Great Wall of ChinaGreat_Wall_of_China_July_2006

Best time to travel: April-June
Ease of travel: Moderate
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • The Great Wall used to serve as the northern barrier defending the capital and the imperial tombs

Wulong Hike, Zhangjiajie National Forest Park

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Best time to travel: April-May, Sept-Oct
Walk difficulty: Hard
Ease of travel: Hard
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$

  • In 1982, the park was recognized as China’s first national forest park
  • The most notable geographic features of the park are the pillar-like formations that are seen throughout the park
  • Much of the weathering that forms these pillars is the result of expanding ice in the winter and the plants that grow on them
  • The weathered material is carried away primarily by streams
  • These formations are a distinct hallmark of the Chinese landscape, and can be found in many ancient Chinese paintings

Terracotta Army, Xi’an

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Best time to travel: March-May, Sept-Oct
Ease of travel: Moderate
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$

  • Collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China
  • Form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE and whose purpose was to protect the emperor in his afterlife
  • Dating from approximately the late third century BCE, were discovered in 1974 by local farmers in Lintong District

Zhangye National Geopark

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Best time to travel: June-Sept
Ease of travel: Moderate 
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$

  • Landform known for the unusual colors of the rocks, which are smooth, sharp and several thousand feet tall
  • They are the result of deposits of sandstone and other minerals that occurred over 24 million years
  • The result (similar to a layer cake), was tilted by the action of the same tectonic plates responsible for creating parts of the Himalayan mountains
  • Wind, rain, and time then sculpted extraordinary shapes, including towers, pillars, and ravines, with varying colors, patterns, and sizes
  • Designated national geopark in 2016

Shanghai Disneyland

Best time to travel: Oct-Nov
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Theme park located in Shanghai, opened in 2016
  • The park currently has seven themed areas: Mickey Avenue, Gardens of Imagination, Fantasyland, Treasure Cove, Adventure Isle, Tomorrowland, and Toy Story Land

Reed Flute Cave, Guilin

Best time to travel: April-Oct
Walk difficulty: Easy
Ease of travel: Moderate
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$

  • Landmark in Guilin, which contains a lake inside a cave, with artificial lighting
  • The cave got its name from the type of reed growing outside, which can be made into flutes
  • Reed Flute Cave is filled with a large number of stalactites, stalagmites and other rock formations
  • Inside, there are more than 70 inscriptions written in ink, which can be dated back as far as 792 AD in the Tang Dynasty
  • Nowadays, multicolored lighting artificially illuminates the cave

National Museum of China, Beijing

Best time to travel: March-May, Sept-Oct
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Museum opened in 2003, covering Chinese history from the Yuanmou Man of 1.7 million years ago to the end of the Qing Dynasty (the last imperial dynasty in Chinese history)
  • It has a permanent collection of 1,050,000 items, with many precious and rare artifacts not to be found in museums anywhere else in China or the rest of the world

Happy Valley Beijing

Best time to travel: March-May, Sept-Oct
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Amusement park opened in 2006, it is the second park of the Happy Valley theme park chain
  • Happy Valley Beijing features distinctive landscapes and themes throughout the resort along with featured rides
  • In total there are more than 40 rides, 10 of which are extreme rides, an IMAX theater with seven screens, as well as a shopping complex

Li River, Guangxi

Best time to travel: mid Oct-mid Nov
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Ease of travel: Moderate
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$

  • River pictured on the 20 Yuan note, where the karst mountains and river sights highlight the famous Li River cruises from Guilin to Yangshuo

Nanjing Museum

Best time to travel: April-May, Sept-Nov
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Museum located in Nanjing, it is one of the largest museums in China
  • The museum has over 400,000 items in its permanent collection, making it one of the largest in China
  • Especially notable is the museum’s enormous collections of Ming and Qing imperial porcelain, which is among the largest in the world

Shanghai Science and Technology Museum

Best time to travel: Oct-Nov
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Museum dedicated to the popularization of science, with an intended theme of the harmony of “Nature, Mankind, and Technology”
  • Previous exhibitions have included a 7,500 sq ft rain forest, an aviary, a small scale hydroelectric power station, and an earthquake center simulating tremors

Zhejiang Provincial Museum, Hangzhou

Best time to travel: March-June, Sept-Dec
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Provincial museum located in Hangzhou, established in 1929, making it one of China’s oldest museums
  • It houses over 100,000 items in its permanent collection, such as pottery, lacquer ware, wooden ware, bone tools, and ivory artifacts of the Hemudu Culture of the Neolithic era, as well as bronze and stoneware of the Kingdom of Yue

China Science and Technology Museum, Beijing

Best time to travel: March-May, Sept-Oct
Ease of travel: Moderate
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Museum founded in 1988 in Beijing, its exhibitions include aerospace engineering, transportation, machines, and the environment

Chimelong Paradise, Guangzhou

Best time to travel: Jan-March, Oct-Dec
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Amusement park in Panyu District, Guangzhou, Guangdong, opened on in 2006, Chimelong Paradise is the largest amusement park in China
  • The park boasts the 10 Inversion Roller Coaster, which prior to the opening of The Smiler at Alton Towers, England shared the record for most inversions with Colossus at Thorpe Park in Surrey, England
  • Themed areas in the park include Whirlwind Island, Screaming Zone, Happy Kingdom, Kids’ Land, Rainbow Bay, Water World, and Phantom Zone

Mount Everest, Tibet

Best time to travel: June-Aug
Ease of travel: Hard
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $$$

  • There are two base camps on Mount Everest, on opposite sides of the mountains: South Base Camp is in Nepal at an altitude of 17,598 ft, while North Base Camp is in Tibet, China at 16,900 ft
  • The base camps are rudimentary campsites at the base of Mount Everest that are used by mountain climbers during their ascent and descent; they are also visited by hikers
  • Supplies are shipped to the South Base Camp by porters, and with the help of animals, usually yaks
  • Climbers typically rest at base camp for several days for acclimatization, to reduce the risk of altitude sickness
  • A visit to the North Base Camp requires a permit from the Chinese government, on top of the permit required to visit Tibet itself