Top 10 Places to Visit in Northeast China

Plan your Northeast China Tour? Northeast China is popularly known as  东北 (Dongbei ) in Chinese and historically as "Manchuria". It is mainly composed of  China's northmost  three provinces including  Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang. 

Northeast China shares a total 4000-km length of the border territory with North Korea and Russia and  has a historical  impact by Japan. Northeast China is bestowed with colourful cultures partially  influenced by Japan, Russia and Korea.

I've rounded up the Top 10 Places in Northeast China in terms of their historical, cultural and scenic aspects. Hopefully the Top 10 List will be useful planning your Northeast China tour.

1. Harbin  哈尔滨

Harbin is the capital city of Heilongjiang Province.  It is China's  northmost metropolitan city featuring Russian style buildings and winter's ice and snow activities.  If you visit Harbin, don't miss the following attractions:

Check out Top 10 Attractions in Harbin for more information.

Among the many Orthodox churches and Russian style facades in this region, the St. Sophia Church is the most impressive and imposing structure.

In 1903, with the completion of the Sino-Russian railway, the Russian No.4 Army Division invaded in this region. In order to consolidate the confidence of the army, the magnificent St. Sophia Church was born, and completed in 1907.

All of these buildings are in various styles including renaissance style, baroque style, eclectic style, as well as modern style.  It covers the most charming literature phylogeny of 300 years, and reflects the profound history of architecture, a real “Architecture Art Gallery” in China.

The three most well known ski grounds in Yabuli Ski Resort  are Sun Mountain Ski Resort, Yabuli Ski Resort (same name as the official one for the whole area) and Avaunce (Yabuli) Ski Resort. Each ski resort has its own accommodation choices.

2. Changchun 长春

Changchun  is the capital city of Jilin Province, a heavy industrial base in China,  known as China's Automobile City. Quite  different from its nickname, in 2001 Changchun was awarded as one of four "National Garden Cities"  by the Ministry of Construction of P.R. China  due to its high urban greening coverage. The major sites in Changchun include：

3. Shengyang  沈阳

Shenyang is the capital city of Liaoning Province.  Shenyang is also an important industrial center in China. It is the transportation and commercial hub of China's northeast. Shenyang shortly served as the capital of Qing Dynasty before it moved to Beijing.  The highlights in Shenyang include:

4.  Panjin 盘锦

Dubbed as Capital of  Wetland, Panjin is situated on the northern coast of Liaodong Bay of the Bohai Gulf in, about 155 km southwest of Shenyang, the capital city of Liaoning Province. The Liao River (Liaohe River, one of China’s seven longest rivers empties itself at Panjin. Panjin is a booming city developed from oil industry.

Here you will see the world famous red sea beaches and the largest reed marsh in the world. It is a perfect green eco-tourism area comprising sightseeing, leisure and resort. The scenic core includes Red Sea Beach Wharf, Watching Cranes on Reed Marsh, Wetland Park and Red Sea Beach Resort.

5.  Dandong  丹东

If you are not willing to venture taking Beijing North Korea tour, but still want to have a glimpse of the hermit state of North Korea, a short trip to Dandong is a good alternative. Separated by Yalu River, Dandong is a border city opposite to Sinuiju, North Korea.

In December,  1950, the bridge was bombed by US Air Force during the Korean War. The bridge has been left less than halfway cross the river from Chinese riverside, hence the name of Duanqiao ( Broken Bridge).

There are two ways for having a glimpse of the North Korean Border.  One is standing on the Hushan Mountain (Tiger Great Wall ) where you can have an-eye bird view of the river the shoreline. The other is to take the speed boat from the pier at the foot of Hushan Mountain.  The 30-minute boat ride allows you to come very closer to the North Korea’s Border.

Tiger Great Wall is a restored stretch of the Wall with a length of 1250 meters with a sea level of 146.3 meters.  Tiger Great Wall was built in 1469, often regarded as the eastern tip  the Great Wall built in Ming Dynasty. In the scenic area, there is a Great Wall Museum – Tiger Great Wall Museum,  one of the four Great Wall Museums in China.

6. Ji'an 集安

Here  Ji’an (集安) refers to the city in the southern tip of Jilin Province, China. It is a small border city, just across Yalu River from North Korea. Don’t be confused with the same English name Ji’an ( 吉安) in the middle of Jiangxi Province in China.

Ji’an has been on the limelight since 2004 when Ji’an’s extensive Koguryo ancient cities, pyramids, ruins and tombs were listed as UNESCO Cultural Heritage ( officially known as Capital Cities and Tombs of the Ancient Koguryo Kingdom).

Also not much left of the original buildings of Wandu City.  Its original city’ circumference is 6395 meters with 6 gates. The double cities of Wandu City and Guonei City is a new model in the history of the world imperial palaces’ construction, a beautiful chapter of the history of the world’ ancient city construction.

General Tomb is one of the pyramid structures in the region.  The tomb is composed of seven layers of marble stones.  On the 5th layer there is a passage to the tomb. There are two or four smaller accompanying tombs behind the General Tomb.

7. Xuexiang (Snow Village) 雪乡

Xuexiang ( Snow Village) is located 197km east of Mudanjang City.  Actually Xuexiang ( Snow Village ) is not an official name and its formal name is Shuangfeng Forest Farm (双峰林场) in Changting Township (长汀镇) at Hailin City (海林市), Heilongjian Province. The forest farm is  under the administration of Dahailin Forestry Bureau (大海林林业局).

Xuexiang ( Snow Village ) boasts the longest 7-month period of snowing in China. The snow in Xuexiang is very sticky, one of the best snows in China, nicknamed “China Snow Village”.  Xuexiang ( Snow Village ) is the training base for the National Skiing Team and August First Army Team as well. Many excellent skiers of national and world level come from this train base.

Beside skiing at Xuexiang Ski Resort,  Xuexiang Village also offers a wide range of snow activities such as alpine sleigh rides, horse driven sledges,  snow carved city, snow maize, snow bar, snow photography and so on. If you are lucky,  you can happen to watch the skiing performances by the August First Army Skiing Team.

8.  Changbaishan 长白山

The Changbai Mountain Range is a mountain range on the border between China and North Korea. The rugged terrain of the Changbai Mountains provides refuge for many rare animals, including Amur leopards, bears, and Siberian tigers.

A large portion of the Jilin Province side has been under protection of Changbai Nature Reserve, under the program of UNESCO's "Man and Biosphere", which covers more than 2,100 square kilometers. Changbaishan boasts the azure Tianchi Lake ( Heaven Lake ) and Changbai Waterfall.

9. Wudalianchi 五大连池

Wudalianchi Natural Reserve is about 380km northeast of Harbin and 230 south of Heihe,  Heilongjiang Province. Wudalian Chi is one of the most beautiful landscapes in China, which is formed by the volcanic explosions. It is a wonderland of hardened lava, volcanic peaks,  reed-lined ponds and azure lakes.

The Wudalianchi Natural Reserve encompasses 1060 sq km including forest, arable land, pasture,  and wetland. Wudalainchi literally means “five connected lakes” formed by the volcanic eruptions. The reserve boasts one of the best three cold springs in the  world, attracting busloads of Chinese and Russian who come here to slurp the so-called curative water.  Wudalianchi possesses the rich variety of  creatures and a complete volcanic natural eco-system.

10.Qiqihar (Zhalong Nature Reserve) 齐齐哈尔

Take a four-hour bus ride from Harbin brings you to Qiqihar, one of the Northeast China's oldest cities. It is now famed for Zhalong Nature Reserve, 30km southeast from town. Zhalong Nature Reserve is a a wetland reserve that encompasses the 2,100 km2 marshland,  a major migratory route for birds from the Arctic migrating to South East Asia.

Tip:  Hassle-free Northeast China Escorted Tours

Don’t want to go the do-it-yourself route? No worries, We at Tour Beijing have some options for Northeast China guided tours with English-speaking tour guides:

Further Readings