In my opinion, the best country that offer the most number of vacations spots, after the USA, is China. The best place to go, without a doubt is none other than Beijing. If there is a second city to visit, then it has to be Shanghai or Xi'an. This page is on Xi'an.
Previously known as Chang'an, Xi'an or 西安 (literally translated Western Peace) is the former capital of China during the early dynasties, from the Western Zhou 1046BC (not a typo, it really is BC) to the Tang dynasty 907AD. Because of that, the history and sights is probably crazier than Beijing's.
Here is a sample itinerary for Xi'an, a city with a population of about 12+million.
Feel free to change the itinerary depending on your energy levels - some days are seriously packed to the brim, so doing a few in a row may be tiring. Also, if you have younger children or elderly, you may just do 1 activity per day.
Day 1: flight into Xi'an
The flight from Singapore (where I am based) is about 6 hours away so I can leave for the airport right after work. For other cities, you may need to take a full day's travel, especially if you need to transit via Beijing or Shanghai.
Day 2: Terracotta Warriors + Huaqing Palace + Song of Everlasting Sorrow
The major highlight of Xi'an is the Mausoleum of the Yellow Emperor, better known as the home of the Terracotta Warriors, so we shall put that in the itinerary for the second day. However, rather than heading there first thing in the morning like most tourists, I will suggest that you do this in the afternoon instead to avoid the morning crowd.
Visit the Xi'an city wall in the morning (the entire wall is about 14km) or better yet, rent a bicycle and ride. Then have lunch before heading to the Terracotta Warriors site (about 50mins via taxi) where you can look around for 2-3 hours.
Then visit Huaqing (hotspring) Palace (1-2 hours) and then end the day with the absolute best show in Xi'an called the Song of Everlasting Sorrow, a love story between the Emperor and Concubine Yang (Yang Yuhuan or Yang Gui Fei) based on a poem by Bai Juyi.
Day 3: Museums
If you are into history, then visiting the museums in Xi'an should be included in your itinerary. The best one (and the biggest) is the Shaanxi History Museum. Forget about the free tickets on Wechat - these are near impossible to get (more difficult than Taylor Swift or Oasis Reunion tickets). This is because you are competing with the thousands of local tourist who wants to visit the same museum. Instead, go to Trip.com, assuming you hold a non-Chinese passport and buy tickets there.
There are 3 others that will give the SHM a close fight - the Xi'an Museum, the Xi'an Beilin Museum and the Shaanxi Archaeology Museum. All 4 has its own unique ( and very good) exhibits on display so it's actually quite difficult to just choose one. Yes, free tickets via Wechat are available. According to my daughter who visited the Shaanxi Archaeology Museum, the museum is almost empty.
Assuming you choose SHM, it is only a short cab ride away to the Tang Palace. Do make your way there and if you wish, get tickets to the amazing show "Chasing Dreams of Tang Dynasty", an outdoor show in which you are seated in a boat watching a large scale musical fountain show. After the show, you can make your way to the Great Tang All-Day Mall...in a city that never sleeps!
Day 4: Luoyang
There are 2 major reasons why one would visit Luoyang: the Longmen grottoes and the famous Shaolin Temple. To go there, all one needs to is hop on the high-speed train for the Xi'an Bei (Xi'an North) station to Luoyang, or specifically to the Luoyang Longmen station. Journey is 1hr 15mins. Then it is just a short taxi ride for 30mins to the Longmen grottoes.
Why visit this place? The grottoes is said to be one of the finest examples of Buddhist art that was built during the time of the Northern Wei and Tang dynasty, about 300-600 AD, when Luoyang was the capital of China. Expect to spend about 2-3 hours.
If there is time, one can make their way to the famous Shaolin temple about 1.5 hours away. You may wish to make this 2D1N trip with a travel agency so that you can spend some time in Luoyang, visiting the museum or just walking around the city.
Day 5: Xi'an sightseeing
Well, it's the 5th day and we have yet to explore the city, so today is the day. Take some time to explore the following site in Xi'an, if you missed this:
- Bell and Drum Tower
- Ancient City Wall (hire a bike to do this)
- Muslim Quarter - good street food
- Big Wild Goose Pagoda
Day 6: Mount Hua
If you have seen clips on Instagram or TikTok about this mountain where people walk on planks, well, this is the place. Mt Hua is a full-day trip which you will take the high speed train early in the morning to the Huashan station, take the cable car up, climb the 4 peaks, take another cable car down and then back the high speed train back to Xi'an by around 9pm.
In case you wondering, the plank walk between the Central and South Peak is VERY popular. Many people will skip the plank walk because the wait to do this could be as long as 3-4 hours. If you really want to do the walk, you will probably not have time to do the other peaks. Even if you do not do the plank walk, prepare to spend close to 4-5 hours just climbing up steps to reach all the peaks at Huashan.
Day 7: Flight home
After a crazy few days in Xi'an, time to head home for a good rest.
Highly Recommended:
2D1N trip: Yucha Canyon and Wave Valley
If you have a few extra days, I would highly recommend going to the Yucha Grand Canyon and Wave Valley. This is China's version of the Antelope Canyon in the USA state of Arizona. Just like the famous canyon, this will require a guide. You will make your way to Yan'an (2.5 hours via high-speed train) and the guide will pick you up and drive to the canyon where you will spend the day marveling the extraordinary canyons. The next day, will be to visit the Wave Valley. Sorry...words just cannot describe this place. You just have to be here to see it!
A few travel agencies will combine this tour with a visit to the Hukou waterfall, said to the 2nd largest waterfall in China. Due to lack of time, we did not do the waterfall because it requires perhaps a few more hours drive time. But do take this into consideration if time permits.
Oh yes, Yan'an is none other than the HQ of the China Communist Party during the time of Chairman Mao and is the final destination of the Long March. Not a bad idea to spend 1 day in Yan'an to look at the exhibits related to the CCP, if you are a history buff.
Where to stay in Xi'an
The best location will be central Xi'an, near the Bell or Drum Tower. This way, you will be able to take a cab ride to most places. Of course, it is still possible to stay elsewhere and take the subway (do choose a hotel near a subway station) but it still takes time. Taking a cab is faster and the price is not bad, i.e. a 20-min ride will cost probably around 25 RMB, equivalent to US$3.50.
As per my standard best practice, here is usual procedure to plan your self-organized trip:
- Duration - 1 week is typical so choose your dates wisely. Weather wise, the absolute best time to visit China is between Mar-May (Spring) and Sep-Oct (Fall) but please avoid the golden weeks of 1st week of May and 1st week of Oct - this is the period where you see more people than anything else. My recommendation is to time your travels 1-2 weeks before or after the May/Oct golden weeks. That way, the crowd is thinner and you get the best weather.
- Passport and Visa: do check before going if visa is required. Recently, China has opened up such that citizens from many countries can visit visa-free for 30 days or less. Do check before you fly.
- Flight: Most tourists enter via Beijing or Shanghai from major cities. If you are coming into Beijing, this should be pretty straightforward. Other major cities that that plenty of international flights include Xi'an, Chongqing and Chengdu. The best and cheapest way is to fly into a major city closest to your final destination...stay a night and then take a high-speed train in the morning.
- Insurance: travel insurance is a MUST. If you are not getting one during the time you book your flight, please ensure that you have bought one before the trip...it's not that expensive for 1 week and it is money well-spent if things go wrong.
- Internet: China restricts certain apps such as Google, Whatsapp, Facebook, etc. To continue using your normal app, you can get a China VPN router or if you are using an eSim, download a VPN (Express VPN is a good one) before reaching the country. Or you use Wechat like everyone else in China. Wechat is required for booking free tickets to the museums or to contact the hotel.
- Transportation: most cities are reachable via the high-speed rail network. It is as simple as going to Trip.com (or downloading the Trip.com app) and buying the tickets - available 2 weeks in advance. Oh yes, if you wish for changes, this can be done at the station - no questions asked - for an earlier train, delay or even cancel (yes, I have tried this). Just show them the ticket and ask for a refund/exchange. Within cities, most major cities have a subway system so it's easy to hop from one site to the other. Another convenient way is to download DiDi, an app similar to Uber or Grab. Just connect this to your credit card and it is ready for use pretty much anywhere in China. The easiest is just stretch y0our arm and hail a cab from the stree,
- Hotel: my go-to site is Booking.com but you can pretty much use any hotel booking platform. China hotels are numerous and you can easily find one that suit your budget from $30-50 per night (yes, really) to international hotel chains such as Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Hilton, Hyatt or resorts such as Banyan Tree. Have not seen too many Airbnb in China...have not tried this yet.
- Payment: cash and credit card is acceptable but if you are here, you will find that most folks will pay either via Wechat or Alipay on the phone. You can either download the app and connect it to your bank app. One thing: for some reasons only works when you are physically in China. I tried setting the app plus link my card (and add my passport number) and it did not work. But once I was in the country, it worked...no ideas why.
Happy Travels!!