Tour schedule:
9:00 am: Hotel pick-up by our guide and driver, then transfer to the famous Great Wall at Mutianyu where you will become the "hero"at the last day of year OX (2009 is the year of OX). After climbing the wall, you will be transferred back to the city at Hutongs –an area where many traditional dwellings still stand today.
12:30: Visit a local family and enjoy a festival lunch with the host and hostess.
1:30 pm: Hutong rickshaw tour, you'll ride on a rickshaw(2 persons per rickshaw) to travel along these hundreds-year old small alleys while listening to the traditional stories shared by your guide. You will also make a short stop to the bell tower, which offers a overview of the entire Hutong area.
2:30 pm: Arrive back at the local family's home and then enjoy shopping with the host/hostess to the local markets. Also shop at silk store for Festival dress called a "Tangzhuang".
4:00 pm: Back at the home of the local family, put on your newly-bought Thangzhuang and enjoy writing Chinese Couplets and making dumpling with the locals, and also prepare the most important,and the best,dinner of the year with them. In addition, if you wish to share your culinary skills, you can also prepare a dish to add to the festival dinner.
6:30 or 7:00 pm: Join the family to enjoy the year-best dinner.
8:00 pm:
Option 1: Enjoy watching the annual TV Carnival show (4 hours) – a big carnival show including singing, dancing, comedy, acrobatic routines and more with the family (English subtitles are available). Set off fireworks with the family at 00:00 midnight to welcome the year of the Tiger, and listen to the bell strike midnight from the bell tower nearby.
0:30 am, say good-bye to the family and be transferred back to the hotel by our driver. Lovely tour ends!
Option 2: say good-bye to the family and enjoy a driving tour for a fabulous night view of the city (including Bird's nest, Water cube, CCTV tower and Tiananmen Square) by our guide and driver. Then, go back to your hotel and enjoy the rest of the night on your own. Lovely tour ends!
Note: during the driving tour, our guide will give you introductions of each site but will not make any stops during the tour.
Tour Includes:
Entrance fee to the Great Wall
Hutong tour fee (including rickshaw, bell tower visit, local guide)
Hutong family visit and related expenses (drinking, snacks, fireworks)
Fabulous lunch and dinner at local family
*Well-trained English-Speaking tour guide (full day and night)
Private car/van (Full day and night)
Free-bottled mineral water
Tour Excludes:
Accommodation
Cable car of the Great Wall
Tips to the driver, guide, local family (optional)
Personal expenses
Kind Notice:
A. Your guide will join dinner with her/his own family, because of this they will not be with you for the host family dinner from 5:00 to 8:00 pm. Communication will not be an issue between you and the family though, because the families we selected can speak simply English.
B. There will be an extended amount of walking during this tour, therefore it is recommended that you wear sport shoes and clothes which are suitable for outdoor activities.
C. Winter is cold in Beijing, the temperature during the period of the Spring Festival is low, it is roughly between 3℃ ( 37℉,day time) to-10℃(14℉ night time, ), please select your warm clothes accordingly.