An in-depth exploration of China

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.

Chongqing, known as the 'Mountain City' (Shancheng), is a sprawling metropolis in southwestern China where the Yangtze and Jialing rivers converge. Its history dates back over 3,000 years, serving as the capital of the Ba Kingdom and later as a wartime capital during World War II. Today, it is a direct-administered municipality and a major economic hub, famous for its hilly terrain, spicy hotpot, and dramatic skyline.

Zhangjiajie, in northwestern Hunan Province, is a city born of stone. Its name means 'Zhang family boundary', recalling a Ming-dynasty garrison, but the world knows it for the quartz-sandstone pillars that rise like a forest of giants from the Wulingyuan Scenic Area. These formations, some over 200 meters tall, were shaped by water and wind over 300 million years and became China's first national forest park in 1982. In 1992 UNESCO inscribed Wulingyuan on the World Heritage List, and in 2004 it joined the Global Geoparks Network. The city itself is young, established in 1988 as Dayong and renamed Zhangjiajie in 1994, but its landscapes are ancient beyond measure.

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.