Oh my… this place is a must see. Prepare yourself for a good 3hour walk through the forbidden city, but this place could easily consume a whole day. The architecture, history and artwork is simply amazing. The place is built like a massive fortress, with the emperor’s chambers located right in the center of the city.
The permanent residence of emperors of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) Dynasties. This place is simply a must see for any Beijing visitor. The place is built like a fortress, with a castle like wall surrounding the huge complex as well as a moat with a bridge. The walls are extremely thick, and the gate doors look impossible to move. The complex has over 70 different structures inside, with over 9,000 rooms. The garden behind the palace is gorgeous. The Nationalist Party removed the majority of China’s treasures to Taiwan, but over 900,000 relics still remain on the mainland. Admission Fee: CNY 40 (Nov. 1 to Mar. 31) CNY 60 (Apr. 1 to Oct. 31))

Bus Route: 1, 4, 20, 52, 57, 101, 103, 109, 111

Three hours
A day

The largest square in the world, with monuments on all four sides of the square, including The Forbidden City and Mao Ze-Dong’s Mausoleum. Some good restaurants are nearby too!
Tiananmen Square is the “Center of China,” and is known to be the single largest public square in the world. All four-sides of the square are surrounded by historical buildings including the The Forbidden City, Mao Zedong’s Mausoleum, The Monument of the People’s Heroes and the Great Hall of the People. In recent years this location has served as a place of international political significance. Can anyone really forget the image of the man standing before a tank?
Admission Fee : Free for square visiting; CNY 15 for tower ascending

Bus Route: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

Recommended Time: Half an hour

This historic and very unique site contains 13 tombs from the Ming Dynasty. The first tomb belonged to Emperor Yong Le in 1407. The main features are the Underground Palace, Soul Tower, Stone Bridge and Baocheng. The palace is completely made of stone, and the Soul Tower represents the main entrance to the underground chambers. A must see are the 3,000 historic artifacts on display within the stone halls. Often times a trip to the Ming Tombs is grouped with a trip to the Great Wall. Admission: CNY30
Enjoy a pleasant 45minute walk along the path lined with the original large statues built centuries ago, which were meant to protect the emperor’s bodies. Halfway down the path, to the left, you will find the descriptions of the Ming emperors and what they accomplished in life.

Some 50 kilometers northwest of Beijing and hidden amongst scenic mountains

One of the seven wonders of the world, and the only human-made object that can be seen from space during the daytime, the Great Wall of China is a must see, and that’s still an understatement. The wall stretches from east to west for over 5,000 km. Construction began during the seventh century B.C., and during the Qin Dynasty (221-207 B.C.) the sections of the walls were all connected together. During the Great Wall’s prime, it was used to keep invading enemies from entering the kingdom. At certain sections of the wall it can get very crowded with visitors.
It was very crowded during the time when I went, but still extremely fun. You can walk along the side of Great Wall for a less taken route. The ‘roller-coaster’ ride back down the great wall is a lot fun, but a ‘lil rickety. Overall this was one of my favorite places to visit of all time.

Architecture is such a beautiful thing. The lilly pond, turtle bridge, details on the ceilings and roofs of the buildings, antique furniture, all a wonderful taste of ancient Chinese culture and life.

A popular tourist destination and rightfully so. The Summer Palace was built in 1750 during the Qing Dynasty. It was practically demolished in 1860 during the war, but was quickly restored in 1886. This World Heritage Site has dropjaw scenic views, splendid cultural Chinese gardens, and a simply amazing display of ancient artwork and architecture. The Summer Palace is also known as the Garden of Clear Ripples.
Admission Fee: CNY 25 (Nov. 1 to Mar. 31)
CNY 35 (Apr. 1 to Oct. 31)

12 km (7.5 mi) northwest of downtown Beijing.
Bus Route: 907, 375, 801, 808, 732, 394, 718

Recommended time for a visit: One and a half hour

Home to the biggest Tibetan Buddhist Lama Temple in Beijing, it has groups of beautiful pavilions that make-up this Mongolian-Tibetan yellow-sect temple. The impressive 54-foot high Buddha carved from one piece of Tibetan sandalwood is a must see.

Located in the center of Tiananmen Square, Mao’s Mausoleum was built in 1976 shortly after his death. Visitors are actually allowed to briefly see the actual mummified corpse of Mao Zedong. Mao was the main head figure during the Communist Revolution of China in 1949. No Admission.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties this temple was used as sacred grounds for prayer to the gods for plenty of rain and a properous harvest. Notable is Echo Wall, a circular shaped area out in the open, where you can whisper at one end, and be able to hear the whisper at the other end. The main for sections of consist of the Echo Hall, Round Altar, Vault of Heaven and the Hall of Prayer. This palace is simply splendid with a magnificent garden that is fit for a great emperor. Admission CNY35

Bus Route: 34,6,35

Be prepared for a good walk that can last for about one and a half hours.

Block after block you see countless souvineer shops, fashion, jewelry, restaurants, boutique stores, eateries, local handicrafts and much more. The Wang Fu Jing Department Store, Beijing Department Store, and Sun Dong An Plaza can also be found on this strip. Near by streets also have plenty of sites including Dong Dan Bei, Wang Fu Jin, and Dong Si Nan Avenues. At Dong Si Nan avenue you can eat some exotic and interesting wildlife/insect dishes.

A masterpiece of 15th century Ming Dynasty architecture, the structure fittingly serves as a gallery for some of today’s top Chinese artists. The Red Gate Gallery is considered to be a central hub for today’s Chinese art circles. This place is also known as the Beijing Watchtower. No Admission.

The most ancient monument in Shanghai, the Longhua Pagoda is located in Longhua Park, an anchient temple grounds that is filled with the auroma of peach blossoms. During New Year’s a traditional bell-striking ceremony takes place, and during April thousands of people come from near and far to pay a visit to the large fair grounds where rows of vendors line up selling traditional Chinese arts and crafts, souvineers, trinkets and great food.

Tour the gardens with beautiful koi ponds, the street market & Shanghai old antique market. The Yuyuan Garden was originally the Ginshan Sheng Miao (Temple of the Golden Mountain God), but was renamed as Cheng Huang Miao (Temple of the City’s Gods) in the Ming Dynasty. Since then, the temple had foregone several severe damages, and had each time it was properly restored to its beautiful former self. During the latter years of the Qing dynasty, teahouses, street performers, and hawkers formed an extremely lively marketplace in front of the temple. During the Cultural Revolution, the temple was thoroughly destroyed. The surrounding marketplace was given a new name, “Yuyuan Bazaar”. The temple was again restored and opened to the public in 1981. Admission: 5RMB

Walk south along The Bund then swing a right at Jinling Dong Lu.
Bus Route: 11, 26, 64, 730, 926, 980, 932

One of Nanjing’s main shopping areas and a popular tourist attraction, Nanjing Road stretches 5.5 km and carries over 600 shops many with top-notch brands. The eastern end of the road is closed to street traffic, and is the place to congregate with friends and let kids run freely. At night time the street is illuminated with dazzling lights. A cute trolley can carry your family across the blocks of shopping and restaurants.

This is an awesome night spot. It’s like a local street fair, where they close off all the streets, have trolley’s and tons of people just walking, talking and shopping. The lights are Las-Vegas-like, and you can enjoy a real pleasant evening desert stroll here.

During the early 1900’s this place was inhabited by the French due to the French Concession. The area has been beautifully restored, as you can find a unique European and French architecture as the area is filled with low-rise Shikumen “stone-gate” houses. The area currently serves as a trendy shopping area with plentry of restaurants, cafes, and sites to see. The thematic red-brick buildings will make this place hard to ever forget. This place is like the Causeway Bay of Shanghai.

Directly south of Huai Hai Zhong Lu (formerly known as Avenue Joffre)

Home to Suzhou’s famous three bridges, this is a very popular tourist destination. The city of Suzhou’s has a history of over 2,500 years and is famous for their numerous garden architecture from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties in southern China. Tongli is also known to be a “museum of ancient architecture.”

Located on the eastern shore of Taihu Lake, just 18 kilometers (11 miles) from Suzhou City, Tongli town is 63 square kilometers (24 square miles)

Lingering Garden is one of the most famous gardens in China, and the most impressive/preserved garden in Suzhou, a city with stiff competition (The others are: the Summer Palace in Beijing, the Mountain Resort of Chengde, and the Humble Administrator’s Garden in Suzhou). The site covers an area of 23,310 square meters and is an architectural as well as landscaping masterpiece. It was originally built in 1583 A.D. Admission: 40RMB

Situated outside the Cang Gate of Suzhou city
Bus Route: 11
Tourist Bus Route: 1,2

Also known as Cold Moutain Temple, this historical site was built during the Liang Dynasty (502-557 A.D.) This temple was one of the most famous temples in China, but it has been destroyed and rebuilt too many times to keep it’s original aura. The current temple is definitely worth checking out, it was built during the Qing dynasty and contains a bell tower, sutra library, main hall with circular gallery, Maple River Tower and much more. Admission: 20RMB

Hanshan Temple is located in Maple Bridge town in the west outskirts of Suzhou, only 1 kilometer west of the Lingering Garden, Bus Route: 3, 6, 9, 17, 21 31, 301
Tourist Bus Route: 3

Wumen bridge is one of the famous “Three Scenes at Panmen Gate”, along with the Pagoda of Auspicious light and Panmen Gate. Its construction dates back to the Northern Song Dynasty, and was rebuilt in the reign of Emperor Tongzhi of the Qing Dynasty. A great scenic spot, the bridge is able to span the Grand Canal in a single arch. The architecture dates back to over 1000 years old.

One of the largest and wealthiest temples in China, the Lingyin temple is also commonly known as the “Temple of the Soul’s Retreat.” Originally constructed in 326 A.D., it has been rebuilt over 15 times and currently displays restorations from the the late Qing Dynasty buildings. Sites include ancient Buddhist caves and rock carvings, the Hall of the Heavenly Kings, the Mahavira Hall, the Hall of the Five Hundred Arhats, the Main Hall and much more. Some of the halls are simply enormous, and the statues are equally impressive. 45RMB (including 25RMB for the Fei Lai Feng)

You will find Ling Yin Temple in a long, narrow valley between Fei Lai Feng and North Peak to the northwest of the West Lake at Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province. Bus Routes: 7, 807, Tourist buses No. 1, 2, 4

This temple was built to honor the great General Yue Fei of the Song Dynasty during the 12th century, a time when Hangzhou was the capital of China. The story goes that the Prime Minister at the time, Qin Hui, had General Yue Fei executed because of false accusations. Twenty years later in 1161 A.D., Prime Minister Qin had this beautiful memorial built to honor the general’s loyalty. The memorial has gone through numerous restorations so that the architecture and aura of this authentic Chinese monuments can be visited and enjoyed by everyone. 25RMB

The Mausoleum of General Yue Fei is located at the southern foot of Qixia hill, on West Lake bank. Bus Route: 7, 15, 27, 28

Hangzhou West Lake is one of those scenic spots in China that just cannot be missed. Chinese literature and poems have raved for over a thousand years about the West Lake’s beauty, natural settings and traditional Chinese architecture that blends in perfectly with the environment. Simply a must see to soak in the scenery and walk around the pagoda’s and lilly ponds, even take a cruise along the lake with your family! No Admission.

The “Six Harmonies” name originates from the “harmonies of the heaven, earth, north, south, east and west.” The pagoda was originally built in 970 A.D., but fell rubble a number of times. It was finally reconstructed to it’s original state and because a national monument in 1961. The site has a breathtaking view of the Qiantang River, and is definitely a must see for anyone whose into amazing architecture.