China Destinations
Choose the right China base before choosing more cities.
LocalKey destination pages are not checklist descriptions. They help you decide where to land, what to pair, how long to stay, and when a city should be skipped.
First China landing
Start where logistics are forgiving.
Shanghai and Suzhou work well when payment setup, rail confidence, and a soft first rhythm matter more than maximum coverage.
Classic culture arc
Anchor the trip around history and scale.
Beijing and Xi'an need more breathing room than they look like on a map. This is where LocalKey protects pacing and guide time.
Regional depth
Choose fewer places and go deeper.
Chengdu, Chongqing, Guilin, Hangzhou, and Lijiang are better as regional anchors than as rushed add-ons.
Explore China
See the priority city map.
Select a city to connect its marker, list item, and card. Live guides are ready now; upcoming cities show where LocalKey is building coverage next.
Start Planning
Yangtze Delta · Live guide
Shanghai
North China · Live guide
Beijing
Jiangnan · Live guide
Suzhou
Sichuan · Live guide
Chengdu
Guide in build
Shaanxi · Coming
Xi'an
Guide in build
Zhejiang · Coming
Hangzhou
Guide in build
Upper Yangtze · Coming
Chongqing
Guide in build
Guangxi · Coming
Guilin
Guide in build
Yunnan · Coming
Lijiang
Ready now
Live city guides
These pages have specialist copy, logistics notes, verified photo spots, FAQ, and trip-design context.
Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui visa-free cluster
Shanghai
March-May and October-November for easier walking, clearer air, and more comfortable days.
The easiest first landing: skyline, cafes, rail confidence, and a calmer start.
3-4 days is the practical minimum. A fifth day earns Suzhou as a day trip or overnight.
Explore Shanghai →
Jiangsu, inside the common Shanghai regional planning cluster
Suzhou
April-June for garden green, September-November for crisp canal walks.
One day from Shanghai, pure poetry if you do not overpack the plan.
1 day from Shanghai is realistic. 1-2 nights makes the visit substantially better — gardens in the morning without day-trip crowd pressure is a different experience.
Explore Suzhou →
Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei visa-free cluster
Beijing
April-May and September-October for walking weather and stronger outdoor days.
Big-capital energy: history, hutongs, scale, and routes that need breathing room.
4-5 days is the practical minimum. Five days protects one Great Wall day, one hutong half-day, two city-core days, and an arrival buffer.
Explore Beijing →
Sichuan visa-free planning region
Chengdu
March-June and September-November for food walks, teahouses, and fewer hot-soup-in-hot-weather choices.
Slow life, spice, teahouses, pandas, and a softer west-China landing.
2-3 days for the city proper. 4-7 days if Leshan, Dujiangyan, or broader Sichuan is part of the plan.
Explore Chengdu →
Next city pages
Upcoming guides are cities, not product routes.
They appear on the map because they matter to China trip planning. They stay marked as coming until we have enough specialist detail to make the page useful.
Shaanxi · Coming
Xi'an
History anchor for Terracotta Army, city wall, and Muslim Quarter food.
Zhejiang · Coming
Hangzhou
Tea, West Lake, and a natural bridge between Shanghai, Suzhou, and Huangshan.
Upper Yangtze · Coming
Chongqing
Night city, river geography, spicy food, and strong photography appeal.
Guangxi · Coming
Guilin
Karst landscapes and slower river days when the itinerary needs nature.
Yunnan · Coming
Lijiang
Yunnan culture, old town texture, and mountain access without overpacking the route.
How to pair cities
The destination choice only works when the route rhythm works.
LocalKey uses cities as building blocks. The practical question is how many moves the trip can absorb without turning into logistics management.
5 days
One base, one nearby contrast.
Shanghai + Suzhou works because the transfer is short and the two cities change the mood without eating the trip.
7-10 days
Two or three cities, not daily movement.
Beijing + Xi'an + Shanghai is the upper limit for a classic first arc unless you are comfortable moving fast.
12+ days
Multi-region China starts to make sense.
This is where Sichuan, Yunnan, Guangxi, or the Yangtze Delta can become real regional depth rather than decorative add-ons.
Editorial bridge
Need the practical layer before choosing cities?
Read the China Guide for visa-free routes, payment setup, safety, and first route planning, or ask LocalKey to turn the city shortlist into a working itinerary.