Nanjing Travel Guide

Best: Late March to early April (cherry blossom season! Jimingsi Road + Xuanwu Lake Cherry Blossom Island), October-November (golden plane trees, stunning autumn colors in Zhongshan Scenic Area). Not bad: May (early summer), September (early autumn), December (Qinhuai Lantern Festival preparation period). Avoid: July-August (one of China's "Four Furnaces," extremely hot and humid), before winter break (student crowds). Must-see: Autumn at the Ming Xiaoling Sacred Way (Stone Elephant Road) ginkgo — the most beautiful 600 meters! Nanjing summer discouragement rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐, feels-like temperature 40°C+.

Airport: Lukou Airport (NKG) is 36km from the city center; Metro Line S1 takes about 1h (8 yuan); taxi costs 120-150 yuan. Metro: Well-developed network, 10 lines covering major attractions and commercial districts. Scan QR code via Alipay. Train: Nanjing South Station (high-speed rail hub, one of Asia's largest railway stations), Nanjing Station (by Xuanwu Lake, nice scenery). Bus: Convenient urban bus service; bus routes along Wutong Avenue offer beautiful scenery. DiDi: Available. Taxi flagfall fare is 11 yuan. Foreign visitors: Can link international credit cards or ask the hotel to call a taxi.

Nanjing cuisine (Jinling cuisine) features: moderate saltiness and umami, emphasis on knife skills and heat control, skilled at cooking duck. Must-eat: salted duck (osmanthus duck is the most famous), duck blood vermicelli soup (Huiwei duck blood vermicelli), xiaolongbao (Jiming soup dumplings), beef potstickers (Jiang Youji), pidu noodles, red bean yuanxiao, sugar taro sprouts, duck fat flaky flatbread. Spice level: overall not spicy, mainly salty and umami. A small portion of snacks are mildly spicy. Halal: Yes! There are halal time-honored brands around Fuzimiao. Beef potstickers are mostly made in halal style. Food districts: Fuzimiao (many tourists), Laomendong (artsy vibe, many branches of time-honored brands), Shiziqiao (locals' favorite).

2 days: D1 Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum (free, reservation required) + Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum + Meiling Palace + Linggu Temple; D2 Presidential Palace + Confucius Temple & Qinhuai River (night view a must-see) + Laomendong. 4-day in-depth: add D3 Nanjing Museum (one of China's three major museums, free with reservation) + Grand Bao'en Temple Ruins + Yuhuatai, D4 Xuanwu Lake + Jiming Temple (stunning cherry blossoms in spring) + Ming City Wall. Budget (per person): budget type 800-1500 yuan / comfort type 2000-3500 yuan / light luxury type 4000-6000 yuan. Nanjing prices are moderate, attraction tickets are on the expensive side (Presidential Palace 40, Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum 70, Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum free).