China

01 / 06

Hong Kong

Aug 29 – 31 · The Salisbury, YMCA of Hong Kong, Kowloon
41 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui · check-in 3:00 PM · check-out 11:00 AM

Hotel
Booked

Day 1 · Sat Day 2 · Sun Day 3 · Mon

Aug 29 — Tsim Sha Tsui

3:00 PM

Check in — The Salisbury

Grab an Octopus card at the metro station on the way in — covers transport, convenience stores, vending machines

K11 Art Mall

The Forest Bakery+ custard-filled bolo bao (Kiosk 17) · HEYTEA (G32 & G33)

Twist and Buckle

Michelin-recognized churros — 29-31 Chatham Road

Sunset

Star Ferry

Across Victoria Harbour

8:00 PM

Symphony of Lights

~10 min show, Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront by the Cultural Centre / Avenue of Stars

Aug 30 — Mong Kok & Jordan

K11 Musea

HEYTEA LAB, B201-31 & 32 — 10 min from K11 Art Mall

Tim Ho Wan

Michelin dim sum — 9-11 Fuk Wing St, Sham Shui Po

Ladies Market

Tung Choi St, Mong Kok

All Day Chicken Lab

Popular Hainanese chicken rice, right on the market street

Evening

Temple Street Night Market

Jordan

Aug 31 — Central, then the border

Star Ferry to Central

Cross to the island side

Observation Wheel

AIA Vitality Park, Central — Mon–Thu 12:00–22:00, Fri–Sun 11:00–23:00

Shiu Shing Hong

Hotel scent dupes — Wah Hei Building, 130 Jervois St, Sheung Wan

Uoya Zen

Bluefin tuna cutting show, check times — 108 Wellington St

Train to Shenzhenconfirm route

Salisbury Rd → East Tsim Sha Tsui MTR → Tuen Ma Line 1 stop → East Rail Line to Lo Wu (~40 min) → walk through HK/Shenzhen immigration → Shenzhen Metro Line 1 to Laojie → Line 3 to Hubei Station, Exit A (~1 min walk to hotel)

More Hong Kong — food & extras not yet slotted in

Food to work in

Sang See Congee — best congee
Slow Cow Beef Bowl, Sun Wise Building, Wellington St
Milkfill — famous milk puffs
My Cup of Tea
辣嗎美食 cheung fun stall, 177 Wan Chai Rd
Oi Man Sang · Sham Tsai Kee · Sang Kee Congee
Danish Bakery · Kwan Yu Roast Meats
Celestial Court Chinese Restaurant
Nang Kee Restaurant — Sham Tseng BBQ, 13 Sham Hong Road
Wah So Ice Room — pineapple buns, tomato macaroni soup
Australia Dairy Company — scrambled eggs, milk pudding
Kau Kee Beef Brisket
Regal Ice Cream Truck — if spotted on the street

If there's time

Coca-Cola Museum · Pink McDonald's
Starstreet brunch (OWO, Oolaa) → walk Tamar Park → ferry to TST
1881 Heritage · Harbour City
Aqua rooftop bar
@mius.hongkong

Night life

Lan Kwai Fong
California Tower — restaurants, bars, clubs, 3 min from Central MTR

Logistics

Forward luggage via Didi — steps saved in the Instagram post
Taxis charge extra for large luggage in the trunk
Trams: board at the back, pay when you exit the front

02 / 06

Shenzhen

Aug 31 – Sept 4 · CYBO Station SSAW Shangpin Hotel, Luohu
No.2103 Shennan East Road, 518001 · check-in after 2:00 PM · check-out before 12:00 PM

Hotel
Booked

Day 1 · Mon Day 2 · Tue Day 3 · Wed Day 4 · Thu Day 5 · Fri

Aug 31 — Crossing in

Arrive via Lo Wu border

Continuing from the Hong Kong route above

2:00 PM+

Check in — SSAW Shangpin Hotel

Local dinner near the hotel

Keep it easy after a travel day

Sept 1 — Futian

Futian COCO Park

5 levels, 85,000 sqm, big outdoor square

Dafen Oil Painting Village

Dinner

Try lychee — one of Shenzhen's featured fruits

Sept 2 — Luohu

Off-Nature Museum

Entry comes with a purchase at the cafe or gift shop

Dong Men Pedestrian Street

Street food

Luohu Commercial City

Lo Wu Shopping Plaza

Sept 3 — Omakase & tea

Omakasepick one

Sushi Song (Coastal City, Nanshan) · Sushi Huan (Luohu Greater China Maoye Plaza) · Sushi Kan all-you-can-eat (Futian, near Qiaocheng North exit B) — book ahead

HeyTea Lab OCT Harbour

Zhongyaotang Gelato

TCM gelato / herbal cola, Mix C

Sept 4 — Fly out

Morning free / pack

Check out by 12:00 PM

4:40–6:40 PM

Flight to Zhangjiajie

SZX → DYG · 1 carry-on 7kg, checked 20kg, max 40×60×100cm

03 / 06

Zhangjiajie

Sept 4 – 7 · 4D3N package tour

Tour
Booked

This leg runs on a booked 4D3N tour, so day-by-day stops are set by the operator rather than planned here. Worth confirming with them: pickup point and time, whether Tianmen Mountain and the Glass Bridge are included, and meal arrangements — then the onward train to Chongqing still needs a time and booking.

04 / 06

Chongqing

Sept 7 – 10 · Holiday Four Seasons Hotel
60 Linjiang Road, Yuzhong District (Jiefangbei / Hongyadong) · check-in 3:00 PM · check-out 12:00 PM

Hotel
Booked

Day 1 · Mon Day 2 · Tue Day 3 · Wed Day 4 · Thu

Sept 7 — Arrival

Train from Zhangjiajieto book

3:00 PM

Check in — Holiday Four Seasons Hotel

Evening

Hongyadong

Best seen lit up at night

Sept 8 — Riverside & old town

Yangtze River Bridge

Chongqing Liziba Station

The monorail that runs through the building

Ciqikou Ancient Town

"Little Chongqing"

Sept 9 — Hot pot & a drone show

Pipa Yuan

Guinness World Record hot pot

Xia Hao Lane

Evening

Drone showcheck schedule

Sept 10 — Fly out

Free morning

Last call for Chongqing small noodles, hot & sour rice noodles, or spicy grilled fish

Flight to Shanghaito book

05 / 06

Shanghai

Sept 10 – 14 · Hotel not yet booked

Hotel
To book

Day 1 · Thu Day 2 · Fri Day 3 · Sat Day 4 · Sun Day 5 · Mon

Sept 10 — Arrival

Flight from Chongqingto book

Check in — hotel TBD

Dinner

Wuxi Old Alley Noodle Shop, or a Peking duck spot from the list below

Sept 11 — Water town day

9:30 AM

Yu Garden & Zhujiajiao tour

Meet at Renaissance Shanghai Yu Garden Hotel (Line 10/14, YuYuan Garden Stn, Exit 3) → Yu Garden (1hr) → Old City God Temple market (1hr) → Zhujiajiao (2hr self-guided) → The Bund (30 min) — ends 4:30 PM

Sept 12 — Qibao & shopping

Qibao Ancient Town

Go with an empty stomach and bag — souvenirs

Shanghai Greenhouse Garden

Largest glass greenhouse in Asia

HARMAY

Beauty store, makeup minis

Sept 13 — Switch to the spa

Hotel checkout

Check in — 24hr spaconfirm which

HeyTea Lab 2.0

259 North Maoming Road, Jing'an

Sept 14 — Onward to Beijing

Morning free / pack

Train to Beijingto book

High-speed rail — time not yet set

More Shanghai — food & extras not yet slotted in

Xiao long bao & noodles

Li Bai Xie Xie Huang Mian — famous crab roe noodles
Yu Xing Ji — crab roe noodles
Wu You Xian — 1 Michelin star XLB
Lai Lai Xiao Long — Michelin recommended XLB
Da Hu Chun — Bib Gourmand XLB
Wuxi Old Alley Noodle Shop — local favorite, Jackson Wang's spot

Duck, tea & sweets

Peking Chamber · Sheng Yong Xiao — Peking duck
Zhongyaotang Gelato — Hunan Rd / Xiangyang / Panlong locations
BAs D Ban — popular bakery, flaky pastries
Ahma's Handmade — milk tea with steamed taro mochi

Other

Royal Banquet Palace — reservations via WeChat (Beijing & Shanghai)

06 / 06

Beijing

Sept 14 – 19 · Sunworld Dynasty Hotel Wangfujing
50 Wangfujing Avenue, 100006 · check-in after 2:00 PM · check-out before 12:00 PM

Hotel
Booked

Day 1 · Mon Day 2 · Tue Day 3 · Wed Day 4 · Thu Day 5 · Fri Day 6 · Sat

Sept 14 — Arrival

Train arrival from Shanghai

2:00 PM+

Check in — Sunworld Dynasty Hotel

Sept 15 — Great Wallpick option

Great Wall tour

See the three options compared below — needs a final pick

Sept 16 — Forbidden Citypick option

Forbidden City tour

See the two options compared below — needs a final pick

Sept 17 — Open

Open dayto plan

Could fit the Coca-Cola Museum, a hutong walk, or Temple of Heaven

Sept 18 — Open

Open dayto plan

Remaining sights, shopping, or a rest day

Sept 19 — Fly home

Pack / morning free

6:40 PM

Flight home via Hong Kong

1 carry-on 7kg, 2 checked bags up to 50lbs each

Great Wall — choose one

Mutianyu + Summer Palace + Yuanmingyuan

Meet at Exit E, Dongsi Station (Line 5/6), 7:20 AM — look for a BusDa guide in a green vest. Returns 5:53–6:40 PM, ending at Beijing Olympic Park. Includes cable car.

$59.45 CAD

Mutianyu, hotel pickup

Pickup 7:00–8:00 AM within Beijing's Third Ring Road; ends 4:00–5:00 PM at the National Art Museum of China subway station. Includes cable car.

$58.75 CAD

Gubei Water Town & Simatai

Pickup 7:00 AM, or meet at Guomao (9:00 AM) / Shaoyaoju Exit E (9:30 AM). Returns 10:00–10:30 PM. Includes cable car plus the water-town music & drone light show, opera and acrobatics, and street performance.

$65.99 CAD

Forbidden City — choose one

Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City & Treasure Museum

By subway: Line 2/8 to Qianmen, Exit I, walk 150m west. Start times 8:00, 9:30, or 11:30 AM. By taxi: ask for "Muji hotel BeijingFang." Tour ends at the North Gate (Shenwu Gate) — free to continue on to Jingshan Park. Return options at 12:30, 2:00, or 4:30 PM.

$45.59 CAD

Forbidden City & Jingshan Park half day

Meet at Donghua Gate, 1:00 PM. Jingshan Park portion wraps by 4:30 PM.

$49.85 CAD

Good to know

Buy an Octopus card at the metro station on arrival in Hong Kong — works for transport, convenience stores, and vending machines
Hong Kong taxis charge extra for large luggage stored in the trunk
Trams in Hong Kong: board from the back door, pay when you exit at the front
Luggage forwarding via Didi before the Shenzhen border crossing — details saved in the Instagram post
Hong Kong → Shenzhen crossing: East Rail Line to Lo Wu (~40 min), walk through both immigration checkpoints, then Shenzhen Metro Line 1 → Line 3 to the hotel

Trip map

Hong Kong

Food to work in

If there's time

Night life

Logistics

Shenzhen

Zhangjiajie

Chongqing

Shanghai

Xiao long bao & noodles

Duck, tea & sweets

Other

Beijing

Great Wall — choose one

Forbidden City — choose one

Good to know

Still open