パンダと長江クルーズの旅

Beijing is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the world's great historic cities — a place where imperial grandeur and a fast-moving modern capital share the same skyline. For over 800 years it has been the political and cultural heart of the country, and its monuments — the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, the Temple of Heaven and the Summer Palace — need no introduction.

Xi'an, known as Chang'an in ancient times, is one of China's Four Great Ancient Capitals and the starting point of the Silk Road. With over 3,100 years of history and 1,100 years as a capital for 13 dynasties, it served as the political, economic, and cultural heart of ancient China. The city is home to the world-renowned Terracotta Army, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the remarkably preserved ancient city wall, offering a tangible link to China's imperial past.

Guilin, in the northeast of Guangxi in southern China, is one of the country's most celebrated landscapes, a place whose limestone karst peaks, winding rivers and misty caves have inspired painters and poets for more than a thousand years. Founded as a commandery town in the Qin dynasty, it grew into a prosperous administrative and cultural centre on the route between the Central Plains and the far south. Its name, meaning 'forest of osmanthus', comes from the fragrant trees that still line its streets each autumn.

Chengdu is Sichuan's capital and the slow-living heart of southwest China — a city where tea, pandas and mouth-numbing hotpot set the pace. It has been a cultural and trade hub on the Chengdu Plain for over 3,000 years, and today it is best known to travellers for three things: the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, its teahouse lifestyle, and one of the most celebrated food scenes in the country.

Shanghai is China's most cosmopolitan city — a glittering financial capital where the colonial Bund faces the futuristic skyline of Lujiazui across the Huangpu River. It has been a gateway between China and the world for over a century, and that openness still defines its character today.