Shandong
This magnificent Taoist temple complex is where all Tai'an roads lead, being the traditional first stop on the pilgrimage route up Tai Shan. The grounds,…
Must-see attractions in Shandong
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Qingdao
For a self-serving introduction to China’s iconic beer, head to the original and still-operating brewery. On view are old photos, preserved brewery…
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Shandong
Like shrines to Confucius throughout China and Asia, this is more museum than altar. The heart of the complex is the huge yellow-eaved Dacheng Hall (大成殿,…
Shandong
The most climbed mountain on earth, and the most revered of China's five sacred Taoist peaks, Tai Shan is one third of Shandong's claim to having 'yī shān…
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Shandong
Next to Confucius Temple is this maze of living quarters, halls, studies and further studies. The mansion buildings were moved from the temple grounds to…
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Shandong
About 75km northwest of Yantai, perched on a bluff overlooking the waves, the 1000-year-old Penglai Pavilion is closely entwined with Chinese mythology…
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Shandong
About 1km north of the walled town on Lindao Lu is the peaceful Confucius Forest, a cemetery of pine and cypress covering 200 hectares and bounded by a…
Qingdao
Up a hill off Zhongshan Lu looms this grand Gothic- and Roman-style edifice. Completed in 1934, the church spires were supposed to be clock towers, but…
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Shandong
This Ming-dynasty courtyard home belonged to Ding Shanbao, a Jiangsu merchant who at one time owned half the town. In 1885 he restored the property as his…
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Shandong
This quaint park of stone paths, leafy gardens and ocean vistas is also a museum of Western treaty port architecture. Wolf-dung fires burned continuously…
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Shandong
This riverside museum tells the story of kites – from the first one, a bamboo magpie fashioned in Weifang 2400 years ago by Lu Ban (he's the winged figure…
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Qingdao
Within central Qingdao, Zhongshan Park is a vast 69 hectares of lakes, gardens and walking paths; it's an amusement park for kids and also the venue of…
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Shandong
It's really the architecture that's the big draw at this museum, housed in an amazing guild hall built between 1884 and 1906 by arrivals from Fujian (福建,…
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Qingdao
This museum is one of Qingdao’s best examples of concession-era architecture – the former German governor’s residence constructed in the style of a German…
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Shandong
A portrait of ancient China and tranquillity, the Mencius Temple originally dates to the Song dynasty; it bears the marks of past anti-Confucian mood…
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Shandong
Accessible from either the Dahedong entrance or the Yangkou entrance, Lao Shan’s oldest and grandest temple was established by the first Song emperor…
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Shandong
This canyon area at the north end of Lao Shan is mostly flat and takes a couple of hours to traverse. The path winds alongside and across clear, blue…
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Shandong
This tranquil temple northeast of Confucius Mansion is dedicated to Confucius’ beloved disciple Yan Hui, whose death at age 32 caused the understated…
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Shandong
This park on the Hucheng River is built around Black Tiger Spring (黑虎泉, Hēihǔ Quán), which empties into the old city moat through three stone tiger heads…
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Shandong
Most easily reached from the Dahedong (大河东, Dàhédòng) entrance to the park, this peak – the name literally means 'Huge Peak' – is Lao Shan's highest point…
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Qingdao
For wide-open spaces of sand, sea and sky, there’s Golden Sand Beach on the western peninsula of Huangdao district (团岛区, Huángdǎo Qū). An undersea tunnel…
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Shandong
You can ascend this scenic area by foot or cable car past wind- and water-carved granite. There’s a 30m scramble in total darkness up a crevice to the top…
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Qingdao
This small restored temple dedicated to Tiānhòu (天后), the patron of seafarers, has stood by the shore since 1467. The main hall contains a colourful…
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Qingdao
This granite and marble villa built in 1930 was first the home of a Russian aristocrat, and later the German governor’s hunting lodge. It is also known as…
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Shandong
The Changyu Wine Culture Museum introduces the history of China’s oldest and largest Western-style winery, which produces grape wines as well as brandy…
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Shandong
The enormous provincial museum, 7km east of the city centre, surveys local culture from the mesolithic age to the present. Its collection began as one of…
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Shandong
About 30km southeast of Qufu, this cave on Ni Mountain (尼山, Ní Shān) is where, according to legend, a frighteningly ugly Confucius was born, abandoned and…
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Qingdao
This is the closest beach to the Old Town, and a great spot come early evening, when the buildings around the bay are illuminated. No 6 Bathing Beach is a…
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Shandong
Beginning in the Sui dynasty (581–618), pious folk carved Buddhas into this mountain southeast of the city centre. The oldest are at Xinguochan Temple,…
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Qingdao
This massive collection of relics anchors the budding cultural zone in Lao Shan district. It has the usual broad span of exhibits expected in a big-city…
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Qingdao
In the shape of a qín (a stringed instrument) jutting into Qingdao Bay, this former island – which lends its name to the city – was connected to the…
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Shandong
All the water from Ji'nan’s springs eventually flows into Daming Lake, set within the largest park in the city, with boat rides, paddle boats, temples,…
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Shandong
The sparkling museum traces the historical development of the Jiaodong peninsula, where Yantai currently stands, from the prehistoric age and successive…
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Qingdao
Beside the entrance to Little Qingdao lighthouse, this museum’s main attractions are the rusty submarine and destroyer anchored in the harbour, for which…
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Qingdao
On the far eastern side of town in Lao Shan district, and now with its own metro station, this 2.5km-long strip of clean sand is Qingdao’s largest and has…
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Shandong
The name of this hall means 'Hall of the Goddess of the Northern Star' and it was first constructed in 1542 under the magical name ‘Dragon Spring Nunnery’…
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Qingdao
Rising up on the northeast side of Zhongshan Park, Taiping Hill hosts Qingdao TV Tower at its summit, connected to the base by a scenic cable car (one-way…
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Shandong
The main hall of Dai Temple is the colossal, twin-eaved, nine-bay-wide Hall of Heavenly Blessing, which dates to AD 1009. The dark interior houses an…
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Qingdao
On a street of German buildings, this copper-capped beauty was designed by Curt Rothkegel and built in 1908. The interior is simple and Lutheran in its…
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Shandong
This park's namesake 'spurting spring' once shot metres into the air, inspiring ancient poets and painters alike. Today, as more water has been channelled…
