Depart the United States
Group departure from Kansas City, connecting through a major international gateway for the flight to China.
More than a tour
Practice, place, and tradition come together.
The academy’s annual China trip gives students an opportunity to train in Chenjiagou, meet members of the wider Taijiquan community, and experience the history and daily life surrounding the art.
The next trip is planned for summer 2027. Exact dates, flights, hotels, pricing, and the final sequence of activities are still being arranged. The itinerary below is a tentative outline based on the academy’s 2025 tour.
Planning statusSummer 2027 · Dates and details TBD
Chenjiagou · 陈家沟
Train where the art took shape.
Days in Chen Village balance focused Taijiquan training with time to explore the school, museums, memorials, village streets, and places connected to generations of Chen-family teachers.
Training sessions are typically held in the morning and afternoon, with meals and free time shared in Chenjiagou or nearby Wenxian.
Inside Chen Village
A living martial arts community.
The village is both a place of deep history and an active center of Taijiquan practice, teaching, and exchange.
The moments no itinerary can plan
An impromptu class with Chen Lidong.
During one visit to the Chen family temple, Master Chen Huixian and her students unexpectedly met 18th-generation Chen family teacher Chen Lidong. The encounter became an informal class and lecture, turning an ordinary afternoon into a direct connection with an older generation of the family tradition.
Experiences like this are part of what makes traveling with the academy different from an ordinary sightseeing tour.
Tentative itinerary
A journey through Henan.
The order and length of each stop may change once the 2027 dates, transportation, and training arrangements are confirmed.
Arrive in Zhengzhou
Arrival in Henan Province, hotel transfer, check-in, and rest after the international journey.
Travel to Wenxian and Chenjiagou
Transfer from Zhengzhou, settle into the hotel, share meals, and become acquainted with the local area.
Chenjiagou training and village visits
Morning and afternoon Taijiquan sessions are interwoven with village tours, sightseeing, meals, and time with the local Taijiquan community.
Shaolin Temple and Yongtai Nunnery
Visit the Shaolin Monastery, its historic grounds and Pagoda Forest, see a martial arts performance, and visit Yongtai Nunnery.
Yuntai Mountain
A full day among mountain valleys, layered rock formations, lakes, waterfalls, and scenic hiking trails.
Kaifeng
Explore Millennium City Park and its large-scale performances, historic settings, crafts, food, and cultural reenactments.
Return to Zhengzhou and fly home
Free time for rest, walking, shopping, and a final evening in Zhengzhou before the return journey to Kansas City.
Shaolin and Songshan
Martial history beneath the mountains.
The Shaolin excursion brings the group into the Songshan Mountains to visit one of China’s best-known Buddhist monasteries, walk its historic grounds, and experience another important branch of Chinese martial culture.
Yuntai Mountain
Water, stone, and mountain air.
A scenic day away from the training halls offers time to hike, photograph the landscape, and move through one of Henan’s striking mountain and gorge environments.
Kaifeng
History performed at full scale.
Millennium City Park brings the world of imperial-era Kaifeng to life through architecture, street performance, music, acrobatics, equestrian shows, food, and elaborate public spectacles.
Zhengzhou
A quieter ending before the journey home.
The final stop allows time to rest, walk, shop, share a last meal, and ease out of the trip before the long flight back to Kansas City.
Summer 2027
Interested in traveling with the academy?
Dates, cost, space, and final arrangements will be announced after the tour plan is confirmed. Contact the academy to express interest and receive future trip information.