Best Things to Do in Southern China

Southern China is geographically and culturally distinct from northern China — warmer, more humid, more seafood-oriented in its cuisine, more influenced by overseas Chinese diaspora cultures, and with a landscape of extraordinary variety: the karst limestone pinnacles of Guilin and Yangshuo (among the world’s most photographed natural landscapes), the terraced rice fields of Longji (Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces) and the Hani terraces of Yunnan, the ancient villages of the Huizhou cultural sphere in Anhui and Jiangxi, and the tropical beaches of Hainan Island (China’s Hawaii). The things to do in Southern China require more time and logistical planning than northern China’s main tourist trail, but reward with less internationalized tourism and greater cultural diversity.

Best time to visit

October through December is the best time: cooler and drier after the monsoon, clearer skies for karst landscape photography, and comfortable temperatures across the region (20-28°C). March through May is the second-best window: the rice terraces are flooded for planting (spectacular reflective paddies) and wildflowers bloom in the mountains. June through September is the monsoon season: heavy rain, high humidity, and increased flooding risk, though the rice terraces at Longji are at their greenest. Chinese New Year (January-February) brings massive domestic travel; transportation and accommodation should be booked months in advance.

Getting around

Southern China’s high-speed rail network is excellent: Guangzhou, Guilin, Nanning, Kunming, and Guiyang are connected by fast trains. The Guangzhou South station is a major hub connecting the Pearl River Delta to the rest of southern China. For rural areas (the rice terraces, minority culture villages of Guizhou, and the mountain areas of western Yunnan), local buses and hired vehicles are needed. Domestic flights connect the major cities at competitive prices. The Pearl River Delta (Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai) has excellent metro systems.

What to eat and drink

Southern China’s food is the most diverse in the country. Cantonese cuisine (Guangdong) is the world’s best-known Chinese food tradition: dim sum (yum cha, eaten at weekend brunches in Guangzhou’s historic teahouses), char siu (BBQ pork), roasted meats, fresh seafood preparations, and delicate stir-fries. Guilin cuisine features the famous Guilin rice noodles (mifen) eaten at breakfast with a pork-bone broth and an array of toppings — one of China’s great breakfasts. Yunnan’s food reflects its botanical diversity: wild mushrooms, flowers (nasturtium and rose salads), the fresh goat cheese of Rubing, and crossing-bridge rice noodles (Yunnan’s most famous dish). Guizhou’s cuisine is the spiciest and most fermented: mao’erduo (sour fish stew) and various pickled vegetable preparations are the specialties.

Top things to do

Li River cruise, Guilin to Yangshuo – The classic Southern China experience: a 4-hour boat journey from Guilin downstream to Yangshuo through a gorge of karst peaks rising vertically from the river, paddy fields, and water buffalo. The scenery appears on the Chinese 20-yuan note. Yangshuo itself (a small town that has developed heavily for tourism) offers cycling among the karst peaks, rock climbing, and the famous Impression Liu Sanjie light show on the river at night.

Longji Rice Terraces (Dragon’s Backbone) – Terraced rice paddies built over 650 years by the Zhuang and Yao minority peoples on steep mountain slopes above the Longji River, 2 hours north of Guilin. The terraces are most photogenic when flooded with water (April-May) or filled with ripe golden rice (September-October). Sunrise and sunset from the upper villages (Ping’an and Dazhai) are extraordinary.

Guangzhou dim sum culture – Guangzhou is the world capital of dim sum. The city’s historic teahouses (Lianxianglou, founded 1889; Panxi Restaurant) serve the most comprehensive yum cha menus in the world. The wholesale seafood market at Huangsha, the Canton Tower observation platform, and the Shamian Island colonial architecture are the complementary draws.

Fujian Hakka Tulou roundhouses – The remarkable circular earthen fortresses (tulou) of the Fujian Hakka people, built from the 12th to the 20th century — self-contained communities of 200-800 people living in multi-story circular buildings up to 70m in diameter. The Yongding Tulou cluster is UNESCO World Heritage. From Xiamen (3 hours by bus), they make a compelling day or overnight trip.