Guangzhou

Eat Cantonese food at its source. For morning tea (yum cha), take a tea-house table, order a pot of tea, then two or three plates of dim sum, and take your time.

For lunch, order one plate of roast goose from a siu mei counter: point at the bird hanging in the window.

See old Canton at the Chen Clan Ancestral Hall, a 19th-century clan hall covered in wood, brick and stone carving, then walk the shaded river island of Shamian nearby.

Give a second morning to the Nanyue King Museum, built over a Western Han royal tomb, and the Ming-era Zhenhai Tower in Yuexiu Park.

See the new city from Canton Tower: arrive about an hour before dusk, then take a night cruise on the Pearl River.

Fly into Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, or arrive by high-speed train at Guangzhou South Railway Station.

From Hong Kong, take the high-speed train from West Kowloon. The ride to Guangzhou South takes about 48 to 60 minutes, depending on stops. You clear Hong Kong and mainland immigration inside West Kowloon station before you board.

From Macau, cross into Zhuhai first, then take the train from Zhuhai to Guangzhou South.

Getting around: use the metro. Its gates take contactless overseas Visa, Mastercard, American Express and JCB cards. Group sights by area so you cross town less.

Paying: tea houses and food counters mostly take Alipay by QR code. Set it up with your international card before you go. Some older places still take cash.

Weather: winter is mild, about 19 °C by day in January. That is comfortable for city walks and food, though not beach weather.

Busy dates: book hotels early if your dates overlap the Canton Fair trade show, which runs from 15 October to 4 November in 2026.

Entry: Guangdong is one of the areas covered by China's 240-hour visa-free transit policy. Check whether it applies to your passport and route. Hong Kong has its own entry system.

Guilin. River and karst scenery after the city. Five to eight days covers both.

Shenzhen. A short train ride away, usually an hour or less, for a two-city Pearl River Delta trip.

Hong Kong. A leg south when you have extra days, to start or end your trip there.