Why China ?

"Race Across the World" 2025 (BBC iPlayer) opened our eyes. The scenery of Southern China looked spectacular!

Also: for the top banter from our baggage handler at Manchester Airport, re: "taking bikes to China?!" 🤣

Our Route

We've pedalled ~2000 miles south from Xi'an in central China, through Sichuan and Yunnan provinces.
Now heading for Donxing Port on the Vietnamese border.

The Journey

It was just as well that we'd decided to spend a few days masquerading as regular tourists, as our bicycles were impounded by Customs 🤦🏻🤦‍♀️

 Possibly due to confusion about import duty, although the reason was never clarified.
Happily, they were delivered to our hotel a couple of days later, free of charge 😅

We flew in to Xi'an: China's ancient capital, home to the mighty Terracotta Army. 

This was super-busy, despite it being the off-season.

Above: The Terracotta Army can be seen cheaply as a day trip from Xi'an city: get the Metro to Fangzhi City Station (great food court!), then an hour on the 5(306) bus. 
Tickets ~£12 (120 yuan) at the entrance: passports must be shown.

Next: a cheeky bullet train (easy to book via the Trip.com app) up to Beijing, to see the Great Wall. 
It really was magnificent.
While respectfully remembering that it's also the longest graveyard in the world, as so many workers died during its construction.

Above: The Shuiguan section of the Great Wall was amazingly quiet - just a few km away from busy Badaling.

In Beijing city itself: Xiangshan Park (below) was crazy busy. 
The long yomp up Xianglu Peak gave fair views, but wasn't the autumnal kaleidoscope advertised.

Above: The prettiest part of Xiangshan was right by the North Gate Entrance, up to the Fragrant Hills Pagoda. Leave the rest of it to the crowds.

The Forbidden City (Beijing's imperial palace complex, below) was vast and impressive.
We managed to get on-the-day tickets by arriving early and queuing.

Above: China's emperors settled for 999 palace rooms, to avoid angering the gods (who had 1000 in theirs).

The acrobatic show at Beijing Red Theatre (below) was mind-blowing. 

And finally, back to Xi'an to start pedalling🚵‍♀️🚴‍♀️

Above: Heading out of Xi'an - a couple of steady days with good (if chaotic) bike/moped lanes: notable for oncoming traffic and cars identifying as bicycles🤷‍♀️

But hey, nobody gets angry!

Then: with some trepidation, riding south from Baoji city to cross the Qinling Mountains ... home to wild pandas and the restricted Taibai military installation.

Above: It was a long ~20km slog into the mountains on the S219.
Chilly, misty and mysterious: a world away from the bustling cities.

Above & below: The 110km ride from Liangdang to Lueyang (S218/328 route) was a stunner from start to finish.
Quiet tarmac through long gorges carved by the Jialing River, flanked by mountains in full autumn splendour.

Below: Continuing south to Ningquiang (345 & Jieda Road): a great descent through scenic rural villages. Some fast-moving lorries on the final section (108) - luckily the 3.5km tunnel had a rideable pavement.

It got busier on the 108 into Chaotian.
The trucks gave us plenty of space, but we still arrived covered in muddy road spray.

Above: Charlie in need of a good hose-down at the petrol station 

Below: This epic cycle path ran for miles out of Chaotian, sparing us from the motorway until we got close to Guangyuan city.

The riverside city of Jiange (below), overlooked by an imposing mountain ridge, was a smart spot for a rest day.

Above & Below: The pedal out over the Jiange Pass was our toughest day so far. 
73 miles, much of it on steep back-roads, in chilly drizzle.

Below: This lovely lady in a remote mountain village was concerned for our safety on the slippery road.

By contrast: the ride into Chengdu (China's 4th largest city) ran under miles of flyovers, with ongoing construction on a massive scale.

The Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding was a good place to see pandas in a conservation setting.

It was chilly, so the pandas were relatively active. Apart from Xing Ya ...

Giant pandas grow to 150kg (over 23 stones) on a diet of bamboo.

Above: Charlie's new panda suit was a perfect fit.

Chengdu's population: 20 million (twice London's). Everyone joined us for the pedal out of town. Which took 4 hours ...

Above: Cycling in Chengdu - like a crazy video game 👾

Varied roads passing mandarin groves and tea farms took us south to Leshan: site of the Giant Buddha.

It's the world's tallest stone statue: incredibly, completed in the 9th century.

Above: The Leshan Giant Buddha

And onwards into the Hebduan Mountains, which divide the Sichuan Basin from the Tibetan Plateau.

After an edgy stretch climbing on narrow roads with heavy lorry traffic, it was a relief to hit the protected S309 bike lane.

Above: Cycling Nirvana on the S309. This beauty follows the Dadu River for 30km, from Wudu Town to Ebian.

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Classic "rest day" activity in Ebian: climb 5000 steps to the top of Beifeng Mountain, which overlooks the city.

Above: Charlie "let's just go to the 3rd pagoda" starts the ascent to Beifeng Peak (visible in the distance)

Below: At the top, the panoramic mountain views were almost as good as the spicy fried potatoes 😋

This part of Sichuan has a large Yi ethnic population. Many wear colourful traditional dress (photo borrowed from the internet, as we didn't get the right moment to ask permission for our own).

It was a spectacular ride through the Jiange Grand Canyon on the G245 from Ebian (below)...

... but as the gorge continued towards Ganluo, we faced a long dangerous stretch with lots of landslide debris and damage.

Vehicles were racing through, weaving around the rubble, only halting to avoid the minor rockfall that was actively happening in some sections. 
It was like "penny falls" with rocks 😰

Above: Charlie's wheel took a direct hit from a sizeable falling stone on this scary section.

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Next day: the G245 had more in store for us.

 Tough climbing out of Ganluo, up onto a super-scenic winding road around the edge of the mountains.

Above: A picturesque coffee stop on the G245, en route to Yuexi

We didn't get the road to ourselves though.
There were some edgy moments around those tight bends.

Above: Fortunately most goats had fair road sense !

Below: Most truck drivers were considerate, but some cars made reckless overtakes on blind bends 🫣

The gentle climb out of Yuexi (below) turned into a monster, when A-Map routed us off the S218 onto a single-track unnamed road ...

Below: ... a VERY tough 2-hour "pedal or push" through tiny villages 💪

We met a pack of wild horses on this road, just before it rejoined the S218.

Above: Overlooking the S218 switchbacks that we bypassed, by going the steep way !

Thankfully a glorious downhill section followed, after the 4km tunnel (below).

Below: Molly watches for wild goats on the descent

On arrival in Luguzhen, our legs were smashed.

A rest day in Xichang beckoned ...

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Next up: sunny pedalling through agricultural valleys, via Deyang and Miyi.

Above & below: Flanked by mountains, but not climbing them 🤗

Below: There was even time for a spot of bike maintenance 💫

Mountainous and without moped lanes, Panzhihua was Sichuan's least cycle-friendly city: forcing us into some tasty pavement riding (below)...

... but the locals were fantastically friendly !

At this point we had a re-think.

We had vaguely been aiming towards Shangri-La, in the high mountains near Tibet.

But looking at altitude and December temperatures: it made sense to continue south to Kunming, then use its rail links to mountainous North Yunnan.

Above: Feeling pleased with ourselves after "changing the route to suit"

A tough day's pedalling followed: an uphill battle out of Panzhihua city, then a big long climb into Yunnan province. 
Ending with a fast 20km descent into Yongren.

Above & below: The rock formations at Wumao "Earth Forest" were worth the short detour en route to Yuanmou ...

... although it did put us onto some dusty rural roads (below) ...

... before a bonus descent into Yuanmou:

famous in China as the site of its earliest human fossils.

Above: "Yuanmou man", 1.7 million years old. Looking good on it 😉

Below: It was a relentless 40km climb out of Yuanmou.
Our toughest yet !

Below: The beautiful scenery and peaceful road was a fair trade-off for the burning legs.

We stumbled into a great family-run hotel in Gaoqiao: they even served cold beers and hot snacks 👌

But our smashed legs were so painful, it was difficult to get to sleep 🤦🏻🤦‍♀️

Bolstered by a noodle breakfast, we were ready to tangle with the G108 again. 
This time it was gentle with us ! 

Just an easy downhill through forested mountains into Wuding city.

Above: Charlie sorts the seating for a relaxed coffee stop

Above: Rural scenery en route to Wuding city

Below: These lovely Wuding kids spontaneously bought us sweets 💕

Watching this beautiful moonset from the hotel room in Wuding ... what a way to start the day !

We didn't know it yet, but there were no more punishing climbs on the menu (for now) 🤗

Above & below: Another sunny day on the G108, rolling into Fumin

From Fumin, it was just a short pedal into Kunming, the capital city of Yunnan province.
Same population as London. Altitude: 1900m.

Seemed like a good place to get replacement tyres and chains.

It took 3 days to order the parts, so we left our bikes with the shop.

Time for a saddle holiday !

Above: GIANT bicycle shop (Xichang Road branch) were beyond excellent.

We got the train north to Lijiang (altitude:2400m), dominated by the majestic Yulong Snow Mountain.

Above: The unreal view from our Lijiang hotel rooftop

Lijiang Old Town was touristy, but charming.
A vast maze of old streets, restored "ancient" buildings and tiny shops.
Buzzing with music and street food in the evenings. 

Above: Lijiang Old Town - a UNESCO world heritage site.

Below: Charlie opts for an Old Town yak meat pie.

Below: JUST DON'T MENTION THE PIE !!

Zhongyi Market was a more authentic locals' area, at the south end of the Old Town (below)

The super-scenic Black Dragon Pool was just a short stroll north from the Old Town.

A popular spot at sunset to see "rizhao jinshan": a golden glow on the snow-capped mountain.

With the help of our hotel, we booked a Yulong Snow Mountain tour. 
We didn't have a clue what was involved, other than an early start ...

Above: "Rizhao jinshan" close-up at sunrise...

... then on to the second-highest cable car in the world (Sichuan has the highest), with dizzying views ...

... and needing supplemental oxygen ...

... for the final climb via a boardwalk 🥶

It was both beautiful and brutally cold at 4680m (amazingly, we retained 4G signal throughout).
Everest is most definitely not on the bucket list.

Back to Kunming, and a short test-ride to Dianchi Lake before leaving town.

Above: Feeding the seagulls is a popular activity here (!)

A brief stop at Kunming's Dounan Flower Market: the world's largest.

Above: Molly hunts down the delicious rosebud tea🌹

It was a lorry-fest heading east out of Kunming on the G324, through to Yiliang.

Continuing on past the Shilin Stone Forest, we saw skilled roadside stonemasons at work hand-carving shishi (guardian lions).

Above: Charlie ponders shipping costs to Stoke-on-Trent 

We enjoyed the long stretch on Muzhao Line soon after Damoghuzen: a peaceful road with rural scenery, gentle climbs and no lorries (below) 🤗

Heading south from Shizong: after the Jiangzhao Highway, the S207 and G357 took us through a forestry area with plenty of long downhills.

Would've been beautiful on a clear day !
Instead: a foggy challenge (the densest we've ever ridden in) 😶‍🌫️

We were just glad to get down in one piece.

A first in Gaoling: the police knocked our hotel room door to make routine enquiries, then wished us a pleasant journey 👮‍♂️

Above: The transcript from our police interview (sadly, our selfie request was politely declined).

The S207/206 to Qiubei: a long climb through scenic forest.
Many stretches had no crash barrier and steep drop-offs. Luckily traffic was quite light.

This rugged area had an expressway (a motorway with massive flyover sections) under construction.
An immense project.

Above: The road sections will be craned on top of these huge stantions.

The home strait on the G248 took us past the Puzhehei scenic area, with mysterious karst hills and lakes.

The road to Yanshan started with a wide hard shoulder which then disappeared, making for edgy lorry overtakes.

We passed several oxen on the road in this area.

Above: The karst hills continued out of Qiubei ...

... and on to Nasa township (below)

Below: Ox meets lorry jam, en route to Nasa.
We managed to weave through onto a strangely quiet G323.

The next day on the G323 was tougher: lots of climbs, gusty winds and lorries en route to Nanpingzhen.

Below: Charlie's improvised snack-stop seating👌

Nearing Funing on the G323: on a fast descent, Charlie got a nasty surprise when he hit this vicious trench in the road (below). 
Causing an instant rear flat.

Luckily he stayed on the bike, and the wheel itself looked intact.
The tubeless tyre wouldn't re-inflate, but was ok once an inner tube was added.

Above: Definitely no profanities happening here 🤦🏻

A reminder for us both to keep reading the road ahead, and to factor in stopping distance.

The G359 to Napo was a scenic climb ... 

... supposedly crossing the Tropic of Cancer 🥶🌧️

Above: A very cold and wet descent into "tropical" Napo.

We tried to warm up at the local "river snail noodle soup" restaurant.
The pungent grey slop made us feel a bit tickle-tummied🤦🏻🤦‍♀️

Next day: a chilly Christmas pedal to Jingxi, starting with a tough climb on this rural single-track road (below).

But the views were magnificent.
Then re-joining the G359 for more karst scenery ... and lorries 

Above: Spot the elephant?! 🐘

En route to Daxin on the G359: more great views ...

... and a short but deadly tunnel (below) that unexpectedly turned pitch black halfway through 🫣

Above: Today's lesson: if you can't see the end of that tunnel ... just stop and put your bike lights on !!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=W98lwMNMUoE

And finally, it was starting to feel warmer 🤗 

Above: Tropical roadside flowers 

Below: A local cart loaded with sugar cane

Turned out the small town of Xialezhen was full of Chinese tourists, mad for the dinghy rides at Tongling Grand Canyon.
So full that we struggled to find a hotel room.

It was third time lucky at the Yu Ming Zhu Hotel, although the "posh" price seemed a bit much ...

Above: First impressions at the Yu Ming Zhu weren't the best ...

 ... but the view from our £18 room was unexpectedly stunning (below) 👌

Being a stone's throw from Vietnam, we were stopped and questioned at no fewer than 3 Chinese border control points in as many days.

Above: Molly frowns at the translation app while the officer studies our passports 

The border police did us a great favour by pointing us towards the Chongzuo 1st Class Tourism Avenue, rather than the S316.

Above & below: Stunning views and safe tunnels on the Chongzuo First Class Tourist Avenue

Below: We self-diverted onto this riverside cycle path at Mingshi Village Scenic Area. Good move !

Oh, and remember the "trench incident" that knackered Charlie's rear tyre a few days back ?

Well, there was a sudden loud bang💥and instant flat from the said tyre once again, but this time on a blameless stretch of smooth tarmac ...

Above: On inspection the tyre beading (right) had blown, allowing an "inner tube hernia" which had then gone pop (left)💥

... presumably a result of the initial "trench incident" tyre bashing !

Good job we were carrying a spare tyre 🤗

It was time to rest our legs, and re-stock on inner tubes😂, in Chongzuo city.

The Guangxi White-headed Langur National Nature Reserve was a random stopover (Charlie had the shits and we just needed a hotel).

The eco-tourism here was low-key and sensitively done.

With a couple of weeks left on the visa, we were curious to see a bit of the Chinese seaside.

So off we headed to Beihai on China's south coast.  Braving another lorry-fest on the G325 from Qinzhou.

Food & Accommodation

No shortage of tasty food here !
Fresh, big portions, often spicy 🌶️, and crazy cheap.

And forget salt and pepper: standard condiments are chilli oil and whole cloves of raw garlic.
Nom nom!

Above: Even in a touristy part of the capital, this fine brunch of noodles and stir-fried peanuts only cost ~£4.

It must be said that some of the food was inedibly spicy.

Even Molly was defeated by this Sichuan hotpot (below), on account of it being a bubbling inferno.

Above: Before the onset of sweating and weeping🥵 

Chefs busy working at the oven (above) and at the hotpot (below) ..

Many hotels offer great breakfast buffets with rice porridge, bao buns, a rainbow of veg, and noodle soup cooked to order.

Good coffee is elusive though.

Above: A Chinese-style hotel breakfast 🌶️

Chinese pick'n'mix has been a happy discovery. With the possible exception of Charlie's vacuum-packed chicken foot (local advice: remember to spit out the toenails) 🫣

And abundant fresh fruit 😋 

Delicious locally-grown mandarins, apples, grapes, pomegranates, Asian pears, sweet kiwi, persimmon, honey pomelo and more, piled high at roadside stalls just about everywhere. 

Above: These vendors insisted on giving Charlie a big bag FULL of mandarins for his 10 yuan (£1)

Great street food is also easy to find.

Above: Oven-fresh "Chinese pizza" in Jiange, Sichuan. Another delicious revelation.

China has an admirably upfront approach to meat.

Live animals are often kept in cages (or tanks) outside restaurants, and for sale in meat markets.

Butchering is done openly on the street. 
Pretty much every part is used.

Note for strict vegetarians: unless you speak confident Mandarin, you're likely to struggle. 
Tofu is often cooked with pork mince, noodles in bone broth, egg fried rice speckled with bits of processed pork, etc.
"Wo bu chi rou" ("I don't eat meat") often just caused confusion.

 Molly's chopstick skills were honed by picking bits of meat out of her food ! 🥢

Hotels: really good, and so cheap !
Typical cost ~£20 for a smart city hotel.
Bike storage indoors has never been a problem.

Above: The lovely staff at Chateau Star River Hotel in Xi'an soon helped us to find our feet.

Most days, we stayed in nice hotels booked via Trip.com

If this wasn't an option, we found local lodgings on "A-Map" and just turned up.

Below: Our most rustic accommodation was this "Happy Farmhouse" in a small village in the Qinling Mountains.
Still, it beat camping !!

Above: Charlie en route to the "Happy Farmhouse" drop-toilet outhouse

Below: This basic but serviceable room was our cheapest hotel stay at £8 (!)

Cycling China: Ups & Downs

China was full of interest and surprises for us.
It felt friendly, vibrant, and very safe. 
We'd love to return.

Biggest surprise: there were very few cyclists ! Bicycles have been totally superseded by electric mopeds.

Above: Scores of unused rental bikes, Chengdu

Unexpectedly: there were many scenic rural areas, and relatively little heavy industry. 

And for a country with 1.4 billion citizens, it didn't feel especially crowded.

Most roads had significant lorry traffic though.

Above: Rural scenery in Guangxi province

The juxtaposition of wealth and traditional lifestyles was another surprise. 
Begging and homelessness were barely visible.

Above & below: Both luxury cars and backbreaking work were common sights on the road.

🤗 LIVING COSTS were crazy low.

🤗 PEOPLE were helpful, welcoming and curious despite the significant language barrier (English was rarely spoken, even in the big cities).
Scrupulous honesty and kindness were the norm.

Westerners being a true rarity away from the tourist hotspots, we were often asked to pose for photos.

Above: This lady fed us great "bu la" (not spicy) wonton and tofu for ~£2 while her kids translated on an app. She refused our tip at first, thinking we had misunderstood the bill !

🤗 PUBLIC TRANSPORT was cheap, efficient and user-friendly. 
We used the subway, buses and intercity bullet trains to reach the big tourist spots.

Taxis were also very cheap, accessing the Uber-equivalent "Didi" via the "Alipay" app. 
Be wary of unmetered taxi charges though.

Above: Our Xi'an-Beijing bullet train.
The UK's fastest intercity trains max out at 125mph.  China's newest prototype runs at 281mph !

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🤗 PUBLIC TOILETS: common in urban areas (locatable on the A-Maps app), also at petrol stations.
Always free to use.
Just be ready to squat and bring your own tissues !

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🤗 AIR QUALITY was surprisingly good, even in the big cities.

No doubt helped by the large number of electric vehicles and urban trees.

Above: These jet-washing trucks patrol the big cities, reducing dust in the air.

🤗 FRESH PRODUCE was high-quality and abundant. 
Small-scale cultivation was absolutely everywhere !

Above: Cabbage patch at a city petrol station!, Chengdu

🤗 SQUARE DANCING:  A sort of open-air aerobics class, with loud music, in the public spaces of every city. 
Open to everyone, no cost, no judgement.
And a surprisingly good workout !

Above: We briefly joined this square dancing posse in Yanshan

🤦🏻 INTERNET ACCESS to Western sites is blocked by China's "Great Firewall".
Google (also Maps, Translate, Gmail), WhatsApp, app downloads and even some banking apps won't work reliably with a Chinese SIM card 🤯

See our "Practical Pointers" (below) before you travel !

🤦‍♀️ TAP WATER is non-potable - so lots of plastic bottles on our conscience.
Most hotels supply unlimited bottled water; a few have water dispensers.

🤦🏻 QUEUEING is definitely not a thing in China !
No jostling, folks just move smoothly to fill any available space (usually in front of us).

It's also totally normal to smoke indoors (even for restaurant staff), and to loudly hack up phlegm in the street.

Above: Molly gaily abandons those British sensibilities

🤦‍♀️ DOMESTIC TOURISM is off the scale ! 
Be prepared for massive crowds and organized chaos at the big spots, even in the off-season. 
National holidays are apparently heinous, and best avoided.

Above: The staircase at Leshan Giant Buddha (after our eventual release from a crowded holding pen).

🤷🏻‍♂️ We have mixed feelings about China's roads. 
Surfaces were mostly good, and most drivers were sympathetic to smaller craft.

However: some of the national/provincial roads had heavy lorry traffic and no hard shoulder, making for edgy pedalling.

Above: If two lorries pass, there's no space for Charlie 😮 (G323 national road, Yunnan)

🤷‍♀️ PEKING OPERA. We're still not sure what to make of it, but are mesmerised by its utter strangeness (only on TV - a full show would definitely be too much).
If you thought Western opera was inaccessible ... !!

Above: The high-pitched wailing and many nuances of Peking opera apparently take a lifetime to perfect.

Practical Pointers

There's a LOT to get your head around in China.
A little preparation *ahem* will go a long way !

Below: Ridiculous bicycle acrobatics at Beijing's Red Theatre: now that's difficult !

⭐️ Visa: not as difficult as it sounds, but at the time of writing (Oct 2025) began with an online application including flight and hotel details (we just used OneWayFly and a refundable hotel booking for our arrival date only);

Then a day trip to the Chinese Embassy (we used Manchester) for fingerprinting and payment (£130 each);

And finally, a return visit 3 days later to collect our passports. 

No questions about our itinerary or anything else. 90 days granted as standard.

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⭐️ Internet access to Western sites is a challenge.

We downloaded two different paid-for VPNs before travel (including the premium "Express VPN"), but neither worked well and we can't recommend this strategy.

Luckily, eSIM data seemed to bypass the firewall completely.
Do check that your phone is eSIM-compatible, as some are not ! 

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⭐️ Download the excellent "Gaode Maps/Amap" (for navigation) and "Trip.com" (hotel and train bookings) apps prior to travel - as Google Play doesn't work in China.

And even with full internet access, the equivalent Western apps just don't work well in China.

The "Baidu Translate" app is also useful.

-super-reliable cycling navigation with A-Maps (signal never dropped, no ridiculous rough routes): it even asks you to take a rest ! Just not good at "finding" cycle paths

⭐️ Don't rely on card or cash payments, as these are NOT widely used in China 🤯

Everyone (even on market stalls) uses payment apps instead.

Download "WeChat" and "Alipay" before you travel. You can then link your bank card to the app ("WeChat" activation needs approval from a friend in China, our hotel staff helped us with this). 

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⭐️ Certain power banks are completely banned from Chinese flights, even in the cabin (ours were confiscated at Shanghai Airport, before we boarded our connecting flight to Xi'an).

Check yours are compliant, or leave them at home.

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⭐️ We got lucky with on-the-day tickets, but official advice for the tourist hotspots is to book entry tickets well in advance. You even need a ticket just to walk into Tiananmen Square !

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⭐️ ID checks are standard when boarding trains and visiting tourist sites: always carry that passport.

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Finding a Chinese laundry proved rather difficult🤦‍♀️ After an early comical exchange in what we thought was a launderette (with hindsight: probably a dry cleaner's) with prohibitive charges ... we resorted to a rinse in the sink.
Later learning that some hotels do have self-service laundry rooms !