三明市

Why this place

Sanming is a mountainous inland prefecture of Fujian, with the best-preserved Hakka villages in the province and a landscape of terraced hills and forest. It is where the Fujian tulou style shades into the Hakka villages of the interior.

What to see

• Taining — the 'Hakka ancient city' with its intact Ming walls and lanes
• Taining's world-geopark danxia landscape, with the Shangqing river gorge
• The Hakka villages of the Datian and Youxi valleys

What to eat

• Hakka cuisine — braised pork, tofu stuffed and dried, and preserved vegetables
• Sanming is known for its bamboo shoots and its medicinal herbs

Best time

March–May and October–December