河南省

Why this place

Henan is where Chinese history begins in earnest: Anyang's oracle bones are the earliest writing, Luoyang was the capital of thirteen dynasties, Kaifeng was the largest city in the world in the eleventh century, and Dengfeng's Song Mountain holds the Shaolin Temple. It also has the Yellow River and the country's best collections of early bronzes.

What to see

• Luoyang's Longmen Grottoes, the White Horse Temple and the peony gardens in April
• Anyang's Yinxu and the oracle bones; the Henan Museum in Zhengzhou
• Kaifeng's Iron Pagoda and its night markets
• Dengfeng: the Shaolin Temple, the Song Mountain and the oldest observatory in China
• The Yellow River and the Hukou waterfall, on the Shanxi border

What to eat

• Henan's lamb and noodle cooking — hui mian, braised noodles and the local flag-bread
• Kaifeng's soup dumplings and its night-market repertoire
• Luoyang's water banquet, served as a sequence of soups

How to plan

A week: Zhengzhou one, Luoyang two, Kaifeng one, Dengfeng one, plus Anyang.

Best time

April–May (peonies in mid-April) and September–October

Practical tips

• Zhengzhou is the rail hub — build the trip outward from there

Cities 17

郑州市 Zhengzhou开封市 Kaifeng洛阳市 Luoyang平顶山市 Pingdingshan安阳市 Anyang鹤壁市 Hebi新乡市 Xinxiang焦作市 Jiaozuo濮阳市 Puyang许昌市 Xuchang漯河市 Luohe三门峡市 Sanmenxia南阳市 Nanyang商丘市 Shangqiu信阳市 Xinyang周口市 Zhoukou驻马店市 Zhumadian