First trip to China: which cities, and 7-, 10- and 14-day routes

Pick two or three cities and link them by high-speed train: 7 days fits Beijing and Shanghai, 10 days adds Xi'an, and 14 days adds Chengdu. Chongqing (about an hour from Chengdu) and Hangzhou (45 minutes from Shanghai Hongqiao) are easy add-ons ⁽¹³⁾.

Which cities should I visit?

Beijing is the palace and the Wall, Shanghai the skyline and museums, Xi'an the Terracotta Army, Chengdu pandas and Sichuan food, Chongqing hills and hotpot, and Hangzhou West Lake and tea hills. Booking pressure differs: 9 of our 20 Beijing sights need it, 7 of 50 in Shanghai, 4 of 10 in Xi'an and 4 of 12 in Chengdu. In Chongqing none does. In Hangzhou 2 of 10 do: Lingyin Temple for everyone, and the Zhejiang Provincial Museum for passport holders only ^{(1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 26 · 36 · Lingyin Temple · Zhejiang Museum)}.

Our editorial ratings (stars out of 5, relative to the cities on this site; Plan ahead: more = book earlier):

Dimension	Beijing	Shanghai	Xi’an	Chengdu	Chongqing	Hangzhou
History & heritage	5 of 5	3 of 5	5 of 5	3.5 of 5	3 of 5	4 of 5
Food	4 of 5	4 of 5	3 of 5	5 of 5	4 of 5	3.5 of 5
Modern cityscape	3 of 5	5 of 5	2 of 5	3.5 of 5	4.5 of 5	3 of 5
Nature & scenery	3 of 5	1 of 5	2 of 5	4 of 5	3.5 of 5	5 of 5
Shopping	4 of 5	5 of 5	2 of 5	3 of 5	4 of 5	3 of 5
Plan ahead	5 of 5	2 of 5	4 of 5	3 of 5	1 of 5	2 of 5

Beijing · Shanghai · Xi’an · Chengdu · Chongqing · Hangzhou

The stars are our editorial judgement relative to the other cities here, not official rankings ⁽⁸⁾. For a head-to-head, read Beijing or Shanghai.

How do the trains fit together?

The cities sit on a line, Shanghai, Beijing, Xi'an, Chengdu and Chongqing, with fast legs of 4 h 18 min to 4 h 24 min, 4 h 10 min, 3 h 05 min and about 1 h 05 min ⁽¹³⁾. So the routes below run one way and fly out of the last city; run any of them backwards if you land at the other end.

By high-speed train (fastest direct train on the date checked; times change with the timetable):

Shanghai to Beijing: Shanghai Hongqiao to Beijing South, from 4 h 24 min (G12), China Railway 12306
Beijing to Xi’an: Beijing West to Xi'an North, from 4 h 10 min (G351), China Railway 12306
Xi’an to Chengdu: Xi'an North to Chengdu East, from 3 h 05 min (G321), China Railway 12306
Chengdu to Chongqing: Chengdu East to Shapingba (Chongqing), from 1 h 02 min (G8609), China Railway 12306
In Beijing: arrive Beijing South, leave from Beijing West.

Skipping a city costs time: Shanghai to Chengdu takes 10 h 31 min, a whole day ⁽¹³⁾. Tickets go on sale 15 days ahead, counting the travel day ⁽¹⁰⁾. Stations, sale times and passports are on Getting around. In Chongqing, choose your station: Shapingba is on Metro Line 1, which also serves Ciqikou, Jiefangbei and Hongyadong, and searching 12306 for "Chongqing" also lists Chongqing East and Jiangjin ^{(30 · 13 · Ciqikou · Jiefangbei · Hongyadong)}.

Photo: A white Fuxing high-speed train with a red stripe standing at a station platform while passengers wait beside its open door. A Fuxing high-speed train at the platform of Zhengzhou East station (October 2017); the same train family runs between our cities. Credit: Windmemories · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons.

What does a 7-day first trip look like?

Beijing and Shanghai: land in Beijing, fly home from Shanghai.

Day	Where	Plan	Check
1	Beijing	Arrive; Qianmen Street at dusk ^{(Qianmen Street)}	Light day
2	Beijing	Tiananmen Square, Palace Museum, Jingshan ^{(Tiananmen Sq. · Forbidden City · Jingshan Park)}	Palace Museum closed Monday, tickets 20:00 seven days ahead; Tiananmen needs its own reservation, 1 to 7 days ahead. If day 2 is a Monday, do the Great Wall first
3	Beijing	Mutianyu Great Wall, a full day; visitors say arrive before about 09:30 ^(Mutianyu)	Real-name ticket, up to 30 days ahead
4	Beijing, then train	Lama Temple, Nanluoguxiang, Bell and Drum Towers; G25 leaves Beijing South 17:00, reaches Hongqiao 21:18 ^{(Lama Temple · Nanluoguxiang · Bell & Drum Towers · 13)}	Lama Temple and the towers are booked in WeChat accounts
5	Shanghai	Yuyuan Garden at 09:00, the Bazaar, a walk to the Bund, Nanjing Road at dusk ^{(Yuyuan Garden · Yuyuan Bazaar · The Bund · Nanjing Road)}	Yuyuan Garden closed Monday; on a Monday do day 6 first
6	Shanghai	Shanghai Museum East or the People's Square building; Top of Shanghai about 45 minutes before sunset ^{(Museum East · Shanghai Museum · Top of Shanghai)}	Museum East closed Tuesday; the People's Square building closed Monday, timed ticket
7	Shanghai	Wukang Road, Xintiandi or Tianzifang, Jing'an Temple; airport ^{(Wukang Road · Xintiandi · Tianzifang · Jing'an Temple)}	From Pudong airport, Line 2 takes about 1 hour and the Maglev 8 minutes to Longyang Road ⁽¹⁾

Photo: Meridian Gate at the south entrance of the Palace Museum. (Forbidden City) Credit: Morio · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons.

What does a 10-day first trip look like?

Shanghai 3 days, Beijing 3.5, Xi'an 2.5: land in Shanghai, fly home from Xi'an.

Day	Where	Plan	Check
1	Shanghai	Arrive; Nanjing Road at dusk, the Bund ^{(Nanjing Road · The Bund)}
2	Shanghai	Yuyuan Garden at 09:00, then Xintiandi and Tianzifang ^{(Yuyuan Garden · Xintiandi · Tianzifang)}	If day 2 is a Monday, swap days 2 and 3 (not with the Hangzhou option)
3	Shanghai	A museum, then Lujiazui and Top of Shanghai before sunset ^{(Museum East · Top of Shanghai)}	Museum East closed Tuesday
4	Train, then Beijing	G12 leaves Hongqiao 10:00, reaches Beijing South 14:24; Qianmen Street ^{(Qianmen Street · 13)}
5	Beijing	Tiananmen Square, Palace Museum, Jingshan ^{(Tiananmen Sq. · Forbidden City · Jingshan Park)}	Closed Monday; tickets 20:00 seven days ahead
6	Beijing	Mutianyu Great Wall ^(Mutianyu)	Up to 30 days ahead
7	Beijing	Lama Temple, Nanluoguxiang, Bell and Drum Towers, Shichahai; or the Summer Palace ^{(Lama Temple · Shichahai · Summer Palace)}	Prince Kung's Mansion: closed Mondays, tickets 10 days ahead at 20:00 ^{(Prince Kung's)}
8	Train, then Xi'an	G351 leaves Beijing West 07:55, reaches Xi'an North 12:05; City Wall, Muslim Quarter ^{(City Wall · Muslim Quarter · 13)}	Foreigners exchange an online wall ticket for a paper voucher at a window ^{(City Wall)}
9	Xi'an	Terracotta Army; Huaqing Palace if you have energy; Ever-bright City after dark ^{(Terracotta Army · Huaqing Palace · Everbright City)}	Timed online ticket. The site's editorial allowance is about 105 minutes from the Bell Tower; seat61 says 40 to 45 minutes by bus from the main station; the figures start from different points ⁽¹⁶⁾
10	Xi'an	Shaanxi History Museum in a booked morning slot, Giant Wild Goose Pagoda; fly out ^{(Shaanxi History · Wild Goose Pagoda)}	Open Mondays until 14 November 2026; slots release 17:00, five days ahead ^{(Shaanxi History)}

Photo: Ranks of terracotta warriors standing in the earth trenches of Pit 1, with horses at lower right and the viewing walkway at the top. Ranks of terracotta warriors in Pit 1 of the Terracotta Army, seen from the viewing walkway (May 2017). Credit: shankar s. from Dubai, united arab emirates · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons.

Hangzhou option: spend day 3 in Hangzhou instead of on Shanghai's museum and Lujiazui, stay the night, and on day 4 take the train to Beijing from Hangzhou West. Days 1, 2 and 5 to 10 stay as above. Yuyuan Garden is closed on Mondays, so if day 2 falls on a Monday, spend it on Museum East and Lujiazui instead ^{(Yuyuan Garden · Museum East)}. The first train from Hongqiao leaves about 05:50 and the last from Hangzhou East about 22:50, so Hangzhou also works as a day trip from Shanghai ⁽¹³⁾.

Photo: Bai Causeway meeting Broken Bridge on West Lake’s north-east shore, with Baochu Pagoda on the hill at left. (West Lake) Credit: Shujianyang · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons.

Day	Where	Plan	Check
3	Train, then Hangzhou	G205 leaves Hongqiao 07:00, reaches Hangzhou East 07:45; Lingyin Temple, Longjing Tea Village, West Lake and Hefang Street at dusk ^{(Lingyin Temple · Longjing Village · West Lake · Hefang Street · 13)}	Lingyin slots open 7 days ahead at 08:00; book before you leave home, no same-day booking ^{(Lingyin Temple)}
4	Train, then Beijing	G744 leaves Hangzhou West 09:42, reaches Beijing South 14:20; Qianmen Street ^{(Qianmen Street · 13)}	Hangzhou West is a separate station from Hangzhou East, so check your ticket. It is not on 12306's start-time table, so check its sale time in the app 15 days ahead

Chongqing option: Beijing, Xi'an, Chengdu and Chongqing, no Shanghai, in three train days. Beijing days 1 to 3 (arrive, centre, Mutianyu), G351 to Xi'an on day 4, Terracotta Army on day 5, the Shaanxi History Museum and Goose Pagoda on day 6 with an afternoon train such as G969 (15:13 to 18:55) to Chengdu, Panda Base on day 7, Wuhou Shrine and Jinli on day 8 with G2449 (14:42 to 15:57) to Chongqing West, Chongqing's west side on day 9, and the cableway on day 10 before the airport (it closes about one weekday a month for maintenance) ^{(Terracotta Army · Shaanxi History · Wild Goose Pagoda · Panda Base · Wuhou Shrine · Jinli · Yangtze Cableway · 13)}. Chengdu gets about two days and has no day trip.

Photo: Hongyadong glowing across the Jialing River, with the red-lit Qiansimen Bridge at left. (Hongyadong) Credit: Renek78 · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons.

What does a 14-day first trip look like?

Shanghai 3, Beijing 3.5, Xi'an 2.5 and Chengdu 3.5 days: the 10-day route plus Chengdu, flying out of Chengdu.

Day	Where	Plan	Check
1 to 3	Shanghai	As days 1 to 3 of the 10-day route
4 to 7	Beijing	G12 at 10:00 from Hongqiao; Palace Museum, Mutianyu, then lakes and hutongs or the Summer Palace ^{(13 · Forbidden City · Mutianyu · Summer Palace)}	Palace Museum closed Monday
8 to 10	Xi'an	G351 at 07:55; Terracotta Army and Huaqing Palace; Shaanxi History Museum, or Beilin Museum and the Great Mosque ^{(13 · Terracotta Army · Shaanxi History · Beilin Museum · Great Mosque)}	Beilin: timed ticket up to 5 days ahead
11	Train, then Chengdu	G321 leaves Xi'an North 11:25, reaches Chengdu East 14:30; People's Park, Kuanzhai Alley ^{(13 · People’s Park · Kuanzhai Alley)}
12	Chengdu	Panda Base at opening ^{(Panda Base)}	Real-name slot up to 14 days ahead; Panda Villa No. 6 (Hua Hua) closed Mondays
13	Chengdu	Day trip to Leshan Giant Buddha or Dujiangyan ^{(Leshan Buddha · Dujiangyan)}	Leshan day tickets sell out on public holidays
14	Chengdu	Wuhou Shrine, Jinli; Du Fu Thatched Cottage only if your flight is in the evening ^{(Wuhou Shrine · Jinli · Du Fu Cottage)}	Wuhou: real-name ticket up to 14 days ahead

On the main 14-day route, Disneyland or Zhujiajiao can replace a Shanghai museum day; Sanxingdui needs its own day, and Jinsha is closed until 30 April 2027 ^{(Disneyland · Zhujiajiao · Sanxingdui · Jinsha Museum)}.

Photo: A giant panda lying on its back asleep on a wooden log platform in front of a rock wall at Chengdu Panda Base. A giant panda sleeping on its back on a log platform, one paw raised. (Panda Base) Credit: MspreilsCN · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons.

Chongqing option: cut Shanghai to two days and drop the Chengdu day trip to give Chongqing two days. Every later day moves one day earlier, so the Panda Base falls on day 11. Day 12 becomes Wuhou Shrine plus G2449 to Chongqing West, day 13 the west side (Ciqikou, Liziba, Eling No. 2 Factory), and day 14 the cableway (it closes about one weekday a month for maintenance), Shancheng Alley and Chaotianmen before you fly ^{(Ciqikou · Liziba · Eling Erchang · Yangtze Cableway · Shancheng Alley · Chaotianmen · 13)}.

When do I have to book?

Count back from each visit date; the longest lead times come first. For a 14-day trip every train leg is on sale before you leave home: day 11's tickets open 14 days ahead, 4 days before day 1 ⁽¹⁰⁾.

When tickets open, counted back from your visit (China time):

30 days before: Mutianyu
14 days before: Panda Base, Wuhou Shrine
10 days before: Prince Kung's (20:00)
7 days before: Tiananmen Sq., Forbidden City (20:00), National Museum (17:00), Lingyin Temple (08:00)
5 days before: Shaanxi History (17:00), Sanxingdui (20:00), Beilin Museum
3 days before: Bell & Drum Towers
Own rules: Disneyland (Buy dated tickets ahead on official channels)

Book on official channels; the Palace Museum says it has not authorised third-party agents ^{(Forbidden City · 5)}. The Book ahead page has the rest.

Which days are sights closed?

Monday is the best day for the Great Wall, open parks and lanes, and the worst for museums; several park halls, including the Temple of Heaven's, also close on Mondays ^{(Temple of Heaven · Summer Palace)}. The Palace Museum's Monday closure does not apply to statutory holidays ^{(Forbidden City)}.

Weekly closing days:

Monday: Forbidden City, National Museum, Yuyuan Garden, Three Gorges Museum, Zhejiang Museum
Tuesday: Museum East, Tea Museum
Wednesday: Urban Planning

When should I go?

Mid-April to May and mid-October to November are best; avoid 1 to 7 October, around 1 to 5 May and Chinese New Year, when sights sell out and hotels cost more ⁽⁷⁾. Chongqing is hot and humid in July and August, with highs averaging about 34 °C ⁽²⁶⁾.

*Flights are not covered. Day plans are an editorial arrangement of our place data, not a tested itinerary; train times are from 12306 queries for 17 and 20 October 2026 ⁽¹³⁾.*

Sources

Numbers in brackets point to these sources; place names point to our place pages, which carry their own sources and check dates. Published 2026-10-09. Checked 2026-10-09.

1. China Footnotes, Shanghai city page · read 2026-10-09 · site
2. China Footnotes, Beijing city page · read 2026-10-09 · site
3. China Footnotes, Xi'an city page · read 2026-10-09 · site
4. China Footnotes, Chengdu city page · read 2026-10-09 · site
5. China Footnotes, Book ahead · checked 2026-10-08 · site
7. China Footnotes, When to go · checked 2026-10-08 · site
8. China Footnotes, cities data (ratings, reasons, areas, arrivals, next stops; six cities) · version 3f413bec8e5a, read 2026-10-09 · site
10. 12306 pre-sale period page · page date 2026-10-09 · official
13. 12306 ticket query (leftTicket), including Hongqiao and Hangzhou stations · queried 2026-10-09 for 2026-10-17 and 2026-10-20 · official
16. seat61, Train travel in China · read 2026-10-09, no update date found · guide
26. China Footnotes, Chongqing city page (places, weather) · data version fce5d8336c01, generated 2026-10-08, read 2026-10-09 · site
30. Chinese-language page: Chongqing Municipal People's Government, "3分钟内站内换乘！地铁沙坪坝站换乘大厅及换乘通道9月30日投用" (Shapingba: Lines 1, 9, Loop and the Chengdu to Chongqing intercity railway) · 2022-09-29 · government
36. China Footnotes, Hangzhou city page (places, weather) · data version 3f413bec8e5a, read 2026-10-09 · site

Cover picture: A high-speed train follows a ribbon through folded-paper scenes of Shanghai, Beijing and Xi'an.