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- Platinum East Asia’s Red Dragon and Sun “China and Japan” (PEK-HND) with Turkish Airlines: 10 nights Beijing (2) - Shanghai (2) - Osaka (3) - Kyoto - Kobe - Nara - Tokyo (3) - Hakone - Mount Fuji | All tours and entrance fees included | 1 dinner and 4 lunches included
Platinum East Asia’s Red Dragon and Sun “China and Japan” (PEK-HND) with Turkish Airlines: 10 nights Beijing (2) - Shanghai (2) - Osaka (3) - Kyoto - Kobe - Nara - Tokyo (3) - Hakone - Mount Fuji | All tours and entrance fees included | 1 dinner and 4 lunches included
Platinum East Asia’s Red Dragon and Sun “China and Japan” (PEK-HND) with THY
Beijing (2 nights) – Shanghai (2 nights) – Osaka (3 nights) – Kyoto – Nara – Kobe –Tokyo (3 nights) – Hakone – Mount Fuji
10 nights 12 days | All tours and entrance fees included | 1 dinner and 4 lunches included
Day 1 | Istanbul
Meeting at 22:40 in front of the Turkish Airlines counter at the international departures terminal of Istanbul Airport. We will spend the night on the plane.
Day 2 | Istanbul – Beijing | [D]
After our ticket, baggage, and passport procedures, we depart at 01:40 for Beijing on Turkish Airlines flight TK0088. Arrival at Beijing Airport at 11:35 local time. After our passport and baggage procedures, we begin our Beijing tour by vehicle from the airport. Our first stop will be Tiananmen Square, one of the largest city squares in the world, located in the center of Beijing. It takes its name from the Heavenly Peace Gate to the north, and China’s national ceremonies, flag-raising ceremonies, and various official events are held here. Around the square, which is a symbolic center in China’s history both politically and culturally, are important structures such as the National Museum, the Monument to the People’s Heroes, Mao Zedong’s Mausoleum, and Qianmen Gate to the south. After the tour, we head to a local restaurant where we will have dinner. At the end of our dinner, transfer to our hotel. We complete our check-in and settle into our rooms. We will spend the night at our 4* Howard Johnson by Wyndham Paragon Hotel (or similar) hotel in Beijing.
Day 3 | Beijing | [B, L]
After breakfast at our hotel, we depart for our Beijing and Great Wall tour. By vehicle, we will go to Juyong Pass (Juyongguan Great Wall), one of the Great Wall sections closest to Beijing. Historically, the pass was used as an important military passage and is located in a strategic valley. Since its scenery is surrounded by greenery, it is especially enjoyable in spring and autumn. Although it offers easier climbing options than other sections, some parts are quite steep. After our visit here, we will have lunch at a local restaurant in the same area. After the meal, we return to central Beijing and go to the Olympic Stadium. After seeing and examining the stadium from the outside, we return to our hotel. We will spend the night at our 4* Howard Johnson by Wyndham Paragon Hotel (or similar) hotel in Beijing.
Day 4 | Beijing – Shanghai | [B, L]
After breakfast at our hotel, we complete our check-out and continue our Beijing tour. Our first stop will be the imperial palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties, completed in 1420 and known as the Forbidden City because public entry was forbidden for centuries. The place where Chinese emperors lived and ruled the country for 500 years is the largest palace complex in the world, with approximately 980 buildings and more than 8,700 rooms. At the end of our tour, we head to a local restaurant where we will have lunch. After the meal, transfer to the train station. With a high-speed train journey of approximately 5 hours, we arrive at Shanghai train station. From there, transfer to our hotel by vehicle. We complete our check-in and settle into our rooms. We will spend the night at our 4* Starr Hotel Shanghai (or similar) hotel in Shanghai.
Day 5 | Shanghai | [B, L]
After breakfast at our hotel, we depart for the Shanghai tour. Our first stop will be the Jade Buddha Temple, Shanghai’s most important Buddhist temple. The temple was founded in 1882 and takes its name from two precious white jade Buddha statues, one seated and one reclining. Since these statues were brought from Myanmar to Shanghai, the temple has special significance. The temple architecture is in traditional Chinese Buddhist style and it is still an active monastery used by monks. After our visit here, we will go to Yu Garden, a famous classical Chinese garden from the Ming Dynasty located in the city’s Old City area. The garden was built between 1559 and 1577 by an official named Pan Yunduan as a peaceful retreat for his family. It is full of ponds, bridges, stone structures, traditional pavilions, and old trees, and contains the famous Exquisite Jade Rock. After this visit, we will have lunch at a local restaurant. After the meal, we continue our tour with The Bund, the famous waterfront on the banks of Shanghai’s Huangpu River. While known for its early 20th-century European-style colonial buildings, it also offers the city’s most iconic view together with Pudong’s modern skyline on the opposite bank. The final stop of our tour will be Shanghai Tower. Completed in 2015, the tower is notable for its rotating spiral design. At 632 meters high, it is the tallest building in China and one of the tallest in the world. It contains offices, hotels, and some of the world’s fastest elevators. After enjoying the panoramic city view from the observation areas on the 119th floors, we return to our hotel. We will spend the night at our 4* Starr Hotel Shanghai (or similar) hotel in Shanghai.
Day 6 | Shanghai – Osaka | [B, L]
After breakfast at our hotel, we complete our check-out and continue with the Shanghai tour. On our tour, we will first go to Xintiandi, a stylish lifestyle and entertainment district where old Shikumen houses have been modernly restored. The area, an elegant and tourist-friendly district where historical texture is blended with modern architecture, is full of cafes, restaurants, bars, and boutique shops. Our next stop is Tianzifang, which offers a more bohemian and artistic atmosphere. After this creative neighborhood, famous for narrow streets, art studios, design shops, and small cafes, the final stop of our tour is Nanjing Road, Shanghai’s most famous shopping street. With a wide range of shopping options from luxury brands to affordable stores, the street is also known as “China’s 5th Avenue.” At the end of our tour, we will have lunch at a local restaurant. After the meal, transfer to Shanghai Airport. After our ticket, baggage, and passport procedures, flight to Osaka with Local Airlines. Arrival at Osaka Airport. After our passport and baggage procedures, transfer from the airport to our hotel by vehicle. We complete our check-in and settle into our rooms. We will spend the night at our 4* Hotel Plaza Osaka (or similar) hotel in Osaka.
Day 7 | Osaka – Kyoto – Osaka | [B]
After breakfast at our hotel, we depart for the Kyoto tour. After approximately 1 hour of travel, our first stop will be Kinkakuji Temple, also known as the Golden Pavilion. Covered in gold leaf, this three-story pavilion is one of Kyoto’s most famous and well-known historical structures and has been recognized worldwide as a perfect example of Kitayama garden design art. Thanks to these features, it was included on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1994 as an important cultural asset of the former capital Kyoto. We will continue our tour with Kiyomizu-dera Temple, a Buddhist temple also known as the pure water monastery. The temple offers beautiful views of the city of Kyoto in the distance, as well as many cherry blossom and maple trees that burst into a colorful sea in spring and autumn. The main hall, built without nails together with the stage, houses the temple’s principal object of worship, a small statue of the eleven-faced, thousand-armed Kannon. After free time for lunch, we will visit the Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka streets leading up to Kiyomizu-dera Temple. Sannenzaka is a cobblestone pedestrian path and tourist attraction. Surrounded by traditional buildings and shops, the path is often used together with a similar road, Ninenzaka. Sannenzaka is a narrow sloping path filled with about 60 shops and restaurants selling Kyoto’s traditional products and foods. There are also important shops where visitors can closely experience Japanese culture, including Ochaya (tea houses) where tea ceremonies are held, Geiko (the name given to geishas in Kyoto), and Maiko (Geiko apprentices) make-up. In the final part of the tour, we will visit Gion, Kyoto’s famous geisha district. At the end of the tour, return to Osaka and our hotel. We will spend the night at our 4* Hotel Plaza Osaka (or similar) hotel in Osaka.
Day 8 | Osaka – Kobe – Nara – Osaka | [B]
After breakfast at our hotel, we depart for the Kobe tour and Nara tour. Our first stop in Kobe will be the Kiku-Masamune Sake Museum (subject to being open). At Kiku-Masamune, which has maintained the tradition of producing only dry sake since the Edo Period, we will both see the stages of sake production and taste it. Almost all of the equipment in the museum is classified as a “national tangible folk cultural property,” allowing visitors to learn more about the lives and work of sake producers. Then we continue our tour with the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens, the largest botanical garden in Japan, featuring seasonal flowers and magnificent mountain views. After the park, we will go to the Kobe Harborland Umie shopping center, where free time will be given for lunch. After the meal, we head to Nara. We begin our Nara tour with a visit to Nara Park. Nara Park is a public park located at the foot of Mount Wakakusa. Established in 1880, it is one of Japan’s oldest parks. The park is home to more than 1,200 wild Sika deer roaming freely. Because of these deer, it is also known as Deer Park. After the park, we continue with Todai-ji Temple. Todaiji is not only the largest wooden structure in the world, but it also houses the world’s largest Buddha statue, known in Japanese as Daibutsu. At the end of our tour, return to Osaka and our hotel. We will spend the night at our 4* Hotel Plaza Osaka (or similar) hotel in Osaka.
Note: When leaving the hotel for the tour this morning, we need to leave a small one-night bag in our room. The large suitcases we leave at the hotel will be transferred to our hotel in Tokyo before us and will reach us the next day.
Day 9 | Osaka – Tokyo | [B]
After breakfast at our hotel, we complete our check-out and continue with the Osaka tour. Our first stop will be Osaka Castle, built in the 16th century and having played an important role in the unification of the Japanese nation. The castle is located within a park that covers an area of approximately two square kilometers in total and includes abundant green spaces, sports facilities, a multi-purpose arena (Osaka-jo Hall), and a shrine dedicated to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The park becomes one of Osaka’s most popular spots during the cherry blossom season, which usually takes place in early April. After free time for lunch, we will see Dotonbori, which has become Osaka’s entertainment center. At the end of the visits to Dotonbori and the city’s main shopping district Shinsaibashi, transfer to Shin-Osaka train station. With a journey of approximately 3 hours on Shinkansen, the world’s first high-speed train, we arrive at Tokyo Shinagawa station. From there, transfer to our hotel by vehicle. We complete our check-in and settle into our rooms. We will spend the night at our 3* Villa Fontaine Tokyo Kayabacho (or similar) hotel in Tokyo.
Day 10 | Tokyo | [B]
After breakfast at our hotel, we begin our Tokyo tour. Our first stop will be the Asakusa Temple, also known as Senso-ji Temple, a Buddhist temple considered one of Tokyo’s oldest and most colorful temples. The temple, also called Santa-jama (Temple of the Three Gods), is highly popular with both tourists and locals. It is one of the few temples that survived the bombings in the final year of World War II, and therefore the building’s original structure has still not been altered. Built in 1649, the temple was reportedly constructed to honor three brothers who were deified because they found a statue of the goddess Kannon in a river. We will also see the shopping street called Nakamise in the area. After free time for lunch, we will visit the Meiji Shrine, a Shinto shrine dedicated to the spirits of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shōken. After that, we will tour the Shibuya district, one of Tokyo’s most crowded areas. Shibuya, one of the city’s most important places for young people, stands out with its advanced structure, cafes, and world-famous stores. After our tour, return to our hotel. We will spend the night at our 3* Villa Fontaine Tokyo Kayabacho (or similar) hotel in Tokyo.
Day 11 | Tokyo – Mount Fuji – Hakone – Tokyo | [B]
After breakfast at our hotel, we depart for the Mount Fuji and Hakone tour. We will begin our tour with Mount Fuji, located 2.5 hours away. In 2013, Mount Fuji earned a place on UNESCO’s World Heritage List and is considered Japan’s highest mountain and the country’s sacred symbol. Although Mount Fuji is generally thought of as a single mountain, it actually consists of three separate volcanoes. Located on Honshu Island and forming a border between Shizuoka and Yamanashi prefectures, Mount Fuji is only 100 kilometers from Tokyo and can even be seen from tall buildings in Tokyo on a cloudless day. After the breathtaking view of Mount Fuji, we head toward the town of Hakone. We begin our Hakone tour with Owakudani Valley, a volcanic formation. Owakudani is a valley surrounding a crater formed about 3,000 years ago during the last eruption of Mount Hakone. Today, most of the area is an active volcanic zone with sulfurous smoke, hot springs, and warm streams. We will enjoy the view of this stunning valley by taking the cable car up from Togendai. After free time for lunch, we move on to Lake Ashi. After an enjoyable boat ride of about 30 minutes on the lake aboard a wooden pirate ship, we return to Tokyo and our hotel by vehicle. We will spend the night at our 3* Villa Fontaine Tokyo Kayabacho (or similar) hotel in Tokyo.
Day 12 | Tokyo – Istanbul | [B]
After breakfast at our hotel, we complete our check-out and continue with the Tokyo tour. The first place we will see on our tour will be the Tokyo Imperial Palace, the Main Palace, which includes many buildings such as the private residences of the Imperial family, archives, a museum, and administrative offices. The Tokyo Imperial Palace was built on the site of an old castle where the Shogun resided in the 15th century. In the 19th century, when Emperor Meiji moved the royal house from Kyoto to Tokyo, it also became property of the royal family. Since most of the buildings were destroyed in World War II, the oldest remaining items in the palace today are only 50 years old. Then we will continue our tour with a visit to Akihabara, one of Tokyo’s world-famous neighborhoods. Akihabara is an extremely crowded shopping district known for its electronic stores of various kinds, from small street stalls to very large shopping centers. After our tour of Akihabara, also known as the city of electronics, we give free time for lunch. After the free time, we continue our tour with the Ginza district, one of the city’s most popular shopping areas, filled with luxury boutiques as well as first-class cocktail and sushi bars. At the end of our tour, departure to Tokyo Haneda Airport. After our ticket, baggage, and passport procedures, departure for Istanbul at 21:45 on Turkish Airlines flight TK0199. We will spend the night on the plane.
Day 13 | Tokyo – Istanbul
Arrival at Istanbul Airport at 05:05 local time and the end of our tour. We say goodbye, hoping to meet again on our next distinguished and enjoyable trip.
Explanation of abbreviations: [B] = Breakfast, [L] = Lunch, [D] = Dinner
What's Included
- Round-trip economy class airline ticket on Turkish Airlines scheduled flights on the IST-PEK and HND-IST routes
- One-way economy class airline ticket on local airline flights on the PVG-KIX route
- Airport taxes
- Economy class high-speed train ticket between Beijing and Shanghai
- Economy class high-speed train ticket between Osaka and Tokyo
- 2 nights accommodation with bed and breakfast at a 4* hotel in Beijing
- 2 nights accommodation with bed and breakfast at a 4* hotel in Shanghai
- 3 nights accommodation with bed and breakfast at a 4* hotel in Osaka
- 3 nights accommodation with bed and breakfast at a 3* hotel in Tokyo
- 1 dinner
- 4 lunches
- All airport – hotel – airport transfers
- All tours and entrance fees specified in the program
- Turkish-speaking guide service
- Professional liability insurance (in accordance with Law No. 1618)
Not Included
- China visa fee (200 EUR)
- Overseas departure tax
- All museum and archaeological site entrance fees not stated as included
- Meals and drinks during meals not stated as included
- Tours stated as optional
- Personal expenses
- Tour guarantee and travel health insurance
- All services not explicitly stated as included in the tour program
- Tips for local guides, hotel staff, and drivers (Optional 5 EUR per person per day will be collected by the guide)