2 weeks in China- where to go?
 

I am planning a trip to china next august ( quite in advance). I have been to shanghai before, but will not mind to go there again.

I have a rough idea of which places I should visit, but they are some areas I maybe need some assistent and ideaS from u ppl :)

My interests: I like big cities, history, temples, landscapes, want to explore and adventure real chinese vulture.

This is what I have planned so far:

Day 1: Arrive in Beijing.
Day 2-5 In beijing. I dont like to rush things so I hope 4 days in beijing is not to much.
Day 6-8: I have read that Xian is a must. Is 2 days in Xian enough or do I need more time there?

Which orher places should I visit? Is it worth to visit guilin? What can I do there? Maybe take a trip to shanghai and take the flight back home from there?

There are several good trip reports here for China - suggest you read them. You could easily spend longer in Beijing. There is enough to do in and around Xi'an for at least two full days (three nights). Given your interests I would then go to Chengdu, planning to visit Emei Shan from there.

As thursdaysd says, you can easily spend more than 4 days in Beijing. I was glad that I had 7 full days there. I spent 4 full days in/around Xi'an and didn't see everything I had hoped to see.

8 days total? What did you see before? Only Shanghai?

Some ideas to check out: cruise on the Yangtze River, Guilin and Yangshou-beautiful karst limestone pinnacles and the Li River, Hong Kong, Hangzhou-West Lake.

We had 2 nights in Xian and we saw the Terra Cotta Warriors & Horses-amazing. We toured the Muslim Quarter-great street food. Dinner-steamed dumplings shaped according to the fillings. Wild Goose Pagoda the next day. There's probably other stuff you could do but we only had 2 days.

Beijing-IMO don't cut any days off from your proposed scheduled time. Lots to see and do there.

Hope you love China as much as we did! Have a great trip!

So 4 days maybe is not enough. Maybe I should add one more day.

No, its not just 8 days. Its a 14 days trip, but I have only planned 8 days so far. I have been to shanghai, ghognzu and hong kong before.

Thank u for the great tips.

We had 2 1/2 days in Beijing. In that time we saw/toured Tian'anmen Square which then leads to the Forbidden City. That took all morning and I could easily have spent more time there. In the afternoon we did the Summer Palace and had a boat ride on Kunming Lake. The next day we visited the Temple of Heaven in the morning and the Great Wall in the afternoon. That evening we went to a performance of the Beijing Opera. Our final day was spent touring the hutongs via rickshaw, visiting a courtyard home, stopping at a local kindergarten where I distributed supplies, having lunch with a local family and a brief stop at the Drum Tower. Then we flew to Xian. The things we did in Beijing may or may not interest you. I wish I had had time for Bei Hai Park, the Ming Tombs, and the eastern Qing Tombs. 4 days may or may not be enough for you in Beijing. Do a goggle search on Beijing and check out what interests you and then you can plan your time accordingly. I really recommend seeing some of the beautiful countryside/scenery like Guilin, Yangshou, or Hangzhou.

My DH and I did a longer trip in 2010 but this is what I would recommend out of what we did.
Guilin (2 nights)
Yangshuo (3 nights)
Xi'an (2 nights)
Datong (2 nights)
Beijing (5 nights)

If you would like to read my trip report: http://www.fodors.com/community/asia...d-in-china.cfm

Or see some photos: www.garyandsusan.shutterfly.com On shutterly, there is a "more" tab with a drop down. China is in there.

Iam also looking foward to the must see attractions. 2 and half days are to less, so minimum 4 days for me. I dont like to rush things, but it looks like 4 days are not enough in Beijing. The frist 8 days seems ok, but I am unsure about the rest of the tour. Is guilin worth to visit? I have read mixed reviews.

I will not like to add more than 4 places in a 2 weeks trip.

How would you rate china compared to thailand? Which country would u have choosen? Since I am starting face of my planning I am also considring thailand.

And thank u again for the feedback. I will for sure take a look at your trip report :)

IMHO, Guilin itself is not worth a visit. However as a hub to get to Yangshuo or the rice terraces, it is unavoidable.

4 days in Beijing and 2 days in Xi'an sounds reasonable. I would also suggest three days to Guilin. In Guiiln, i highly recommend you the cycling trip to Yangshuo countryside. It is great.

Personally Yangshuo was our best along with Hangzhou. We did however stay 5 nights in Beijing and could have stayed longer. Xi'an we had enough with 3 days. Shanghai was not country side enough for us although still a must see. Conclusion 8 days is not enough so maybe concentrate on Beijing area and the great wall and return later when time permits.

Hi, buddy, you are highly recommended to visit Guangzhou China to explore the beauty of the seaport city, where the highlights include a Pearl River Cruise, Canton Tower and White Cloud Mt.

Check out Tian Tan Buddha in Hong Kong - or Hong <kong in general!

blueeagle:

Note the OP has been to Guangzhou before.