2 week quickie

Depends what you like but I'd look at going to Mount HuaShan from Xian?

Chengdu doesn't off much to me personally, as nice and rare as pandas are... Guilin/Yangshou is a solid shout... look at la river boat cruise

I'm purely offering my finds from searching as i am too planning a vist - will keep my eye on your post, and good luck!

It is doable, but for me it is too much and I would rather cut out 1-2 destinations and have more time in others. Which one you cut out obviously depends on you and your interests and what is more important for you to see and experience.

I would stay in Beijing for at least 3 full days (but there is so much to do and see there that you could also stay for a week without getting bored). 1 day in X'ian will be very rushed, but it is better than nothing. Besides visiting the terracotta army, walking around the muslim quarter and enjoying some local food is the "main must" for me. If you have time for more, maybe rent a bike and drive around the old city on the top of the city wall.

Myself, I am a big fan of Chengdu. I've been to China several times, all together about 9 months, and Chendgu is probably my favorite big city in China. For one, I love Sichuan food (its so fragrant and spicy and tasty), and Chengdu is amazing for that. There are also plenty of tea houses, the lovely peoples park - which is a great place to people watch with a cup of tea, several walking streets and markets, atmospheric temples, the very interesting Jinsha site museum, you could also enjoy a sichuan opera etc. And yes, the Pandas are very very cute and fun to watch.

I haven't been to Yangshuo / Guilin yet, so cant comment on that.

I like Hong Kong a lot and there is plenty to do and see and experience there, and the fact that is scattered over several islands makes it an even more interesting place. I wouldn't describe it as a "resting place" though ;-), its too busy and big for that. But you can "escape" the big city by visiting some of the smaller islands like Cheung Chau.

I totally agree that with only 2 weeks, I wouldn't include Shanghai. It is not an uninteresting city (I actually quite like Shanghai), but there are many other places that are (in my opinion of course) much more interesting for a first time visitor to China.

I would NOT do as you described. It's too rushed, China is too large a country, and you are going to miss a lot of things enroute.

Remember that in January, China is cold and the days are short.

Beijing is worth 4 days, particularly as you will be jet lagged, tired, and a little bewildered by China at first.

Xi'an is an awesome city. There is so much to see and do and the food is some of the countries best. The terracotta warriors were a huge disapointment for me, but the city more than made up for it. I even went back on a later trip to enjoy it some more. If I imagined taking the expensive HSR to Xi'an, only seeing the terracotta warriors, then getting on a very slow sleeper train to Chengdu, I would be pretty said.

Chengdu isn't all that interesting. Sichuan food is everywhere in China(try the Sichuan government office in Beijing, its super authentic) and it isn't particularly better in Chengdu. Sichuan is beautiful and has many captivating activities and sights, but they are mostly outside Chengdu a few hours away, so again not a great place to go out of your way to say you have been there. It's more a place you savor and enjoy at a relaxed pace.

Yangshuo is beautiful. It's a little touristy, but it has survived pretty well over the years, certainly better than Lijiang. It's another place though that you will get more out of if you have more time. If you only have 2-3 days, I would plan on something else. 4-5 days and you might be in business

Shenzhen is not worth spending too much time in.

Hong Kong is interesting but very different from Mainland China. Personally I would rather do this trip in reverse, seeing HK first and Beijing last.

I'm not interested in Shanghai

Shanghai isn't all that interesting for me either. It has China's best museums, but it is a big modern asian city. China has dozens of things of which Shanghai is only the biggest/most famous. From the ground you might not be able to tell the difference. If you had more time, the area around Shanghai has a lot to see when you start including Hangzhou, Nanjing, Suzhou etc but it is also probably the most expensive region in the mainland.

Hi All

I'm travelling from U.K. to Beijing 24th January. I chose this date as although it might be cold it will be before the rush of Chinese New Year and hopefully not as busy as Spring.

You miscalculated. You are right in the Chinese new year transportation rush.

But how? Chinese New Year is the 16th of February!

Shanghai is a big modern city? Umm, what is Beijing? Beijing is a concrete jungle of nothing but buildings and office plazas, if it did not have the cultural icons listed above, nobody would go there, polluted and congested.

Shanghai, and the French Concession, at least has a park like setting, shady streets in summer and just a few building over 6 floors. The downtown riverfront area is also far more pedestrian friendly than most of anything in Beijing. Its also a gorgeous city landscape. I lived in both Beijing and Shanghai and visit Beijing yearly for family, I found the best way to tolerate Beijing is to stay 4 star in the Dongcheng/Wangfujing area near Forbidden Palace so at least I have a park to walk and quiet streets after 7PM...and easy access to anywhere via taxi.

But going to China in dead of winter will be foggy, gray and dismal bone chilling cold. Wear Long Underwear.

But how? Chinese New Year is the 16th of February!

Chinese new year is known as the largest human migration. It doesn't just happen over one day. It starts about one month prior to Chinese new year. It gets gradually worst as you approach the date and transportation gets totally impossible one week prior.