China Travel

Lao Shan is an important Taoist mountain and is famous as the only sacred mountain in China to reach the sea. While not very high compared to other Chinese mountains, its 1100 meters are rather imposing as they seemingly emerge straight from the sea. Only 40 km from Qingdao, Lao Shan is an accessible and wonderful place to explore. Its scenery is as famous as its mythology, characterized by clear streams (the makings of Tsingtao beer!), waterfalls, rock formations, giant flowering shrubs and hidden temple ruins. Lao Shan was once a busy Taoist mountain, home to thousands of nuns and monks. The religious activity was stiffled by the Cultural Revolution and now the Great Purity Palace (Taiqing Gong) remains the only architectural relic worth visiting on the mountain. Like most of China's important mountains, a cable car is there to help you get to the summit quickly. ... more »

Qingdao's name translates as "Green Island," and though it's technically a peninsula, it does boast some of the lovliest spots of urban green in all of China. Zhongshan Park is a case in point: a huge expanse of green space that runs well over a kilometer down toward the shores of Huiquan Bay from the top of a steep hilltop with a sweeping view of the city and sea beyond. In between, you'll find trees and lawns, flowerbeds and pleasant paths, as well as the city zoo and Zhanshan Si (Zhanshan Temple), the largest Buddhist temple in town, known for its carved sandalwood Buddhas. In spring and early summer, the park is full of trees, with the April-May Qingdao Cherry Blossom Festival being a seasonal high point. The northeast part of the park is also known as Taipingshan Park. The namesake "mountain" (really just an impressive hill) can be ascended ... more »

Qingdao has seven public beaches and No. 1 is the biggest. As one of the largest public beaches in China, it attracts huge crowds along its hundreds of meters of shoreline during the summer months, who come to sunbathe and swim under the watchful eye of some of the country's only lifeguards. Ammenities abound nearby: restaurants, hotels, showers, changing rooms, water sports rentals and the like. Beaches 2 - 7 are usually less populated but are smaller with less amenities and some are too rocky for the sun-worshipping crowd.   more »

Qingdao's famous brewery was founded in 1903 by the Germans who were occupying the city at the time and thought they would be there for awhile (they had a 99 year lease). The brewery museum is on the site of the original brewery, but the beer is presently brewed at a new, more industrial location. The historical exhibits read more like sales pitches, but most people come for the free beer samples anyway, of which there is no limit.   more »

This small temple (also known as Tianhou Palace) is dedicated to Tianhou, the Taoist goddess of the sea and important protector of seaside places like Qingdao. Built in the 15th century, it is one of very few remaining structures from pre-German Qingdao. Today it houses a lovely statue of the goddess and a few others as well as the Qingdao Cultural Museum's miniscule collection.    more »

  There are few places in the world where you’ll find marine shows as tacky as this place, and that fact alone is almost worth making the effort to see it.  The oldest marine park in Qingdao, the aquarium’s got a history that goes back about 70 years.  In recent times, the aquarium has seen major investments and construction and is now host to an impressive array of displays.  Among the four underground levels you’ll find an inter-tidal zone display, a seabed tunnel, a cabin passage, a marine theater, the purported largest cylindrical aquarium in the world, a rare marine species zone, a rainforest area and a surprisingly large marine education area which features an open lab, a touch pool, interactive video displays and a studio. If you were hoping to catch some of the marine shows, don’t worry, there’s a lot to choose from: &ld... more »

    Catch an arctic breeze in Polar Ocean World, where penguins cavort in the water and white furred bears laze about on the ice. After you’ve seen your share of sea-otter shenanigans, take a stroll about the multitude of aquariums where the manifold shapes and colors of over 10, 000 aquatic species await. Make sure to make some inquiries regarding the Beluga whale show, these gentle creatures put on quite the performance.  If you’re day isn’t complete without souvenirs, don’t worry, the gift shop’s got you covered, the variety in here almost equals what you’d find in the aquariums!   more »

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