We're planning 2-3 weeks in HKG and China in late Sept early October.

Here is the current rough itinerary. All but Xian are certain stops.

Hong Kong & Macau
Beijing
Xian ?
Kunming

Any thoughts on this itinerary? Am I biting off too much for one trip?

I'm fairly certain our last week will intersect with a major holiday week. How will the Oct 1st holiday week affect our trip? We would most likely spend most of that week in Xian & Kunming under our current plan.

I would say that for a 2-3 week trip you are not planning too much. They are all great locations with lots to see but with an average of 4-5 days in each location I think that should be enough time to see the sights. Xian is definately a good stop, with lots of historical sights to see.

Traveling near the first week of Oct. you should expect a greatly increased volume of toursists at the tourist sights, airports, train stations, busses, etc. It would be wise to have your hotels and flights booked in advance instead of waiting to book on arrival, which at other times of the year is normally fine and cheaper to wait. It is one of the major "golden" travel weeks here in China. Someone had the bright idea that it would be better to give everyone their vacation time all at once so that you can have the whole 1 billion+ population all on the move at once. What a bright idea that was. As long as you are aware and prepared you should be fine. The Oct. week is not quite as crazy as Chinese New Year.

I suggest you change things around a bit and plan on winding up in HK during the "Labor Day" week. Just buy a ticket into PEK returning from HK and connect the dots.

You can do as much of the Beijing-Kunming schlep over land as your heart desires, which might be interesting for you and would give a chance to stop off in some smaller cities. But, given your time constraints, I suppose you might to cap train/bus travel at an arbitrary number like 24 hours.

Anyway, between Beijing and Kunming, in addition to Xi'an, you could easily hit up Jiuzhaigou and Chengdu. And once you get to Kunming, you can move on to Lijiang, Shangri-La, and Dali.

I would advise against over planning because I've done trips like yours in the past and it's nice to be able to add/delete destinations on the fly. Also, by not planning too much, you will be less suscpectible to the ripple effect that a single canceled flight or sold out train could impose upon you.

For first time traveler to China, especially if you don't speak Mandarin, strongly advise not to travel 'within' China during the above. Everything is a mad house and even with reservations, you might encounter some difficulties.

Flying from point to point maybe less hassle but be prepared for long lines, etc.

I'm pretty sure you left out a word that starts with an "a" and ends with a "t".

I suggested the OP finish off in HK because they don't have the same holiday there.

However, I don't think Yunnan and Sichuan will be all that bad. I did Xinjiang during the May holiday and didn't encounter a single sold-out train/plane/bus/hotel.

Thanks for catching typo

The two times i happened to be in china (may and late sept), the airports in shanghai and beijing were jammed...and i had to drop my wife off to fly coach from Beijing to Shanghai by herself while I flew off to Bkk on business.

She said never again during the golden travel week(s). IMHO

If you are wanting to go to Lijiang from Kunming I would suggest you not plan that for the first week in Oct. Lijiang is one of the top tourist places in China, and therefore likely to be quite overwhelmed. Other places are likely to be extra busy but do-able should you choose to be in Yunnan for the holiday. The airport and flights will be full, with long lines.

I dont think you are planning too much and you could probably even add in one or two more cities. I did an 11 day trip to five cities (Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Xian, and Urumqi) and it was quick, but not exhausting. Some of the places that I saw I wanted more time, but others it felt just right (if not too much!)

In terms of specific for your itinerary, I would leave out Xian. I was very excited about seeing the terracotta warriors and made sure to plan a stop in Xian, but all in all it was very disappointing and far from the spectacle it is made out to be. Its not that they were not interesting, but they were not even close to the eighth wonder of the world they were said to be.

OTOH, I would definitely recommend Chengdu (panda bears and a Sichuan food) and Urumqi (in the far northwest with a sidetrip to Tianchi - Heavenly Lake).

I agree 100%, but always feel a bit guilty when I short sell Xi'an because some people, particularly history buffs, love that place to death.

I love Xian and no matter how many times I return I always have to go see the Terra Cotta soldiers. They are simply amazing and a true treasure of Chinese History. I would definitely not leave it out. The city itself is underwhelming so only spending one day there is enough but you'll be kicking yourself if you miss the soldiers on your one trip to China!

Your itinerary has enough to keep you occupied and moondog is right that you will have time to add on a trip to Chengdu or somewhere else along the route from Beijing to Kunming. I'm not a big fan of Chengdu itself but I love the national parks that are a 3 hour busride away at Emei Shan...beautiful. The food in Sichuan is also very tasty.

Be sure to leave enough time to explore Hong Kong and Macau. I'd spend at least 3-4 days in H.K. and 2 days in Macau. Macau is a wonderful city!

I'm in China right now, surprised that nobody has mentioned Guilin. It really has some of the most beautiful scenery I've seen anywhere in the world - Think pretty much any Chinese landscape painting and you are seeing the hills of Gulin! Although there were lots of tourists (both Chinese & Western) which makes it a bit "touristy" in places it is well worth a visit.

Guilin is definately one of the highlights of China. The Chinese call it one of the most beautiful places in China, some even say the world. It all depends on how much time one has, there is so much to see it is hard to choose sometimes. I definately recommend Guilin if you like natural scenery.

A couple of people have mentioned Guilin, but it can be a bit touristy. A great alternative is Yangshou, a small town an hour and a half by bus from Guilin. The scenery is GORGEOUS. Fun small town shopping, and cafe's and the rooms are Cheap! About $8 U.S. a night. I spent six months going to several places that you mentioned, and Yangshou will always be my favorite memory.

Thanks everyone for all of the great feedback. We clearly need to schedule multiple trips to China! So much to see, so little time.

We can't easily turn out trip upside down due to use of FF flyer miles & hotel certs I'm thinking that we will pay a bit extra for business class fares when we fly out of beijing during golden week. Since that airport will probably be the craziest and I do hate lines.

So far I haven't had any problems with hotel reservations.