China Travel Guides & Trip Planning

A paper-textured collage connecting a Xinjiang snow mountain, a horseback traveler, Amu, and the Shanghai skyline.

Plan my Shanghai stay · USD 59 per group Read the free Shanghai guide

01 / How I can help

Choose the help your journey needs.

Visiting China Driving into China Mountains & expeditions

China Travel Survival Guide — card image — © China with Amu

Essentials, cities & regional tripsChina

Visiting China

Arrival, payments, city stays and longer regional journeys.

5 essential checksChecked Aug 2026

Explore this path

China Self-Drive — card image — © China with Amu

Bringing your own vehicleChina

Driving into China

Borders, customs, road documents and route feasibility.

7 core guidesChecked Aug 2026

Explore this path

Muztagh Ata above a dark lakeshore after dusk — © © China with Amu

High-altitude planningChina

Mountains & Expeditions

Altitude, permits, Base Camp systems and local context.

7,546 mKashgar17 sections

Explore this path

02 / Places

Places I know firsthand.

Not a directory of China—just places I have lived in, returned to, worked in or explored closely.

Explore all places

01/ Shanghai

Shanghai

City walks, arrival routes, neighbourhoods and ordinary local days in the city Amu now calls home.

Explore Shanghai

02/ Xinjiang

Xinjiang

Mountain country, long roads, local knowledge and the region where Amu grew up.

Explore Xinjiang

03 / Other journeys

Something beyond the Shanghai plan?

Private days, mountain journeys, road trips and more complex ideas are reviewed separately.

Ask about another trip

04 / About Amu

From Kashgar, based in Shanghai.

Amu is an engineer, photographer and outdoor organiser. The guides here grow from places he has lived in, returned to, travelled through and helped other people experience.

Amu designs the plan and coordinates the details. When a trip includes a licensed local guide or specialist provider, that role is made clear before payment.

More about Amu

A stretch of life at Muztagh Ata with climbing teams from Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Austria — long days, shared meals, changing weather, and a lot of time together in the mountains. — Camp life and days on the mountain with international climbing teams at Muztagh Ata.Xinjiang, China · 2026

A group of hikers climbing through green tea-covered hills in Jiuxi, Hangzhou, on a sunny day. — I organized and led this day through Jiuxi and the tea hills of Hangzhou, bringing a mixed group together for a day on the trail.Jiuxi, Hangzhou, China · 2026

A group standing at a mountain base camp in Xinjiang, with yellow expedition tents and snow-covered peaks behind them. — Back at base camp with the French and Austrian climbing team we were hosting with Xinjiang Mountaineering Association.Muztagh Ata Base Camp, Xinjiang, China · 2026

A hiking group beside the water and walking through a narrow rocky gorge in Hanfeijiang, Hangzhou. — A day in Hangzhou’s Hanfeijiang, moving through rain, rock, and quiet green water with the group.Hanfeijiang, Hangzhou, China · 2026

A group of hikers on Yushan in Changshu, with smaller photographs from the day showing forest trails, viewpoints and people hiking together. — A day on Yushan in Changshu, bringing a group together for forest trails, viewpoints and plenty of time to get to know each other along the way.Suzhou, China · 2026

Bolin Peak with a group that came together in Chongqing — some living there, some only passing through China. — Chongqing, China · 2024

China with Amu

Visiting China

Driving into China

Mountains & Expeditions

Shanghai

Xinjiang

Something beyond the Shanghai plan?