This fifteen day tour presents two jewels of Asia's heritage.

It combines five days in the spectacular capital of China, Beijing, with a ten day tour of Tibet. Since the seventh century, when a Chinese Princess helped convert the Tibetan King to Buddhism, these two countries' fates have been intertwined. Compare Beijing's Imperial accomplishments, such as the Ming Tombs or Temple of Heaven with those of 'the land of snow'. Tibet's relics, like its tenacious faith, are products of its environment as much as of history.

Yumbu Lakang castle sits atop a cloud-bathed crag, overseeing the royal tombs in the fertile Tsedang valley beneath. Its solitary beauty, defiant of its surroundings, is echoed by that of Yamdrok lake which, even at an altitude of 4,800 meters, is overshadowed by gargantuan mountains. Gyantse's ornate Kumbum Stupa, housing the unique Newari frescoes, escapes wintry gales in the sheltering enclave of low hills.

As numerous as Gyantse's vivid frescoes are the raised chambers of Shigatse's labyrinthine Tashilhunpo Monastery. Home to the Panchen Lama, this vatican was the focus of opposition to Lhasa's rule. Power, however, never escaped the Dalai Lama in his Potala Palace. Its grandeur, together with the intensity of devotion at the Jokhang Temple, will be among your abiding memories of this unforgettable journey to the roof of the world.

Day 1-2 :
Travelling to China you cross the international dateline, arriving the next day in the afternoon or evening. (Taiwan Hotel)

Day 3 Beijing :
This morning's activities will allow you to compare the old with the new. After strolling across the impressive Tiananmen Square, you will enter the magnificent Forbidden City (as in Bertolucci's film 'The Last Emperor'). Your first lunch will be served afloat a dragon boat on an Imperial lake. In the afternoon, we take you to the majestic Temple of Heaven.

Day 4 Beijing :
This morning is left free. Some may use the time to inspect another of Beijing's tourist sites. Others, however, will want to indulge in a shopping spree, taking advantage of low prices for cashmere and silk goods, as well as for antiques, ceramics, etc. In the afternoon you will wander through the Ming Tombs, the Chinese Emperors having been just as particular as the Pharoahs about their bodys' final resting place; the Sacred Way as remarkable as the one in Luxor, Egypt. In the evening, you will enjoy dinner upon China's best-known monument, the Great Wall. More than 2,500 years old, the Chinese built this impressive fortification to protect their civilization from the unruly northern tribes.

Day 5 Beijing :
We begin the day with a tour of the delightful Summer Palace, a retreat built exclusively for the Dowager Empress Cixi; its ornate pavilions, poetic landscape and gracious lake epitomize the refinement of the Imperial tradition. Its sense of space contrasts with the intimacy of our afternoon's pedicab tour through Beijing's traditional alleyways (or hutong) to formerly aristocratic residences.

Day 6 Beijing - Chengdu :
Guests can opt to enjoy this morning by themselves. Others will want to join us in visiting the Lama Temple - it is interesting to compare Beijing's Tibetan temple with those you will see in Tibet proper. An afternoon flight will take us to Chengdu where we will enjoy a lovely Sichuan dinner in an elegant courtyard restaurant. (Huayang Garden City Hotel)

Day 7 Chengdu - Tsetang :
After an early morning arrival by flight in Tibet, we will drive to the fabled birthplace of Tibetan civilization, Tsedang. Our average altitude in Tibet, about 3,500 metres, is not much lower than Mont Blanc. This afternoon, we will do as little as possible to give our bodies time to adjust to the thin air. (Tsedang Hotel)

Day 8 Tsetang :
Our second day, although gentle, misses none of the nearby sights. Believed to have been built in the first century BC by a heavenly king, the ancient castle of Yumbu Lakang, is posed dramatically over the fertile Tsedang valley. In the afternoon, we will visit the Valley of the Kings which contains the burial mounds of past rulers.

Day 9 Tsetang - Gyantse :
Today, we drive to Tibet's third largest town, Gyantse. Traversing the Kamba La mountain pass and skirting Yamdrok lake, we will enjoy breathtaking vistas across vertiginous, snow-capped mountain ranges and over wind-swept, steep-banked valleys. Upon arrival at Gyantse, we visit the unique Newari frescoes of the multi-storied Kumbum Stupa. (Gyantse Hotel)

Day 10 Gyantse - Shigatse :
We drive along the Gyantse plain, punctuated by pagoda-shaped telegraph poles, to Shigatse. Tibet's second largest town is the seat of the Panchen (or scholar) Lamas. This afternoon, we tour the raised chambers of the labyrinthine Tashilhunpo Monastery. (Shigatse Hotel)

Day 11 Shigatse - Lhasa :
Our route from Shigatse to Tibet's hallowed capital, Lhasa, follows the Yarlong Tsangpo river through sheer mountain gorges that have taken as long as 80 million years to form. (Shambala Hotel)

Day 12 Lhasa :
The day begins with a tour of the world famous Potala Palace - the trapezoidal, red and white Winter Palace that oversees the growing city of Lhasa beneath. Amazing as this is, the intensity of worship at the intimate Jokhang Monastery, the holiest of Tibetan temples, is still more so. After we visit this unforgettable place, you will stroll on the Barkhor about the temple's circumference, meeting locals and feasting your eyes on some of the strangely clad clansmen from the outlying regions.

Day 13 Lhasa :
This day we visit Drepung and Sera Monasteries on Lhasa's outskirts. Once boasting thousands of monks these wealthy monasteries vied for power. Now operating once more, you will see young monks meditating and studying in the debating gardens and chanting halls. The rest of this last day is left free to relax in the old Tibetan quarter of Lhasa or to make last minute purchases.

Day 14 Lhasa - Chengdu - Beijing :

This morning we fly back to Beijing via Chengdu, arriving at our hotel late in the afternoon. Tonight we will meet for a farewell dinner at Beijing's premier restaurant. (Taiwan Hotel)

Day 15 Leave Beijing :