China 10-Day Itinerary: Beijing–Xi'an–Shanghai (First Trip)
Checked . Train times and fares move; ticket prices below are typical second-class G-train ranges, not a live quote. Confirm on 12306 before you pay. Forbidden City tickets release at 20:00 Beijing time, seven days out, on the Palace Museum site. Terracotta Warriors are real-name on bmy.com.cn.
This is the default first trip to China: Beijing → Xi’an → Shanghai, two high-speed trains, nine nights. You get the Wall, the Forbidden City, the Terracotta Warriors and Shanghai — without a third flight or a fourth city you only see from a taxi.
It is not a list of every temple.
The skeleton
| On the ground | Sleep | The job | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Days 1–4 | Beijing | 3 nights, afternoon train on day 4 | Forbidden City, Mutianyu, one extra morning |
| Days 4 (eve)–6 | Xi’an | 2 nights, morning train on day 6 | Muslim Quarter on arrival; Terracotta Warriors on day 5, city wall if time |
| Days 6 (afternoon)–10 | Shanghai | 4 nights | Bund, Former French Concession, one free day |
| Day 10 | Fly out | — | Pudong or Hongqiao; no morning museum |
Nine hotel nights: 3 Beijing + 2 Xi’an + 4 Shanghai. The afternoon Beijing train keeps a last Beijing morning. The morning Shanghai train avoids dragging bags out to Lintong and back, and you reach the Bund in daylight.
Check the visa track first. Most European, UK, Australian, Japanese, Korean and Canadian passports are on 30-day visa-free. US passports are not — this 10-day arc is built so 240-hour transit still works, if you leave to a third country.
Before you fly
Do these on home Wi-Fi. The linked guides have the setup; this is the order.
- Visa path — checker above. If you are on 240-hour, book the onward ticket to country C before you leave home.
- Roaming travel eSIM — 20 GB is the default for a first trip. Install it before you fly.
- Alipay first, then WeChat Pay — foreign card, home phone number. Alipay is what Didi charges; metro is Alipay, WeChat, or a tap card in Beijing and Shanghai.
- Amap or Apple Maps — download offline packs for all three cities. Save each hotel as the Chinese address from the booking.
- The two trains — 12306. Register and verify the passport when you book flights. Tickets release 15 days out.
- Hotels — neighbourhoods below. Book cancellable rates.
- Forbidden City — seven days out, 20:00 Beijing time, bookingticket.dpm.org.cn. Same passport you will carry. Closed Mondays (except public holidays). If day 2 is a Monday, book it for day 3 or day 4 and move the Wall.
- Terracotta Warriors — real-name on bmy.com.cn. Passport at the gate.
Screenshot every booking, train ticket and hotel Chinese address. Immigration, station staff and Didi drivers do not wait while you join hotel Wi-Fi.
Where to stay (neighbourhoods, not hotels)
Pick the district, then search. A “Great Wall hotel” or a Lintong hotel next to the pits costs you every other hour of the trip.
| City | Stay here | Why | Skip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beijing | Qianmen / Dashilar (walk to Tiananmen) or Sanlitun (Line 10, food, easier evenings) | You will be on the metro every day except the Wall | Stay out by the Wall, or next to PEK/PKX “for the flight” |
| Xi’an | Bell Tower / Drum Tower / Muslim Quarter | Wall, food, metro Line 2 to Xi’an North | Lintong (the pits are a day trip, not a base) |
| Shanghai | The Bund / East Nanjing Road (first-timer views) or Former French Concession (walkable, cafes, metro) | Last days should not require a 40-minute ride for dinner | Pudong Lujiazui unless you specifically want the skyline from the room; Hongqiao “for the train” |
Mid-range in those districts, 2026 ballpark: Beijing ¥500–900 a night, Xi’an ¥350–650, Shanghai Bund ¥700–1,200 (French Concession a notch under). Hostels exist; this itinerary assumes a quiet room you can sleep in after the Wall.
Once the district is decided, search English listings on Trip.com — Beijing, Xi’an, Shanghai. Foreign cards, free cancellation on most rates. Filter the map to the neighbourhood above, not to the first “near city centre” result.
The two trains (do not fly these)
| Leg | Stations | Time | Second class (typical) | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beijing → Xi’an | Beijing West 北京西 → Xi’an North 西安北 | Fastest ~4h 10m; most 4.5–6h | ~¥515–620 | Day 4, ~15:00–16:00, 4–4.5h G |
| Xi’an → Shanghai | Xi’an North 西安北 → Shanghai Hongqiao 上海虹桥 | Fastest ~5h 50m; most 6.5–8h | ~¥650–800 | Day 6, ~08:00–09:30, fastest morning G (~6–7h) |
Book G-trains. Second class is the default; first class (~1.6×) is the upgrade that is actually worth it on the longer Shanghai leg — a wider seat, not a sleeper. How to book, which app, which station — 12306 first, Trip.com only if the card is declined or you need to lock a holiday train more than 15 days out.
Beijing West and Xi’an North are airport-sized: arrive a full hour early, passport in hand. Put the station name, not “Beijing” or “Xi’an”, into Didi and Amap.
On day 4, do not book a 17:00 train to squeeze in one more temple — you will check in at midnight. Gates close three minutes before departure. Cut the Beijing sightseeing at lunch.
Day by day
Day 1 — Land in Beijing
Whichever airport the ticket says: Capital (PEK) or Daxing (PKX). Do not try to switch. Follow Online Car Hailing / 网约车, not anyone in arrivals, and book Didi to the hotel. Metro is fine if you land before 21:00, have no giant luggage, and already have data (PEK: Airport Express; PKX: Daxing Airport Express to Caoqiao).
Do not book the Forbidden City for day 1 unless you land before 09:00. Check in, test Alipay on a bottle of water, walk. Qianmen / hutongs if you still have legs; Sanlitun dinner if you do not.
Day 2 — Forbidden City
Closed Mondays (except public holidays). If day 2 is a Monday, swap this with day 3 (Wall) or the day 4 morning. Tickets ¥60 peak / ¥40 off-peak, real-name, no gate sales.
From Qianmen you walk through Tiananmen Square to Meridian Gate (午门) — enter with the same passport you booked. Walk north, do not try to see every hall. Exit Shenwu Gate (神武门) and climb Jingshan Park across the road — that is the postcard roofscape. Afternoon: a hutong that is not Nanluoguxiang if you can help it (Wudaoying / Fangjia around the Lama Temple are saner).
If official checkout rejects a raw Visa field, pay with the Alipay you already linked. Do not buy a “Forbidden City ticket” from a WeChat seller in a hutong.
Day 3 — Great Wall at Mutianyu
Mutianyu, not Badaling. Badaling is closer and a tour-bus crush. Mutianyu is restored, has a cable car, and is the first-trip default. Jinshanling and Simatai are for a hiking day you do not have.
Door to gate is 1.5–2 hours. For two or more people, Didi both ways is the least friction (often ¥200–350 each way from Sanlitun or Qianmen — check the quote). Solo, that is ¥400–700 before tickets — a small transfer or the 916 bus plus a Huairou taxi is the cheaper default.
On site: admission is about ¥40–45, plus a short shuttle, plus cable car (~¥140 return to Tower 14) or chairlift up / toboggan down from Tower 6. Cable car up and down is the default; toboggan only if it is dry and you want the extra. Walk as far as the steep bit toward Tower 20, then turn around. Leave the wall by mid-afternoon so the Didi back is not in dusk surge.
Leave bags at the hotel. This is not a luggage day.
Day 4 — One more Beijing morning, then the train
Checkout at noon. Leave the bags at reception — hotels do this for free. Morning, pick one: Temple of Heaven, or Lama Temple + a hutong. Both sit inside the city and still leave time for a 15:00 train. Skip the Summer Palace unless you book an earlier train — it is in Haidian, and stacking it with Beijing West is how this day overruns.
Lunch, collect bags, metro or Didi to Beijing West. Aim to be in the waiting hall 60 minutes before departure. Prefer a ~15:00, ~4h 10m G (there is usually one in that slot) so Xi’an North is ~19:15.
Didi to the Bell Tower hotel. Follow 网约车 / Online Car Hailing, pin on the numbered pillar, hotel’s Chinese address. Evening roads are usually moving: Xi’an North → Bell Tower ¥30–50, ~25–35 min, hotel ~20:00–20:30. Line 2 is the backup; last trains toward Bell Tower run until about 23:55.
Dinner in the Muslim Quarter — crowded, still the right call once. Do not climb the city wall at 20:30 after four hours on a train. Bell and Drum Towers from the outside are enough tonight; the Great Mosque if it is still open and you have legs.
Day 5 — Terracotta Warriors, then the wall if you have it
The pits are in Lintong, 40–50 minutes east. They are not in Xi’an. There is no train to catch today. This is the packed day on the route: pits plus Lishan Garden is already a full outing; the wall is extra, not a second “must.”
- Didi at 07:00, on site for 08:30 opening (last entry 17:00 peak / 16:30 winter). Adult ticket ¥120, one ticket, two parks, free shuttle between them.
- Pit 1 (the postcard) → Pit 3 (the small HQ) → Pit 2 → shuttle to Lishan Garden for the bronze chariots. Skip the on-site restaurants.
- Leave the pits mid-afternoon (~15:00), Didi back to the Bell Tower hotel.
Then walk the City Wall from the south gate (bike the flat stretches if you want). In peak season the wall stays open into the evening; in winter last entry can be late afternoon — if you are back after that, skip the wall and keep the unhurried pits. Pack tonight. Tomorrow is an 08:00-ish train.
Book the Warriors a few days ahead (passport, real-name). Walk-up windows are not the plan, especially weekends. Official site first; Trip.com if payment fails. Same passport at the gate.
Day 6 — Morning train to Shanghai
Checkout with the bags, Didi or Line 2 to Xi’an North. Book a morning G around 08:00–09:30 — the fastest ones are about 6–7 hours, Hongqiao mid-afternoon. Skip the 06:00 departures unless you like stations at dawn. You want Shanghai Hongqiao, not Shanghai Station. First class on this leg is the upgrade that is actually worth it if you want a wider, quieter seat.
From Hongqiao, Line 2 toward East Nanjing Road for the Bund; Line 10 toward the Former French Concession. Yan’an Expressway at 15:00 is often slower than the metro. Didi (~¥60–100, 30–60 min) if you have two large cases and do not want stairs through the hub. Add 15–20 minutes to get out of the hall either way. Hotel by ~16:00–17:00.
You have a Bund walk the same evening: daylight from the hotel, then again after dark. East Nanjing Road only as far as you still enjoy crowds.
Days 7–8 — Shanghai
Day 7 morning: Former French Concession on foot — plane trees, lunch, a café you do not need a reservation for. Afternoon (optional): the Pudong side of the river if you want the skyline looking back.
Day 8 morning: Shanghai Museum East (Pudong, Line 2 to Shanghai Science and Technology Museum) — that is the main collection now. Walk in with your passport; individuals do not need a reservation on ordinary days (holidays and special shows can still fill up). Closed Tuesdays. Afternoon (optional): Yu Garden; go early or skip the bazaar around it. The People’s Square building is the older sibling, often given over to ticketed special exhibitions — do not treat it as the default museum.
Metro for almost all of this. Didi when it rains or you are done.
Day 9 — One extra, not three
Pick one:
- Suzhou old town — G-train ~25–30 minutes from Hongqiao to Suzhou Station (苏州站), not Suzhou North (苏州北). North dumps you in the suburbs, a 30-minute ride from the gardens. The best add-on on this itinerary. Back the same evening.
- Xintiandi / People’s Square if you want a zero-train day and already did the East museum.
- Zhujiajiao if you want a water town and accept that it is a tourist water town.
Disneyland is a full day with its own logistics. It does not belong on this skeleton unless that is the trip.
Day 10 — Out
International from Pudong (PVG): leave the hotel 3.5–4 hours before the flight (Line 2, Maglev + metro, or Didi). Hongqiao (SHA) is closer if that is the ticket you hold — do not assume they are interchangeable. If you are on 240-hour transit, the stamp date is the deadline, not “about ten days”.
What this costs (ex-flights)
Per person, nine nights, this route. International flights sit on top and dominate the total.
| What it feels like | 10 days | |
|---|---|---|
| Shoestring | Hostels, street food, metro, second class, bus to the Wall | ¥5,000–7,000 (~US$700–1,000) |
| Mid-range (this page) | 3–4★ in the neighbourhoods above, restaurants, Didi to Mutianyu and the pits | ¥11,000–16,000 (~US$1,500–2,200) |
| Comfortable | 4–5★, first class on Xi’an–Shanghai, private car to the Wall | ¥22,000+ (~US$3,000+) |
The mid-range pile is mostly hotels. Trains are ¥1,200–1,400 for both legs in second class; the Wall day and the pits day are the two expensive Didi + ticket lumps (¥800 and ~¥400). Food is whatever you make it — ¥80/day is noodles; ¥200/day is sitting down. eSIM is about US$17–40 (10 GB if you are strict; 20 GB for a first trip).
Keep ¥200–500 cash as a dead-phone backup. Everything else is QR.
Weeks to skip
Do not run this itinerary through Golden Week (1–7 October), Spring Festival / Chunyun (the two weeks around Chinese New Year), or Labour Day (1–5 May). Trains sell out at the 15-day open, the Wall is a queue, and hotel rates in these three cities jump. Late March–May and mid-September–October except those holiday weeks are the default. August in Beijing is hot; January is cold and doable if you pack for it.
What we are not doing
Chengdu pandas, Guilin karst, Zhangjiajie, a Yangtze cruise, Hong Kong, or “a night train to save a hotel”. Those are other trips. Two G-trains and three cities is the version you will finish.
Frequently asked questions
Is 10 days enough for a first trip to China?
Enough for this route — not enough to 'see China'. Four days in Beijing (including the Wall), two in Xi'an, four in Shanghai is a first trip you can actually walk. Adding Chengdu, Guilin or Zhangjiajie means cutting a city to a layover. Save those for trip two.
How many days should I spend in Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai?
Beijing 4 days (3 nights + a morning), Xi'an 2 days (2 nights), Shanghai 4 days (4 nights, including an afternoon arrival). Beijing needs a full Wall day plus the Forbidden City; Xi'an is the pits on day 5 and a short city stretch around that; Shanghai is where you slow down. Do not split 10 days evenly — Xi'an does not need a third night on this route.
Can I do this itinerary on the 240-hour visa-free transit?
Yes, if you fly into China from country A and out to a different country C — for example US → Beijing, Shanghai → Tokyo. You cannot fly home the way you came. The 240-hour clock starts at midnight the day after you land, so an evening arrival still fits. Enter at PEK or PKX, exit at PVG or SHA. Check the date on the entry stamp before you leave the desk.
Beijing first or Shanghai first?
Beijing first. The Wall is the hardest day and you want it while you are fresh; Shanghai is the easiest city to be tired in (more English, more food you already recognise). Reverse it if the flights are much cheaper that way — the two trains run both directions.
Is China safe for tourists?
In Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai, violent crime against visitors is rare. The things that actually happen: airport taxi touts, the 'tea ceremony' invitation near Tiananmen, and a phone snatched if you film in the road. Use Didi, decline strangers who want to take you somewhere, keep the phone in a front pocket on the metro. Solo travellers, including women, do this route every week.
Do I need to tip in China?
No. Restaurants, taxis, hotels and Didi do not expect a tip, and leaving cash on the table often just confuses the staff. The only exception is a private driver or guide you hired for the day — rounding up is appreciated, not required. Do not tip in a restaurant to 'be polite'.
Can I add Chengdu, Guilin or Hong Kong?
Not on this 10-day skeleton. Chengdu is a 4-hour train from Xi'an and eats a city; Guilin is a flight; Hong Kong is a different immigration system and costs a full extra day. A mainland-only eSIM also usually stops working at the HK border — that is a side effect, not the main reason to skip it. Do this triangle cleanly, or plan 14 days with a fourth city.