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Vivacious, varied and immense, and home to a kind of culture that's utterly separated from the rest of the world, the enormous expanses of China are rightly held up as one of the world’s top travel destination. With beaches and mountains, vibrant cities and areas untouched by modern civilization, riches and painful poverty, there’s something to enjoy for travelers of every breed.
In Beijing the body of Mao – rumored to have been replaced by a waxwork model after recent deterioration – lies in state. It’s overlooked, across Tiananmen Square, by his giant portrait, moun… read moreted on the gates of the ancient, pagoda-filled Forbidden City. Visitors sample the renowned roast duck and gasp at the culinary oddities on offer in the bustling night markets before taking days trips to walk in the footsteps of history along the winding heights of the Great Wall.
Shanghai’s futuristic skylines are a symbol of China’s fast-paced development, fashion-focused and all-night-long lively against a 21st century backdrop, while Hong Kong’s hints of modern-day colonialism mixed with designer shopping and dazzling tower blocks make it the ideal spot to recoup. Hop over to Mediterranean-influenced Macau for a Vegas-esque casino experience, or quirky Qīngdǎo for the famous bags of beer on the beach, clocking in at just a couple of dollars per hangover-inducing serving.
The terracotta warriors at Xian still stand proud in seemingly endless rows after helping ruler Shi Huang Di in the afterlife. You can drift along the Yangzi River’s Three Gorges by boat and take in overhanging views and riverside culture, or take the Silk Road through the secluded Taklamakan Desert, discovering Uighar customs on the way.
The disputed territory of Tibet is difficult to access, but the hospitable spiritual home of Buddhism is worth the endeavor, and – if you get the prized permit – can be entered via the highest railway in the world, complete with its own personal oxygen masks. On arrival, you’ll be greeted by pilgrim paths and prayer flags, while trips around the Tibetan Plateau offer the best views of Everest.
A host of the world’s most well-known sites mix with varied cultures and a chance to tailor a break to any joy you choose in the colossal expanses of fast-modernizing China. Affordable and mesmerizing, it takes months to even brush the surface of this diverse traveler’s Mecca.
A pulsating modern city littered with the trappings of a rich history, China’s capital Beijing is chock full of the kind of iconic images it’s impossible not to hunt down. There’s the p…
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It’s hard to escape news of China’s progress these days, and Shanghai is the city right at the heart of it. As the ever-changing face of a fast-growing world power’s modernity, you’ll…
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As the accepted link between China and the territories of Hong Kong and Macau, Guangzhou has naturally developed into something of a business heartland. Downtown, you’ll find a skyline domi…
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Shenzhen is a fast growing city formed from almost nothing over the last few decades, created as a politically flexile buffer to neighboring Hong Kong, and is now arguably the richest and mos…
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There is a Chines saying : there is a heave on top and Su Hang (Suzhou and Hangzhou) below. How one can imagine how beautiful Hangzhou is. It could be compared with heaven!
Hangzhou is a l…
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The cultural hub of the land of abundance, Chengdu is a well-known Chinese historical centre, home to a diverse selection of attractions incorporating a host of Chinese stereotypes, from mona…
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Xi'an (pronounced she-ann) is a city utterly steeped in history, you’ll find yourself wandering around in awe. Whether you’re marveling at the famous Terracotta Warriors, picturing the ca…
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A capital of ‘Wu’ culture for 8 ancient centuries, Suzhou’s history is both essential and almost timeless, having long been at the heart of scholarly China, as well as central to the ec…
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Tianjin. The little cousin who could. For years overshadowed by its larger relative, Beijing, Tianjin has been busy in the first decade of the 21st century, building up its credibility and vi…
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Chongqing is a major city in the central-western region of China, and has long been one of the most important economical and administrative cities for the entire country. In the course of its…
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Nestled along the lower sections of the Yangzi River in the Jiangsu Province, Nanjing sits as the capital of the province itself, and is one of the most important cities in the history of Chi…
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I've been to Sanya twice, 2005 and 2007. Actually I will be back to that city soon for another vacation!
Sanya is located on the southernmost tip of Hainan Island, Sanya is the island's mo…
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With a mixture of Mexican coastline facing into the Gulf and access to sites such as the underground caves at Lol-Tun, the Mayan ruins scattered throughout the region, combined with the compl…
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As perhaps the Chinese city that’s more reliant on tourism than any other, Guilin is not quite a typical Chinese experience. It’s earned its touristified element for a reason, though, and…
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Qingdao, the host city for the 29th Olympic Sailing Regatta in 2008, is a coastal city. The city is seated with the Yellow Sea on the east and south, adjoins the cities of Yantai, Rizhao and …
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Lijiang is one of the most popular and favourite tourist destinations for mainland Chinese & others in the southwest province of Yunnan. Try to avoid the "Golden Weeks" : the first week of Ma…
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Xiamen, China is located on the southeastern coast of Fujian Province. Xiamen City can be dated back as far as the Song Dynasty. Today, Xiamen is a rapidly growing city, with a vigourous econ…
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Kunming is affectionately referred to as "the City of Eternal Spring". It is said to have the best weather in China. Mainly because of its location that is 2,000 meters above sea level on a m…
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Shenyang, literally meaning "the city in the north of Shen River", comes from the Hun River on the city which used to be called Shen River. Archaeological findings show that human beings resi…
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Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang Province, is located in the middle reaches of the Songhua River in the south of the province. The urban area is composed of seven districts: Daoli, Daowai, Nan…
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Changsha has been the capitol of Hunan province ever since the Qing dynasty in 1664 AD. Changsha is located in south-central China, on the lower reaches of Xiang river, a branch of the Yangtz…
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Zhuhai is situated in the southwest of Pearl River Delta of Guangdong Province. It faces Hong Kong on the east across the Lingding Ocean, Macau on the south, Xinhui and Taishan on the west, a…
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A large commercial city, Nanning is a stopping point for people travelling to Vietnam, or for those who have travelled into China from Vietnam.
The city buzzes with life and people are fri…
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"To enjoy the magnificence of a mountain, you have to look upwards in most cases. To enjoy Mount Huangshan, however, you've got to look downward".
Huangshan, or Yellow Mountain, is a UNESC…
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There are a vast number of places one could define as “mystical”, but few could lay claim to defining the word. Referenced as the “Land of the Gods” in the native tongue, Lhasa stands…
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There is intimate…and then there’s intimate. Yangshuo is the latter. With the Li River bordering on one side, and the breath-taking scenery of the karst mountains surrounding in every dir…
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Dali, a laid back place ideal for people who want to spend a nice day or two in a "real" chinese town with a friendly atmosphere.
The old town of Dali is one of the only old Chinese towns th…
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Luoyang is the place to stay if visiting the Shaolin monestary or Longmen grottoes. The bus station has many departures there daily. Other than this, there are not many 'real' attractions in …
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Lanzhou is the capital of Gansu province in China, and is considered as one of the major cities along the Hexi corridor. It is a city of almost 3 million people on the banks of the Yellow Riv…
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The capital of Xinjiang, Urumqi is a modern city with more than 2 million people of diverse ethnic backgrounds. The signs on the buildings could be in Russian, Chinese or Uighur, giving you a…
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Tai'an is located on the bottom of Mt Tai (Taishan)
Taishan is one of the five sacred mountains in China. Some of the former Chinese emperors did climb the mountain too. However, most of t…
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The town was founded as Píngchéng (平城) in 200 BC during the Han Dynasty. Located near the Great Wall Pass to Inner Mongolia it blossomed during the following period and became a stop-of…
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Dunhuang is a city with more than 2000 years of history, situated near the western end of the Hexi Corridor and a gateway on the Silk Road of China. It's been a military garrison town, a fron…
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Jiuzhai Valley is locally known as Jiuzhaigou (Chinese for “Nine Village Valley”). It is a national park located in the Min Shan mountain range, Northern Sichuan in South Western China. I…
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In 1703, Chengde was chosen by the Kangxi Emperor as the location for his summer residence. Constructed throughout the eighteenth century, the Summer Palace (避暑山莊\避暑山庄) was us…
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If Kashgar is not on your list of places to visit, put it there! It is an amazingly, culturally rich part of China that is not to be missed.
The main cultural groups in Kashgar are the Ui…
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The Great Wall is a series of stone and earthen fortifications in China, built, rebuilt, and maintained between the 5th century BC and the 16th century to protect the northern borders of the …
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