Routes · Asia

Mumbai to China's highlights: Beijing, Xi'an, Guilin and Shanghai

Mumbai → Beijing → Xi'an → Guilin → Shanghai

China highlights Best season (general guide): Apr–May, Sep–Oct (avoid Golden Weeks)

China's highlights stretch across the country, and high-speed trains and domestic flights make it possible to see four of them in about two weeks. This route goes from Beijing to Xi'an, Guilin and Shanghai. From Mumbai you'll connect, often via another Asian hub, to Beijing.

Beijing's Forbidden City and Temple of Heaven are both listed by UNESCO, and the Great Wall is a day trip. The flight to Xi'an brings you to the city of the Terracotta Army, buried with the first emperor of China, and a bike ride around the city walls is a highlight. The flight to Guilin leads to a cruise or bamboo raft on the Li River, past the karst peaks, to Yangshuo. Shanghai finishes the route, with the Bund along the river, the gardens of the old town and the French Concession's tree-lined streets.

Spring and autumn, around April to May and September to October, are usually the most comfortable seasons. Avoid the national Golden Week holiday in early October, when travel is very busy.

Check whether you need a visa or qualify for visa-free transit. Install payment and map apps that work in China before you go, and book tickets for popular sites in advance.

How to pace it: four nights in Beijing give you a day for the Great Wall, which is best started early. The bullet train to Xi'an is an alternative to the flight, but it takes several hours, so travel in the morning if you choose it.

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