China is not just a country but a whole new world waiting to be explored. Unless you have a couple of years and unlimited patience, it's best to follow a loose itinerary here, such as following the Silk Road, sailing down the Yangzi River, or exploring the Dr Seuss landscape of Guangxi Province.

From shop-till-you-drop metropolises to the desert landscapes of Xinjiang, China is a land of cultural and geographic schisms. It's not that it has completely done away with its Maoist past - it's more that the yin of revolutionary zeal is being balanced by the yang of economic pragmatism.

Best Time To Go

Spring (March-April) and autumn (September-October) are the best times to visit China, though the higher altitude areas of Tibet, Qinghai and Western Sichuan are best visited in high summer (June-September). Daytime temperatures range from 20°C to 30°C (68°F-86°F) in these seasons - but bear in mind that nights can still be bitterly cold and it can sometimes be wet and miserable. Major public holidays, in particular Chinese New Year, are best avoided as it's difficult to get around and/or find accommodation.

Regions

China is vast, but it can be divided into the following regions:

North-east: Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang. Dongbei, the "rust belt"
North: Shandong, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Henan, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin. The Yellow river basin area, historical heartland of China.
North-west: Inner Mongolia, Gansu, Ningxia, Qinghai, Xinjiang. grasslands and deserts, nomadic people, Islam.
South-west: Tibet, Yunnan, Guangxi, Guizhou. The exotic part, home to most of the Chinese minorities and spectacular scenery.
Southern-central: Anhui, Sichuan, Chongqing, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi. Farming areas.
South-east: Guangdong, Hainan, Fujian. The traditional trading center.
East: Jiangsu, Shanghai, Zhejiang. The new economic center.
For the full list of administrative regions — provinces, municipalities that are not in provinces, Autonomous Regions for various ethnic groups, Special Administrative Regions (SARs) such as Macau and Hong Kong and Special Economic Zones (SEZs) set up to encourage development — see List of Chinese provinces and regions.

Places To Visit

Some of the most famous tourist attractions in China are:

Great Wall of China
Tibet
Silk Road
Hainan island, tropical paradise

Visa overview

L visa - tourism
F visa - business trips, internships, short study
Z visa - working
X visa - study more than 6 months