City & region guides
China, city by city
Field notes from the road — which places earn your limited days, how long to give each, and the tourist traps locals quietly skip. Every guide is checked on the ground and kept current.
Beijing
Empire-scale sights and the hutongs hiding between them.
Shanghai
Art-deco Bund, a skyline from the future, and great coffee.
Suzhou
Classical gardens, canal lanes, and a softer Jiangnan rhythm.
Hangzhou
West Lake at sunrise, temples in the hills, and tea-field walks.
Sanya
China’s tropical beach escape, best when you choose the right bay.
Chengdu
Pandas at dawn, peppercorns, and the slowest teahouses in the country.
Guangzhou
Old Cantonese neighborhoods, an expansive riverfront, and a city plan that leaves time for yum cha.
Dunhuang
Mogao cave art, desert light, and a trip that must be built around the fixed cave ticket.
Pingyao
A complete walled county city, merchant banking history, and lanes best seen after day-trippers leave.
Xi'an
Terracotta Army by day, the Muslim Quarter grills by night.
Guilin & Yangshuo
Karst peaks, slow river drifts, and bike-able backroads.
Yunnan
Old towns, rice terraces, snow peaks, and air that smells of pine.
Dali
Erhai Lake, Xizhou, old-town evenings, and how not to waste a lake day.
Lijiang
Old-town atmosphere, Baisha breathing room, and Jade Dragon altitude planning.
Shangri-La
Songzanlin, Dukezong, Napa Lake, and the altitude rules that matter.
Go one level deeper
Detailed guides inside each city
Use these when the city decision is already made and you need a practical answer for one stop.
More cities are being added as we get back on the ground. First, sort out the basics: visas & entry, getting online, mobile payments, and when to go.