Attractions of China

Harbin is the capital of Manchuria in north-eastern China and the final stop on the Trans-Manchurian Railway from Moscow before arriving in Beijing. During December and January, Harbin is famous for its Ice Festival where hundreds of spectacular ice sculptures are carved and illuminated at night to give the town a magical atmosphere. Other attractions in Harbin include the Church of St. Sophia and the Siberian Tiger Park.

Beijing

Like the country of which it is capital, Beijing is a vast city with a hugely rich history and a wealth of attractions in addition to the Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace and a trip to nearby sections of the Great Wall (detailed in other entries). These include Tiananmen Square, the world's largest public square and site of Chairman Mao's mausoleum and his portrait above the Gate of Heavenly Peace. The hutongs are the maze of historical lanes and alleyways of Beijing, surrounding the Forbidden City, which offer a great insight into the traditional life of Beijing's residents. Also worth checking out are the many fascinating shops and markets, a night at the Beijing Opera or the astonishing acrobatics shows and not forgetting the chance to sample Beijing's cuisine, particularly the famous Peking Duck.

Xian

Xian is the capital of Shaanxi Province and the largest city in northwest China. It was the first capital of a unified China in 221BC (under Emperor Qin Shi Huang) and has been capital of the empire on 12 separate occasions. Being the terminus for the Silk Road, Xian was also one of the world’s largest, richest and most cosmopolitan cities. Many monuments in the city attest to its great history. The remains of the city walls demonstrate how vast and impressive they were and Xian is one of the few cities in China with preserved walls, some 15km in length which can be cycled on to appreciate views of the city. The Big Wild Goose Pagoda is a 64m, a 7-storey high structure which was built in 648 AD to house Buddhist scriptures brought back from India. The Muslim Hui District contains the 15th century Great Mosque, one of the largest in China, set amidst narrow streets with quaint shops, bazaars and food stalls. Elsewhere the Shaanxi History Museum contains artefacts from prehistory to the Qing dynasty.

Lanzhou is the capital of Gansu Province and was one of the first staging posts after Xian on the Silk Road. Its main attraction today is the Bingling Temple, a series of Buddhist caves dating back to the 5th century AD. These are set in steep cliffs overlooking the Yellow River and contains hundreds of high quality stone statues and murals. Other attractions in Lanzhou include the Gansu Museum, White Pagoda and Water Wheel Garden. Just south of Lanzhou lies the remote town of Xiahe, a centre of Tibetan Lamaism and popular pilgrimage destination for Tibetan monks. The impressive 18th century Labrang Monastery is the most important Tibetan monastery outside of Lhasa.

Although it is nowadays a modern industrial town, Jiayuguan in the past marked the western limits of the Chinese Empire. Situated in a narrow pass between striking mountain ranges, Jiayuguan was a vital transit point between China and central Asia, both for traders and armies. The Ming dynasty Jiayuguan Fort built on the pass marked the end of the Great Wall and guarded China’s westernmost frontier. As well as visiting the Fort, you can walk on the Overhanging Wall, built in 1540 to guard the Shiguan Xiakou Pass, and explore the Xincheng Tombs.

Urumqi is the capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, a huge province in the west of China that borders eight countries. Set in beautiful scenery at the foot of the ice-capped Tianshan Mountains, Urumqi is widely regarded as 'the city farthest from the ocean'. Tian Chi, or Lake of Heaven, is located in the Tianshan mountains at an altitude of 2,000 metres in stunning alpine-like scenery. Other attractions in Urumqi include the Xianjiang Regional Museum with its eerie collection of mummies up to 4,000 years old and the 18th century pagoda.

Located at the foot of the Pamir mountains in the west of Xinjiang, Kashgar was a strategically important town and staging post based at the point where the northern and southern Silk Roads converged, with easy access to India, Persia, Central Asia and Russia. Kashgar has been fought over for centuries between Chinese and Arabs, has been conquered by Genghis Khan and Tamerlane and was the base for the Great Game between the Russians, British and Chinese in the 19th century. Today Kashgar is still evocative of the Silk Road era with a maze of narrow alleyways and open air markets run by Uighir, Kazakh, Kyrgyz and Tajik merchants. Its 1,000 year old Sunday market is one of the most famous and colourful in Asia as 100,000 people gather to buy camels, livestock, leather, rugs, daggers, jewellery and silk. Kashgar's other attractions include the Id Kah Mosque, the largest in China, and the 17th century Abakh Hoja Mausoleum.

Chengdu

Chengdu is the capital of Sichuan province. As well as a base for exploring nearby attractions, Chengdu is an interesting city in its own right. More relaxed than most big Chinese cities, it is renowned for its tea houses, best samples in the tranquil Renmin Park. Other sites of interest include Wuhou Temple dedicated to the legendary Zhuge Liang and a giant statue of Chairman Mao. Sichuan food is considered the best in China and Chengdu is a fine place to taste this famous, spicy cuisine. Sichuan is also famous for being the home of the Giant Panda. These beautiful creatures are endangered and very difficult to see in the wild so a visit to the Giant Panda Breeding Centre in Chengdu offers a great chance to get close to the animal synonymous with China. The centre is a world leader into research on panda conservation and breeding and provides a home for them that mimics their natural habitat.

Shanghai is China's largest city and is a vibrant place at the heart of China's new economy. The Bund waterfront area contains a wealth of historic, grandiose buildings showing foreign and colonial influences and provides excellent views across the Huangpu River of Shanghai's new futuristic skyline. Other stunning views of the city can be seen from the World Financial Centre which has the highest observation deck anywhere in the world at 474m or from the Oriental Pearl television tower. Other attractions of Shanghai include the tranquil Yuyuan Gardens, the Jade Buddha Temple, the French Quarter of old Shanghai and shopping on Nanjing Road. The Shanghai Museum, reopened in 1995, is beautifully designed and is the world's best showcase of Chinese art and antiquities, with over 120,000 items on display.

Suzhou is located on the banks of the Grand Canal, an extraordinary engineering feat that connected the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers over 1,800km. This location gave the city, called the "Venice of the Orient" by Marco Polo, a great affluence which was manifested in the extraordinary gardens created here by the imperial elite. Chinese gardens seek to recreate natural landscapes in miniature and the nine gardens in Suzhou, dating from the 11th to the 19th centuries, are the best in China. The most famous is the Humble Administrator’s Garden which contains streams, ponds and beautifully decorated pavilions and a recreation of the scenery of the Lower Yangtze. Suzhou is also one of China's main silk producing towns, which can be purchased from street vendors and silk merchants in the city's Old Quarter.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Classical Gardens of Suzhou

The city of Luoyang is located in Henan Province. It is most famous for the Buddhist Longmen Grottoes which are located in caves along the River Yi, 13km south of the city. Built during the Northern Wei and Tang dynasties from the 5th to the 8th centuries AD, they represent a high point in Chinese stone carving. Over 2,300 grottoes contain more than 100,000 Buddhist statues (the tallest is over 17 metres), 2,500 stelae and 60 Buddhist pagodas. Other attractions near Luoyang include the White Horse Temple, China's first Buddhist Temple, or watching the locals practice tai chi, dancing or sword fighting early in the morning in Peony Square.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Longmen Grottoes

Kunming is the capital of Yunnan Province and although a vibrant and bustling it is also a beautiful city of wide boulevards and attractive lakes. Set at 2,000 metres above sea level, Kunming enjoys a temperate climate and is known as the 'City of Eternal Spring'. Its attractions include the Flower and Bird Markets, the Bamboo Temple and Yuantong Temple or you can watch people practise tai-chi in People's Square or try Yunnanese cuisine. There's a strong ethnic minority influence in Kunming and a vibrant Muslim area. It's also worth visiting Stone Forest, 120km from Kunming, which is a strange natural wonder with tightly packed rock formations.

Hong Kong is a unique city, having been under British colonial rule for 150 years but still very much retaining its Chinese character. It is a bustling, modern and sophisticated city, located in a dramatic setting. The funicular railway up to Victoria Peak offers superb vistas of the city. The Aberdeen Fishing Village is a vibrant waterfront area, home to thousands of people in their sampans. Elsewhere, the local markets and street stalls offer some excellent shopping opportunities and a contrast from the modern department stores. At night, the Sound and Light Show lights up the city's high rise buildings in all their glory.

The city of Macao was under Portuguese administration from the mid-16th century until 1999 when it was returned to China. Developed as an important port for international trade, its historic centre highlights the integration of Portuguese and Chinese influences. The centre of the town includes Leal Senado Square and the Cathedral and St. Dominic's churches, in addition to the Chinese bazaar area and Sam Kai Vui Kun Temple. On Guia Hill, the fortress includes the 17th century Guia Chapel and the 19th century lighthouse, the oldest in China.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Historic Centre of Macao

Lhasa

Lhasa is the religious, cultural and economic centre of Tibet. Its most imposing feature is the Potala Palace, winter palace of the Dalai Lama since the 7th century and the symbol of Tibetan Buddhism. Built between the 7th and 17th centuries, the palace resides atop Red Mountain and comprises over 1,000 rooms across its 13 stories, though only 15 are accessible to tourists. The complex includes the White Palace, which includes the throne of the Dalai Lama and his personal apartments, and the Red Palace, which contains chapels and stupa tombs of previous Dalai Lamas. Norbulingka, the Dalai Lama's summer palace, is located on the bank of the river 2km from the Potala Palace. The 18th century garden palace is a masterpiece of Tibetan art. The Jokhang Temple Monastery in the centre of Lhasa's old town is the most sacred temple in Tibet, attracting pilgrims from all across the country. It includes the Jowo Rimpoche, a gilded statue of Buddha Shakyamuni, and is surrounded by the Barkhor, an 800m flagstone pathway which is walked by pilgrims and houses Lhasa's main bazaar. Other sites of interest in the city include Drepung and Sera Monasteries, the latter renowned for the daily philosophical debates by the resident monks.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Historic Ensemble of the Potala Palace, Lhasa

Shigatse

Shigatse is Tibet's second largest town, situated at 3,900 metres near the confluence of the Ngang and Yarlung Tsangpo rivers. The Tashilhunpo Monastery is one of the great centres of Tibetan Buddhism and the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama. The monastery survived the Cultural Revolution intact and contains numerous impressive chapels and prayer halls, as well as a giant statue of Buddha in the Temple of Maitreya containing 280kg of gold and an ornate tomb which is the final resting-place of the fourth Panchen Lama.