China is a land of breathtaking landscapes and rich cultural heritage. From stunning natural wonders to ancient towns steeped in history, there's something for everyone. This post highlights 20 of the most beautiful places in China, offering a diverse range of experiences for any traveler.
1. Karakul Lake, Xinjiang
Karakul Lake is a stunning alpine lake located on the Pamir Plateau in Xinjiang, near Bulungkol Lake. While both lakes are at the foot of Muztagh Ata and Kongur Tagh peaks in Bulunkou Township, Akto County, and are only about 10 kilometers apart, their landscapes differ dramatically.
Karakul Lake, located 220 kilometers from Artux and at an altitude of 3,600 meters, covers an area of 10 square kilometers with a depth of over 30 meters. Its name, "Karakul," means "black lake" in the Kyrgyz language, due to its dark, deep waters. The lake is surrounded by lush grasslands and abundant birdlife, offering picturesque scenery.
2. Nalati Grassland, Xinjiang
Nalati Grassland, also known as Gongnaisi Grassland, means "white hillside" in the Turkic language. Located east of Nalati Town in Xinyuan County, Yili, about 110 kilometers from the county seat, it's a subalpine meadow in the northern foothills of the Nalati Mountains, formed on ancient alluvial deposits from the Tertiary period.
Nalati Grassland is one of the four largest grasslands in the world. Since ancient times, it has been a famous pastureland. The beautiful grassland scenery combined with the local Kazakh culture makes it a renowned tourist destination and a key attraction in Xinjiang.
3. Yangshuo, Guangxi
Yangshuo County is under the jurisdiction of Guilin City in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Located in northeastern Guangxi, south of Guilin, it's home to 11 ethnic groups, including Han, Zhuang, Yao, and Hui. Yangshuo's stunning natural landscapes and rich cultural heritage have earned it the title of "Famous Chinese Tourism County."
The saying "Guilin's scenery is the best under heaven, and Yangshuo's scenery is the best in Guilin" perfectly encapsulates the significance of Yangshuo's natural beauty. Its "verdant mountains, clear waters, unique peaks, and ingenious caves" are considered the four wonders of the world.
4. Wuyuan, Jiangxi
Wuyuan County, now under the jurisdiction of Shangrao City in Jiangxi Province, was one of the six counties of ancient Huizhou Prefecture. Located in northeastern Jiangxi, it's known as the "land of eight and a half mountains, one field, and half waterways and manors."
Wuyuan's representative culture is Hui culture. Known as the "home of books" and "home of tea," it's a nationally renowned cultural and ecotourism county, often called "the most beautiful village in China."
5. Heavenly Lake, Changbai Mountain, Jilin
Heavenly Lake on Changbai Mountain is a dormant volcano crater lake. In summer, the melted water is bluer than the sky; in winter, the frozen surface is as white as snow. Surrounded by 16 peaks, the lake's only outlet is a narrow gap between Tianhuo Peak and Longmen Peak, where the water cascades down to form the Changbai Waterfall. It's the deepest alpine lake in the world and a border lake between China and North Korea.
Changbai Mountain formed from geological orogenic movements 12 million years ago and, after multiple eruptions, expanded into a giant umbrella-shaped structure. When the volcano became dormant, spring water overflowed, forming a vast lake over ten square kilometers. Heavenly Lake, like a magnificent piece of jade embedded among the majestic peaks of Changbai Mountain, is the largest volcanic lake in China.
6. Saint Sophia Cathedral, Harbin
Saint Sophia Cathedral is located on Central Street in Harbin. While the city once had many cathedrals, most were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. The well-preserved Saint Sophia Cathedral has become a rare and precious historical building, famous worldwide.
Saint Sophia Cathedral is the largest Orthodox church in the Far East. Construction began in March 1907 as a military church. It was rebuilt in September 1923, taking nine years to complete in November 1932. The cathedral's design is heavily influenced by Byzantine architecture, showcasing grandeur and elegance.
7. Xi'an City Wall
The Xi'an City Wall, also known as the Xi'an Ming City Wall, is the largest and best-preserved ancient city wall in China. While broadly speaking, it includes both the Tang and Ming dynasty walls, it generally refers specifically to the Ming Dynasty wall. In 1961, it was designated one of the first National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.
The Xi'an Ming City Wall is located in the city center of Xi'an, Shaanxi Province. The area within the walls is commonly known as the old city, and the famous Bell and Drum Towers are located at its heart. The main city gates are Changle Gate (East), Yongning Gate (South), Anding Gate (West), and Anyuan Gate (North). Since the Republican era, new gates have been added to facilitate access, and today there are 18 gates in total.
8. Qinghai Lake, Qinghai
Qinghai Lake, known as "Cuowenbu" in Tibetan (meaning "blue sea"), is located in the northeastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in Qinghai Province. It's the largest inland saltwater lake in China, formed by a fault depression between Datong Mountain, Riyue Mountain, and Qinghai Nanshan of the Qilian Mountains.
Major attractions around the lake include Riyue Mountain, Daotang River, Lake Xiligou rock paintings, Rubbers Mountain, Chaka Salt Lake, Fuwen Ancient City, Bird Island, Haixin Mountain, Beixiangyang Ancient City, Gahai Ancient City, Jinshatan Grassland, Xihai Town Atomic City, Sand Island, and Xihai County Triangle City.
9. Zhangjiajie, Hunan
Zhangjiajie is a prefecture-level city in Hunan Province and one of China's most important tourist cities. Zhangjiajie National Forest Park became China's first national forest park in 1982.
In 1992, the Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area, which includes Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. In February 2004, it was included in the first batch of UNESCO Global Geoparks.
10. Hukou Waterfall, Yellow River
Hukou Waterfall is a national scenic area located on the border between Yichuan County, Yan'an City, Shaanxi Province, and Ji County, Linfen City, Shanxi Province. As the Yellow River flows through this area, the banks narrow dramatically, resembling the mouth of a teapot (壶口, hukou), hence the name.
Upstream, the Yellow River is 300 meters wide. At Hukou, 1,000 cubic meters of water per second plunge over a 20-meter cliff, creating the spectacle of "a single teapot collecting the entire Yellow River." It's the second-largest waterfall in China and the largest yellow waterfall in the world.
11. Huangguoshu Waterfall, Guizhou
Huangguoshu Waterfall, also known as Huangguoshu Great Waterfall, was formerly called Baishuihe Waterfall or "Huanggeshu" or "Huangjiaoshu" Waterfall, named after the abundance of "Huangge" fig trees in the area. It gained fame after the Ming Dynasty traveler Xu Xiake visited and wrote about it.
Located in Zhenning Buyei and Miao Autonomous County, Anshun City, Guizhou Province, it's one of the world's most famous waterfalls, known for its immense size. The waterfall is 77.8 meters high and 101 meters wide. Huangguoshu Waterfall is a typical example of erosional retreat in a karst landscape.
12. Kaiping Diaolou
Kaiping Diaolou are located in Kaiping City, under the jurisdiction of Jiangmen City, Guangdong Province. They are a unique type of vernacular architecture in China, combining defense, residence, and a blend of Chinese and Western architectural styles. These multi-story tower-like structures often feature a mix of ancient Greek, Roman, and other styles.
In June 2007, "Kaiping Diaolou and Villages" was officially listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, becoming China's 35th World Heritage Site and the first World Heritage project related to overseas Chinese culture.
13. Shahu Lake, Ningxia
Shahu Lake Tourist Area is located in Pingluo County, 56 kilometers northwest of Yinchuan City. The southern part of Shahu Lake is a 30,000-acre desert, seemingly a natural companion to the vast lake, creating a harmonious and contrasting landscape. The lake is a vibrant blue, while the desert is a sea of golden sand.
14. Mount Lu, Jiangxi
Mount Lu, also known as Kuangshan or Kuanglu, is located in Lushan City, Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province. It's an elliptical, block-fault mountain range. Known for its majestic, unique, perilous, and beautiful scenery, it's often described as "the most wondrous show of Kuanglu in the world." It's a World Cultural Heritage Site, a Global Geopark, and one of China's ten most beautiful mountains.
Mount Lu has 171 named peaks. Among the peaks are 26 ridges, 20 valleys, 16 caves, and 22 unusual rock formations. Waterfalls are formed where rivers encounter fault lines. The most famous is the Sandiequan Waterfall, with a drop of 155 meters, inspiring the famous line, "Flying down three thousand feet, one wonders if it's the Milky Way falling from the ninth heaven."
15. Hongcun Village, Anhui
Hongcun Town, formerly known as Hongcun, is a town under the jurisdiction of Yi County, Huangshan City, Anhui Province, located in the northeast of the county. In 2000, Hongcun was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. It's one of the first 12 historical and cultural villages in China and a national key cultural relics protection unit.
Hongcun is known as a "village in a painting." As of 2014, the town has over 140 well-preserved Ming and Qing dynasty residences. Major attractions include Nanhu, the academy, Yuezhao, the water channels, Shuangxi, the ancient tree at Tingqian, and Leigang.
16. Mount Huangshan, Anhui
Mount Huangshan is a UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage Site, a Global Geopark, one of China's ten most famous mountains, and known as "the most wondrous mountain under heaven." Located in Huangshan City in southern Anhui Province, it has 72 peaks, with the main peak, Lotus Peak, reaching an elevation of 1,864 meters. Lotus Peak, Bright Top, and Heavenly Capital Peak are the three main peaks of Huangshan.
The Ming Dynasty traveler Xu Xiake, after climbing Huangshan, exclaimed, "There is no mountain like Huangshan anywhere under heaven. Once you've climbed Huangshan, there's no need to see any other mountain!" This has been popularized as "You don't want to see the Five Sacred Mountains after returning from them, and you don't want to see any mountains after returning from Huangshan."
17. Resonant Sand Gorge, Inner Mongolia
Resonant Sand Gorge is a large-scale desert leisure resort integrating sightseeing and recreation. Located at the easternmost end of the famous Kubuqi Desert, it's the closest desert tourist destination to inland China and Beijing. It boasts the world's longest camel caravan - over 500 camels.
The sand dune is 110 meters high and 400 meters wide. Facing a river and with a leeward, sunny slope, it forms a crescent shape, creating a huge echo wall. When the sand is dry, the dune produces a rumbling sound, ranging from a frog's croak to an airplane's roar. The cause of this phenomenon remains unexplained.
18. Xiapu, Fujian
Xiapu County is under the jurisdiction of Ningde City, Fujian Province. With a history of over 1,700 years, it's the oldest county in eastern Fujian and a cultural center. It's known as the "home of kelp," the "home of laver," the "key point between Fujian and Zhejiang," the "land of fish and rice," and the "seaside Zoulu" (a place of culture).
As early as 3,000 years ago, there were inhabitants in the Huangguashan area. Until the late Qing Dynasty, it was a political, military, economic, and cultural center of eastern Fujian. In 1913, the prefecture was abolished, and the county was retained. In 1935, the fourth district was set up as the Zherong Special Zone. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Xiapu County remained unchanged and is now under the jurisdiction of Ningde City.
19. Hailuogou, Sichuan
Hailuogou is located in Moxi Town, Luding County, Sichuan Province, on the eastern slope of Gongga Mountain, the eastern edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Located at the foot of Gongga Snow Mountain, it's known for its low-altitude modern glaciers. The crystalline modern glaciers cascade down from the high valleys, with huge ice caves and steep ice bridges, resembling a crystal palace from a mythical world.
Particularly noteworthy is the unique large ice waterfall, over 1,000 meters high and about 1,100 meters wide. Hailuogou is the lowest-altitude modern glacier found in Asia, at an elevation of 2,850 meters. The valley contains a large flow of hot, warm, and cold mineral springs, extensive primeval forests, high glacial-eroded peaks, and a large number of rare animal and plant species.
20. Jiuzhaigou, Sichuan
Jiuzhaigou is a World Natural Heritage Site and China's first nature reserve primarily dedicated to protecting natural scenery. Located in Jiuzhaigou County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, it sits in the transitional zone between the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the western Sichuan Plateau, and the mountains to the Sichuan Basin.
Forest coverage exceeds 80%, and it's home to 74 nationally protected rare plants, 18 nationally protected animals, as well as abundant ancient biological fossils and glacial landforms. It's known as the "King of Water Scenery."