Travel and Tourism in China

The Forbidden City and Palace Museum

No building in China is more immediately recognizable than the Forbidden City, the vast imperial palace complex that served as the home of Chinese emperors from the Ming Dynasty through the end of the Qing. Completed in 1420 after fifteen years of construction, the palace covers 720,000 square meters and contains nearly a thousand buildings with over eight thousand rooms. It was designed to be the center of the known world, the earthly equivalent of the celestial palace of the Jade Emperor, and its proportions and layout reflect a highly sophisticated system of cosmological symbolism in which numbers, colors, and compass directions all carried deep meaning.

The main axis runs from south to north, beginning at the Meridian Gate, whose massive red walls and five gateways reflect the emperor's supreme power. Passing through the Gate of Supreme Harmony, visitors enter the great courtyard that fronts the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the largest wooden structure in China and arguably the most impressive room on Earth. It was here that the emperor received the court on great ceremonial occasions, seated on the Dragon Throne beneath a ceiling painted in deep blue and gold, with smoke rising from incense burners in the shape of mythical animals. The hall is flanked by two smaller ceremonial halls, and behind them the private residential areas begin, including the Palace of Heavenly Purity where the emperor slept, the Hall of Union, and the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, each laden with symbolic significance.

The Forbidden City was designated the Palace Museum in 1925, after the last Qing emperor Puyi was expelled from his private residence in the northern section. Today it holds one of the world's great art collections, with roughly 1.86 million items ranging from imperial paintings and calligraphy to bronze ritual vessels, porcelain, lacquerware, and silk garments. The museum has undertaken a major conservation effort in recent years, and many of the formerly closed secondary courtyards and garden areas have been opened to visitors for the first time. The Imperial Garden at the northern end, with its ancient cypress trees, rockeries, and pavilions, makes a peaceful conclusion to any visit. Tickets must be booked in advance through the official website, as daily visitor numbers are capped.

Xi'an City Walls and Historic Center

The Ming Dynasty city wall that encircles the historic center of Xi'an is among the best-preserved in China, stretching fourteen kilometers in a near-perfect rectangle around the old city. Built in 1370 on the foundation of earlier Tang and Sui Dynasty walls, the current structure is twelve meters high and twelve to fourteen meters wide at the top, broad enough to drive a modern car along. Most of the wall's towers, gates, and moat have been restored, and it is possible to walk or cycle the entire circumference, an experience that takes two to four hours depending on speed and the number of stops taken. The views from the wall across the old city and the modern skyline beyond give a vivid sense of Xi'an's layered history.

At the center of the walled city, the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower face each other across a busy intersection. The Bell Tower, built in 1384 and moved to its current location in 1582, originally housed a great bell that was rung at dawn to mark the start of the day. The Drum Tower, built in 1380, housed a drum that was beaten at dusk. Together they regulated time for the imperial city and now serve as both historical monuments and performance venues where traditional music is performed for visitors. The Islamic Quarter, or Huifang, extends northwest from the Drum Tower and is home to Xi'an's sizable Hui Muslim community, descended from the Arab and Central Asian merchants who traveled the Silk Road to trade in Chang'an during the Tang Dynasty.

The Great Mosque of Xi'an, located within the Muslim Quarter, is one of the oldest and most architecturally distinctive mosques in China. Founded in 742 CE during the Tang Dynasty, it has been expanded and rebuilt over the centuries, and its current form is a remarkable synthesis of Chinese architectural idiom and Islamic religious requirements. The layout follows Chinese temple design, with a series of ceremonial courtyards leading to the prayer hall, but the decorative program incorporates Arabic calligraphy alongside traditional Chinese motifs, and the minaret takes the form of a Chinese pagoda. The main prayer hall can accommodate over a thousand worshipers and is still in active religious use.

The streets of the Muslim Quarter are among the most atmospheric in China, packed with stalls selling the characteristic foods of Xi'an's Hui cuisine. Roujiamo, the "Chinese hamburger," consists of hand-chopped braised pork or lamb packed into a crisp, layered bread that has been cooked in a clay oven, and it may be the single most satisfying street food in China. Biangbiang noodles, made from a dough hand-pulled into wide, belt-like strands and served with a sauce of chili oil, vinegar, garlic, and various toppings, take their name from a character so complex that it is said to require sixty-two strokes to write and does not appear in most word-processing systems. Yang rou pao mo, a lamb stew served with crumbled unleavened bread, is the most substantial of Xi'an's traditional dishes and is usually eaten at breakfast or lunch.

The Shaanxi History Museum, located near the Big Wild Goose Pagoda in the southern part of the city, houses one of the finest collections of ancient Chinese artifacts in the country, with particular strength in Zhou Dynasty bronzes, Han Dynasty pottery, and Tang Dynasty gold and silver wares. Its collection of Tang tomb murals, transferred from excavated aristocratic tombs, is exceptional. The Big Wild Goose Pagoda itself was built in 652 CE to house the Buddhist scriptures brought back from India by the monk Xuanzang, whose seventeen-year journey westward inspired the classic novel Journey to the West. The pagoda, originally five stories and expanded to seven, still stands in a large temple complex and offers views over the city.

Guilin's Other Attractions

Guilin itself, a city of about eight hundred thousand people, is more than just a starting point for the river cruise. Reed Flute Cave, a limestone cavern north of the city, has been visited by humans for at least 1,200 years — Tang Dynasty inscriptions on its walls attest to its long popularity — and its stalactites, stalagmites, and crystalline formations have been given imaginative names by generations of visitors. The cave is illuminated by colored lights that, depending on one's aesthetic sensibilities, either enhance or distract from the natural beauty of the formations.

Elephant Trunk Hill, in the center of Guilin where the Li River meets the Peach Blossom River, is a large karst formation whose shape, with a perfectly round natural arch at water level, does indeed resemble an elephant drinking from the river. It has been the symbol of Guilin for centuries and is one of the most photographed natural features in China.

China's UNESCO World Heritage Sites

China is among the world's leading nations in UNESCO World Heritage designations, reflecting the extraordinary depth and variety of its natural and cultural heritage. The following is a comprehensive list of China's UNESCO World Heritage Sites as of 2024-2025.

Mogao Caves, Gansu Province — Inscribed 1987. The world's finest collection of Buddhist cave art, with over 730 caves containing murals and sculptures spanning a thousand years.

Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor (Terracotta Army), Shaanxi Province — Inscribed 1987. The vast mortuary complex of Qin Shi Huang, including the famous terracotta warrior army.

Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian, Beijing — Inscribed 1987. The archaeological site where the fossilized remains of Homo erectus pekinensis, dating to approximately 750,000 years ago, were discovered in the 1920s and 1930s.

Mount Taishan, Shandong Province — Inscribed 1987. The most sacred of China's Five Great Mountains, with temples, inscriptions, and stairs climbing through cloud forests to the summit.

The Great Wall — Inscribed 1987. The greatest and most extensive defensive structure ever built, extending thousands of kilometers across northern China.

Imperial Palaces of the Ming and Qing Dynasties in Beijing and Shenyang — Inscribed 1987, extended 2004. The Forbidden City in Beijing and the Imperial Palace in Shenyang, representing the pinnacle of Chinese imperial architecture.

Mount Huangshan (Yellow Mountain), Anhui Province — Inscribed 1990. Renowned for its granite peaks, twisted pines, sea of clouds, and hot springs that have inspired Chinese painting for centuries.

Huanglong Scenic and Historic Interest Area, Sichuan Province — Inscribed 1992. A valley containing colorful travertine pools, waterfalls, and alpine scenery.

Jiuzhaigou Valley Scenic and Historic Interest Area, Sichuan Province — Inscribed 1992. Multi-colored lakes, waterfalls, and snow-capped peaks in northwestern Sichuan.

Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area, Hunan Province — Inscribed 1992. The extraordinary quartzite sandstone pillar landscape that inspired the film Avatar, including Zhangjiajie National Forest Park.

Historic Ensemble of the Potala Palace, Lhasa — Inscribed 1994, extended 2000 and 2001. The Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, and Norbulingka, the three principal sites of Tibetan imperial and religious heritage.

Mountain Resort and its Outlying Temples, Chengde — Inscribed 1994. The summer retreat of the Qing emperors north of Beijing, featuring the largest imperial garden in China and a series of Buddhist temples representing various architectural traditions from across the empire.

Temple and Cemetery of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion in Qufu, Shandong Province — Inscribed 1994. The largest and best-preserved complex of ancient buildings relating to Confucius and his descendants, maintained over two millennia.

Ancient Building Complex in the Wudang Mountains, Hubei Province — Inscribed 1994. A complex of Taoist temples and monasteries on a sacred mountain, representing the finest example of Tang through Ming Dynasty religious architecture.

Lushan National Park, Jiangxi Province — Inscribed 1996. A mountain with important connections to Chinese culture, religion, and political history.

Old Town of Lijiang, Yunnan Province — Inscribed 1997. The historic Naxi capital with its unique water distribution system, traditional architecture, and pictographic writing tradition.

Ancient City of Pingyao, Shanxi Province — Inscribed 1997. A remarkably well-preserved walled city that retains its Ming and Qing Dynasty street plan, architecture, and commercial quarter.

Classical Gardens of Suzhou, Jiangsu Province — Inscribed 1997, extended 2000. Nine of the finest examples of Chinese classical garden design, representing the pinnacle of the art form.

Summer Palace, an Imperial Garden in Beijing — Inscribed 1998. The Qing Dynasty imperial pleasure garden, with Kunming Lake and Longevity Hill as its central features.

Temple of Heaven: an Imperial Sacrificial Altar in Beijing — Inscribed 1998. The ceremonial complex where Chinese emperors performed annual sacrifices to Heaven.

Dazu Rock Carvings, Chongqing — Inscribed 1999. Thousands of Buddhist, Taoist, and Confucian sculptures carved into cliffs and grottoes, dating from the ninth to thirteenth centuries.

Mount Wuyi, Fujian Province — Inscribed 1999. A mountain of great scenic beauty and the cradle of Neo-Confucian philosophy, with significant biodiversity.

Ancient Villages in Southern Anhui — Xidi and Hongcun — Inscribed 2000. Two exceptionally well-preserved villages representing Ming and Qing Dynasty architecture and planning principles.

Imperial Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties — Inscribed 2000, extended 2003 and 2004. A series of imperial burial complexes including the Ming Tombs north of Beijing and Qing tombs in Hebei Province.

Longmen Grottoes, Henan Province — Inscribed 2000. Over a hundred thousand Buddhist images carved into limestone cliff faces near Luoyang, representing the peak of Chinese Buddhist sculpture.

Mount Qingcheng and the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, Sichuan Province — Inscribed 2000. A sacred Taoist mountain and the world's oldest still-functioning irrigation system, built in 256 BCE.

Yungang Grottoes, Shanxi Province — Inscribed 2001. Over fifty-one thousand stone carvings and statues in 252 caves representing the first peak of Buddhist art in China.

Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan Protected Areas — Inscribed 2003. The parallel gorges of the Yangtze, Mekong, and Salween rivers in northwestern Yunnan, supporting extraordinary biodiversity.

Capital Cities and Tombs of the Ancient Koguryo Kingdom — Inscribed 2004. Archaeological remains of the ancient Koguryo Kingdom in Jilin Province.

Historic Centre of Macao — Inscribed 2005. A collection of historic buildings and public spaces reflecting four and a half centuries of Portuguese colonial heritage.

Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries — Inscribed 2006. The mountain habitats of the giant panda in Sichuan Province, including Wolong National Nature Reserve and Jiuzhaigou.

Yin Xu, Henan Province — Inscribed 2006. The ruins of the late Shang Dynasty capital near Anyang, with oracle bone inscriptions representing the oldest form of Chinese writing.

Kaiping Diaolou and Villages, Guangdong Province — Inscribed 2007. Multi-storey defensive village towers built by returned overseas Chinese in a distinctive synthesis of Chinese and Western architectural styles.

South China Karst — Inscribed 2007, extended 2014. The finest examples of humid tropical to subtropical karst in the world, including formations in Guizhou, Yunnan, Guangxi, and Chongqing.

Fujian Tulou — Inscribed 2008. Distinctive earthen communal fortified houses built by the Hakka people in southeastern Fujian Province.

Mount Sanqingshan National Park, Jiangxi Province — Inscribed 2008. Remarkable granite peaks, pillars, and columns in a mountain park of great scenic beauty.

Mount Wutai, Shanxi Province — Inscribed 2009. A sacred Buddhist mountain with sixty-eight monasteries, representing the most complete collection of Tang to Qing Dynasty Buddhist architecture.

China Danxia — Inscribed 2010. Red sandstone landforms in six locations across southern and northwestern China, including the famous Rainbow Mountains of Zhangye.

Historic Monuments of Dengfeng in "The Centre of Heaven and Earth" — Inscribed 2010. Eight monuments around the ancient capital Luoyang including the White Horse Temple and the Shaolin Monastery.

West Lake Cultural Landscape of Hangzhou — Inscribed 2011. The carefully designed and maintained landscape of West Lake and its surrounding temples, causeways, and gardens.

Chengjiang Fossil Site, Yunnan Province — Inscribed 2012. An exceptional collection of early Cambrian marine fossils representing one of the most complete pictures of early animal life.

Site of Xanadu, Inner Mongolia — Inscribed 2012. The remains of the summer capital of Kublai Khan's Yuan Dynasty empire, the Shangdu of Marco Polo's accounts.

Cultural Landscape of Honghe Hani Rice Terraces, Yunnan Province — Inscribed 2013. The millennia-old rice terracing system of the Hani people in southeastern Yunnan.

Xinjiang Tianshan — Inscribed 2013. The mountain landscapes, glaciers, and ecosystems of the Tianshan range in northwestern China.

Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor — Inscribed 2014 (trans-national with Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan). A 5,000-kilometer section of the ancient Silk Road network.

The Grand Canal — Inscribed 2014. The world's longest and oldest canal system, connecting Beijing with Hangzhou over 1,794 kilometers, built and maintained from the fifth century BCE.

Tusi Sites — Inscribed 2015 (trans-national with other states not applicable). The remains of the Tusi chieftain system in southwestern China.

Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art Cultural Landscape, Guangxi — Inscribed 2016. Cliff paintings along the Zuojiang River dating from the fifth century BCE to the second century CE.

Hubei Shennongjia — Inscribed 2016. A temperate forest area in central China with extraordinary biodiversity and ecological significance.

Qinghai Hoh Xil — Inscribed 2017. The most extensive high-altitude plateau in the world, home to the Tibetan antelope and other rare species.

Kulangsu: a Historic International Settlement, Fujian Province — Inscribed 2017. A small island off Xiamen that was an International Settlement from 1903 to 1945 with a distinctive collection of Western and Chinese architecture.

Fanjingshan, Guizhou Province — Inscribed 2018. An isolated mountain of exceptional biodiversity and spiritual significance.

Archaeological Ruins of Liangzhu City, Zhejiang Province — Inscribed 2019. The ruins of a Neolithic city and water management system dating to about 3300-2300 BCE.

Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the Coast of Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf of China Phase I — Inscribed 2019. A critical section of the East Asian-Australasian Flyway for millions of migratory birds.

Quanzhou: Emporium of the World in Song-Yuan China — Inscribed 2021. The maritime trading city of Quanzhou in Fujian Province, representing its role as a center of global maritime trade in the tenth to fourteenth centuries.

Cultural Landscape of Old Tea Forests of the Jingmai Mountain in Yunnan — Inscribed 2023. Traditional tea farming landscapes and villages associated with the Blang and Dai peoples.

Badain Jaran Desert — Temples and Lakes — Inscribed 2024. A natural site in Inner Mongolia featuring the world's tallest stationary sand dunes, some exceeding 500 meters, more than 140 lakes nestled between the dunes, and ancient Lamaist temples; inscribed as China's 58th UNESCO World Heritage Site at the 46th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2024.

Beijing Central Axis: A Building Ensemble Exhibiting the Ideal Order of the Chinese Capital — Inscribed 2024. A 7.8-kilometer north-south axis through the heart of Beijing comprising 15 components including the Bell Tower, Drum Tower, Jingshan Hill, the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, the Zhengyang Gate, and Yongdingmen Gate at its southern end; inscribed as China's 59th UNESCO World Heritage Site at the 46th session in New Delhi, July 2024.

Xixia Imperial Tombs — Inscribed 2025. A complex of imperial burial sites from the Western Xia Dynasty (1038–1227 CE), built by the Tangut people in Yinchuan, Ningxia; covering nearly 40 square kilometers and comprising 9 imperial mausoleums, 271 subordinate tombs, and 32 flood-control works; inscribed as China's 60th UNESCO World Heritage Site at the 47th session in Paris, July 2025.

China now holds 60 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, ranking second in the world (behind Italy) by number of designations, reflecting both the extraordinary depth of its cultural and natural heritage and the government's active engagement with the UNESCO nomination process.

Street Food and Regional Snacks

Beyond the eight major cuisines, China's street food culture offers an almost bewildering variety of regional snacks and quick meals. Beijing's jian bing, a crepe filled with egg, scallion, hoisin sauce, and crispy fried dough, is the city's definitive breakfast. Shanghai's xiaolongbao, delicate pork-filled dumplings in thin pleated skins containing a spoonful of fragrant broth, require a specific eating technique to avoid burning the mouth. Xi'an's roujiamo and biangbiang noodles have already been described. Chengdu's dan dan noodles, dressed in a sauce of sesame paste, chili oil, and preserved vegetables, represent Sichuan street food at its simplest and most satisfying. Wuhan's hot dry noodles (re gan mian) are coated in a warm sesame paste and eaten for breakfast across the city. Lanzhou beef noodle soup, made with hand-pulled noodles in a clear beef broth flavored with chili oil and garnished with thinly sliced beef, radish, and green onion, is arguably the most popular noodle dish in China.

Traditional Festivals

The Chinese lunar calendar generates a rich cycle of traditional festivals that punctuate the year with celebrations of varying character and intensity. Chinese New Year (Spring Festival), the most important, marks the beginning of the lunar new year — typically falling in late January or early February — with fifteen days of family reunion dinners, fireworks, red envelopes of money (hongbao) given to children, and temple fairs. The Dragon Boat Festival (Duanwu), on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, commemorates the poet Qu Yuan with races of dragon-prowed boats on rivers and lakes across the country and the eating of zongzi, rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves. The Mid-Autumn Festival (Zhongqiu), on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, is associated with the full moon, the legend of the moon goddess Chang'e, and the giving and eating of mooncakes — round pastries filled with lotus paste, salted egg yolk, or various sweet fillings whose circular shape symbolizes family reunion.

Chinese martial arts (wushu or kung fu) encompass hundreds of distinct styles organized broadly into internal styles emphasizing qi cultivation (such as tai chi) and external styles emphasizing strength and speed (such as Shaolin kung fu). The Shaolin Monastery in Henan Province, founded in 495 CE on the slopes of Song Mountain, is considered the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and of Shaolin martial arts, and its monks and students maintain a training tradition that continues to attract students from around the world.

Outdoor Activities and Nature

China's extraordinary geographic diversity creates opportunities for outdoor pursuits ranging from serious mountain climbing and wilderness hiking to birdwatching in globally significant wetlands and river cruises through some of the world's most dramatic gorge landscapes. The country's rapid infrastructure development has made many previously remote natural areas accessible, while also creating pressure on ecosystems that in some cases were better protected by their inaccessibility.

Festivals and Events

China's festival calendar is rich with celebrations that range from the national scale of Chinese New Year to local events tied to specific minority cultures or regional traditions.

Chinese New Year and Spring Festival

The Spring Festival (Chun Jie), China's most important holiday, is the world's largest annual human migration, as hundreds of millions of people travel home from their city workplaces to their family villages for the New Year celebration. The holiday officially lasts seven days but the festivities extend for fifteen days through the Lantern Festival, when decorative lanterns are displayed and riddle games are played. New Year's Eve is marked by massive fireworks displays (where permitted), elaborate family reunion dinners, and the giving of red envelopes containing money. Lion dances, dragon dances, temple fairs, and the first days of the new lunar calendar are celebrated with devotion that varies by region but is universally significant in Chinese culture.

Dragon Boat Festival

The Dragon Boat Festival (Duanwu Jie), on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month (typically June), commemorates the death of the poet-statesman Qu Yuan who drowned himself in the Miluo River in 278 BCE as a protest against political corruption. Communities race narrow dragon-headed boats to the sound of drums, competing in events that have now spread worldwide as a competitive sport. Zongzi — sticky rice parcels wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves with various fillings including red bean paste, pork belly, or dates — are the traditional festival food.

Mid-Autumn Festival

The Mid-Autumn Festival (Zhongqiu Jie), on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, is the second most important traditional festival after Spring Festival and celebrates the harvest moon. Families gather to view the full moon, which on this date is at its roundest and brightest in the cycle, and to share mooncakes — dense pastries filled with lotus seed paste, red bean paste, or combinations of nuts and dried fruits, typically incorporating a salted duck egg yolk to represent the moon. The gift-giving of mooncakes between families, friends, and business associates has become an elaborate commercial ritual.

Harbin Ice and Snow Festival

The Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival, held annually from January through February in the capital of Heilongjiang Province in the extreme northeast, is one of the largest ice festival in the world. The centerpiece, Harbin Ice-Snow World, contains enormous structures — entire buildings, bridges, pagodas, and castles — built from blocks of ice cut from the frozen Songhua River and illuminated from within by colored lights. Snow sculptures of extraordinary complexity and detail are constructed in a separate venue. Harbin's Siberian-influenced architecture and Russian cultural heritage, legacies of the city's history as a railway junction on the Chinese Eastern Railway built by Russia in the late nineteenth century, give the city a distinctive character unlike anywhere else in China.

Tibetan Losar and Yi Torch Festival

Tibetan Losar (New Year) is the most important festival in the Tibetan Buddhist calendar, typically falling in February or March. The celebrations last fifteen days and include elaborate rituals at monasteries, family feasting, and festive dress, and the first days of the new year are marked with particular intensity at Lhasa's great monasteries. The Monlam Prayer Festival, the most important religious gathering in Tibetan Buddhism, coincides with Losar.

The Yi Torch Festival, held in the twenty-fourth to twenty-sixth days of the sixth lunar month (typically late July), is the most important celebration of the Yi ethnic minority and is observed most spectacularly at Xichang in Sichuan Province and at the Stone Forest near Kunming in Yunnan. The three-day festival includes bullfighting, wrestling, horse racing, folk singing, and the climactic lighting of torches that light up entire valleys on the last evening.