Destinations
Where in China?
Pick a city to dive into transportation, payment, food, and ready-made itineraries.
3–5 days
Beijing
Capital, history, hutongs, and the country's most iconic monuments — Beijing is where most first-time visitors begin.
3–4 days
Shanghai
Modern, cosmopolitan, the easiest Chinese megacity to navigate without speaking Chinese.
2–3 days
Xi'an
The eastern terminus of the Silk Road and home of the Terracotta Army — China's deepest layer of history.
2–3 days (+ side trips)
Chengdu
Pandas, hotpot, and a famously laid-back lifestyle — Chengdu is the southwestern gateway to Sichuan.
2–3 days
Guilin & Yangshuo
Karst mountains, the Li River, and the most photographed landscape in China.
1–2 days
Hangzhou
West Lake, tea plantations, and old canal towns — the most refined classical Chinese city.
1–2 days
Suzhou
Classical gardens, water canals, and silk traditions — China's elegant counterweight to Shanghai.
2–3 days
Hong Kong
Skyline, dim sum, hiking trails minutes from downtown — and 90 days visa-free for most Western passports.
2–3 days
Guangzhou
Cantonese heartland — dim sum, colonial Shamian, and 600 m Canton Tower over the Pearl River.
2 days
Shenzhen
China's youngest megacity — 40 years ago it was fishing villages, today it's Huawei, Tencent, DJI, and China's most efficient metro.
2 days
Chongqing
The 8D 'magical mountain city' — hotpot, cliff-hanging Hongyadong, and metros that pass through apartment buildings.
3 days
Zhangjiajie
Real-life Avatar mountains — thousands of quartzite pillars piercing the mist, plus a glass-bottom bridge over a canyon.
3 days
Lijiang
UNESCO Naxi mountain town of cobbled canals, wooden bridges, and Jade Dragon Snow Mountain on the horizon.
1–2 days
Kunming
The Spring City — 20°C year-round, gateway to Yunnan's Stone Forest and the Southeast Asian border.
2 days
Dali
Bai villages ringing the 42 km Erhai Lake, framed by the Cangshan mountains — Yunnan's slow-life capital.
2–3 days
Harbin
China's ice-festival capital and northeastern Russian-heritage city — full-size ice palaces from December to February.
2 days
Qingdao
German-heritage coastal city on the Yellow Sea — historic villas, Tsingtao brewery, and beach seafood.
2–3 days
Xiamen
The gentle seaside 'garden city' + car-free UNESCO Gulangyu Island — Fujian's most walkable getaway.
4 days (including 1 day acclimatization)
Lhasa
The 3,700 m capital of Tibet — Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, and the highest-altitude big-sky pilgrimage circuit.
1–2 days
Macau
Portuguese-heritage colonial center + Cotai casinos — 1 hour from Hong Kong, visa-free for most Western passports.
3 days
Shangrao
Wuyuan rapeseed valleys + Mount Sanqingshan granite peaks — Jiangxi's most photographed spring destination.
2 days
Nanchang
Jiangxi's provincial capital — Tengwang Pavilion sunset, revolutionary history, and gateway to Poyang Lake.
2–3 days
Nanjing
Six-dynasty ancient capital on the Yangtze — Ming city walls, Confucius Temple canals, and a sobering WWII memorial.
1–2 days
Pingyao
A perfectly preserved Ming-Qing walled town — China's original banking capital, walkable end to end in a day.
2 days
Datong
Home of the Yungang Grottoes and the cliff-hanging Hanging Temple — northern Shanxi's Buddhist-art capital.
2 days
Luoyang
Ancient capital of thirteen dynasties — the Longmen Grottoes, Shaolin Temple nearby, and April peony blooms.
2–3 days
Dunhuang
Silk Road oasis of the Mogao Grottoes, singing sand dunes, and the Crescent Lake — the heart of desert China.
1–2 days
Zhangye
The Rainbow Mountains of the Hexi Corridor — striped Danxia landforms glowing red, orange, and gold at sunset.
3–4 days
Sanya
China's tropical beach capital on Hainan Island — palm-lined bays, duty-free malls, and year-round sunshine.