黄山

Why this place

Huangshan is the landscape Chinese painters spent a thousand years depicting: granite peaks rising out of cloud, twisted pines growing straight out of bare rock, and hot springs at the foot. It is a UNESCO site and it earns its reputation — the sea of cloud at dawn is genuinely unlike anywhere else.

What to see

• The sunrise from Guangmingding or Lion Peak — the reason to stay on the mountain overnight
• The Beginning-to-Believe Peak and the West Sea canyon's cliff walk
• The hot springs at the foot, and the Tang-dynasty heritage of the area
• The UNESCO villages of Hongcun and Xidi, at the mountain's foot

What to eat

• Anhui mountain food: bamboo shoots, wild herbs and preserved vegetables
• Huangshan Maofeng tea, grown on the mountain's slopes

How to plan

Two days: up one day, sleep on the summit, sunrise, down the next. Add a day for Hongcun.

Best time

April–May and October–November; winter is beautiful under snow and far emptier, but some paths close

Practical tips

• The mountain is 3,000+ stone steps of walking even with the cable cars — book the summit hotels months ahead in peak season