Zigotours Beijing Autumn City Camp: The Forbidden City and the Great Wall

Beijing is the third largest urban area in China, seventeen million people, a city of contrasts where the modern and the traditional sit side by side - and the group covers it on foot, by metro, by bus and by rickshaw. The programme takes in Beihai park, known for its white dagoba; the Forbidden City and the Coal Hill that overlooks it; Tiananmen square; and the lanes of old Beijing, where the imperial city still shows through. There is a local cooking class, a visit to the Olympic stadium, an acrobatics show by the Beijing circus, the Temple of Heaven, the traditional markets and some out-of-the-way shopping. For the Great Wall the group takes a private bus out and hikes the stretch from Gubeikou to Jinshanling - the wild, little-visited part of the site rather than the restored sections.

The price published by the operator covers accommodation, meals, the activities and excursions of the published programme, and insurance. Zigo Tours takes out cover for every participant - assistance and repatriation, individual accident, third-party liability, legal costs and baggage - and advances medical expenses during the stay. Travel is by scheduled flight with a stopover, out of Paris to Beijing and back. Pre-travel from regional cities can be arranged by the operator's transport department; it is quoted case by case and is not part of the published price.

The group sleeps in small hotels, a guest house or a youth hostel in the centre of Beijing, in rooms for two to four people. Showers and toilets are private rather than shared.

Meals are taken in small local restaurants. One of them the group cooks itself, during the local cooking class.

Walking the city and riding its metro, buses and rickshaws; Beihai park and the white dagoba; the Forbidden City and Coal Hill; Tiananmen square and the lanes of old Beijing; a local cooking class; the Olympic stadium; an acrobatics show by the Beijing circus; the Temple of Heaven; the traditional markets; and a hike on the Great Wall from Gubeikou to Jinshanling.

Accommodation is in the centre of Beijing with private shower and toilet facilities in the rooms. Travel on the ground is by local and private transport meeting the safety standards of the country, including sleeper buses and minibuses, plus the city metro and buses.

A group of nine to twenty-seven participants with a qualified director and activity leaders, one adult for every eight young people. The stay is built around moving through the city the way the city moves, rather than being driven between sights.