Second-trip favorite

Luoyang

洛阳 · Central China

Ancient capital of 13 dynasties — grottoes, kung fu and peonies, with inbound visits doubling in 2025.

April–May (peony season) and September–October

2 days

~1.5 h high-speed train from Xi'an, ~4 h from Beijing.

Don't miss in Luoyang

The experiences Western travelers rate highest here.

100,000 Buddhas lining the Yi River cliffs, including a 17-m Vairocana Buddha with a famously serene smile.

Birthplace of Zen Buddhism and kung fu — watch the monk training demonstrations in the courtyard.

More destinations at the same level of the journey.

West Lake perfection an hour from Shanghai — the landscape that defined Chinese ideas of beauty for a millennium.

The classical garden city — 2,500 years of canals, moon gates and scholar aesthetics, 30 minutes from Shanghai by rail.

Granite peaks above a sea of clouds — named to the New York Times' 52 Places to Go in 2025, now 2.5 h from Shanghai by high-speed rail.

China's ice city — a Russian-built winter wonderland whose Ice and Snow Festival took over Western social media.