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Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai

Ten days, three cities: the golden triangle itinerary

Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai hold the greatest hits of a first China trip — and the visa-free window gives you exactly enough time to see them without sprinting.

How ten days worksThe visa math and the route logic The route at a glanceDay 1 to day 10 Beijing — days 1–4Imperial core and the Great Wall Xi'an — days 5–7Terracotta Army and city walls Shanghai — days 8–10The Bund and the departure Quick answersSix common questions Make it realFrom plan to bookings

How ten days works

The 240-hour visa-free transit equals ten full days — check your passport against the country list first.

Count from the moment you clear immigration, not the calendar day: landing on the evening of day 1 means the window closes on the evening of day 11. Build the route so the last day ends near your departure airport, and keep one flexible block for the things you will want to repeat.

The logic

Triangle by rail

Beijing (imperial north) → Xi'an (ancient west) → Shanghai (modern east). Two high-speed rides, city centre to city centre, no domestic flights, no backtracking — every leg is 4.5–6.5 hours.

The pace

One anchor per day

Each day has one big sight, not three. China's headline attractions are bigger, busier and slower than you expect; a plan that fits in your head is the one you will actually finish.

The depth

City notes live elsewhere

This page is the skeleton. Each city section links to our detailed city notes — food, neighbourhoods, transport quirks — so you can go as deep as you like.

The route at a glance

Ten days, two trains, zero flights.

Day	Base	The day
Day 1	Beijing	Arrive, settle, evening stroll — Qianmen street food if the legs allow
Day 2	Beijing	Tiananmen → Forbidden City → Jingshan park sunset view
Day 3	Beijing	Great Wall day trip (Mutianyu), Olympic Park at night
Day 4	Beijing	Summer Palace, hutong wander, pack
Day 5	Xi'an	Morning high-speed rail (~4.5–5 h), Muslim Quarter by night
Day 6	Xi'an	Terracotta Army in the morning, city wall at dusk
Day 7	Xi'an	Shaanxi History Museum, Big Wild Goose Pagoda
Day 8	Shanghai	Morning high-speed rail (~6–6.5 h), the Bund after dark
Day 9	Shanghai	Yu Garden, the old town, former French Concession streets
Day 10	Shanghai	Flexible day — last shopping (claim your tax refund), fly out

Beijing — days 1–4

Four nights. The imperial core plus one wall. Full details in our Beijing notes.

Day 2 — the axis. Tiananmen Square opens early, the Forbidden City needs a real-name advance booking (official mini-program, up to 7 days ahead), and Jingshan park's hill opposite the north gate gives you the only honest rooftop view of the whole complex. Do them in that order.
Day 3 — the wall. Mutianyu is the first-timer's pick: restored, dramatic, less crowded than Badaling, with a cable car and a toboggan down. Half a day out, back by mid-afternoon.
Day 4 — softer Beijing. Summer Palace in the morning (rent a boat if it is warm), then the hutong belt around Nanluoguxiang and the lakes. Early night — day 5 is a travel day.

Xi'an — days 5–7

Three nights. The ancient capital, at a gentler pace. Full details in our Xi'an notes.

Day 5 — arrive and eat. The morning train gets you in around lunch. The Muslim Quarter does its best work after dark; the illuminated Bell and Drum Towers sit ten minutes away.
Day 6 — the pits and the wall. The Terracotta Army is an hour east by tourist bus or taxi — go at opening, see pits 1, 2 and 3 in that order, and rent the audio guide. Back by three, rent a bike on the Ming city wall for the sunset lap.
Day 7 — the museum day. The Shaanxi History Museum is the best single museum between Beijing and Shanghai (free, but reserve ahead); the Big Wild Goose Pagoda's fountain show runs in the evening.

Shanghai — days 8–10

Three nights and a departure. Full details in our Shanghai notes.

Day 8 — the skyline payoff. The long train ride lands you by mid-afternoon. Walk the Bund at dusk: colonial riverfront on one side, the Pudong tower forest lighting up on the other.
Day 9 — old and new. Yu Garden and the old town in the morning, then the leafy streets of the former French Concession — Wukang Road and the plane-tree blocks — with the city's best cafés.
Day 10 — loose ends. A flexible day for anything you want to repeat. It is also the shopping day: purchases at licensed stores can be claimed back at the airport.

Variant A

+2 days: Chengdu

With 12 days, swap day 7: high-speed to Chengdu (3.5–4 h) for pandas, hotpot and teahouse life, then fly Chengdu–home directly. Details in our Chengdu notes.

Variant B

Shorter trip

Down to 7 days? Cut Xi'an to two nights (drop the museum day) and Beijing to three. Down to 5? Beijing and Shanghai only — the visa-free floor for a satisfying trip.

Quick answers

Is ten days enough for three cities?

Yes — it is the sweet spot. Four, three and three nights with two travel mornings leaves every city one full unhurried day plus its arrival day. The distances are long but the trains make the travel days half-days, not write-offs.

Does the 240-hour rule really give me ten days?

It gives 240 hours from the moment you pass immigration — ten days to the hour. Evening arrivals effectively buy you an eleventh morning. The stay cannot be extended, so build the route around the hours you actually have, and confirm your passport qualifies on the visa-check page.

Which city should I cut if I have less time?

Cut Xi'an last — it is the one you cannot see anywhere else. Cut Beijing to three nights first, then Shanghai to two. Below five days the triangle stops working; pick two cities and accept it.

How do I book the trains between cities?

Register 12306 before you land (passport verification can take a day) or use a reseller like Trip.com. Tickets open about 15 days ahead — around holidays, book the minute they open. The full procedure is in the high-speed rail guide.

Do the big sights need advance booking?

The Forbidden City, the Terracotta Army and the Shaanxi History Museum all run real-name reservation systems that can sell out days ahead in season. Book each a few days out on the official channels; passport entry, no paper tickets.

When does Chengdu make sense instead?

If pandas outrank the wall for you, do Beijing → Chengdu → Shanghai with 12 days: fly or rail, pandas are a half-day, and the food is a reason in itself. With exactly 10 days, the classic triangle is the better-shaped trip.

Make it real

Four things to lock in, in this order.

Confirm eligibility. Run your passport and route through the visa-free checker — citizenship, the transit rule and your entry ports all matter.
Book beds that will take you. Some hotels cannot register foreign guests; pick ones that can, night by night, with the hotels guide.
Get the trains. Beijing–Xi'an and Xi'an–Shanghai sell out around holidays. The rail guide covers 12306, passports at the gate and the fee ladder.
Plan the last-day shopping. Shanghai's licensed stores feed the departure tax refund — keep the forms, keep the goods unused, and the airport counter closes the loop.

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