This trip is ‘challenging’. You will be:
– trekking for around 4-7 hours per day, covering approximately 50kms over 5 days trekking up and down thousands of stairs
– exposed to the elements, rain, wind or sunshine along the wall
– trekking on un-renovated sections of the wall, with tricky terrain taking on sections at height with drops at either side
– staying in basic lodges each night

Flights are included as part of the trip. You will be flying from London Heathrow to Beijing. The flight time is approx. 9-10 hours if flying non-stop or 14-16 hours if indirect. Your flight tickets will be emailed to you before your departure. If you choose to book your own flights, please confirm with the Charity Challenge office first, otherwise you may be liable for your included group flights. You will be responsible for making your own travel arrangements to and from London Heathrow

UK Citizens require a visa to enter China which is not included in the cost of the trip. You cannot obtain visas upon entry to China.
Charity Challenge will supply you with the relevant application advice three months prior to departure, and if you would like to start having a look at the information you can visit the Chinese Visa Application website. However, you should not apply before 3 months prior to departure due to the validity of the visa. You will need to attend the Chinese Visa Application Service Centre yourself to process your application. The Visa Application Service Centres are located in London, Manchester, Edinburgh and Belfast. Prices are subject to change by the Chinese Embassy and will be confirmed upon your application, however, the cost of the visa starts from £151. Your passport must have at least six months to run from the end of your challenge and one blank page for your visa

All accommodation is included in the cost of the trip. On the wall you will be staying in basic, but adequate lodges or hotels. It may not be up to the standard expected in Western hotels, but the lodges will provide clean linen and washing facilities. The hotels in Beijing will be of a three-star standard and much more comfortable. All rooms are en-suite and have facilities for charging batteries. If you are travelling with a friend or partner who you wish to share with, please ensure that you note this where appropriate when booking or email challenges@charitychallenge.com.

There will be basic, western style toilets in the lodges and there will be en-suite toilet and washing facilities at the hotels. Depending on the season, hot water may be limited in some of the lodges along the wall. Along the trekking route, toilet facilities will be limited to the great outdoors!

There will be an English-speaking challenge leader who will be responsible for the logistics and co-ordination of your challenge. There will also be numerous local support staff to assist them. The challenge leader will be ultimately responsible for the running of the itinerary and the safety of your group.

Food and drink are included in the cost of the trip. Food is basic but filling. In recent years, breakfast has become more westernised, with eggs, tomato and cucumber, as well as cooked meats. Lunch will usually be a sandwich along with nuts, snacks and fruit. Dinner will consist of Chinese dishes and of course rice or noodles. There will, of course, be vegetarian options provided, although the choice is more limited. The tap-water is not safe to drink. Bottled water will be provided during the trekking sections, and you can buy bottled water or soft drinks in hotels and lodges for meals (around 5 Yuan, or 50p). You can let Charity Challenge know prior to departure if you have any specific dietary requirements or allergies.

Charity Challenge have set up Challenge Safe, an advanced and thorough safety management system. Challenge Safe brings together the procedures and risk management strategies that they use to audit all aspects of the challenge, from vehicles to accommodation to the challenge activity itself. In terms of your Great Wall Discovery challenge, there are a couple of important points that you
should be aware of:
– The wall is very exposed, with almost no shade, and on sunny days the temperatures can soar. You should ideally be wearing a sun hat, sun cream, and hydrating constantly.
– First Aid qualified staff will be provided with the medical details that you give on your booking form but please note that they are on the challenge to support with medical matters related to the challenge environment and terrain itself, i.e. heat/cold, high altitude and so on. They will deal with any incidents and accidents (cuts, sprains, breaks and so on).
– Some areas of the wall are very remote, with no car access, and emergency evacuation may take up to 4 hours. However, there are several escape routes off the wall and the nearest medical facilities will be by stretcher and then vehicle.
– Certain sections are un-renovated, with crumbling and uneven terrain, and some steep drops at either side. Your leader will help you get through these sections if you have a fear of heights!
– Smoke alarms are not a legal requirement in China, and as such many of the lodges we use do not have them in place. Your leader will explain the emergency fire procedures to you.

You can see a full kit list via the Charity Challenge website: Great_wall_discovery_Kit_List_2025.pdf