Paitan Town, Zengcheng District
Guangzhou, China

Mainland China’s tallest waterfall is in Guangzhou’s Whitewater Village Scenic Area. Baishui Fairy Waterfall is a series of three cascades that stands 428.5 meters (1,406 feet) tall on the Baishui River. A 6.6-kilometer (4.1-mile) path with 9,999 stairs leads to the top of the waterfall or an alternative route is a boardwalk called the Plank Road. The lush mountainous area has been referred to as a magnificent jade on the Tropic of Cancer, due to its latitudinal location.

349 Zhongshan East 1st Road
Shanghai 200000, China

Beneath Shanghai’s Oriental Pearl Tower a tunnel leads under the Huang Pu River in the city’s busy Bund District. Visitors hop inside a futuristic-looking rail car before being whisked through a tunnel covered in colorful, pulsating, and strobing lights that make it feel like flying. Accompanied by ominous music, the ride lasts almost five minutes.   

222 Yuejiangxi Road
Haizhu District, Guangzhou, China

Also known as Guangzhou Tower, this 604-meter-tall (1,982-foot-tall) observation tower overlooks the Pearl River in Guangzhou’s Haizhu District. It offers several observation decks and thrilling adventures. The tower’s vertical freefall ride called Sky Drop is recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s highest thrill ride. Riders can choose to freefall sitting or standing from about 455–485 meters (1,493–1,591 feet) high. A little more relaxing, the Bubble Tram features 16 spherical cabins that can each take up to six people on a 20-minute ride along a track high above the city. At a height of 488 meters (1,601 feet), an outdoor lookout provides 360-degree views of Guangzhou. The tower also has options for shopping and dining.    

24 Da Fen Lu
Shenzhen, China

Shenzhen is a leading producer of replica art. The city’s Dafen Oil Painting Village is where around 60 percent of the world’s art reproductions are made. Shoppers can purchase knockoffs of works by Van Gogh and Monet as well as classical Chinese landscapes or even commission a painting of their own. Visitors can watch as artists work to recreate famous masterpieces, which will most likely be sold overseas. In addition, the area is home to independent galleries where artists sell original works.

Longqing Gorge
Beijing, China

Taking visitors to the top of one of China’s largest dams is the world’s longest outdoor escalator, which happens to be shaped like a dragon. Walk through the dragon’s mouth to begin the ascent 258 meters (846 feet) to the top of Longqing Gorge and the dam sharing its name. At the top, the adventure continues with great views as well as activities such as bungee jumping, riding a cable car, or going for a boat ride on an artificial lake.

Mutianyu Village
Beijing, China

A fun and exciting way to see the Great Wall of China is to go sliding past it. At the wall’s Mutianyu section, a two-hour drive north of Beijing, visitors can hike or ride either a gondola or chairlift to where this unique ride begins. Once at the top, a 1,580-meter-long (5,184-foot-long) toboggan-style slide takes riders along the wall at an average speed of 19 kilometers per hour (12 miles per hour). However, riders can go faster or slower by using the slide’s brake to control their speed.  

Guangzhouyuan Road
Liwan District
Guangzhou, China

Completed in 2013, Guangzhou Circle is a 138-meter-tall (453-foot-tall) doughnut-shaped building, the tallest building of its shape. Designed by Italian architect Joseph di Pasquale, it houses Hongda Xingye Group and Guangdong Plastic Exchange, the world’s largest trading center for raw plastics. The building’s shape resembles an ancient Chinese coin, although Pasquale has only said that he was inspired by “the Chinese way of perceiving and understanding” when designing it. The structure itself as well as many of its elements are symbols related to Chinese history and culture.

Songjiang Quarry Hotel

5188 Chen Hua Road at Ding Yuan Road
Songjiang District, Shanghai, China

Known by several different names, InterContinental Shanghai Wonderland is a unique 18-story resort built inside an abandoned quarry about 32 kilometers (20 miles) from Shanghai’s city center. Opened in 2019, the hotel reaches to a depth of 88 meters (289 feet) beneath the Earth’s surface with its two bottom floors being underwater. It features a green and leafy rooftop that blends into the surrounding countryside. There is an underwater restaurant as well as underwater rooms available. The hotel also offers a swimming pool, aquarium, leisure complex, rock climbing, and water sports.

55 Qingping Road
Liwan District
Guangzhou, China

An open-air marketplace focused on traditional Chinese medicine, Qingping Market is an interesting place to browse and perhaps find some unique items to purchase. A variety of vendors sell a mix of exotic items such as herbs, altars, scorpions, starfish, centipedes, shark fins, mushrooms, seahorses, and more. In addition, there are a variety of live animals available such as kittens, puppies, turtles, and monkeys.

Mawu Village
Eastern Beijing, China

A Chinese farmer and inventor, Wu Yulu lives just outside Beijing in Mawu Village. He has become known for building more than 30 unique robots from scrap metal and other recycled materials. His creations use simple mechanisms to complete various tasks. They include a climbing robot, musical robot, tea-pouring robot, message-writing robot, cigarette-lighting robot, and rickshaw robot.  

2266 Gonghe New Road
Peng Pu Xin Cun, Zhabei Qu
Shanghai 200072, China

Chinese acrobatics shows are filled with magic, excitement, and whimsical characters and sets. You can take in one of these colorful shows at Shanghai Circus World, one of the city's best places to see acrobatics. Unlike Western circuses, Shanghai Circus World does not incorporate animals into the show itself, but instead involves dazzling acrobatics featuring athletes that perform incredible stunts while hanging from wires, curtains, and swings. Chinese acrobatics also incorporates elements of ballet, gymnastics, theater, and circus. The main theater hall at Shanghai Circus World, which is located in northern Shanghai, can accommodate more than 1,600 people and hosts a variety of acrobatics and magic performances on its revolving stage. For the animal element of the circus, pay a visit to the massive animals house, where dozens of exotic beasts are on display.

Shenzhen, China

Window of the World is a theme park that was opened in late 2004. Covering an area of 480,000 square meters (5,166,677 square feet), its main attractions are the 130 replicas of some of the world's most famous tourist attractions like the Taj Mahal, Eiffel Tower, Niagara Falls, Angkor Wat, Leaning Tower of Pisa, London Tower, Coliseum in Rome, Sydney Opera House, Grand Canyon, and Egyptian pyramids. The park also features mini exhibitions of famous international figures as well as a wide variety of restaurants. The park hosts a number of annual festivals like the Cherry Festival, Indian Cultural Week, International Beer Festival, Pop Music Festival, and other events.