Nanjing, historically known as Jinling, is a city famed for its rich culture, long history and beautiful landscape. The capital city of Jiangsu Province, it is built at the side of the Yangtze River and surrounded by mountains. It is gifted with the humid climate and magnificent scenery that makes any Chinese holiday perfect.
With a history of more than 2,460 years, it is one of China’s seven major ancient capital cities, and a must for travellers on a cultural tour of China. As a popular tourist destination, Nanjing is often cited as having a unique charm. With a vast number of cultural sites and pleasant natural surroundings perfectly blending together, the ancient city enchants millions of tourists on a Chinese holiday with a memorable experience.
A cultural tour of China will include visits to sites such as the Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum, begun in 1381, and the Nanjing City Wall. The City Wall was designed by Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang ,after he founded the Ming Dynasty in the 14th century and established Nanjing as the capital, in order to consolidate his sovereignty and keep out invaders. It took 21 years for the project to be completed and involved 200,000 labourers moving 7 million cubic metres of earth.
Many visitors are independent travellers, making their own hotel reservations in China and creating their own cultural tours in China, to include Nanjing or travelling the Silk Route. There are, however, many excellent China travel packages in which everything is already planned, even down to obtaining the necessary visa.
Why not view our articles about vacations in China. All the major places such as Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Macau, Guilin, Hangzhou, Sanya, Xian, Suzhou, Xiamen are covered. If you're planning a vacation in China be sure to check out these pages.
