抚顺市

Why this place

Fushun has one of the largest open-pit coal mines in Asia, dug since the early twentieth century, and it is also where the Manchus trace their origins — the town of Hetuala nearby was Nurhaci's first capital. The nearby tomb is the oldest of the Qing imperial tombs.

What to see

• Yongling, the tomb of Nurhaci's ancestors — the first Qing imperial tomb, in forest
• Hetuala city ruins and the Manchu origin sites in Xinbin county
• The Fushun open-pit mine, a vast man-made crater you can look down into

What to eat

• Northeast stews and pickles
• Wild mushrooms and mountain vegetables from the Changbai foothills

Best time

May–June and September–October