Can a photo make you want to visit a place? Oh yes! And I bet I’m not the only one who sees a photo and says “Next vacation will be there”.

So why not look for airfare to China and start planning your escape. Who knows? Maybe your photo will be featured and will be reason others plan to visit a certain place.

China is filled with incredible places to visit (and photograph). From the Great Wall of China to the Terracotta army and the beautiful rural scenery, all these will delight your senses.

You can start by looking for cheap hotels in Shanghai . Take the sightseeing bus and capture the magic of the city. Visit the interesting temples and make sure to try the local cuisine.

Just an hour outside the city, there’s Jiading, a historic town with a lot of things to do and plenty of sights to visit. Then there’s Xitang, the location where some scenes from Mission Impossible 3 were filmed. Wuzhen is an interesting place to visit, a water town where you can see the traditional Chinese way of life. Suzhou, also known as the “Venice of the East” – thanks to its canals and bridges – is excellent for those who want the metropolitan way of life in a small town.

And remember: bring your camera!

Chongsheng Three Pagodas
While the Three Pagodas don’t offer as much as some of the other temples on this list, they still shouldn’t be missed. The entrance fee to see the pagodas is extremely cheap, but to get the most out of your visit you should look into taking a guided tour of the area for an additional cost. This is a great spot to come and relax for a while. You will see many tourists enjoying a pinic in the nearby park.

Lingyin Temple
In short, the temples name translates into English as Temple Of The Soul’s Retreat, or Temple of Inspired Seclusion. The founder of the temple, Ling Yin though the area was so beautiful that it must be a place where immortals lived. If that’s not an endorsement to visit the site, I don’t know what is. As one of the largest temples in China there is no shortage of great historical and religious displays for you to see.

Temple of Heaven
The Temple of Heaven is easily one of the most recognizable sites in Beijing. in fact, Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests is one of the most photographed buildings in the world. Needles to say that if you are a photographer, you will definitely enjoy visiting this attraction. This temple is so massive and offers so much to see and do that you should plan to spend the better part of the day here. If you are a photographer going to load up on shots, you’ll want to plan to be here all day.

Wong Tai Sin Temple
Located in Hong Kong, the Wong Tai Sin Temple is dedicated to the Taoist deity, Wong Tai Sin. It is free to visit this popular tourist attraction, but leaving a donation is recommended. Aside from the main altar, there is also several other areas of interest to visit. These areas include the archive hall, the three saints hall, and the earth wall.

>> Sichuan Province travel guide

On the third floor, walk around the city at ground level, or climb up to an encircling walkway for a birds-eye view of urban Shanghai as it will look in 2020. Controlled lighting shows you the city from morning through night time. The vision of future Shanghai is a sea of high-rise apartment buildings, punctuated by small urban parks and public areas. Clear plastic models indicate structures not yet built in the plan. In addition to the large model, the third-floor offers a virtual tour of Shanghai thanks to 360-degree video technology.

The museum also houses a photography exhibit of Shanghai past and present, an architectural bookstore, space for changing exhibits, interactive exhibits for younger visitors, a cafe, and an art gallery.

Hours of Operation
9 a.m. -5 p.m. daily
(Ticket sales end at 4 p.m.)

Admission
¥30 ($4.40)

How to get there
The Urban Planning Museum at 100, Renmin Avenue, is located in Shanghai’s People’s Square, within walking distance of the Shanghai Museum, the city’s Grand Theater, and the municipal government building. Take the Shanghai Metro (Line 1 or 2) to People’s Square Station.

What to Expect

There’s a reason Dali Gucheng is known as the backpacker’s paradise. The weather is generally temperate with an abundance of sunlight year round. Dali Gucheng is affected by the monsoon season, which lasts from June to October. It is wise to bring warm clothing along, as the city is sometimes cooled by monsoon winds.

Hours of Operation

As a residential district of Yunnan, the Ancient City is open at all times, but buses stop running in late evening.

Admission Cost

Tourists enjoy the affordable prices and lovely quality of hotels, cuisine, and souvenirs along the famous “Foreigner’s Street,” which features Western items. Be prepared to pay for attractions like the Three Pagodas, which is a fee of 120 yuan (approx. $18).

How to Get There

Dali Gucheng is about 12km away from Dali City, where tourists are likely to arrive. Buses, trains (8 hrs), and air flights (4 hrs) run between nearby Kunming and Dali City, but schedules for both train and air travel are affected by monsoon season. Regional buses typically operate between 6:30 AM and 9:30 PM from the two major bus terminals. Transportation into Dali Gucheng can be arranged with a tour service, often offered by hotels in Dali City, or by local bus. As rates and discounts vary between public and charter buses, it is best to check both options upon arrival.

The Giant Panda Museum attracts many international visitors as an educational research attraction. Chengdu Research Base is a great place to visit for learning more about and just enjoying the rare Giant Pandas.

How to Get There

By Bus:
From Chengdu Xinnanmen Bus Station, take the special 902 bus line which goes directly to the research base. From Chengdu Qinglongchang Bus Station, take either bus route 107 or 532 to reach the base.

By Taxi or Driving:
No.26, Panda Road, Northern Suburb, Chengdu Sichuan, P.R China 610081

What to Expect
With 106 acres of beautiful habitat, there are many things to see and do. A walking tour of the research base may take approximately 3 hours. However, for ￥10.00 for adults and children over 1.2m (4ft), visitors may take a bus tour which lasts approximately an hour and a half. Tour guides are available for a fee.

Hours of Operation
Chengdu Research Base is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. everyday throughout the course of the year.

The menu is peppered with names that are a nod to the eclectic style of cooking. Some of the restaurants more popular orders include:

• Lavender Tea
• Sour Fish Soup
• Spicy Mashed Potatoes with Peanuts
• Fragrant Peppermint Salad

These descriptive titles allow the customers to almost taste their meal before they see it. One highly rated entrée called Beef on Fire consists of cuts of beef over chives presented on a metal grid over fiery coals. The menu also features many traditional Sichuan dishes with a touch of Guizhou style which incorporates a lot of red chilies.

The restaurant has become such a success, the Guizhou owners were able to open up four other locations in a short amount of time. Some patrons claim to have had the best meal they have ever experienced in this stylish eatery. The popularity of the place makes reservations a must. The style of dress is casual but many of the hip clientele dress to impress since meeting and mingling is always a possibility during lunch or dinner. Cigar smoking is allowed and there is a private room available for more special occasions.

The next time you are in the mood for something different, something spicy, sweet, and scrumptious, or all of the above, Three Guizhou Men is the perfect choice.

Din Tai Fung
This is the place to go for dumplings and is in fact Asia’s most famous restaurant for dumplings with locations worldwide. The New York Times once dubbed it as one the top 10 restaurants in the world. Famous the for their wide variety of fillings with such names as the Hairy Crab, or pork filled delights or veggies specialities, each filling is combined with a warm soup that make for a culinary delight with each mouth full. £9. $18

Three Guizhou Men
The story behind Three Guizhou Men and their restaurant is a wonder in its self. They had originally come to the area to sell their paintings and when this did not work out they needed a ‘plan B’. The restaurant began as the venture of the three starving artists as way to pay for their art supplies. Guizhou is the province from which they were from and they took that as their name.

The trio never did flourish much in the artistic field but their culinary delights have spread and they now have five restaurants. A favorite with foreign travelers and locals alike. This is perhaps the hippest place in the city. Decadent and expensive, this is where the “beautiful people” like to go. They are known far and wide for their spicy lamb and Beef on Fire. £14. $28

Jiumen Xiaochi
This is a stop that can not be missed when on the quest for traditional Chinese cuisine. There is more to Beijing than just the duck for which they are famous. This is actually a complex of stalls where you buy a card and wander about sampling snacks for all the various stalls.

This is a very authentic and traditional fare, with selections of lamb’s head and sheep entrails. Very popular among Chinese and other tourist are like and is guaranteed to be crowded at most any time. Prices are moderate to high and vary by establishment

Over their history Tibetan culture has been influenced by the Mongols, Arabs, Indians, and the Chinese. Its location and mountainous regions have been passageway, frontier, and barrier to all these cultures at one time or another. The peculiarly Tibetan brand of Buddhism is supplemented by a large and robust Islamic population. The myths and religious legends of all these various religions and cultures have mixed and interwoven together over the generations for the Tibetan people, a religious resource that is unparalelled by most any other country.

Tibetan Gods:

The Tibet people in their past have often worshiped gods formed out of the Himalayas that surround and cut through their country. These majestic and imposing natural wonders of the world formed the deep basis for most of their life and culture, and was reflected in their mythology. To name only a few of the places and beings that Tibetans have revered over the centuries:

• The Dali Lama – Tibetan God-King
• Mount Meru: The gateway to Heaven
• Yama: One of the eight fierce protective deities
• Mount Everest: Called by them Chomolungma which mean “Saint Mother”

Tourism in Tibet:

The Tibetan culture is typically very welcoming of outsiders. There are numerous cultural and spiritual tours where native guides and translators will accompany the curious and reverent on tours of some of Tibet’s most sacred sites and mountains, teaching them the hidden meanings behind the mandalas, prayer flags, and temples of their fascinating and legendary believes and folklore. If you are interested in learning more about the mysteries of Tibet, you may want to look into some group tours to this area.

The trip begins from Liberation Bridge’s dock in the southern area located in downtown Guilin. There are agencies transporting tourist via a 1-hour bus ride which enables visitors to catch the cruise. This river journey is around 80 kilometers, i.e. 52 miles long. The time taken is estimated to be from 7 to 8 hours. The country scenery and eye-catching landscape never disappoint.

The Chinese have followed a tradition of dividing the lengthy trip in to sections and have given each section an interesting and magical name. The naming of the sections is done by taking parts from fairy tales and romantic stories. An understanding of why the sections were named what they are, lends to a more enjoyable trip through the area.

Elephant Trunk Hill

Elephant Trunk Hill is located majestically on Li River’s western bank. The hill gives the feeling of an elephant having sucked water from the Li River through its enormous and lengthy trunk. There are also Li River cruises which one can get to browse on the websites. This is actually viewed by locals and visitors as a landmark of ‘Guilin Landscape’. When the moon light reflects in the water, you are treated to a visual delight that has made this area famous. The name ‘Moon over the Water’ has been given to this part due to the beauty of this event.

Pagoda Hill

Further, when going through the Li River tours and such cruise, one can get to see the amazing Pagoda hill. There is a small hill where a pagoda sits to be marveled at by visitors. It is located some minutes down the river with respect to Elephant Hill. This hexagonal pagoda has been called Shoufo Ta, i.e. Longevity Buddha Pagoda dating from Ming Dynasty (14th century-17th century). The 2nd floor contains stone Buddha statuettes that are on display. Moreover, the belief that the hill is located in ‘Chuanshan Park’ still prevails to date. In autumn, Pagoda Hill is lit up with red-colored maples lending a natural visual treat to passers by. It really is a sight to behold.

Daxu Town

The age-old Daxu Town has maintained its unique style, in spite of the autocracy of the Ming Dynasty. It is perched on Li River’s northern bank. A dwindling street that’s lined with ancient dwellings, stalls, and shops, it happens to run 2 kilometers along the river bank along the town. There are quarters built for the businessmen, who frequented the area many years back. If you move towards the south, a single-arched pool can be found in a town that when translated to English means ‘Longevity Bridge’.