Family Holidays to China

To call Hong-Kong ‘China Light’ is an injustice, but it’s undeniably a city kids will feel more familiar with. A balance of incredible street life, mesmeric shopping, colourful heritage and non-stop action, it’s a love-story in the making for teenagers. And younger kids have theme parks, waterparks, aquariums and cute sights on every corner to keep them happy.

• Hong Kong has some of the world’s most luxurious hotels but mid-range international brands like Holiday Inn are good value and budget options include sleek Salisbury Hotel YMCA which has family rooms available.
• Don’t miss: Lantau Island; Po Lin Monastery and the giant Buddha; Hong Kong Space Museum; Ocean Park, one of the world’s top 15 amusement parks; Temple Street Night Market; Luk Yi Teahouse; Big Wave Bay; and treetop trekking in Hong Kong Aviary Park.
• The South China Sea is omnipresent in Hong Kong and good for dolphin watching cruises and over 41 city beaches.
• Hong Kong is a one hour and 25 minute flight from Guilin; under three hours from Beijing; two hours from Shanghai and Chengdu.

One of the world’s largest and most densely populated capitals, Beijing’s as exciting and enchanting as it is hectic. This is the city for the Forbidden City and accessible sections of The Great Wall. Where ancient districts are tucked into a vast urban sprawl and you can pretty much expect everything to be unexpected, eccentric and, often, spectacular.

• Modern Beijing is well stocked with large, modern luxury hotels to luxury to three and four star international chains.
• If you’re travelling with older kids think about staying in the hutongs: these ancient district are famous for historic siheyuans or courtyard houses and many are now charming boutique guesthouses – much cheaper than city hotels and far more interesting.
• Don’t miss: The Great Wall; the Forbidden City; Tiananmen Square; the Summer Palace; Temple of Heaven; Beijing Zoo for the giant pandas; Prince Gong Mansion; the Beijing hutongs; Houhai Lake; and Wangfujing for shopping.
• The hutongs are good for authentic local food and kid’s classes in everything from Chinese calligraphy to Peking Opera stage make-up and cookery.
• Take a guided tour of the city or self-guide round the hutongs on a hired bike.
• Visit in spring or autumn for lowest pollution levels, cooler weather and fewer crowds.
• The city’s quietest in winter but it can be exceptionally cold and snowy.

Guilin is the city to visit for cruise holidays on the legendary Li River famous for its huge, limestone karsts. The experience of China here couldn’t be more different from Beijing, Shanghai or Hong Kong. Outdoor adventure, traditional culture, nature and freedom to explore independently are the main attractions and the pace is significantly gentler so it’s a good choice for younger kids.

• Guilin city centre hotels range from five-star to family run guesthouses.
• Stay in Yangshuo for historic boutique hotels and Longsheng for inns overlooking the spectacular terraced rice fields.
• Li River cruises take between 3 and 5 hours and 4-star boats serving lunch are the most comfortable option with kids.
• Don’t miss: a bike ride round Yangshuo countryside; the Longji rice terraces; Daxu old town; Gudong waterfall; Jiangtou village; bamboo raft cruises on River Yulong; West Street for noodles and night shopping; River Li hike; and the Reed Flute Cave.
• Best time to visit for dry, warm weather is between May and September – Chinese school holidays are in July and August and Guilin can be busy.
• Flights to Guilin from Hong Kong take just over an hour.

High altitude Chengdu’s the city for Giant Pandas and authentic Sichuan cooking, it’s also the gateway to Jiuzhaigou National Park.

• Chengdu’s a major tourist city and has an excellent range of family hotels.
• Jiuzhaigou National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site and sister park to Yosemite in the US.
• Don’t miss: Dujiangyan Panda Base; Leshan Buddha; Mount Emei; Stone Elephant Lake; and Happy Valley amusement park.

Chengdu’s just over two hours by air from Beijing and best between March and June or September to November.