Where to go in China
31 places across China, from imperial Beijing to the lakes of Xinjiang. Most first trips combine three or four, linked by bullet train or short flights.
3–4 daysBeijing
Six centuries of emperors, the best stretches of the Great Wall, and hutong lanes where neighbours still play cards on the pavement.
1–2 daysPingyao
One of China's best-preserved walled towns, with Ming and Qing streets, courtyard inns and the country's first bank.
1–2 daysDatong
Fifteen-hundred-year-old Buddhas carved into sandstone cliffs, and a temple that clings to a mountainside.
4–5 daysHulunbuir
Endless summer grasslands in Inner Mongolia, with horses, yurts and the Russian border on the horizon.
3–4 daysHarbin
China's ice city: a winter festival of illuminated ice castles, Russian architecture and food built for minus twenty.
2–3 daysShanghai
1930s jazz-age streets, a futuristic skyline and some of the best food in China.
1–2 daysSuzhou
The classical gardens of scholars and officials, laced with canals.
1–2 daysHangzhou
West Lake's willows and causeways, and the tea villages in the hills above.
1 dayWuzhen
A canal town of stone bridges and wooden houses, magical after dark.
2–3 daysHuangshan
Granite peaks, twisted pines and a sea of clouds: the mountain of Chinese ink paintings.
3 daysXiamen & Fujian Tulou
A car-free island of colonial villas, and giant round earthen houses in the hills.
1–2 daysLuoyang
Cliffs carved with 100,000 Buddhas, the birthplace of Chinese Buddhism and the Shaolin Temple nearby.
2–3 daysZhangjiajie
Thousands of sandstone pillars rising from the forest, said to have inspired the floating mountains of Avatar.
3–4 daysGuilin & Yangshuo
The karst peaks of Chinese paintings, rice terraces and slow days on the Li River.
1–2 daysGuangzhou
The home of Cantonese food, and China's oldest trading port.
3–5 daysSanya (Hainan)
Tropical beaches to end a China trip, with Hainan's own visa-free entry rules.
2–3 daysChengdu
Giant pandas, teahouses and the spiciest, most addictive food in China.
2 daysLeshan & Mount Emei
The world's largest stone Buddha and a sacred mountain of monasteries above the clouds.
1–2 daysChongqing
A vertical megacity of cliffs, bridges and neon, and the start of the Yangtze River cruise.
2–3 daysJiuzhaigou
Turquoise lakes, waterfalls and mountain villages in a forested valley.
2–3 daysDali
Bai villages, a lakeside cycle route and an old town between mountains and Erhai Lake.
2–3 daysLijiang
A UNESCO old town of canals and Naxi wooden houses, beneath Jade Dragon Snow Mountain.
2 daysShangri-La
Monasteries, highland lakes and yak meadows high in the mountains of northwest Yunnan.
3–4 daysGuizhou
Miao and Dong villages, drum towers and waterfalls in China's least-visited province.
2–3 daysXi'an
Capital of 13 dynasties, home of the Terracotta Army and one of China's great food cities.
7–10 daysNorthern Xinjiang
Alpine lakes, flower-filled grasslands and one of the world's great mountain roads.
2–3 daysKashgar
A Silk Road oasis city of bazaars, mosques and Uyghur culture, closer to Kabul than to Beijing.
2–3 daysDunhuang
Buddhist cave art from the Silk Road, and a crescent-shaped lake among towering dunes.
1–2 daysZhangye
Rainbow-striped mountains of red, orange and yellow rock along the Hexi Corridor.
2–3 daysHong Kong
A harbour skyline, dim sum, hiking trails and a perfect start or end to a China trip.
1 dayMacau
Portuguese squares, baroque churches and the best egg tarts in Asia.
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The best time to visit China
Spring and autumn suit almost every route. Avoid the first week of October and the days around Chinese New Year, when the whole country travels.
| Season | Months | Weather | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | Mar – May | Mild, blossoms in the north | Everywhere; the classic Beijing–Xi'an–Shanghai route |
| Summer | Jun – Aug | Hot and humid, rainy in the south | Yunnan highlands, Northern Xinjiang, the Silk Road |
| Autumn | Sep – Nov | Clear skies, comfortable days | Everywhere; the Great Wall at its most photogenic |
| Winter | Dec – Feb | Cold and dry in the north, mild in the south | City breaks, Harbin ice festival, quiet sights |
Tell us what you love. We'll suggest the route.
History, mountains, food, pandas or all of it. Your advisor matches places to your interests and the time you have.