The 9 Most Beautiful Places in China to Visit

China covers almost every kind of landscape a traveler could want, from the Himalayan plateau in the west to the karst rivers of the south. It is one of the world’s most populous countries, and its best scenery is spread across all of it, much of it a long way from the cities most visitors see first. The most beautiful places in China include:

#1: The Great Wall of China

You may all have heard about the Great Wall of China, and if you do not visit it once in your life you miss a man-made marvel. The Great Wall, named Changcheng in Chinese, is not one wall but a network built and rebuilt over centuries. The Ming-dynasty wall alone runs roughly 8,850 kilometers, from Jiayu Pass in the west to Shanhaiguan on the eastern coast where it meets the sea. This is one of the major attractions of China, bringing thousands of tourists every year. The wall has historical significance: it was built along the northern borders of China to keep out raiders from the steppe. Most Beijing visitors see it at Badaling (busy, easiest) or Mutianyu (restored, cable car), while Jinshanling and Simatai draw people who want the wild, half-ruined sections. Truly one of the most beautiful places in China, which is why it is ranked number one on our list.

#2: The Summer Palace

Though it is named the Summer Palace it is great to visit in winter too. This must-visit garden sprawls across more than 700 acres on the edge of Beijing. The site had been an imperial retreat since the Jin dynasty in the 12th century, but the Summer Palace you walk through today was built by the Qianlong Emperor from 1750, laid out around Kunming Lake and Longevity Hill. Anglo-French forces destroyed it in 1860, and Empress Dowager Cixi rebuilt it in the 1880s. The grounds hold the Hall of Well-being, the emperor’s throne, and a three-story Grand Theater where the royal family was entertained, all threaded together by covered walkways and lakeside paths, including the famous Long Corridor. While you are here you can also see the ruins of the Old Summer Palace nearby, once celebrated for its architecture and left in fragments after the same 1860 destruction. This palace takes you straight into the historical world of imperial China.

#3: The Yellow Mountains

Want to taste paradise? Then you should visit the Yellow Mountains in Huangshan, one of the most beautiful places in China. Watching the sunrises and sunsets over the peaks is the reason most people come. Travelers across the world are obsessed with the early-morning scenery and the sight of dawn breaking over the ridgelines. Its steep granite walls, hot springs, gnarled pines and seas of cloud make the place feel unreal. Owing to that beauty, the Yellow Mountains were named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990.

Getting there is straightforward: high-speed trains reach Huangshan North station from Shanghai and Hangzhou in a few hours, then a bus and cable car carry you up. Many visitors stay a night at a summit hotel so they can catch both sunset and the famous sea of clouds at sunrise. Late spring and autumn are the clearest seasons; winter turns the pines to frost and thins the crowds.

#4: Guilin, Yangshuo and the Li River

If you have ever seen a Chinese ink painting of jagged green peaks rising out of a misty river, you have already seen Guilin. This corner of Guangxi in southern China is classic karst country, thousands of limestone pinnacles weathered into towers over millions of years. It is the scenery Chinese poets have written about for centuries, and one bend of the river is famous enough to sit on the back of the 20 yuan banknote.

The classic way to see it is a Li River cruise, the roughly 83-kilometer stretch from Guilin down to the town of Yangshuo. The half-day boat journey drifts past bamboo groves, water buffalo and named peaks like Nine Horses Fresco Hill and the Yellow Cloth Reflection, ending in Yangshuo, a laid-back town built for cycling, bamboo rafting on the Yulong River, and rock climbing. April to October is the most beautiful window, when the peaks wear their mist, though every season has its own light. If you would rather not sort out boats, guides and permits alone, a guided Guilin tour handles the cruise and the Yangshuo countryside in one trip.

#5: Jiuzhaigou National Park

The fairy-tale scenery you remember from childhood storybooks comes alive at this destination in northern Sichuan. Jiuzhaigou National Park sits high in the mountains of West China and is packed with startlingly colorful alpine lakes. The multi-colored pools, ringed by forested slopes, satisfy every visitor. The lakes shift color through the day and across the year, their hues coming from the minerals in the water and the reflections off the surrounding hills. Autumn, when the forest turns gold and red against the turquoise water, is the most celebrated season; winter mornings with mild sunlight are quieter and just as striking. The park sits above 2,000 meters, so give yourself a day to adjust to the altitude.

#6: Hangzhou

Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang province in eastern China, is one of the most picture-perfect cities in China. An old Chinese saying puts it alongside Suzhou as heaven on earth. It is known for its scenery and its attractions: the stunning West Lake, causeways lined with blossom in spring, and ancient temples. The Yue Fei Temple is one of the most visited spots in the city. It was built in 1221 at the northern end of the Su Causeway to honor the Southern Song general Yue Fei, and its architecture still draws crowds. Beyond the West Lake and Yue Fei Temple, the Longjing tea terraces, the museums and more than one picturesque corner are all here. Hangzhou is an hour from Shanghai by high-speed train, which makes it an easy add-on to a longer trip.

#7: Tibet

Tibet, up on the roof of the world, is one of the most fascinating places in China. From the north face of Mount Everest to sacred lakes like Yamdrok and Namtso, from the Potala Palace above Lhasa to high grasslands grazed by yak, it is scenery on a scale nothing else on this list matches. The altitude is real, though: Lhasa sits at around 3,650 meters, so plan a couple of quiet days to acclimatize before going higher.

There is one thing to know before you plan a trip. Foreign travelers cannot visit Tibet independently. You need a Tibet Travel Permit, which you cannot apply for yourself, and you must travel on an organized tour with a licensed Tibetan guide. A registered travel agency arranges the permit as part of the booking, so the tour and the paperwork come together.

Planning Tibet Because the permit and a licensed guide are mandatory for foreigners, a private Tibet tour is the practical way in, not an upsell. It arranges the Tibet Travel Permit and the itinerary for you. →

#8: Zhangye Danxia Landscape

If you are weighing up the most beautiful places in China, put the Rainbow Mountains on the list. The Zhangye Danxia landform in Gansu province earned its nickname from bands of red, orange and yellow rock, layers of sandstone and mineral deposits tilted and eroded over millions of years. When low sunlight hits the striped formations they glow like a painted rainbow under the sky. The colors are strongest in early morning and late afternoon, and after rain, when the rock is damp and saturated. Boardwalks and shuttle buses connect the main viewing platforms in the geopark, and the nearest base is the city of Zhangye. Missing this landscape would be a real regret.

#9: The Yuanyang Terraced Fields

If you love exploring iconic spots, add this place to your bucket list. These terraces, carved by the Hani people into the slopes below Ailao Mountain in Yuanyang county, Yunnan, are often called the steps to heaven. The reason to come is the light: at sunrise and sunset the flooded paddies mirror the sky and turn pink, gold and silver. The fields are at their most photogenic from roughly November to March, when they are full of water before spring planting. Early winter mornings, when mist sits in the valleys, are the classic shots you will have seen. Visiting this masterpiece may not take you to actual heaven, but it comes close.

How to plan a trip around the most beautiful places in China

These nine spots are spread right across the country, so no single trip covers them all. Group them by region instead. Beijing pairs the Great Wall and the Summer Palace in a couple of days. The Yellow Mountains, Hangzhou and Shanghai sit close together in the east. Guilin and Yangshuo are a short flight south. Sichuan holds Jiuzhaigou, while Yunnan holds the Yuanyang terraces, and Gansu holds the Zhangye Rainbow Mountains, all reached through their provincial capitals. Tibet is a trip of its own and needs a permit and an organized tour.

The best all-round seasons are spring and autumn, when the air is clearest and the crowds are thinner than in the summer school holidays. Domestic high-speed rail and flights connect most of these places quickly, but the natural sites reward an early start, since the light and the mist over the peaks and paddies are best not long after dawn.

Most Beautiful Places in China Conclusion

China is great for spending vacations, whether with family or friends or even traveling solo. It has many mystical, historical and photogenic destinations to offer you. If you are looking for a place where you can enjoy a blend of beautiful nature and architecture, visit China to explore some unrevealed mysteries of the world.

Read also:

• What to do before traveling to China
• Tips for visiting China for the first time
• How much does it cost to visit China