From amazing food to breathtaking landscapes, the world's highest mountains to exotic cultures and the bright lights of Beijing, China is a vast and fascinating destination with so much to offer it's difficult to know where to start
We quizzed Peter Ellegard, writer of the AA Key Guide to China, on what to do, see and eat in China.
What food should travellers sample when in China?
It depends how adventurous they are! I try to go there with a very open mind and I'm pretty much game for anything, but I have tried a few things that turned my stomach. Things like camel hump, fried insect, fried scorpion, fried silkworms and even little birds.
Some of the food on offer would not appeal to a lot of people. What you see a lot of is chickens' feet. And these are delicacies; it's not just that they're eating anything, it's something they prize. One of the most memorable dishes for me was when I was an honoured guest sitting next to the Communist party secretary, and I was presented with a dish that had a chicken's head on it - just the head. And of course the whole table was looking at me as I sat there picking at the chicken's face.
But seriously, there are so many different regional cuisines, but each one has something that makes them very special. In the south you have Cantonese cuisine including Dim Sum, then in the east you've got Yung Chow fried rice - it comes from Yangzhou, in Jiangsu province, with lots of delicate flavours, and most dumplings come from that area.
Then Sichuan province is known for its fiery cuisine, where you also get very spicy and tangy food with a lot of flavour. And then of course there are favourites like aromatic duck. It's worth trying every cuisine, and you can find them all in Beijing. Experiment, be bold, be brave!
Which would you say are the top five must-sees in Beijing?
The Forbidden City; the Great Wall, which is just outside Beijing but you can easily do it in half a day or a day trip; then you have the Summer Palace, which is definitely worth seeing and isn't always on people's itineraries; the Temple of Heaven, which is a fascinating place and one of my favourites; and the Emperors' Tombs, which are on the way to the Great Wall.
What do you think the Olympic Games are doing for China's tourism industry?
I think the games are making China much more visible to the outside world - it's always been a very unknown destination and people have been wary or even afraid of it. But the Olympics is firing a curiosity about China that people want to satisfy.
The TV coverage that's already starting will increase people's desire to know more. I think people have a stereotyped view of china; they see it as being just a mass of people. And when you go there, yes there is that, and when you land in Beijing and see the streets full of people and bicycles and cars it can be overwhelming, but when you go to other places you see a totally different side of China.
Do you think the smog in Beijing will affect the Olympic athletes?
They're worried about that and certainly in the summer the heat is going to be a factor. They will be banning traffic at the time, bringing in a lot of measures to reduce pollution and they're moving some factories out away from the city. So they're taking measures to alleviate it.
Smog's not unique to Beijing either, Beijing does have problems with pollution but it's no different to other big cities - it happened in Athens and Atlanta, and London may well face the same situation so I think it's a little unfair to single out Beijing.
What visible effects of communism would tourists notice in China?
In Tiananmen Square in Beijing you can still see the austere buildings and the People's Liberation Army marching out and raising the flag, and on TV the Communist Party broadcasts. But in many other areas you wouldn't even be aware that China is a communist country.
Is it difficult travelling in China with the language?
It's the biggest challenge. It's easy to travel around, but if you don't stick to the major destinations, some of the sights might not be in English and the people may not speak English so it helps to have a guide to meet you when you arrive at places. I think travelling around alone would be beyond most people.
But if you do learn just a handful of words, little things like 'thank you' and 'you're welcome,' that will raise a smile and break down barriers. Chinese people are very embracing of foreigners. What people may well find is that they suddenly get strangers coming up to them who want their photos taken next to them. It's an innocence you don't see in many parts of the world.
So are locals surprised to see Westerners in China?
Even in big cities they are, yes. That happened to me in the centre of Beijing, strangers asking to have their photo taken with me, which you wouldn't get in London, for example. And if you go to some of the out of the way places the locals don't see western tourists at all and they're very curious.
How much do basics like a pint of beer or a meal in a restaurant cost?
If you're in a big city then you are going to pay city prices, but it's still going to be cheap compared to Western cities. If you go to a Westernised bar you're going to be paying Western prices, the equivalent of £3, £4 or even £5 for a drink, so it's not cheap. But then if you go to a Chinese bar or a local restaurant you can have a meal and drinks very cheaply.
What about China might surprise someone who hasn't been there?
The size; the beauty of some of the landscapes just defies description in places, it just takes your breath away; and the people. China has over 50 minority groups and they all have their own customs and dialects, and a lot of them still dress in their traditional dress - it's not something they just do for the tourists.
That might surprise people, the fact that there is still a feeling that you're in a very foreign place and people do live their lives in a way we've lost - we've become homogenised but the Chinese still maintain customs the same way they always have.
Peter Ellegard's top Chinese must-sees outside Beijing
'It has Ming-era city walls which you can walk on, and a fascinating Muslim quarter as it was one of China's ancient capitals and was where the Silk Road started and Marco Polo visited,' says Ellegard.
'It's a very different type of China but it's fascinating,' he says. 'There's so much vitality and it's a fast growing centre of commerce, but it's got history as well, so there's a good a mix of old and new.'
'It's the gateway to the Tibetan plateau, so you have the flavour of Tibet and it's a beautiful place, a UNESCO world heritage site with a lovely old town, which is preserved with a lot of ethnic colour and character.'
'The best part for me is the half-day boat trip down the Li River to Yangshuo, a beautiful town surrounded by the limestone peaks,' says Ellegard. 'That's how you can best see these amazing mountains, and you have to spend a night there.'
'It's definitely worth doing despite the fact they've built the dam - the dam itself is an attraction now.'
'It used to be known as Canton and is often overlooked but it's a fascinating city.'
'If you love pandas you can go and see them at the breeding centre and even take a day trip to go out to the mountain reserve Wolong - if you're lucky you may see a lot of panda cubs.'
'It translates as Nine Villages Valley, for the nine Tibetan villages that were once there,' says Ellegard. 'Several of them are still there, and the area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.'
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