For sure the main reason to go to Harbin is to brave the freezing January winter temperatures and enjoy the word famous ice sculptures, but it’s also worth a day or so outside of the winter period to enjoy the central Daoliqu district’s Russian influence and, in particular, the very unusual Siberian Tiger Park.
The Tiger Park itself, like so many things in China, has a good and a bad side:
- The good side – it’s great that the Chinese are approaching the preservation of tigers, and various other large cats who are threatened in the wild, at such a giant scale. To give an idea – there are estimated to only be around 500 Siberian Tigers left in the wild, and the park has 800 in captivity. It’s also great, and should be highlighted more, that the park itself is huge at 250 acres, with many of the tigers free to roam in this area.
- The downside – very predictable. The Chinese pay very little attention to animal welfare, so some of the rarer cats are held in far smaller cages and the tigers are fed live animals in a fairly gruesome show for the tourists.
Without straying too far down a moral route here and recommending not visiting, I think it’s worth calling out that any visit to China will be littered with examples whereby you find conflicts between Chinese values and non-Chinese values. And this is certainly not restricted to animal welfare.
My suggestion is that if you are in the area, do make sure you give yourself half a day in Harbin to see the wonderful brick-lined street of Zhongyan Dajie in the Daoliqu district where you can clearly see the Russian influence, the Sun Island Park that sits within the 2 sides of the city, and half a day for the Tiger Park to see the scale of this Chinese experiment.
Taking a boat down the Yangzi River through the heart of China is a great, if very Chinese, experience.
The Yangzi is the longest and mightiest river in China, and the 3rd longest in the world. This part of the trip focuses only on the journey from Chongqing – a giant of a city with 31m people – to Yichang further to the east in a route that is around 20km and takes around 40 hours / 3 nights (leaving Chongqing in the evening).
The impossibly steep sides of the canyons, the beauty of the Little Three Gorges, and the ghost towns formed by the world’s largest dam make this a truly unforgettable experience. Truly mega wow. The only reason it doesn’t get the top wow score is just how busy it gets. But, hey, that makes it a true Chinese experience!
Tip #1 – take time to shop around for the right cruise companies
You’ve broadly got two categories of options:
- International cruise companies – high level standard and expect to pay US$500-US$800 for a cabin in 2025 prices.
- Local cruise companies – 100% catered towards the Chinese market. This means public tannoy systems, early starts, the classic megaphone-flag-style tours and typically more crowded. Bear in mind that the average Chinese person has ZERO understanding of personal space) compared to what you are used to.
We went with the local boat option because we were living in China at the time, a bit money conscious and wanted the full blown experience. On balance, I’d say that if you can afford it, go with the international cruise company. I’m hesitant to say it is “better”, but you’ll most likely have a more relaxing and serene experience . . . without the megaphones and not having to wait for your ears to recover.
Tip #2 – triple check what you are paying for with the cruise company.
The key things to check are:
- Individual tickets to the individual temples along the way – they are a bit dull and samesy after a while and you can buy the tickets when there.
- If the cruise includes a trip through the Little Three Gorges – the international ones will, but the local Chinese ones will often expect you to have arranged and paid for it.
The route map down the Three Gorges – from Chongqing to Yichang
“With rich natural and cultural heritage, Wuxi is one of the top ten tourist cities in China” – Wikitravel. No idea who wrote that, but they obviously haven’t been to Wuxi! Or perhaps own a struggling hotel there!
Very little to see that would be of interest to a tourist. Basically a medium sized Chinese city with no particularly redeeming features. Don’t bother – spend your time instead in some of the magnificent experiences that can be found throughout the rest of China, or just stay in Shanghai.
It was such a long time ago that I last visited Shanghai, that I won’t write a full entry for the city. Only to say that its a must if visiting China.
It won’t be the classical China you were likely expecting – it will be far more than that as this city typifies the modern day China of brash, sophisticated and full of energy. It’s not an exaggeration to say that Shanghai at times feels like New York City on steroids as it rapidly catches up on just about every metric you can think of . . . and now thinking about it in 2026, has zoomed past it.
Obviously its always better to have more time, but I reckon you could blast the highlights of Shanghai in a day – leaving yourself with some appetite for seeing the rest Shanghai has to offer when you return. The things I really recommend focusing on are listed below.
It was years ago that I visited Amsterdam, so this won’t be a review. Purely leaving it in here because I enjoyed the time so much. Basically, rent a bike to cycle around the canals, visit some of the world-class art galleries, and head out to enjoy the legal drugs – a great setting for it!
I’ve always thought Brussels gets a bit of a unfair reputation for being a bit . . . dull. But it is such a beautiful city to wander around as you head from one hot chocolate place to the next and then cracking into some of the world-class Belgian wheat beers in one of the abbeys. When you combine it with a day trip to either Bruges or Ghent, its a great couple of days.
I’m only writing a very brief entry here as it was years ago since I visited.
One of the most famous cities in the world and, when I think about my “Culture” rating, arguably the most culturally rich city in the world as well. I’ve visited Rome twice and, despite my love for all things Roman history, it was at a time when I didn’t get as much out of the city as I’d wished to have and so I won’t write a detailed review. Instead, as I look back on my visits there, I’ve shared below some high level tips to hopefully steer you in the right direction
Whilst Calcutta does have some interesting spots of architecture from the times when it was the capital of the British Raj, there isn’t much else worth really seeing in Calcutta. I would give it a miss.
If you want a big Indian city, I would suggest Mumbai and see Mumbai’s stark contrasts for tips.
Or the real highlights of India which are to be found in the Golden Triangle and Rajasthan. See the India’s Golden Triangle – getting the most out of it entry for what to prioritise.
Mandalay itself isn’t that attractive as its basically a classically rapidly sprawling Asian city, with all of the noise, concrete and mess that tends to go with this. Also, surprisingly, the Mandalay Palace which you’d think would be the central attraction is also a bit dull.
But, the areas around Mandalay make it very much worth checking out. I’ve listed below some more general tips, but in particular be sure to check out:
Mandalay Hill – when walking around Mandalay, it can feel a bit like one sprawling road after another and the sides of the Palace are LONG so take a while to look around. Instead, if near the Palace, head up Mandalay Hill for great views over the whole city and Palace, and some smaller temples and pagodas on the way up the nice covered stairway.
Mingun Paya – take a short boat ride up river to this rather unusual site. It’s unusual in the sense that 1. It was, at the time, supposed to be the world’s largest stupa. Only “supposed to be”, because the King who sanctioned its construction died with only 1/3rd completed. 2. Now it is basically the world’s largest pile of bricks. 3. It has large crack down its side from an earthquake in 1838. 4. Right next to it is the Mingun Bell which at 90 tonnes has been at various times in history the world’s largest bell. Not enough for you? Its a nice boat trip.
U-Bein Bridge -the world’s longest teak bridge and a route used regularly by the nearby locals and monks. The cool thing is that the water level varied dramatically through the year so, in wet season you see various buildings largely underwater, whereas in dry season you see the buildings from a strangely high bridge.
The Maha Aungmye Bonzan Monastery within the former royal capital of Inwa. The monastery itself is a stunning yellow, but its also fun to get a horse cart / cycle around the overall site.
