China Itineraries

Trains. China’s high-speed (G and D) trains are fast, punctual and the best way to travel between cities up to about 1,500 km apart. Book on the official 12306 website or app, which has an English version and accepts foreign cards; you register with your passport, and the passport is your ticket at the gate. Tickets go on sale 15 days ahead and popular trains on Fridays, Sundays and holidays sell out, so book as soon as your dates are fixed. Big cities have several stations (Beijing West and Beijing South, Shanghai Hongqiao, Xi’an North), so check which one your train uses and arrive 45 minutes early for the security check. Our getting around China guide covers seat classes and fares in detail.

Entry. Many nationalities can now enter visa-free for up to 30 days. Others, including US citizens, can use the 240-hour (10-day) visa-free transit if they fly in from one country and out to a different one (Hong Kong and Macau count), stay within the permitted provinces and enter through a designated port. The 7- and 10-day routes below fit that rule if you arrive in Beijing and leave from Shanghai to a third country. Read our China visa guide before booking.

Booking sights. The Forbidden City, the Terracotta Army, the Potala Palace and many museums require timed online reservations with your passport number, often on WeChat mini-programs. Book a few days ahead; for the Forbidden City in peak season, a week. Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay with your home card before you leave, because cash is rarely used.

Sleep three nights in Beijing near Wangfujing or in a hutong courtyard hotel around Dongcheng, two in Xi’an inside the city walls near the Bell Tower, and two in Shanghai near People’s Square or in the Former French Concession.

The Beijing days carry the most walking. The Forbidden City takes three hours and you enter from the south through the Meridian Gate and leave from the north, right opposite Jingshan Park, whose hill gives the classic view over the golden roofs. Mutianyu is the best Great Wall section for a first visit: restored, less crowded than Badaling, with a cable car up and a toboggan down. Leave by 7.30am to beat the tour buses.

Follow days 1-5 above, then fly from Xi’an to Guilin instead of taking the train to Shanghai, and finish in Shanghai. Sleep one night in Guilin and two in Yangshuo, a small riverside town surrounded by limestone peaks.

Book a Li River boat that sails the full Guilin to Yangshuo stretch and lands at Yangshuo; some cheaper boats start further downstream. The best scenery is between Yangdi and Xingping, so if you want to skip the big boat, take a bus to Yangdi and a bamboo raft to Xingping instead. In Yangshuo, stay outside West Street in one of the guesthouses along the Yulong River for quieter nights; rent a bicycle and follow the river paths, or join a cooking class. Late April to June is the wettest period, when the cruise can be cancelled after heavy rain; autumn is the clearest. See our best time to visit China guide.

Two weeks lets you add the southwest and its food. This version fits a 240-hour transit only if you leave the country around day 10, so most travellers will need 30-day visa-free entry or a tourist visa.

Chengdu is the most relaxed big city in China and a food capital: eat mapo tofu, dan dan noodles and a proper hotpot. The pandas are most active at feeding time, from opening until about 10am, so take a taxi there at 7am. The national forest park ticket at Zhangjiajie covers several days and the park buses inside; sleep in Wulingyuan village by the park gate rather than in Zhangjiajie city, which is 40 minutes away. Tianmen Mountain, reached by one of the world’s longest cable cars from Zhangjiajie city, is a separate ticket. Expect long queues on weekends and holidays at both.

The old trade route runs west from Xi’an through the Hexi Corridor of Gansu into the deserts of Xinjiang. A high-speed line now covers almost the whole route, which makes it a manageable trip by train. Go in May to June or September to October; summer in Turpan passes 40°C.

The Mogao Caves are the highlight: a guided visit to eight or so of the 500-plus painted caves, preceded by two films at the visitor centre. Daily numbers are capped and tickets sell out in summer, so book the moment your dates are fixed. Xinjiang has frequent police and ID checkpoints on roads, at stations and at the entrance to some old towns; carry your passport at all times and allow extra time.

• First-timers: Stick to the triangle. Beijing and Shanghai have the most English signage, the easiest transport and the widest choice of hotels that accept foreigners (not every hotel in China is licensed to). Fly in to Beijing and out of Shanghai to avoid backtracking.
• Families: Build in a slower day every three or four days; China’s sights involve long walks and many steps. Shanghai Disneyland, the Chengdu pandas and the Mutianyu toboggan work well for children. Book train seats together early, because seat assignments are automatic.
• Slow travel: Take any route and add two nights to each stop. Yangshuo, Dali and Chengdu reward a week; Pingyao and the water towns around Suzhou are good extra stops on the Beijing to Shanghai line.
• Summer and rainy season: Plan indoor afternoons in July and August, and keep a buffer day in Guilin and Zhangjiajie, where heavy rain closes boats and trails. That is also the best time for the Silk Road’s high country and for Tibet.
• Hong Kong and Macau: Easily added at either end. Shenzhen to Hong Kong takes 15 minutes by high-speed train, and arriving or leaving through Hong Kong counts as a third region for the 240-hour transit. See our Hong Kong itineraries.
• Holidays: Avoid travelling between cities during Chinese New Year, the May Day holiday (1-5 May) and Golden Week (1-7 October), when trains sell out and sights are at capacity.