China travel guide

The Great Wall and the Forbidden City, futuristic Shanghai, the Terracotta Army, Chengdu's pandas, neon Chongqing, Guilin's karst peaks and the stone pillars of Zhangjiajie.

Cities and regions

• 🏯Beijing 10 places
• 🌆Shanghai 7 places
• 🗿Xi'an 6 places
• 🐼Chengdu 6 places
• 🌃Chongqing 4 places
• ⛰Guilin & Yangshuo 6 places
• 🪨Zhangjiajie 4 places

What to see

🏯The Forbidden City

The imperial palace with 980 buildings, home to the Ming and Qing emperors for 500 years. The largest surviving wooden palace complex in the world.

Price 60 yuan from April to October, 40 from November to March

Insider tip Tickets are online only with your passport; sales open 7 days ahead and sell out in minutes. Closed on Mondays. You enter from the south and exit in the north — head straight up into Jingshan Park.

🧱Mutianyu Great Wall

A restored stretch of wall in green mountains 70 km from Beijing: a watchtower every hundred metres and views to the horizon. Up by cable car, down by toboggan.

Price Entry about 40 yuan, cable car with toboggan about 140–160 yuan

Insider tip Arrive at opening — tour groups come by 11 am. Walk to towers 20–23: it's steep, but almost empty. In autumn the maples on the slopes turn red.

🔵Temple of Heaven

A round temple with a blue roof where the emperor prayed for a good harvest. Around it is a huge park where locals dance, sing, play mahjong and practise tai chi in the morning.

Price About 34 yuan including the main halls

Insider tip Come at 7–8 am — the real show isn't the temple but Beijing pensioners' morning life. Join the dancing — they'll invite you.

🛶The Summer Palace

The imperial summer retreat on Kunming Lake: a painted corridor 728 metres long, a marble boat and the Tower of Buddhist Incense on the hill.

Price About 60 yuan including the main pavilions

Insider tip Take a boat across the lake — you'll see the palace from the water and save your legs. Allow half a day; the grounds are huge.

🚲Hutongs & Nanluoguxiang

Old alleys of grey siheyuan courtyard houses where Beijingers still live. Nanluoguxiang is the best known, surrounded by quiet hutongs and the Houhai lakes.

Price Free; a pedicab is 100–200 yuan an hour — agree the price first

Insider tip Turn off the main tourist street into any side alley — that's where real life is. In the evening the bars around Houhai have live music.

🌅Jingshan Park

An artificial hill right behind the Forbidden City: from the pavilion at the top you see the palace's golden roofs in their entirety.

Price 2 yuan

Insider tip The most beautiful view is at sunset, when the roofs glow gold. Tickets are also bought with your passport at the entrance.

Don’t miss

Where to stay

What to eat

• 🦆
  Peking duck Crispy skin, thin pancakes, cucumber, spring onion and sweet sauce. The chef carves the duck at your table. Where to try it: Beijing: Siji Minfu, Da Dong
• 🥟
  Xiaolongbao Steamed dumplings with hot broth inside. Bite the side, sip the soup, then eat — or you'll burn your mouth. Where to try it: Shanghai: Nanxiang, Din Tai Fung
• 🍲
  Hotpot A bubbling pot of spicy broth where you cook meat and vegetables yourself. Sichuan pepper numbs your tongue — that's normal. Where to try it: Chengdu and Chongqing
• 🍜
  Biangbiang noodles Wide noodles doused in hot chilli oil. The character for their name is one of the most complex in Chinese. Where to try it: Xi'an, Muslim Quarter
• 🌶
  Mapo tofu & kung pao chicken Silky tofu in spicy sauce with minced meat, and chicken with peanuts — Sichuan classics, nothing like "Chinese food" back home. Where to try it: Chengdu
• 🥢
  Dim sum Small steamed portions in bamboo baskets: shrimp har gow, siu mai, pork buns. Eaten at breakfast and lunch with tea. Where to try it: Shanghai and big cities
• 🍢
  Street skewers Lamb skewers with cumin and chilli at night markets. Cheap, smoky and delicious. Where to try it: Xi'an, night markets

Day-by-day itinerary

When to go

greatOKoff season

Entry & documents

Citizens of most EU countries, the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and others can visit visa-free for up to 30 days; the current policy runs until 31 December 2026 and has been extended several times. US citizens need a visa or can use 240-hour visa-free transit to a third country. Check the rules for your passport before booking.

Local etiquette

• 🍵
  When someone pours you tea, tap the table with two fingers — a silent "thank you".
• 🪪
  Carry your passport: it's checked at stations, museums, hotels and even when buying a SIM card.
• 🧧
  Give and receive business cards, gifts and money with both hands — a sign of respect.
• 🥢
  Don't stand chopsticks upright in rice — that's how incense is placed at funerals. Rest them on a holder or across the bowl.
• 💴
  Don't leave tips: they're not expected in ordinary cafés and may cause confusion. The exception is guides and drivers on tours.
• 🗣
  Don't start conversations about politics, Taiwan or Tibet with strangers — it's awkward and may put them in a difficult position.

Did you know

• 🧱According to a 2012 survey, all sections of the Great Wall add up to 21,196 km. And you can't see it from space with the naked eye any better than a motorway — that's a myth.
• 🗿The Terracotta Army was found in 1974 by farmers digging a well. Excavations continue to this day, and the emperor's own tomb has never been opened.
• 🕐All of China runs on Beijing time, even though the country spans five time zones. In the far west, the summer sun sets around midnight by the clock.
• 💴The world's first paper money, jiaozi, appeared in Sichuan, around today's Chengdu, in the 11th century.

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