Part of the range of hills that runs through Guangdong Province, White Cloud Mountain (Báiyún Shān, 白云山) is right outside town and offers a peaceful escape from Guangzhou's traffic and urban landscape. You will not, however, be the only one with this idea and, on the weekends especially, the hills are alive with the sounds of Cantonese. The hike to the highest point should take a little over an hour, but there is the requisite cable car that can do the work for you. Temples, tea houses and lookouts will make sure you never feel alone in the wild, and the views of the city are great and somewhat comforting. Guangdong guide | Guangzhou guide | Guangzhou attractions Guangzhou flights | Guangzhou hotels Guangzhou on the China Travel Blog more >>

The Qingping Market (Guǎngzhōu Qīngpíng Shìchǎng, 广州清平市场) used to be the place for exotic animal trade and the sale of various ground up herbs, antlers and mushrooms full of medicinal promise. Though part of the name means "peaceful" it was anything but peaceful and the melee of squawking and feathers drew a lot of attention during the SARS scare. The venue has been cleaned up with the vendors occupying clean, clinical-looking stalls, but there are still plenty of mind-blowing ingredients for sale and the market retains much of its mystical charm. Besides, the display of live animals is a free alternative to the lackluster Guangzhou Zoo. Guangdong guide | Guangzhou guide | Guangzhou attractions Guangzhou flights | Guangzhou hotels Guangzhou on the China Travel Blog more >>

Guangzhou's new art museum, the Guangzhou Museum of Art (Guǎngdōng Měishùguǎn, 广东美术馆), claims to be the largest modern art museum in China. It's a large and lovely space with 12 exhibition halls, a tropical atrium and large auditorium. The museum aims to collect and preserve recent works of Chinese art. If contemporary art is your thing, devote at least a half day of your Guangzhou stay to exploring the museum. Guangdong guide | Guangzhou guide | Guangzhou attractions Guangzhou flights | Guangzhou hotels Guangzhou on the China Travel Blog more >>

Guangzhou's largest public park, Yuexiu Park (Yuèxiù Gōngyuán, 越秀公园), features the usual green space but also houses a small city museum, remnants of the old city wall, a statue of the city's five founding rams, the 14th-century Zhenhai Tower (Zhènhǎi Tǎ, 镇海塔) and some manmade lakes. The entrance fee is a steal compared to most of China's city parks, so take advantage and while away a few hours in this touted "ecological and cultural wonderland." Guangdong guide | Guangzhou guide | Guangzhou attractions Guangzhou flights | Guangzhou hotels Guangzhou on the China Travel Blog more >>

The Temple of the Six Banyan Trees (Liùróng Sì, 六榕寺) is a wonderful place to get a sense of Buddhism's long history in China as well a vivid picture of what contemporary Chinese Buddhism looks like. The temple, given its present name in 1110 AD by famed Song Dynasty poet Su Dongpo (960-1279 AD), was established in 479 AD. Its primary feature is the Flower Pagoda (Huā Tǎ, 花塔), a 17-tiered structure that towers 57 meters (almost 190 feet) over the ancient site. The pagoda, which houses ancient relics from India, is decorated with a myriad of carved animals and holy figures. For an extra RMB 10 you can climb the spiral staircase, gaining some excellent views of the city along with close-ups of Buddhist icons and artwork. Several halls feature additional artwork, including a stature of the Guanyin, the bodhisattva of compassion, notable for being featured... more >>

Also known as the "Chen Clan Temple", the Chen Clan Academy (Chén Jiā Cí, 陈家祠) is a unique complex and a fascinating monument to South China's culture...and to anyone from Guangdong Province with the common surname Chen.  Built in the late 19th century with funds gathered from Chens throughout Guangdong, the Chen Clan Academy served as a gathering place, hall of ancestral worship and school.  The province's many Chens put a lot of money into their namesake academy, and today the complex's series of courtyards and marvelously decorated rooms filled with potteries, artwork and wood carvings provide visitors with a vivid sense of what life was like in the latter years of the Qing Dynasty. Guangdong guide | Guangzhou guide | Guangzhou attractions    Guangzhou flights | Guangzhou hotels Guangzhou on the China Travel Blog more >>

Situated in China's largest urban green space, Yuexiu Park, the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (Zhōngshān Jìniàntáng, 中山纪念堂) stands on the spot where the man many consider to be the father of modern China took his presidential oath in 1912. Like so many other sites associated with the man known as Zhongshan, Guangzhou's Memorial Hall is a site popular with patriotic Chinese. For the rest of us, it's a pleasant attraction, well worth visiting while exploring Yuixiu Park and a nice stop on a circuit including other park highlights such as the Five Rams Statue, Municipal Museum and Three Purities Temple. Constructed between 1929 and 1931 on the site of a former presidential palace, the Memorial's blue-tiled roof and blend of traditional and early 20th-century modern Chinese architecture are surrounded by well-tended gardens. Inside, a large auditorium hosts performan... more >>

An area featuring traditional Qing Dynasty Cantonese merchant houses, Xiguan Residences (Xīguān Dàwū, 西關大屋) provide a unique view on Guangzhou's rich past. Built of timber, stone, marble and brick and featuring ornate decorations and architectural features designed to signal wealth and success, the buildings extend through numerous rooms, halls and courtyards, each of which originally had a specific traditional function. There are around 100 Xiguan residences remaining today. Some are well preserved; others have certainly seen better days. Xiguan traditionally covers the area bounded by Wenchang Bridge, Daguan Bridge, Pantang and ChanghuayuanLiwan District (Lìwān Qū, 荔湾区). Xiguan residences are concentrated on Baohua Lu (Bǎohuá Lù, 宝华路), Duobao Lu (Duōbǎo Lù, 多宝路), Baoyuan Lu (Bǎoyuán Lù, 宝源路) and Fengyuan Lu (Féngyu&aacut... more >>

Qiangang Villiage (Cónghuà Qiángǎng Gǔcūn, 从化钱岗古村) is one of some 200 ancient villages in the region and, thanks to recent archeological efforts, is one of the best examples of Guangdong's traditional Lingnan culture, known for its music, singing, dancing, painting and festivals. The village is also famous as the source of Qiangang Brilliant White Tea (Qiángǎng Huībái Chá, 钱岗辉白茶), a kind of green tea. Founded by a Song Dynasty official, the village retains a number of authentic structures, which archeologists have been working to preserve. A visit to Qiangang presents a unique opportunity to gain both a deeper understanding of Guangzhou's cultural roots and to witness the fruits of China's efforts to preserve a prime example of its rich heritage. Guangdong guide | Guangzhou guide | Guangzhou attractions Guangzhou flights | Guangzhou ho... more >>

And now for something completely different. Or so you might find yourself thinking upon entry to this educational and amusing (though not always intentionally) theme park in Guangzhou's Tianhe District. Fruit of a Dongpu Farmers' Association fundraising effort directed at livening up the local economy, the sprawling 21.8 hectare (53.8 acre) Space Flight Spectacle (Hángtiān Qíguān, 航天奇观) includes manicured gardens, water sports areas, an amusement park, a "spectacle viewing area," a Space Flight Scientific Museum housing an original CZ-3B ("Long March"-3B) rocket, a Rocket Launch Command and Control Center, a "Space Travel" space flight simulator, Constellation Square, Friendship Camp and, inexplicably, the "Hall of Volcano and Earthquake" where you can enjoy a Univeral Studios-like calamity complete with tumbling Roman building... more >>