ChinaRoam
ChinaRoam
Metro routes that work, tickets you can actually book, food you can order, and the payment hacks no guidebook prints — city by city.
One of China's four great ancient capitals — 100,000 cave Buddhas at Longmen and the first Buddhist temple in the country.
High-speed rail from Zhengzhou (40 min), Xi'an (1.5h) and Beijing (3.5h). Luoyang Beijiao Airport is small — most fly into Zhengzhou and ride the rail.
Metro Lines 1–2 + DiDi. Longmen is 20 min from downtown by taxi/metro.
Shaolin Temple in Dengfeng is ~90 min by bus/tour — most visitors do it as a day trip from Luoyang or Zhengzhou.
UNESCO — 100,000+ Buddhist statues carved into a river gorge over 400 years. The giant Vairocana Buddha is unmissable.
Reserve: Booking recommended
China's first Buddhist temple (AD 68), now with Thai, Indian and Burmese temple pavilions.
Reserve: None
A superb collection of Han and Tang relics from the ancient capitals.
Reserve: Passport booking recommended
The lantern-lit old quarter of towers and temples, with the city's famous water banquet streets.
Reserve: None
Luoyang is the peony capital — April's flowering season fills the gardens with blooms.
Reserve: None
The imperial 24-dish soup-heavy banquet — Luoyang's signature, best shared.
Cold sesame noodles — the light local lunch.
The hearty lamb-and-noodle stew of the central plains.
Soup dumplings from the old town.
Spring (April, peony season) and autumn (Oct). Summers are hot and humid.
Go at opening to beat tour groups; the grottoes face the river west — late afternoon has good light.
Alipay everywhere; night-market stalls take cash — carry ¥100–200.
Little English — translation app essential.
ChinaRoam is a crowdsourced guide to traveling China, built for foreign visitors. We started with the city guides that everyone needs but nobody could find in English: how do I actually pay? How do I book a museum with my passport? Which metro line goes where?
Unlike tourist agencies and travel portals, every entry here is written by travelers who have been on the ground — and every guide is open for anyone to correct and improve. It's a living guidebook, not a static one.
Prices, opening hours, and visa rules change. Treat every entry as a strong hint, not gospel — check official sources for things that matter. And if you spot something wrong, correct it: that's the whole point.
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