First trip3 DAYS
Beijing in 3 days, no Chinese required
The capital's greatest hits on the subway plus one wall day — Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, a hutong morning, Mutianyu. The cleanest possible first taste of China.
One honest thing — Three days is tight if you want the wall AND the Forbidden City unhurried — give Mutianyu its own half-day and don't try to bolt on the Summer Palace too.
Budget¥¥ · mid
Best seasonSep–Nov
TransportSubway + 1 tour
PaceRelaxed
Worked recently × 63
The classic10 DAYS
The classic China loop
Wall, warriors, pandas, skyline — the four-city greatest hits, all linked by high-speed rail. The board's advice: 2–3 nights each, and don't add a fifth city.
One honest thing — Ten days means a lot of it is spent on (excellent) trains. If you hate packing-unpacking, cut Xi'an and go deeper into three cities instead of four.
Budget¥¥¥ · comfort
Best seasonApr–May
TransportHigh-speed rail
PaceBrisk
Rated realistic × 8812306 linked
Nature8 DAYS
Yunnan first trip: Kunming to Shangri-La
Old towns, lakes and the climb up to the Tibetan plateau. Rail all the way now — Lijiang to Shangri-La runs about ten trains a day, 1h10m–1h46m, ¥49–70 second class. Altitude builds gradually, so this order is the comfortable one.
One honest thing — Shangri-La is 3,200m and the altitude is real — if you're prone to it, end in Lijiang and admire the plateau from below.
Budget¥¥ · mid
Best seasonOct–Nov
TransportRail throughout
PaceSteady
Worked recently × 41
City + day trip4 DAYS
Shanghai + Hangzhou by train
Three days of Bund, Pudong and the French Concession, then a 45-minute bullet train to West Lake for a slow, green day. The easiest east-coast pairing.
One honest thing — Hangzhou as a day trip is doable but a shame — West Lake at dawn and dusk is the whole point, so steal a night there if you can.
Budget¥¥ · mid
Best seasonMar–May
TransportMetro + HSR
PaceRelaxed
Worked recently × 52
Nature + food6 DAYS
Sichuan: pandas, peppercorns & a holy mountain
Pandas at dawn, the giant Leshan Buddha by river, then two days walking Mount Emei — bookended by the best food city in China. Eat your way through the gaps.
One honest thing — Emei's a proper mountain — two days of stairs. If your knees object, do the monastery-by-bus version and skip the summit push.
Budget¥¥ · mid
Best seasonMay–Jun
TransportRail + bus
PaceActive
Worked recently × 37
Nature4 DAYS
Guilin & Yangshuo by river and bike
The karst-peak postcard: a Li River cruise down, then days cycling the rice paddies and bamboo rafting around Yangshuo. Low budget, high payoff, very little Chinese needed.
One honest thing — The big Li River cruise is pricey and packed; the bamboo-raft stretch from Xingping is cheaper, shorter and frankly prettier.
Budget¥ · low
Best seasonApr–Oct
TransportRiver + bike
PaceRelaxed
Worked recently × 58
History7 DAYS
Silk Road starter: Xi'an to the desert
Warriors, rainbow mountains and the Mogao caves on the edge of the Gobi. High-speed rail gets you most of the way; one night train does the romantic, money-saving leg.
One honest thing — That romantic night train books out fast in summer — if you can't get a sleeper, the day HSR is faster but you lose the desert-dawn moment.
Budget¥¥ · mid
Best seasonSep–Oct
TransportHSR + night train
PaceSteady
Worked recently × 24
Stopover48 HOURS
48 hours in Shanghai (transit-friendly)
Built for a 240-hour transit stop: the Bund at dawn, Yu Garden, a Concession lunch, Pudong at night — all on the metro (Lines 2/10/14) from the airport. No visa needed if you're flying onward.
One honest thing — 48h is plenty for the Bund and Pudong, but you'll only scratch the food. Treat it as a teaser, not the whole meal.
Budget¥¥ · mid
Best seasonYear-round
TransportMetro + Maglev
PaceBrisk
Visa-free transit ✓
South China6 DAYS
Hong Kong → Guangzhou → Guilin
Skyline and dim sum, then Cantonese food capital, then the karst rivers — a soft landing into the mainland with the through-train doing all the work. Counts as transit-friendly.
One honest thing — The HK–mainland border is a real immigration stop both ways — budget an hour and don't book a tight onward train out of Guangzhou.
Budget¥¥ · mid
Best seasonOct–Dec
TransportHigh-speed rail
PaceSteady
Worked recently × 33
Winter5 DAYS
Harbin & the ice festival
The deep-winter one: city-block ice castles lit from within, snow sculpture parks, and Russian-era streets. Dress for −25°C, plan indoor breaks, and go for the night lights.
One honest thing — This only works Dec–Feb, and −25°C is not a figure of speech — without serious layers you'll last about 40 minutes outdoors.
Budget¥¥ · mid
Best seasonDec–Jan
TransportRail + taxi
PaceRelaxed
Seasonal · winter only
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