China highlights

Xi’an Terracotta Warriors

The Terracotta Army is a vast collection of life-size sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang.

Xi’an Ancient City Wall

Enlarged in the early Ming Dynasty, Xi’an’s brick city wall remains the most impressive ancient city wall still standing in China.

Xi’an Small Goose Pagoda

The Small Goose Pagoda stands on Youyi Road in what was once Jianfu Temple of Tang-dynasty Chang’an.

Guilin Li River

The Li River is one of China’s most popular scenic waterways and is often listed among the world’s top watery wonders.

Guilin Elephant Trunk Hill

Elephant Trunk Hill is the symbol of Guilin, with Water Moon Cave framed between the elephant’s trunk and body.

Guilin Reed Flute Cave

Reed Flute Cave is a limestone cave in Guilin, named for the verdant reeds outside that can be made into flutes.

Leshan Giant Buddha

Carved into a cliff at the confluence of the Min and Qingyi rivers, the Leshan Giant Buddha sits about 170 kilometers from Chengdu.

Chengdu Panda Base

The Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding is a non-profit facility for giant pandas and other rare animals.

Jiuzhaigou Valley National Park

Jiuzhaigou means “Valley of Nine Fortified Villages,” stretching over 75,000 hectares on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau.

Datong Yungang Grottoes

The Yungang Grottoes in Datong hold 256 caves and some 52,000 statues of fifth- and sixth-century Buddhist cave art.

Datong Hanging Temple

About 65 kilometers southwest of Datong, the Hanging Temple clings to a cliff with some 40 rooms linked by dizzying passageways.

Pingyao Ancient City

Pingyao is one of China’s most famous ancient towns, an exceptionally well-preserved Han Chinese city founded in the 14th century.

Suzhou Humble Administrator’s Garden

The Humble Administrator’s Garden is regarded as the greatest of southern Chinese gardens, laid out in eastern, central, and western parts.

Suzhou Lingering Garden

Lingering Garden is a renowned classical Chinese garden and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Hangzhou Lingyin Temple

Lingyin Temple is one of the largest temples in southern China, founded in 328 AD and rebuilt many times since.

Hangzhou West Lake

West Lake is a freshwater lake in Hangzhou, ringed with temples, pagodas, gardens, causeways, and ornamental islands.

Lhasa Potala Palace

The Potala Palace was the chief residence of the Dalai Lama and is now a museum and World Heritage Site.

Lhasa Jokhang Temple

Jokhang Temple is the holiest site in Tibetan Buddhism, founded during the reign of King Songtsen Gampo.

Zhangjiajie Tianzi Mountain

Tianzi Mountain forms a “golden triangle” with Zhangjiajie Forest Park and Suoxiyu Valley in Hunan.

Zhangjiajie Golden Whip Stream

Golden Whip Stream is the largest brook landscape in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park and one of its most beautiful walks.

Zhangjiajie Bailong Elevator

The Bailong Elevator is a glass lift built onto a cliff in Wulingyuan, opened to the public in 2003.

Lijiang Tiger Leaping Gorge

Tiger Leaping Gorge is one of the world’s deepest gorges and one of China’s finest treks through dramatic landscapes.

Lijiang Jade Dragon Mountain

Jade Dragon Snow Mountain rises near Lijiang in Yunnan and is deeply revered by the Naxi people.

Tianjin Eye

Tianjin Eye is a 125-meter Ferris wheel built over Yongle Bridge — said to be the only wheel of its kind constructed over a bridge.

Beijing Forbidden City

The Forbidden City is China’s largest and best-preserved imperial palace complex.

Beijing Great Wall

The Great Wall can be visited at many sections along its thousands of kilometers and is one of the seven wonders of the world.

Beijing Summer Palace

The Summer Palace is a vast lake, garden, and imperial retreat in Haidian District, about 17 kilometers from downtown Beijing.

Beijing Tiananmen Square

Tiananmen Square sits at the heart of Beijing and is among the largest city squares in the world.

Beijing Temple of Heaven

The Temple of Heaven in Dongcheng District expresses the ancient Chinese idea of the relationship between earth and heaven.

Shanghai Museum

Founded in 1953, the Shanghai Museum holds a vast collection of Chinese art, including over 120,000 nationally significant objects.

Shanghai Jade Buddha Temple

Jade Buddha Temple is a Buddhist monastery in downtown Shanghai, named for its jade Buddha statues.

Shanghai Oriental Pearl Tower

Completed in 1995, the Oriental Pearl Tower is a TV tower on the Huangpu River in Pudong and a 5A scenic area.

Shanghai Yuyuan Garden

First built in 1560 in the late Ming Dynasty, Yuyuan Garden is a classical garden in the heart of Shanghai’s Old City.