Glenside, PA – November 16, 2006 — Gutsy Women Travel has created a tour for 2007 that features China from a woman’s perspective. The 12-day Charms of China tour is priced from $3,759 per person, double occupancy including land and air and features a three-day cruise on the Yangtze River and a female tour manager who will guide the group through this magnificent country.

According to April M. Merenda, President & Co-Founder of Gutsy Women Travel who will also accompany the May 24, 2007 departure, “It is important to us to create a tour that appeals to women. Two of the most exciting components are the opportunity for the women to meet with a local women’s association so they can discuss common issues regarding women, and a visit to the home of a local family to learn about modern family life in China (plus a visit to a local kindergarten if time permits). These are tour highlights that are very unique to Gutsy Women Travel. Additionally, the fact that the tour is guided by a woman provides the opportunity for her to showcase historical sites and insights from a woman’s perspective.”

CHINA BY LAND AND WATER
The 12-day Charms of China tour is perfect for the single woman who wants to see Asia, but doesn’t want to travel alone and also for those women who want their entire journey taken care of for them with no need to worry about how to get from one place to the next and concerns about not speaking the language.

The tour begins with three nights in Beijing featuring a comprehensive city tour with a full-day tour of the Forbidden City and 15th-century Temple of Heaven including Tiananmen Square, and a traditional Peking Duck dinner. Other highlights include a visit to the Great Wall. Then it is on to Xian for a visit to the archaeological site at the tomb of China’s first emperor featuring over 8,000 sculpted life-size terra cotta solders and horses discovered by local farmers in 1974.

On day seven of the journey, the tour moves to the water as participants board the Victoria Rose (pictured above) for a cruise downstream on the Yangtze River sailing through the Qutang Gorge, the Small Three Gorges, the Wuxia Gorge, and past the fabled Twelve Peaks. The tour concludes in Shanghai with a city tour, time for shopping, and a farewell dinner at one of Shanghai’s premier gourmet restaurants.

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS & INCLUSIONS
The 12-day escorted Charms of China tour features five departures in 2007 — May 24, June 14, July 12, September 20, and October 18 — and includes:

• Flights from Los Angeles to Beijing and Shanghai to Los Angeles. Other departure cities available.
• Overnight transportation between Beijing and Xian vial rail with reserved cabin
• Flights Xian to Chongqing, and Yichang to Shanghai
• 3 nights at the Marriott West Hotel in Beijing
• 1 night at the Shangri La Golden Flower in Xian
• 3-night cruise downstream on the Victoria Rose
• 2 nights at the Sofitel JJ Oriental Pudong in Shanghai
• 10 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 7 dinners
• Tour Director throughout
• All activities as mentioned in itinerary

HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:
• The magnificent Three Gorges Dam
• Cruising the Small Three Gorges
• Dinner with a local women’s association
• Walking the Great Wall of China
• Visit to a local family’s home

This tour is priced from $3,759 per person, double occupancy including air and land. All prices include airline fuel surcharges as of May 31, 2006 but do not include airport taxes, fees, visa fees, and September 11th Security Fee which varies between $50 and $130 per person. Surcharges are subject to increase without notice.

For further information, http://www.gutsywomentravel.com

For more on China at ITKT