China highlights small group holiday
Travel Team
If you'd like to chat about this holiday or need help finding one we're very happy to help. The Travel Team.
01273 823 700 Calling from outside the UK? rosy@responsibletravel.com
Check dates, prices & availability
The leaders are not guides – they’re not there to shepherd you around. Instead, they’ll let you know which local restaurant serves great value food – without running the risk of travellers’ tummy. They’ll allow you to avoid hour-long queues at train stations and attractions.
We like to think of small group travel as the Goldilocks option. It is independent travel without the fuss, worry and bunk beds – and organised travel without the coaches. And it’s cheaper than a tailor made tour. It’s sits somewhere in the middle – and we think it’s just about right.
Have big, life-enriching experiences that would be impossible to organise without lots of time and insider knowledge.
Simplicity
Make the most of your holiday time by letting someone else do the hard work and boring logistics!
Peace of mind
Small group tours take care of the security aspects – and provide a safety net should anything unexpected happen.
If you don’t have three months to spend exploring, small groups trips let you cover more ground in less time. Your days are not spent queuing for tickets or finding hotels – so you can squeeze more into your holiday.
Solo travellers who’d like company
Likeminded travel companions plus peace of mind for those travelling alone. Single supplements are usually available – providing privacy if you want it.
Less confident travellers
Stray from the tourist trail without worrying about getting lost, and meet local people without dealing with the language barrier.
Couples and friends have private rooms, and you can choose to eat alone or not. Single supplements give solo travellers their own room.
“There won’t be any free time”
Free mornings or afternoons let you explore on your own, or just relax.
“The accommodation will be basic”
Trips are as high or low end as you like. Though off the beaten track destinations won’t have luxury hotels, this is all part of the adventure.
“I won’t like the other travellers!”
Tour operators try to create groups with a similar demographic – age, families, activity levels... Chances are, you’ll even make new friends.
“Will we be following an umbrella?”
No.
Responsible tourism
As the pioneers of responsible tourism, we screen every trip so you can travel knowing your holiday will help support conservation and local people.
This tour includes many classic highlights such as the Forbidden City in Beijing, the Great Wall at Mutianyu, and the tranquil rural backwater of Yangshuo. In Beijing you can visit the old Hutongs (residential quarters) to see traditional houses and gain an insight into Chinese lifestyles. We travel on the new electric high speed rail network where we can - one of the most environmentally-friendly forms of transport. We use locally owned hotels throughout the trip, ensuring benefit to the communities we are visiting.This is a fast paced trip that encompasses many of the highlights of China. We use a variety of transportation but spend a good deal of time aboard boats that allow us to explore in a more sustainable manner. We cruise along the Yangtse and Li Rivers and also spend some time on overnight trains which afford a great opportunity to mingle with locals and learn about life and customs.
In Yangshuo we encourage customers to take a bike road around the country lanes as well as exploring the town on foot.
Our choice of accommodation is as far as possible to use smaller locally owned establishments. We also stay aboard boats and trains where possible. Our Tour Leaders will also assist and direct customers to eat as much as possible at local restaurants and to visit the local markets.
The Impacts of this Trip
We use local tour leaders and guides which means that we get in-depth information on the country we are visiting and generate wealth for the local people. China has wealth of history and culture to explore as well as how life is in modern day China; from learning about the education system, to making sure we don’t fall foul of any taboos!
Meeting the people is often a great highlight of a tour and our leaders are real facilitators; enabling us to meet and mix with local people wherever possible – all the more fun when we are travelling off the beaten track.
Our local leaders take us to small, locally owned and run restaurants wherever possible throughout the trip, ensuring that small businesses benefit from our visit, and that we enjoy a very authentic experience.
In addition to the above, we are continually looking for ways to improve and are proud to be ‘Responsible in everything we do’. Education is key and so all staff, Tour leaders and partnering suppliers are trained in responsible and sustainable tourism. At our UK Head Office, we continually strive towards a sustainable and planet-friendly working environment, including having solar panels installed and a company commitment to reducing our plastic usage. As well as this, we have valuable and longstanding partnerships with UK charities Toilet Twinning and Send a Cow, plus many smaller initiatives and projects around the world. We’re members of UK travel industry bodies Tourism Concern and AITO because we believe it’s important to share our knowledge and experience, as well as learn from other operators. We acknowledge that air travel has a negative impact on our environment, so we work together with Cool Earth to offset carbon and protect our important rainforests
This tour includes many classic highlights such as the Forbidden City in Beijing, the Great Wall at Mutianyu, and the tranquil rural backwater of Yangshuo. In Beijing you can visit the old Hutongs (residential quarters) to see traditional houses and gain an insight into Chinese lifestyles. We travel on the new electric high speed rail network where we can - one of the most environmentally-friendly forms of transport. We use locally owned hotels throughout the trip, ensuring benefit to the communities we are visiting.This is a fast paced trip that encompasses many of the highlights of China. We use a variety of transportation but spend a good deal of time aboard boats that allow us to explore in a more sustainable manner. We cruise along the Yangtse and Li Rivers and also spend some time on overnight trains which afford a great opportunity to mingle with locals and learn about life and customs.
In Yangshuo we encourage customers to take a bike road around the country lanes as well as exploring the town on foot.
Our choice of accommodation is as far as possible to use smaller locally owned establishments. We also stay aboard boats and trains where possible. Our Tour Leaders will also assist and direct customers to eat as much as possible at local restaurants and to visit the local markets.
The Impacts of this Trip
We use local tour leaders and guides which means that we get in-depth information on the country we are visiting and generate wealth for the local people. China has wealth of history and culture to explore as well as how life is in modern day China; from learning about the education system, to making sure we don’t fall foul of any taboos!
Meeting the people is often a great highlight of a tour and our leaders are real facilitators; enabling us to meet and mix with local people wherever possible – all the more fun when we are travelling off the beaten track.
Our local leaders take us to small, locally owned and run restaurants wherever possible throughout the trip, ensuring that small businesses benefit from our visit, and that we enjoy a very authentic experience.
In addition to the above, we are continually looking for ways to improve and are proud to be ‘Responsible in everything we do’. Education is key and so all staff, Tour leaders and partnering suppliers are trained in responsible and sustainable tourism. At our UK Head Office, we continually strive towards a sustainable and planet-friendly working environment, including having solar panels installed and a company commitment to reducing our plastic usage. As well as this, we have valuable and longstanding partnerships with UK charities Toilet Twinning and Send a Cow, plus many smaller initiatives and projects around the world. We’re members of UK travel industry bodies Tourism Concern and AITO because we believe it’s important to share our knowledge and experience, as well as learn from other operators. We acknowledge that air travel has a negative impact on our environment, so we work together with Cool Earth to offset carbon and protect our important rainforests
Popular similar holidays
Japan small group holiday, Japan unmasked
Whistlestop Japan highlights with an expert tour leader
From £2470 - £2855 14 days excluding flights
Lebanon holiday
Discover Phoenician history, sublime ruins & fine wine
From £1245 6 days excluding flights
Vietnam adventure holiday
A comprehensive north to south exploration
From £1949 - £2679 16 days including UK flights
Jordan holiday, a week in Jordan
A week to explore the spectacular sites and scenery of Jordan
From £1599 - £1999 9 days including UK flights
protection
