35 places · 16 provinces
Volcanic ground, coast and islands, and desert. Three kinds of country where the ground itself is the reason to go, rather than anything built on it.
There are only 35 of them because most of China’s landform destinations are fenced and ticketed, which puts them in the parks layer instead: 172 of its 247 entries are geoparks, mountains, wetlands or grassland. This layer holds the ground where there is no gate and the landform is the whole of the subject. Six places sit in both, because they are both.
The last column carries the two things that decide a visit: whether the way in is open at all, and the months the place is worth the journey. Several of the island entries stop sailing in typhoon season.
The background is on the landforms page.
12 places
Volcanic ground
cones, lava fields and crater lakes, most of them dormant rather than dead
| Place | Where | Access and season |
|---|---|---|
| Zhangzhou Coastal Volcano (漳州滨海火山)China’s only coastal volcanic geopark, with the offshore Nanding islet of dense columnar basalt and the Linjinyu ancient eruptive crater. | Zhangzhou, Fujian | Open April to June, and September to November |
| Leiqiong Volcanic Cluster (雷琼火山群)China’s only well-preserved maar lake, a near-circular crater lake about 2 km across; core site of the Leiqiong UNESCO Global Geopark. | Zhanjiang, Guangdong | Open All year, at its best October to April |
| Xiqiao Mountain (西樵山)An extinct 346 m volcanic cone on the Pearl River Delta, a Lingnan cultural landmark with waterfalls, old quarries and a giant Guanyin statue. | Foshan, Guangdong | Open All year, at its best October to April |
| Haikou Volcanic Cluster (海口火山群)China’s only tropical urban volcanic field; the Ma’anling crater (222 m, Haikou’s high point) with lava tunnels and lava villages. | Haikou, Hainan | Open All year, at its best November to April |
| Jingpo Lake Lava Platform (镜泊湖熔岩台地)Recorded as China’s largest lava-dammed alpine lake, with the roughly 300 m-wide Diaoshuilou waterfall and extensive basalt lava platforms. | Mudanjiang, Heilongjiang | Open June to September |
| Wudalianchi (五大连池)A field of 14 cones and five lava-dammed lakes formed by the 1719-1721 eruptions; UNESCO Global Geopark noted for mineral springs and pahoehoe lava. | Heihe, Heilongjiang | Open June to September |
| Aershan Volcanic Cluster (阿尔山火山群)A Quaternary field of 50+ cones in the Great Khingan, including a high crater lake (Tianchi), stone lava forest and the year-round unfrozen river. | Xing’an, Inner Mongolia | Seasonal, 1 May to 15 October June to August, and September to October for autumn colour |
| Changbai Mountain Tianchi (长白山天池)A dormant stratovolcano straddling China and North Korea; Tianchi is China’s deepest crater lake at 2,189 m, with waterfalls and hot springs on the north slope. | Yanbian, Jilin | Open July to August, when the lake is visible |
| Longgang Volcanic Cluster (龙岗火山群)China’s densest cluster of crater lakes, eight Longwan maars set in dense forest in the middle Longgang range. | Tonghua, Jilin | Open June to September |
| Datong Volcanic Cluster (大同火山群)Listed as North China’s largest Quaternary volcanic field, with cinder cones such as Jinshan and Langwoshan rising over the Datong Basin. | Datong, Shanxi | Open May to October |
| Tengchong Volcano and Hot Sea (腾冲火山热海)One of China’s youngest volcanic fields with ~97 cones; the Rehai geothermal area vents springs up to ~96 C, including the roaring Dagunguo boiling pot. | Baoshan, Yunnan | Open October to April |
| Yandang Mountain (雁荡山)A Cretaceous rhyolite caldera landscape of peaks, cliffs and the 197 m-drop Dalongqiu waterfall; UNESCO Global Geopark. | Wenzhou, Zhejiang | Open April to June, and September to November |
12 places
Coast and islands
where the rock meets the sea, and the islands that sit off it
| Place | Where | Access and season |
|---|---|---|
| Dongshan Island (东山岛)Listed as Fujian’s second-largest island, butterfly-shaped and granite, with the balancing Fengdong Rock, Nanmen Bay fishing village and seafood. | Zhangzhou, Fujian | Open April to June, and September to November |
| Gulangyu Island (鼓浪屿)UNESCO World Heritage car-free island of 19th-century consular architecture, the Piano Museum and Sunlight Rock overlooking Xiamen. | Xiamen, Fujian | Open; book ahead, numbers capped October to April |
| Xiapu Coast (霞浦海岸)The tidal flats that landscape photographers come for: seaweed racks, fish pens and mud that changes shape with every tide. | Ningde, Fujian | Open April to June for kelp, October to December for laver |
| Hailing Island (海陵岛)Listed as Guangdong’s fourth-largest island, with the 9.5 km Ten-Mile Silver Beach and the Nanhai No.1 Song-dynasty shipwreck museum. | Yangjiang, Guangdong | Open May to October for swimming |
| Weizhou Island (涠洲岛)Recorded as China’s largest and youngest volcanic island, in the Gulf of Tonkin, with sea-eroded cliffs (Dishui Danping), a French church and coral reefs. | Beihai, Guangxi | Open; sailings stop in heavy seas October to April |
| Fenjiezhou Island (分界洲岛)A small island off Lingshui marking Hainan’s north-south climatic divide, a top coral-reef diving and dolphin-watching site. | Lingshui, Hainan | Open All year, at its best November to April |
| Wuzhizhou Island (蜈支洲岛)A resort island in Haitang Bay with protected southern coral reefs, popular diving, jet-skiing and Lover’s Bridge. | Sanya, Hainan | Open All year, at its best November to April |
| Miaodao Islands (庙岛群岛)Thirty-two islands straddling the Yellow Sea-Bohai boundary, a key bird-migration flyway with nine-zhang sea cliffs, crescent pebble bay and spotted seals. | Yantai, Shandong | Open; some sailings stop in winter April to May for migrating birds, and September to October |
| Dongji Islands (东极岛)China’s easternmost inhabited islands off Shenjiamen, with fishing villages on Miaozihu, sunrise at Dongfushan and the ‘maritime Potala’ stone houses. | Zhoushan, Zhejiang | Open; sailings stop in typhoon season May to October |
| Nanji Islands (南麂岛)A national marine reserve and UNESCO biosphere reserve, a gene bank of shellfish and algae with the Daishao beach and clear water. | Wenzhou, Zhejiang | Open; numbers capped, book ahead May to October |
| Shengsi Islands (嵊泗列岛)An archipelago of 404 islands in the Zhoushan fishing grounds, with Jihu bathing beach, Liujing sunrise cliffs and mussel farms. | Zhoushan, Zhejiang | Open; sailings stop in typhoon season June to September for swimming, November to February for seafood |
| Zhoushan Archipelago (舟山群岛)Recorded as China’s largest archipelago, 1,390 islands and a major fishing ground, including Putuoshan, Zhujiajian and Dongji. | Zhoushan, Zhejiang | Open; sailings stop in typhoon season March to May, and September to November |
11 places
Desert
dunes, gobi and the edges where the sand is being fought
| Place | Where | Access and season |
|---|---|---|
| Mingsha Mountain and Crescent Spring (鸣沙山月牙泉)Dunes wrapping a spring that has never dried up in millennia, a Silk Road landmark south of Dunhuang, with camel rides and sunsets. | Dunhuang, Gansu | Open May to October, at its best April to June and September to October |
| Badain Jaran Desert (巴丹吉林沙漠)Ranked China’s third-largest desert, holding a stationary megadune recorded as the world’s highest (Bilutu, about 500 m of relief) and some 140 permanent lakes; UNESCO World Heritage. | Alxa, Inner Mongolia | Open; deeper crossings must be registered September to November, and March to May |
| Kubuqi Desert (库布齐沙漠)Ranked China’s seventh-largest desert and the nearest one to Beijing; the Xiangshawan singing-sand resort and a landmark desert-rehabilitation programme. | Ordos, Inner Mongolia | Open May to October |
| Tengger Desert (腾格里沙漠)Ranked China’s fourth-largest desert, with hundreds of dune lakes (Moon Lake, Swan Lake) and popular stargazing camps near Yinchuan. | Alxa, Inner Mongolia | Open April to June, and September to October |
| Ulan Buh Desert (乌兰布和沙漠)Ranked China’s eighth-largest desert, on the west bank of the Yellow River, where dunes meet the river and irrigated oases. | Bayannur, Inner Mongolia | Open May to October |
| Shapotou (沙坡头)Where the Tengger Desert meets the Yellow River, a national 5A site for sand-sliding, sheepskin rafts and a landmark desert-control railway. | Zhongwei, Ningxia | Open April to June, and September to October |
| Qaidam Basin Desert (柴达木盆地沙漠)Recorded as China’s highest desert region, in the Qaidam Basin, with salt lakes and the water-covered yardang at Wusute known as the ghost city. | Haixi, Qinghai | Open; entering the uninhabited zone must be registered May to October |
| Maowusu Sandy Land (毛乌素沙地)One of China’s four great sandy lands, largely greened by decades of afforestation; includes the Tongwancheng (Xixia) ruins. | Yulin, Shaanxi | Open May to October |
| Gurbantunggut Desert (古尔班通古特沙漠)Ranked China’s second-largest desert and recorded as its largest fixed and semi-fixed one, with saxaul forests and desert flora in the central Junggar Basin. | Changji (Urumqi metro area), Xinjiang | Open April to June, and September to October |
| Kumtag Desert (库木塔格沙漠)A desert that reaches a city, with dunes right south of Shanshan town, offering off-road dune-bashing and sunsets. | Turpan, Xinjiang | Open April to June, and September to October |
| Taklamakan Desert Highway (塔克拉玛干沙漠公路)Crosses the desert ranked the world’s second-largest shifting-sand desert; the Luntai to Minfeng highway runs 522 km through dunes and poplar groves along the Tarim River. | Bayingolin, Xinjiang | Open; may close at short notice in winter April to June, and September to October |
Working Out What Is Reachable
Several of these need a booking made on a Chinese platform, and a few need registering before you set out. Tell our local team where you will be and they will say which of these you can get into and which need arranging first.