Stays
Where to stay in China
How stays work in China — chosen for location, transfer and the trip you want.
Featured Stays
Where to stay
We have not published individual hotels for China yet. This is how stays differ there, by the kind of trip.
Beijing and Xi’anHistoryThe Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven, a section of the Great Wall away from the crowds, and then the terracotta army and the intact Ming walls of Xi’an — four and a half hours apart by train. — Mutianyu or Jinshanling rather than Badaling · Book Forbidden City tickets in advance · Xi’an’s walls can be cycled
Beijing–Xi’an–ShanghaiRailThe high-speed network is the most efficient way to see China and a genuine experience in itself. Passports are required to collect tickets, and stations operate like airports — arrive early. — Beijing to Xi’an in about 4.5 hours · Shanghai to Hangzhou in under an hour · Book ahead in holiday periods
Guilin and YangshuoLandscapeThe Li River between Guilin and Yangshuo is the karst landscape China puts on its own currency, best seen by bamboo raft or on the cycle routes through the valley. — River cruise takes most of a day · Longji rice terraces are a day trip · Best April to October
Chengdu, 3 nightsPandas & SichuanThe Chengdu research base is the most reliable place in the world to see giant pandas, and the city is the home of Sichuan cooking and of teahouse culture. — Visit the panda base at opening time · Leshan Giant Buddha is a day trip · Sichuan food is genuinely hot
Kailash ManasarovarPilgrimageThe Yatra has resumed alongside the direct flights. It is a demanding high-altitude journey requiring official arrangements well in advance and is not a conventional tourist itinerary. — Requires official processes and permits · High altitude throughout — fitness matters · Arrange many months ahead
We book hotels for China to order, around your dates, transfer and budget.
How we choose
What Makes a Hotel Unforgettable
We do not chase star ratings. A great hotel is judged on the things that linger — a genuine welcome, a true sense of place, food worth staying in for, and service that anticipates rather than reacts.
Good to Know
Frequently asked
We choose hotels for location, service and character, and for how well they fit the journey around them.
Sometimes. Where a hotel extends benefits to travel advisers — an upgrade, breakfast, a resort credit, early check-in — we pass them on, and we tell you exactly what applies when we quote your stay.
We design complete journeys, but can also arrange standalone stays for existing travellers.
Whatever the journey calls for — city hotels, resorts, villas, safari camps — matched to how you travel. Only a few are written up on this site.
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