China

However big and diverse you picture China to be, double it, add a bit on, and then double it again. And thanks to this unimaginably huge breadth of land, holidays in China are about as spectacular and varied as they come.

Trek through bamboo forests, visit ancient temples, walk the Great Wall, be dazzled by city lights, climb breathtaking mountains, or simply hit the beaches of Hainan – China holidays are whatever you want them to be.

Of course, with such a vast country to explore, you’ll need to narrow down your options at some point, so at Sunny Heart Travel we’ve taken the liberty of doing the hard work for you. We’d happily do the holiday part too, but we think you’ll be keen to take that into your own hands!

It would be remiss not to start with the Great Wall of China. As one of the new Seven Wonders of the World, a UNESCO World Heritage site and the world’s longest wall (we could go on…), its awards and accolades could probably be displayed along its 3,100-mile length, with some still in storage! The Great Wall stretches from China’s western frontier to the east coast but is best explored in Beijing. While there, pay a visit to the Forbidden City, a palace complex formerly home to Chinese emperors.

There are plenty of other historic and important sites throughout the rest of the country too. In Xi’an you’ll find the 2,000-year-old underground statues which make up the Terracotta Army, a fascinating archaeological site only uncovered in 1974. The Potala Palace in Tibet is also well worth a visit for culture vultures.

Outdoors enthusiasts will also find plenty to keep them busy throughout China. The Li River between Guilin and Yangshuo offers spectacular scenery to embrace, while the Yellow Mountains near Shanghai treat visitors to hot springs, oddly-shaped rock formations, seas of clouds and breath-taking sunrises. Another national park, Zhangjiajie, boasts the rock pillars which were the inspiration for the landscapes in the Avatar film and Jiuzhaigou National Park is known for its stunning multicoloured lakes.

City slickers, meanwhile, will love Shanghai. Modern and spectacular, it doesn’t have the historic sites of capital Beijing, but for skyscrapers, lights, shopping and nightlife, this is the place to be.