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
What to do and see in China, China: The Best National Parks
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. Jiuzhaigou Natural Reserve
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 4,177 reviews
Jiuzhaigou Valley, eulogized as a world of magical fairytale, has for years enchanted tourists with its mountains and luxuriant forests, colorful lakes, gushing waterfalls and abundant wildlife. To its south is the Huanglong (Yellow Dragon Scenic Area). Jiuzhaigou Valley is located in Nanping County, 450 kilometers (about 280 miles) to the north of Chengdu City, Sichuan, covers a total area of 720 square kilometers and the valley is 50 kilometers in length. In 1992, UNESCO entered this scenic area onto the world natural heritage list.Jiuzhaigou, literally the Nine Village Valley, is hence known for the nine Tibetan villages within its boundary, Inhabited by Tibetans, the nine villages and alpine lakes, are like reflecting mirrors or crystal jade blocks inlaid in snow mountains and forests.
Reviewed By petersjsim - Tawau, Malaysia
There is a saying in China that after visited JiuZhaiGou, you would not want to visit places with waterfalls and lakes. This natural reserve is indeed a paradise for people who enjoy seeing waterfalls and lakes. As for photography enthusiasts, this is the place that you should not miss.
2. Wuyi Mountain Scenic Resort
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 461 reviews
An area of fantastic views has peaks, rivers, gorges and temple ruins.
Reviewed By ROCruiser - Claremont, United States
This has to be our favorite destination in Fujian. We spent two days in the area with a private guide taking us. Everything was green and beautiful with a calming effect. Whether hiking up the mountains, drifting down the stream in the bamboo raft, or just walking around the park will make the trip all worthwhile. The rock formations are just incredible. Lots to see there.
3. Zhangjiajie National Forest Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,266 reviews
Zhangjiajie is in the northwestern part of Hunan Province in central China. The main draw is the Wulingyuan Scenic Area, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list, including Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, Tianzi Mountain and Suoxiyu Nature Reserve. Here, traveling through countless cloud-kissing mountains, clear streams and leafy trees, you may easily blend with nature around, thus enhancing your love unconsciously. Want to explore the Avatar mountains with camera? Join us now!
Reviewed By andrewgrif - Sunderland, United Kingdom
This place is amazing and well worth a visit. Such amazing scenery and views. So baring this in mind I'll go into a bit more detail with things to be aware of. Firstly the park opens well before 7am. I arrived at the park about 6:50am and there was already lots of people there being let in. For the most part there is really good signage as to where to go. There are a couple of the bus stops that don't have English but there's pretty much always someone to ask. The queue for tickets goes down quickly, tickets are 228¥ (hotels might try selling you a ticket to "beat the queues" but they will over charged so it's not worth it.) The ticket lasts for 4 days. Secondly, it is always busy pretty much everywhere. Even when it's not busy there is still a crowd to push pass to get a good picture, but be rude and push pass them, otherwise you will be waiting a long time. There are plenty of facilities at intervals along all the routes even the steep stair routes have toilets and food stalks along the way. You have to use the buses and you have to queue there's no getting round this but the queues go quickly for the most part. All of the routes are well marked and have good footing. However they are long so wear sensible shoes (the amount of Chinese tourists wearing flip flops is surprising). There are multiple ways to the upper routes, 2 walking, 1 elevator and 2 cable cars (that I came across anyway) you have to pay for the cable cars and elevator individually which are about 60-80 ¥ which isn't too much really. The route I took the first day took me up the elevator, there was initially a queue for the first stage you go up but for the second and glass elevator there was no queue so I got close the window and it was a great view. I then took the bus round to the enchanting view which was great, again not too crowded early. You can walk round to the natural bridge from here. If you're there early then it's worth a walk round. On the way there are a few spots with quiet viewpoints. There are a couple of points where there are Y junctions that get pretty cramped with people pushing and shoving, be bold and push through, there is no other way. The worst was the junction before the natural bridge you either go up to bypass the bridge or go left to go over. Once over it's bit too crowded. Once over go upwards but rather than going to the peak go around and there's some quite spots with great views. Follow signs to the car park to get the bus to the next stop. Yangjiajie is the next stop with the great Wall of natural, and tianbo mansion. The wall is worth a look but not the best view. I would about the trek to tianbo. It is steep with a route that has well worn stones that are slippy that make an already dicey route even worse. There's also very slim gaps through rocks. Push through these and you end with a climb up very questionable ladders to a lookout that isn't that amazing, the climb is vertical so if aren't great with heights don't bother. Another tip, if you do this route rather than waiting for people going up and down there a route round the base so go down but then go round not up. The route back from here is also not great so as I say avoid if you aren't looking to push yourself. From the Yangjiajie stop you can get a bus to tianzi mountain. This has some great views and is worth a wander around. This is also where there is a McDonald's. There's also a tower you can climb that was free and not too crowded. The best views were down past the tower, they were also pretty much empty. Next tip, the bus stop going from tianzi mountain to Yangjiajie was always ridiculously busy whenever ever I passed so avoid going this route. From tianzi mountain I got the bus to the cable car and down and this was great as the views were amazing and I got a car to myself. Day 2 I walked the golden whip stream which was nice and quiet early on I walked along and then back to the step up luancuan slope. This is a tough climb, over 2000 steps, an hour of steps with no flat. It was very difficult and to be honest but really worth the effort, the only views are at the top. Next tip before going to the enchanting viewpoint, head between the shops following signs down, go along and there's some great views with no one there. There are monkeys though. Most were fine but 1 did try and jump for a guys backpack. Day 3 I was extremely tired so just popped in to see the 10 mile natural gallery (not 10 miles at all) I went here first thing at 6:50 and there were already crowds of tour groups. You can walk or get a monorail which you pay for. I walked and the route is awful. It's totally flat but it's a railed walkway where you can only walk 2 people wide, this is the up and down route so you have tours stopping and tours coming down and people pushing passed. It's not a pleasant walk at all and the views were good but not essential. Rather than heading back down this route you can take steps to the tianzi mountain section. I didn't do this but it might have been worth it to avoid going back the way I came in. Next tip, apart from the buses, don't queue, Chinese tourists will randomly stop along routes for no reason or to admire a view for a long time. Push passed and stay ahead of the crowds, especially tour groups. Be prepared to get your photo taken. I'm a white guy with a beard which the Chinese find facinating. But don't be afraid to say no, if you really don't want to just walk away. It is more fun to just embrace it but if you are hot and sweaty it can be too much. In conclusion it's definitely worth a visit as the views are breathtaking. But be prepared for crowds and plan your route carefully. Know what you want to see and the best route to get there.
4. Xiqiao Mountain National Forest Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 139 reviews
Reviewed By Ailton007 - Seattle, United States
National forest park and national geological park with lots of hiking options, gardens (peach, bamboo etc.) and the Buddha as main attraction. Ask before you go on one of the buses which direction, they take different turns sometimes. Great for taking pictures and there's some amazing views as well. We spend roughly 3 hours there but you can easily take a day to visit this attraction!
5. Potatso National Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 489 reviews
Reviewed By Au_and_Family - Singapore, Singapore
Potatso National Park is the first national park in China. It is located in the centre of Three Parllel Rivers, and is the World Natural Heritage. It is about 22 km from the Shangri-La County. It is a beautiful park surrounded with coniferous forests. Our walk took 3-4 hour slow and cool walk (in early Nov 2019) along the nice wooden-planked walkway from the starting to the endpoint. In the middle of the park, Shudu Lake, with its blue water under the clear blue sky, is a beauty of Mother's Nature. The reflection of the white clouds onto the blue water is an amazing beauty of its own. Chipmunks and small adorable birds contributed to the joy of our walk from the start to the endpoint. If walking is not a problem, walk and soak into the park's natural beauty is a better choice than taking a boat across the lake to cut down walking time.
6. Donghu National Park
7. Yuntaishan Geopark
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,003 reviews
Reviewed By 103ongc - Malaysia, null
We went to Jiao zhuo from zhengzhou since we couldnt find any tour guide from Zhengzhou. The next morning took a taxi to Yuntaishan. Wonderful place especially the Red Stone gorge which should never miss.
8. Kunyu Mountain
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 54 reviews
9. Hangzhou Bay Marsh
10. Siming Mountain of Zhejiang
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 22 reviews
Reviewed By Bernibear93 - Mui Ne, Vietnam
This is a must do if you are a nature lover. It’s an incredible hiking experience with great scenery along the way.
