How to Plan a Trip to Nanjing

Nanjing has a humid subtropical climate with four distinctive seasons and an annual average temperature of 15 °C. It is suitable to visit Nanjing all year round except for the scorching summer. The weather is most comfortable and the scenery is most beautiful from March to June and September to November.

Spring (March to May): 5 °C ~ 26 °C. It is windy, chilly and getting warm gradually. When spring comes, you can enjoy many beautiful flowers in Purple Mountain, Jiming Temple, Mochou Lake, and take a boat on Xuanwu Lake.

Summer (June to August): 21 °C ~ 32 °C. Nanjing is one of the hottest cities in China and summer is also the rainy season. You can visit some indoors attractions such as the Presidential Palace and Nanjing Museum or take a sightseeing boat along Qinhuai River at night.

Autumn (September to November): 12°C ~ 27°C. Nanjing in autumn has fine weather with cool days. Many places in Nanjing are dyed into fabulous colors, such as Dr. Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum in Zhongshan Scenic Area. You can also appreciate the annual chrysanthemum flowers exhibition in Xuanwu Lake or have an autumn hiking on Qixia Mountain.

Winter (December to February): -1°C ~ 17°C. Nanjing gets cold and dry in winter and it snows sometimes. You will have a chance to see the ancient Nanjing covered in white snow, admire colorful plum flowers in Mochou Lake, and take part in the Jinling Lantern Show in the Confucius Temple Area.

▶ Helpful Link: Nanjing Weather & Best Time to Go

Flights to Nanjing

Nanjing Lukou International Airport (南京禄口国际机场) is about 42 km (45min by car, 1.5h by metro) to Nanjing downtown (Xinjiekou). It has over has 135 domestic and 23 international air routes, reaching 115 destinations at home and abroad, including Beijing (2h), Guangzhou (2h15min), Chengdu (2.5h), Xian (2h), Guilin (2h), Kunming (2h40min), Chongqing (2h), Hong Kong and foreign cities like Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, Osaka and Nagoya in Japan, etc. Multiple airport shuttle buses and subway line S1 connects the airport and other parts of Nanjing conveniently.

▶ Helpful Link: Nanjing Transportation

For cities that are not too far away from Nanjing, it is very convenient to get to Nanjing by high speed train. There are many frequent daily high speed trains to Nanjing from Beijing (3-5h), Shanghai (1-2.5h), Hangzhou (1.5-5.5h), Suzhou (45min-2.5h), Huangshan (3-4h), Wuhan (2.5-3.5h), Wuxi (45min-1.5h), etc. There are mainly 2 railway stations serving Nanjing, which are Nanjing South Railway Station and Nanjing Railway Station. Nanjing South Railway Station is for high speed trains only and Nanjing Railway Station has both high speed trains and normal trains. Both railway stations are conveniently connected with Nanjing downtown with metro.

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Covering a length of 25.1 km, Nanjing City Wall is the largest and longest city wall preserved in the world. It was firstly built in A.D. 1366 by Zhu Yuanzhang - the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty to consolidate his sovereignty and keep out invaders. 27 years later, this consummate city wall was finished. Nanjing City Wall is the best place to appreciate Nanjing's antique flavor. Standing on the wall, you can imagine how flourishing Nanjing could be one thousand years ago. In the daytime, you can also have great views of the Xuanwu Lake, Purple Mountain and the tower of Jiming Temple. When the night falls, the wall is nicely lit-up.

Known as one of the Four Famed Mountains in South China, Purple Mountain perches in the east side of Nanjing City like a tortuous dragon. It gets the name because its peaks are often found enveloped in mysterious purple and golden clouds at dawn and dusk. The main peak of this mountain reaches about 450 meters high. No matter when you visit Purple Mountain, you can enjoy a great natural view. In spring, you can see many beautiful flowers in blossom, like orchids, sakuras, begonias, etc. In autumn, the whole mountain will be dyed into various colors from yellow to scarlate. When it snows in winter, the Purple Mountain is one of the best places of Nanjing to see snow view. In addition to the spectacular natural landscape, you can see an assembly of historic sites (more than 200 attractions), including Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum, Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum, Meiling Palace etc.

Nanjing Confucius Temple, built in A.D. 1034 during the Song Dynasty, has a history of about 1000 years. It was built to worship Confucius, the great thinker and educator of ancient China and the founder of Confucianism. The whole temple covers a huge area, mainly consisting of Confucius Temple, Studying Hall and Gongyuan. Gongyuan is the largest imperial examination hall in the Ming and Qing Dynasties (1368~1912), so you can take a glimpse of Chinese imperial examination system. Next to Confucius Temple is the beautiful Qinhuai River, while wandering around, you can find busy pedestrian shopping streets with famous coffee stores and nice snack stands.

Besides the attractions mentioned above, there are many other places to explore. Presidential Palace is a great place to learn modern history of China and enjoy classic garden. Nanjing Museum is one of the top three museums in China. There are not only many valuable collections, but also a gallery that duplicates the old Nanjing 100 years ago. Memorial Hall of the Victims in Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders tells a sad past of Nanjing in World War II. Here we will know how cruel the war is and cherish the peaceful life we have today. If you are a Buddhist, you can pay a homage to Niushou Mountain where the world's only parietal bone relics of Sakyamuni is preserved. You can also enjoy Nanjing city view and see local people's life in Xuanwu Lake area, pay a visit to the oldest and most important imperial temple in Nanjing - Jiming Temple, or to Qixia Mountain which is reputed as "the first bright and elegant mountain of Jinling" by Emperor Qianlong.

▶ Helpful Link: Things to Do in Nanjing

Apart from Nanjing, there are some other destinations worth a go in Jiangsu. Suzhou, the city of garden and silk, has always been an attractive city since ancient times. You can spend 2 days exploring the elegant gardens (Humble Administrator's Garden, Lingering Garden, Master of the Nets Garden, etc.), getting a close contact with gentle silk in Suzhou No. 1 Silk Factory, and visiting water towns such as Zhouzhuang, Tongli and Luzhi...Wuxi is another beautiful city with splendid Taihu Lake scenery, sacred Buddhist land and great gardens. It needs about 2 days to explore this city. Besides, you can pay a short visit to Yangzhou - a flourishing city with historical sites and Changzhou - a relaxing city with entertaining experience.

Most travelers choose to travel Nanjing with nearby Shanghai and Hangzhou. Shanghai is a fascinating city with sky-kissing skyscrapers, different European architectures, informative museums, traditional blocks and various theme parks and so on. Spending 2~3 days in Shanghai, you can fully experience what present China looks like. Since the ancient times, Hangzhou and Suzhou enjoy equal popularity among travelers and eulogized by poets and emperors. The dreamy panoramas of West Lake will always tempt visitors into long sojourns. Besides, you are able to taste unique Hangzhou food and famous Longjing tea, watch one of the best night shows, savor Chinese Buddhist fragrance, etc. Some travelers also choose to extend their Nanjing tour to Huangshan (Yellow Mountain) for a memorable visual sightseeing trip. You will not only be awed at the breathtaking natural view of Yellow Mountain, but also savor the painting-like white-walled gray-title architectures in Huizhou Villages, like Hongcun Village and Xidi Village.

▶ Helpful Links: Shanghai Travel Guide | Hangzhou Travel Guide | Huangshan Travel Guide | Yangtze Delta Tours

China is a vast land with countless natural and cultural wonders. No matter you want to see the grand royal palaces or the tranquil rural villages, appreciate the modern charm or the ancient civilazation, admire the natural landscape or manmade miracles, you can get plenty of choices. In Beijing, lots of UNESECO World Cultural Heritage Sites - like imperial palaces, gardens, great wall, etc. show you the dazzling treasures of Chinese history and culture. In Xian, the world-famous archaeological finds - Terracotta Warriors, as well as many other centuries-old sites make you imagine how glorious this old city used to be. In Guilin, the captivating karst landscape lets you know how magical the nature would be. Moreover, you could have a close contact with the world’s most adorable animal - Giant Pandas in Chengdu, admire the real Avatar World in Zhangjiajie, the colorful nationalities of China in Yunnan, savor a relaxing cruise journey along the Yangtze River, get amazed by the high-altitude views in Tibet… No matter you are interested in nature, culture, history, hiking, photography, food, or something else, just contact us to customize a tour according to your own interest.

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Nanjing is an international city with many hotel choices ranging from luxury 5-star hotels to budget 3-star hotels. People usually accommodate in Nanjing downtown near Xinjiekou area because there are many shopping malls and multiple metro lines to most attractions in Nanjing. If you want to see the amazing nightview of Nanjing, you can find a hotel in Confucius Temple Area along Qinhuai River. It is one of the busiest areas in Nanjing at night and extremely beautiful with colorful lights on. If you prefer a quieter environment with good natural scenery, Xuanwu Lake Area is recommended. There are many hotels around this beautiful lake and it is nice to take a walk in gentle breeze. Transportation hubs such as railway stations and airport also has many hotel options, you can tell us your needs and we will choose a suitable hotel for you.

▶ Helpful Link: Where to Stay in Nanjing

In order to get a pleasant Nanjing tour, traveling with China Discovery is strongly recommended. China Discovery is a leading travel agency with rich experience in offering high-quality and customizable China tour packages. Before your tour, our travel expert will contact you and make an itinerary according your own interest, need and budget. Every detail - transfer, hotels, attractions, etc. will be arranged well for you. As you arrive, our local travel guide and driver will pick you up at the airport or train station with an air-conditioned and non-smoking vehicle, and then escort you to your hotel or every attraction listed in your itinerary. Great freedom will be given to you whenever you need to stop for sightseeing and photograph. Feel free to contact us to start your worry-free private tour now

Since 2012, we have helped numerous customers visit Nanjing and surroundings. With our fully-inclusive private tour packages, all of our customers enjoyed their trips to the ancient city wall, beautiful Purple Mountain, informative Nanjing Museum, charming Qinhuai River, etc. Some of them kindly shared their precious photos and stories about their Nanjing journey, just get inspired now.

"This is my second time to ask China Discovery to organize a private tour for a group of 12 people to visit Huangshan, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Suzhou, Shanghai and other cities close-by…" - shared by Mr. Ban (Check his Travel China with Family and Friends for 3 Consecutive Years - Mr. Ban's Group Traveled Different Parts of China from the North to Southwest and Southeast)

Besides the wonderful travel stories, many customers who visited Nanjing with China Discovery also send us their first-hand feedbacks about their trip, feel free to read the Customer Reviews and learn what they say about their experience. If you want to start your Nanjing tour now, don't hesitate to contact us.