A huge country of dramatic contrasts, China is an increasingly popular tourist destination.  Such iconic sights as the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, and the Terra Cotta Army testify to China’s thousands of years of civilization.  Its incredible range of natural environments include the high Tibetan Plateau, lushly forested mountains, meandering rivers and fertile floodplains, semitropical coastline, grassland steppes, and vast arid deserts.  Though Han Chinese make up 93 percent of the country’s population, China is home to 55 distinct ethnic minorities, many of whom proudly retain their own culture and traditions.

Crooked Trails operates two different programs to China in partnership with Mystic Trails. Both programs offer the opportunity to go beyond the traditional tourist experience of China through cultural exchange and service projects.  The scheduling of the programs makes it possible to combine them into one longer program if desired.

Our program to the eastern Tibetan Plateau features high-altitude trekking to remote areas, including the Mount Kawa Karpo pilgrimage circle and isolated villages far from the nearest paved road.  Our program to the central field of China visits some of the country’s most celebrated historical sites and includes a village homestay and a visit to a rural school.

Cultural Tibet - Stay and exchange with the people of the Yunnan Province in Tibet.  Includes a trek along the Mount Kawa Karpo pilgrimage circle, the Yuan Dynasty city of Lijiang, the city of Shangri La, the Songzanlin Temple and Beijing.

Heartland Extension - Stay in the village of Yong Feng near Beijing and take local cooking and agricultural lessons.  Includes a field trip to the Loess plateau, Beijing, Great Wall, Forbidden City, Ti’ananmen Square, Shaanxi Provincial History Museum, the Terra Cotta Army, and Mount Hua.