City: China
Top Things to do in China
Top Hotels in China
- 1. InterContinental Century City Hotel Chengdu
- 2. Nina Hotel Tsuen Wan West
- 3. Crowne Plaza Hangzhou HEDA, an IHG hotel
- 4. Holiday Inn Chengdu Century City-WestTower, an IHG hotel
- 5. Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong
- 6. Holiday Inn Chengdu Century City-EastTower, an IHG hotel
- 7. Wyndham Grand Shenzhen
- 8. Crowne Plaza Xi'an, an IHG hotel
- 9. Alva Hotel by Royal
- 10. The Arca
Countries
Things to do in China, China: The Best Gardens
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a unitary sovereign state in East Asia and the world's most populous country, with a population of around 1.404 billion. Covering approximately 9,600,000 square kilometers (3,700,000 sq mi), it is the third- or fourth-largest country by total area, depending on the source consulted. China also has the most neighbor countries in the world. Governed by the Communist Party of China, it exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four direct-controlled municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing), and the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau.
Restaurants in China
1. Yu Garden (Yuyuan)
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 10,566 reviews
A classical garden complete with period style buildings. The Garden was created by Pan Yunduan a Government Officer for his family finishing in 1577.
Reviewed By Emmi35
This 400-years-old garden built in Ming dynasty is an authentically old Chinese style garden with wooden bridges, old style houses, ponds with carps and turtles, mountain-like rock, carved dragons and greenery garden. A temple is nearby that one should visit too.
2. Slender West Lake
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 841 reviews
Reviewed By 997DanielC - Middlesbrough, United Kingdom
A perfect place to visit in the summer, the only problem is that everyone else will be visiting it then too; as soon as you arrive you can either walk along the river or get a boat cruise across the beautiful water which reflects the hanging trees and clear sunny skies above. Along the sides of the river are hundreds of different kinds of plants of all different sizes and colours and paths leading in different directions, giving something new to discover each time you visit. At the centre of the lake rests the most famous landmark in the city of Yangzhou, the Five pavilion bridge, it's bright colours look beautiful in the sunlight and is usually filled with other people coming to visit. As you explore the different parts of the lake you can see birds like swans or peacocks and groups of people taking the perfect photo. You see the traditional Chinese architecture, old buildings lost behind plant life and different paths to explore.
3. Chi Lin Nunnery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 3,344 reviews
Reviewed By BradJill - Hong Kong, China
The Chi Lin Nunnery is one of our special places in Hong Kong. Originally built in 1934, the monastery building and grounds you see today were opened to the public in 2000. This is a peaceful and tranquil place that is beautifully maintained. Chi Lin along with the adjacent Nan Lian Gardens are free to visit and open from 7am to 7pm daily. What you find here is a Buddhist monastic complex constructed of cedar wood and built in the style of the Tang Dynasty. There are a handful of halls, each fitted with beautiful shrines with gilded and colourful statue figures representing manifestations of Buddha. The main hall includes five large gilded figures (3 Buddha figures and 2 attending disciples) is particularly impressive. Note that they ask you to not take photos in this area of the monastery. There is information posted next to each hall with Chinese and English text, allowing you to read up and learn about the figures on display in each. You can take pictures in the open courtyard which are decorated with numerous manicured shrubs and flowering plants. This is a Lotus Pond Garden with four delightful pools, it is an attractive setting and easy place to relax and enjoy yourself. Overall, this is a place you can easily spend half an hour. Add an addition 30-45 minutes to browse the grounds and exhibition galleries of the Nan Lian Garden which is connected by bridge to the other side of the street running along side the Nunnery. Collectively, these two attractions represent one of the most beautiful locations to visit in Hong Kong, a place loved by residents and visitors alike.
4. Geyuan Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 224 reviews
Reviewed By amandalG6553QR - Brigg, United Kingdom
Gorgeous - relaxing and beautiful surroundings. Took a walk through spring summer autumn and winter gardens and loved every second.
5. Heyuan Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 122 reviews
Reviewed By catYJYfish - Taormina, Italy
This was the most luxury and exciting tea experience I had with friends. We visited Yangzhou in April, the most beautiful time of the year. We brought tea and set up a little tea ceremony in the garden. It was an unforgettable experience!
6. Canglang Pavilion (Blue Wave Pavilion)
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 102 reviews
Reviewed By IsaacL897 - Indiana, United States
A pleasant 10 min walk straight south from Sanyuanfang metro station. (Suzhou metro is straightforward to use, and the ticket machines have an English option.) At the garden, I got the 30 yuan entrance to “both”; the other garden is literally on the other side of the ticket office itself, though that garden is less impressive, it is also charming and historic. Inevitably a lot of what you see is renovated, replanted, or repaired; yet this is a real, living 1,000 year old tradition of gardening in Suzhou, and you can just watch the Chinese visitors to appreciate the love and seriousness they bring to it. There are some stunning older trees in Surging Waves and of course there is a lot of research and attention that goes into keeping the old designs alive despite repeated wars, upheavals, or vandalism. Something this old has been reworked many times; the pavilion atop the hill was moved to that location in 1696. So even “new” developments like that become part of the rich heritage of the site. If you love Classical Chinese gardens, you will have a great time here. It is much smaller than Humble or Lingering. It is a significantly different design (giant wrap-around corridor with 108 windows, and a central hill rather than a central lake) and reflects a somewhat earlier era (Song Dynasty). There were quite a few visitors but not the crowds at Lingering, or Humble and I was seeing more the art students, serious photographers, etc. Some of the students had even brought tape measures, while others were doing elementary drawing exercises. I also got to watch two amateur painters at work with their brushes, and amusingly, a teenage Instagram-type personality with her entourage of semi-pro photographers, posing away. Excellent light and play of sunset/shadows in the “golden hour” late in the afternoon; if you don’t experience that in this garden, try to time your visit to another classical garden to see what sunset does to Suzhou’s whitewashed garden walls. Please be careful to exit exactly the same way you came in! I was hoping to head east toward the Master of the Nets Garden more directly, but wound up in a sort of dead end in a large facility with a parking lot and security gates, I only at the last moment saw on my map app that I had wandered into the grounds of a hospital operated by the People’s Liberation Army.
7. The Lingering Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 838 reviews
A Brief Description of the Lingering Garden Located at the outer side of the Chang Gate and built in the 21st year of the reign of Wanli under the Ming Dynasty (AD 1593), the Lingering Garden is reputed to be one of the four most famous gardens of China. In 1961 it was listed from the very first as cultural relics of national importance. Since 1997 it has been inscribed on the World Cultural Heritage List. The Lingering Garden, covering 23,310 sq.m., is divided into the middle, eastern, western and northern parts. The middle part features fascinating landscapes and waterscapes. The eastern part is noted for its architectural beauties and limestone rockeries. The northern part is famed for its beautiful bonsai garden. And the western part boasts the mountain forest scenery and the delights of wilderness. Celebrated for its superb handling of architectural space and spatial relations, the Lingering Garden serves as a fine specimen of ancient Chinese garden and landscape design and reputably tops all the well-known gardens in Suzhou. The Lingering Garden provides English tour guide for free every hour since 2017. You can also choose to pay for a professional English guide with different guiding route or a guiding machine. Hope that during your short stay here, you can not only satisfy your eyes, but also experience the real Chinese culture and have a better understanding of our philosophy.
Reviewed By BillPNo1 - Friendswood, United States
On our entire trip to China, The Lingering Gardens at Suzhou, was one of the most memorable places we visited. The extent of the Lingering Gardens is difficult to describe. The Gardens, seemingly, went on and on and there was another lovely fascinating sight around each corner of the winding paths. Meticulously groomed, cleaned (constantly) and maintained, the whole Gardens were beautiful, whether you were looking at rock gardens, winding paths, ponds or fish pools, little bridges, or flowering plants, trees, and shrubs! How could so many things still be in bloom in November? I think my favorite things were the extensive bonzai tree collection in their area. All old (ancient?) and perfectly groomed, they seemed like silent sentinels of the past left for us to view and appreciate now in modern times. Even the bathrooms were works of art and the finest examples of WC's that we saw anywhere during our trip! The entire group decided that the Lingering Gardens WC's were Five-Star! DO NOT miss a visit to the Lingering Gardens if you are anywhere in the area. They are exquisite and I wish that we had several days to more fully explore the Gardens than the too short time that our group tour schedule allowed. The Lingering Gardens was definitely as high as the Great Wall and Terra Cotta Warriors in my esteem!
8. Master-of-Nets Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 571 reviews
Reviewed By colleeno412
A beautiful residential garden that is a UNESCO World heritage site. An example of gardens from the song Dynasty. Wonderful architecture and art Visitors have been exploring these gardens since 1140
9. Humble Administrator's Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,321 reviews
Reviewed By MattwalesNorthWales - Chengdu, China
This is one of the four most important gardens in China. Perfectly preserved and well maintained. Shows off the ancient Chinese fixation with stone formations and meaning. Great use of water with crisscrossing pathways shaded vantage points and focus on colour. Lovely collection of mature bonsais and plenty of opportunities to relax and unwind in a tranquil space despite the number of people. A highly recommended way to spend a couple of hours.
10. Lion Forest Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 764 reviews
Reviewed By michaelh818 - Grassau, Germany
We spend an entire morning in the Lion garden and it was absolutely amazing. Our guide made the visut something truely special.... we could almost feel the history.
