A traveler visiting Xi’an with a 17-year-old who speaks only English but already understands basic Chinese history wanted to know which of three major Xi’an shows would be the best choice: Camel Bell, Song of Everlasting Sorrow, or The Great Qin....

A traveler visiting Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Xi’an wanted to rent Hanfu (汉服, Hànfú), hire a photographer for two or three hours, and find the best locations without spending the whole day walking around in costume. The Traveler’s Question Hi. We...

A traveler planning a late-February China trip wondered whether Beijing’s attractions return to normal after the main Chinese New Year holiday — and whether it is possible to visit the Great Wall without overwhelming crowds before the Lantern Festival. This is...

Planning a first trip to China often starts with a list of places you really want to see. The harder part comes next: how do you connect them into an itinerary that actually makes sense? One traveler wanted to visit the Great Wall,...

Beijing and Shanghai can show a first-time visitor two extraordinary sides of China. But what if you only have 10 days and also want to experience something smaller, quieter and more rural? One traveler planning a Beijing–Shanghai journey faced exactly that decision. They...

The first trip to China is often relatively easy to shape. Beijing. Shanghai. Xi’an. Chengdu. Perhaps Chongqing, Yunnan or Zhangjiajie. But what happens when you’ve already visited many of China’s best-known destinations—and you want your next trip to feel completely different? That’s...

Packing for a first trip to China can suddenly feel complicated. What clothes should you bring? Do you need special travel gear? What about chargers, medicines, rain, payments—and all those things people online say you “must” have before arriving in China?...

For many first-time visitors to China, booking flights and hotels is straightforward. Then they start researching attraction tickets—and suddenly things seem much more complicated. The Forbidden City (故宫, Gùgōng) in Beijing and the Terracotta Army (兵马俑, Bīngmǎyǒng) in Xi’an are two of China’s most famous...

Planning a short China trip often creates a particular problem: everything looks possible on the map. Shanghai (上海, Shànghǎi), Zhangjiajie (张家界, Zhāngjiājiè) and Chongqing (重庆, Chóngqìng) can certainly be combined. But once you add the Grand Canyon, Glass Bridge, Tianmen Mountain, Zhangjiajie...