This morning, you will take an early high speed train from Xian North Railway Station to Luoyang, for about 1.5 hours. Upon your arrival in Luoyang, your local professional guide will meet you at the railway station.
You will be escorted to visit the Longmen Grottoes which is listed as the World Heritage Site in 2000. Carrying over 1,500 years of history, Longmen Grottoes is the carving masterpiece, which went through over 400 years to complete, tracing back to 493 AD of Northern Wei dynasty. Now as a famous tourist site, it shows the bright period of Buddhist culture in ancient China.
In the afternoon, you will visit the Shaolin Temple, the birthplace of Chinese Zen Buddhism and Shaolin Martial Arts. It also has been included in the UNESCO's World Heritage list. Shaolin Temple may be the most famous temple in China due to Chinese Kungfu novels or movies. It's a dream place for Kungfu fans. Besides the temple itself, tourists can see Kungfu Show here, and the Pagoda Forest (the tombs for deceased monks) is also very impressive.
Lastly, you will take a high speed train back to Xian or leave Luoyang for other destinations directly.
Tips: this is a sidetrip from Xian to Luoyang excluding the visiting in Xian. If you want to cover Xian city tour in your itinerary, please feel free to let us adjust for you. Xian and Luoyang together need 3 full days to explore.