Yangtze River - Three Gorges! You shall relax on the sun deck and soak up the breathtaking gorge scenery passing by as you drift through Qutang Gorge and Wu Gorge. While the ship cruises toward the mouth of the Gorges, especially at Kui Gate, you’ll hear the wind whistling fiercely and witness the rolling hills stretching towards the skyline, leaving you marvelling at nature’s ingenious workmanship.

Today’s shore excursions would mainly be arranged at counties along the Three Gorges, in Fengjie, Wuxian or Badong. Different cruise companies draw up different itineraries. But in general, most luxury Yangtze River cruise companies, such as Century Cruises, Victoria Cruises and Yangtze Gold Cruises, etc., would port in Fengjie in the morning and offer an optional shore excursion (required extra payment) to the White Emperor City. This famous ancient “Poem City” is mentioned in about 1,400 Chinese poems. A tour through the scenic area tells a touching story of Liu Bei entrusting his son to his prime minister, Zhuge Liang. What’s more, the Viewing Platform in the scenic area is the best place to take a photo of the top representative landscape of the Qutang Gorge, Kui Gate, the same scenery on the background of the CNY 10 Note.

Cruise journey continues. In the afternoon, your cruise will stop at Wu Gorge. You will take a shore excursion here by switching to a smaller boat to sail down a beautiful stream running in a narrow side gorge where you will have close-up views of high mountain peaks and hanging coffins on the steep cliff faces. Shennv Stream, Shennong Stream and the Lesser Three Gorges are the frequently-chosen ones.

This evening, you’ll enjoy the Captain’s Farewell Party with all your mates and appreciate or join the fascinating dance show to spend a wonderful night.

More notes and tips regarding today’s itinerary:

• 1. Besides the shore excursions mentioned above, two newly pop-up sites selected by cruise companies have gained high recognition from guests: Three Gorges Summit and Goddess Sky Road. Both are constructed on mountaintops for customers to enjoy the panoramic view of the natural splendor!
• 2. Different cruises have different shore excursion arrangements. The specific itinerary of the day depends on the cruise you booked.

After breakfast, you’ll begin to check out and disembark at Maoping Port. Today’s highlight is a morning excursion to Three Gorges Dam, the world’s largest hydropower project, located in the middle of Xiling Gorge near Yichang. You will marvel at this gigantic dam from different angles, learn more about the background history of the Three Gorges Dam Project and enjoy the beautiful surrounding landscape and scenery. If you like, you can take an optional experience to sail through the Three Gorges Dam Ship Lift, the largest and the most sophisticated ship lift in the world, which takes only 40 minutes with fresh insight into the dam project. (Notice: During the peak season, the ship lift operation is in full swing. In some instances, you may not be able to find a seat and may have to stand. If you are worried about how the crowds might affect your experience, it is advisable to think carefully before joining the program.)

After the dam visit (around noon), you’ll take the bus arranged by the cruise company heading to Yichang Three Gorges Center Cruise Terminal for leave. The local guide and driver will meet you at the terminal and escort you to the airport or train station to catch your flight or train to next destination. Service ends!

Procedures for Leaving: enjoy breakfast onboard - pack your luggage - disembark at Maoping Dock - transfer to Three Gorges Dam (leave your luggage on the coach) - Dam visiting - take the same coach at the dam and shuttle to Yichang Three Gorges Center Cruise Terminal - take our private car service.

Departure Ideas: You can take flights from Yichang Sanxia Airport to Shanghai, Xian, Beijing, Guangzhou and Hangzhou, etc. Or you can take high speed trains from Yichang East Railway Station to Wuhan (about 2hrs), Shanghai (about 8hrs), Beijing (about 7.5hrs), Hangzhou (about 7.5hrs), Chengdu (about 7hrs), Guangzhou (about 7hrs) and more cities.