Not the best city — the one that's yours

One day I was chatting with a friend from abroad. She's from a country in Africa, loves lively, glittering city nights, and adores spicy food. She told me she wanted to visit a quaint little Jiangnan water town she'd seen on TikTok — but that very spot had already been destroyed in a fire. In that moment I knew: even if she went, the place would likely let her down.

So instead of agreeing, I stopped to think about who she really was and what she'd truly love — and pointed her to a different city that fit her far better. As I talked with more and more friends, I found everyone's tastes, travel companions, ages and home countries were different — yet they shared one thing: beyond Shanghai and Beijing, they knew almost nothing about China.

When I'm not working, what I love most is travel and hiking. I've been to Lijiang, Guilin and Yunnan, to the dunes of Xiangshawan and the grasslands of Xinjiang and Hohhot; farther afield, I've landed by helicopter on a glacier in New Zealand, wandered between Singapore's Flower Dome and its skyline, joined a study tour in Japan, and studied in Australia.

I love the buzz of big cities and the quiet of Jiangnan; I love animals, and I love flowers and plants. Having moved across so many landscapes and moods myself, I'm more certain than ever: there is no "best city" — only the city that's the best fit for you.

China is vast — so much more than a handful of first-tier cities. Someone who craves the buzz, someone who longs for quiet, a family traveling with grandparents and kids, a young person setting off alone — they should never be handed the same answer.

I built China Travel Co so that more people can reach the city where they'll experience China deeply and feel a joy that's truly their own. That's why you'll find a "draw a sign" feature to discover your travel persona, and a carefully crafted complete guide for every city — so the hardest question, "where should I go," is answered by someone who really knows China and is glad to think one step further for you.

— To everyone ready to meet the real China