Destinations
Ten destinations in China worth the trip
Ranked by what travellers actually care about, not by search-engine popularity. For each one: the best season, how many nights are worth it, and what you need to book with your passport in hand.
Beijing
The Wall at dawn, before the coaches arrive. The Forbidden City with time to actually look at it.
Xi'an
Eight thousand terracotta soldiers, every one with a different face. And a city wall you cycle along at sunset.
Shanghai
From the 1920s Bund to the Pudong skyline in fifteen minutes on foot. And the best food of the three big cities.
Guilin and Yangshuo
The landscape printed on the 20-yuan note — and one no photograph quite delivers.
Chengdu
Pandas in the morning, chilli at night. The city you visit with your stomach.
Zhangjiajie
The sandstone pillars that inspired Avatar. More than three thousand of them, and they are real.
Yunnan
Twenty-five ethnic groups, one mountain road, and snow on the horizon of a subtropical valley.
Harbin
An entire city built of ice, lit from within. Nothing in Western Europe prepares a traveller for -30 °C.
Hong Kong and Macau
Macau has carried the Portuguese language for four centuries. A hundred kilometres away, Hong Kong changes the language of the trip.
Lhasa
The Potala above, and the silence between 3,650 metres and the sky. A city that is visited slowly.
How to choose
- First trip
- Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai cover the essentials in ten days, linked by high-speed rail.
- With children
- Chengdu and Guilin: fewer transfers, more time in one place.
- Winter
- Harbin, from December to February. Nothing in Europe prepares a traveller for it.
- Second trip
- Yunnan, Zhangjiajie and Tibet — three regions the first trip never reaches.
Frequently asked questions
How many destinations should a first trip to China include?
Three cities in ten days is the balance point. Two feels thin; five means five different beds and half the holiday spent in transit.
When is the best time to travel to China?
April to May and September to October for most of the country. Harbin only makes sense between December and February; Tibet prefers May to September.
How many days in each city?
Beijing and Shanghai want two to three nights each. Xi'an takes two. Guilin and Chengdu are better with three, especially with children.
Can I swap one city for another on the tour?
Yes. The itinerary is a starting point, not a fixed package. Swapping Guilin for Zhangjiajie changes the number of days and the price, but not the logic of the trip.
Do I need to fix the dates now?
No. An approximate month and the number of travellers is enough. The named bookings (Forbidden City, Terracotta Army) are only made once the route is settled.
Talk to the people who run it
Tell us what you want to see. We will tell you how many days you need.
No dates and no fixed itinerary required. Just the approximate month and how many are travelling.
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