China is enormous, and the most common mistake first-time visitors make is trying to see too much. These itineraries are built around realistic travel times and enough time in each place to actually enjoy it.

7 Days: The Classic Introduction

Beijing (4 nights) → Xi’an (2 nights) → fly home or continue

This is the strongest short trip in China. Beijing gives you the Great Wall, the Forbidden City and imperial history; Xi’an adds the Terracotta Army and the old city wall. The high-speed train between them takes around four and a half hours.

• Days 1–4: Beijing — Great Wall, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, hutongs
• Day 5: morning train to Xi’an, afternoon on the City Wall
• Day 6: Terracotta Army, Muslim Quarter in the evening
• Day 7: morning at leisure, then onward travel

If you would rather have a slower trip, cut this to Beijing only, with a day trip to the Great Wall and a spare day for the hutongs and markets.

10 Days: Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai

Beijing (4) → Xi’an (2) → Shanghai (3)

The natural extension of the seven-day route. Shanghai ends the trip with the Bund, Pudong’s skyline and the former French Concession — and it is an easy city to fly home from.

• Days 1–4: Beijing
• Days 5–6: Xi’an (train from Beijing, around 4.5 hours)
• Day 7: train to Shanghai (around 6 hours) or short flight
• Days 8–9: Shanghai, with an optional day trip to Hangzhou or a water town
• Day 10: depart

14 Days: Adding Landscapes and Pandas

Beijing (3) → Xi’an (2) → Chengdu (3) → Guilin & Yangshuo (3) → Shanghai (2)

This route adds the two things the classic trip lacks: Sichuan’s food and pandas, and the karst scenery around Guilin.

• Days 1–3: Beijing
• Days 4–5: Xi’an
• Days 6–8: Chengdu — pandas, teahouses, hotpot; optional Leshan day trip
• Days 9–11: fly to Guilin, Li River cruise to Yangshuo, cycle the countryside
• Days 12–13: fly to Shanghai
• Day 14: depart

Regional Options

Yunnan (10–14 days)

Fly into Kunming, then travel by high-speed rail and road through Dali, Lijiang and on to Shangri-La. Add Tiger Leaping Gorge or the Yuanyang rice terraces if you have time. Best treated as its own trip rather than bolted onto a national route.

Guilin and Zhangjiajie (7–8 days)

A landscape-focused trip for travellers who have already seen the big cities: fly into Guilin, spend three days around Yangshuo, then fly or take the train to Zhangjiajie for three days in the national park.

Southern China and Hong Kong (10 days)

Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hong Kong are all within an hour of each other by high-speed rail, with Xiamen and Gulangyu a few hours further north. A good option if you want a mix of food, cities and coast, and an easy exit via Hong Kong.

How to Choose

If it is your first trip and you have a week or less, do Beijing and Xi’an. If you have ten days, add Shanghai. If you have two weeks, pick either the panda-and-karst extension through Chengdu and Guilin, or commit fully to one region such as Yunnan. Both approaches work; trying to do all of it in two weeks does not.