GUY RUBIN – "Huang Shan, or Yellow Mountain, is in the province of Anhui, west of Shanghai. I first climbed it in late October. Clouds glided across the granite tusks; it was overwhelmingly beautiful. I later asked the contemporary artist Zheng Zai Dong why he had never painted the mountain. He shook his head. 'How could you be equal to the task?'" Rubin creates ultra-luxe itineraries for travelers in search of the trip of a lifetime (Imperial Tours;  » Read more »

reported by Debbie Mason Book now, avoid Olympian challenge later Three decades ago, the word "luxury" was a six-letter word that in China could land you in jail-or at best in the deep, dark countryside for a dose of "re-education" in a paddy field or wheat mill. Just 30 years after late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping kick-started economic reforms to save the flailing Communist giant, moneyed Beijingers whose grandparents would have been garbed in drab blue Mao suits now shop at Gucci and Chanel.  » Read more »

China has always been an intriguing destination, but the buzz accompanying the upcoming 2008 Beijing Olympics has pushed the country to the top of many travelers' wish lists. With an English-speaking staff split between San Francisco and Beijing. Imperial Tours specializes in creating Western-friendly tours that showcase parts of the country not easily accessible to first-time visitors. Honeymooners can enjoy a white-linen banquet on a secluded section of the Great Wall, float down the Li River past local fishermen and grazing water buffalo,  » Read more »

China has always been an intriguing destination, but the buzz accompanying the upcoming 2008 Beijing Olympics has pushed the country to the top of many travelers' wish lists. With an English-speaking staff split between San Francisco and Beijing. Imperial Tours specializes in creating Western-friendly tours that showcase parts of the country not easily accessible to first-time visitors. Honeymooners can enjoy a white-linen banquet on a secluded section of the Great Wall, float down the Li River past local fishermen and grazing water buffalo,  » Read more »

40 trips of a lifetime You can delve deeper into an unfamiliar culture when you're able to gain access to places, events, and people that are normally off-limits. Below are 40 examples of such extraordinary experienced worldwide, ranging in price from $80 to $12,000? Because of their nature, these opportunities are subject to change and even cancellation. Not all are available every day, some only in limited quantities, and most cannot be booked á  » Read more »