Explore China

Take a long weekend in Datong to explore in and around one of North China’s most historic cities—see huge carved Buddhas in caves at the UNESCO-listed heritage Yungang Grottoes, visit the temples and city walls of Datong Ancient Town, and do a 13km hike to see a remote and rustic line of Great Wall.
Bookings and more info for Datong’s Yungang Grottoes, Ancient Walled City, and Great Wall (3 days)

Drive out to Liaoning Province for a three-day trip that takes in Xingcheng’s Ming Dynasty-era Ancient City and the idyllic Juehua Island.
Bookings and more info for Juehua Island and Xingcheng Ancient Town (3 days)

Clean and cool grasslands near the border of Hebei and Inner Mongolia: hikes, BBQ lamb, and more.
Bookings and more info for Bashang Grasslands, Hebei Province

Visit Tongren to mingle with performers and pilgrims during the festival, seeing ceremonial rituals and dances, crowds of pilgrims and onlookers, and (maybe) skin-piercing with skewers and hooks. We’ll escape the crowds to refresh with hikes in the nearby grasslands before getting back in the middle of things as the festival finishes.
Bookings and more info for Tongren’s Festival of the Sixth Month, Qinghai Province (5 days)

Hike between villages and enclaves in the mountains of Guizhou Province to get a up-close look at the well-preserved rituals, traditions, terraced hillside rice paddies, and architecture of the Miao and Dong (and more) ethnic groups.
Bookings and more info for Guizhou: Miao and Dong culture in the mountains (5 days)

Travel by foot and jeep through the desert, visit desert lakes, ride camels, camp in the desert, and more.
Bookings and more info for Tengger Desert Lakes, Inner Mongolia (4 days)