10 Things to Do in Nanjing That You Shouldn't Miss

February 15, 2018 Concepcion Newsome

Nanjing ( listen), formerly romanized as Nanking and Nankin, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China and the second largest city in the East China region, with an administrative area of 6,600 km (2,500 sq mi) and a total population of 8,270,500 as of 2016. The inner area of Nanjing enclosed by the city wall is Nanjing City (南京城), with an area of 55 km (21 sq mi), while the Nanjing Metropolitan Region includes surrounding cities and areas, covering over 60,000 km (23,000 sq mi), with a population of over 30 million.
Restaurants in Nanjing

1. The Memorial of the Nanjing Massacre

No.418 Shuiximen Road, Jianye District | west bound Metro Line 2 / Yunjinlu Station Exit 2, Nanjing 210017, China +86 25 8661 2230
Excellent
66%
Good
25%
Satisfactory
7%
Poor
1%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 912 reviews

The Memorial of the Nanjing Massacre

Reviewed By liucy752 - Taipei, Taiwan

The Memorial Hall stands on the top of the biggest burial sites of the victims. The outdoor exhibition area displaces sculptures, relief carvings, and a large wall listing the names of victims.
The interior houses sheltered skeletal remains of victim, as well as a hall where exhibits historical records, documents and photographs.
The invading Japanese soldiers killed unarmed common people, elderly, women and children..........Crimes could be forgiven, but history should not be forgotten.
There have been so many wars in the history of mankind. People are always fighting for power, fame and wealth.......
No more wars. Pray for peace.

2. Nanjing Museum (Nanjing Bowuyuan)

No.321 Zhongshan East Road, Nanjing 210004, China +86 25 8480 2119
Excellent
63%
Good
28%
Satisfactory
7%
Poor
1%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 251 reviews

Nanjing Museum (Nanjing Bowuyuan)

Reviewed By Epicurius_at_large - Hong Kong

Presumably the 2nd largest museum in Mainland China. Nanjing Museum houses vast collection of ceramics and pottery excavated from ancient tombs in regions around Yangtze River Delta. There are 15+ exhibition halls. Permanent collection is arranged in chronological order starting from pre-historic times. Artefacts are presented professionally. Restroom are CLEAN, at least during non-peak season. Admission is FREE.

3. Xuanwu lake

No.1 Xuanwu Road, Xuanwu District, Nanjing 210042, China +86 25 5771 7414
Excellent
52%
Good
36%
Satisfactory
10%
Poor
1%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 600 reviews

Xuanwu lake

Reviewed By Thorpie77

Lots to see in this pretty space. Full of locals and nice to visit late afternoon. Would go back to this place.

4. XuanWu Park

No.1 Xuanwu Alley, Xuanwu District, Nanjing 210018, China +86 25 8361 4286
Excellent
47%
Good
44%
Satisfactory
8%
Poor
1%
Terrible
0%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 358 reviews

XuanWu Park

Reviewed By HD_Lew

The park consists of serveral Islands and it will be quite confusing to wonder around. You can access the park via subway station- Xuanwumen or Jiming Temple. I came from the Jiming temple station since I visited the Jiming Temple before the lake.
I took the touring car at the entrance (available at both entrances) for 30 yuan which included a guided 30 min tour to all island (only mandarin available). The driver would drop you off close to either of the entrance exits towards the subway.

5. Sun Yatsen Mausoleum (Zhongshan Ling)

No.2 Sifangcheng, Zhongshanling Road, Xuanwu District, Nanjing 210009, China +86 25 8444 6111
Excellent
46%
Good
40%
Satisfactory
12%
Poor
1%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 1 reviews

Sun Yatsen Mausoleum (Zhongshan Ling)

Reviewed By emichan89 - Shanghai, China

This is a beautiful mausoleum and an apt homage to Sun Yatsen, with a combination of Western and Chinese architecture. Make sure to look up when you're inside the mausoleum - the ceiling is stunning. Sun's words are written on the walls, too. There are 392 steps representing the 392 million Chinese alive when Sun passed away. Sun is considered the father of modern China both by Taiwan and the PRC and is respected by all Chinese. Don't expect much historical information here, as it is a mausoleum and not a museum. Be prepared to walk multiple miles.

6. Xiaoling Tomb of Ming Dynasty

Wengzhong Road, Xuanwu District, Nanjing 210018, China +86 25 8444 6111
Excellent
49%
Good
41%
Satisfactory
9%
Poor
1%
Terrible
0%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 407 reviews

Xiaoling Tomb of Ming Dynasty

Reviewed By GAN L

The sacred path consists of two sections. The Stone Elephant road, 615m long is the first section. Along the road, we saw six kinds of stone animals - lions, Xiezhi, unicorns, horses, camels, elephants. The animals are imposing in look and bold in style. They indicate the loftiness, sanctity and gloriousness of the Imperial Ming tombs. They are also a symbolic effect of guarding the tomb against the evil spirits. Wengzhong Path, 250m long constitutes the second section. Flanked by a pair of balusters, two pairs of generals and two pairs of civil officials. The statues stand there with great dignity, guarding the tombs with their loyalty.

7. Purple Mountain (Zijin Shan)

Outside Zhongshanmen , Xuanwu District, Nanjing 210018, China
Excellent
45%
Good
47%
Satisfactory
6%
Poor
1%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 278 reviews

Purple Mountain (Zijin Shan)

Reviewed By norex2 - Ljubljana, Slovenia

Coming down from this mountain was one of the hardest things we ever did. Let me explain.
We decided to trek around, because the reviews warned us to be prepared for lots of walking. Nothing could prepare us for what we experienced. We wanted to take the cable car up to the Mountain Hill. Even though the bulding where they sell tickets was open, the staff workers were there, the cable cars were not moving. The staff didn't speak any English and couldn't explain to us why that is so. Not being able to take the cable car didn't stop us. We decided to walk. Be prepared for the most slippery road ever, which makes walking uphill very tricky. There are no signs and you have no idea how long do you have to go till. Finally, after 2 hours of walking uphill we reached the Planteriaum, which looked abandoned and we didn't go inside and saw it. We walked on, still trying to reach the top thath the cable car (if working) would reach in 15 minutes. After another hour we gave up, because the top of the hill was still 3 hourse away we later realized - we are not slow walkers! Then we decided to come down the mountain - it's as hard as to get up the mountain. Again, there are no signs. We took the path that was supposed to take us down, only to find a locked iron gate with a stone gate going all around it and could not pass. The only way was to go back up again and find another way down. After much trial and error we successfully cane down the mountain. We did not see the national park, but could care less. Nanjing has a lottttttttt to offer, Purple Mountain however to me is not it!

8. Nanjing City Wall (Ming City Wall)

Nanjing 210001, China +86 512 6561 0149
Excellent
43%
Good
42%
Satisfactory
13%
Poor
1%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

4 based on 389 reviews

Nanjing City Wall (Ming City Wall)

Reviewed By GAN L

Thanks to the founder of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, the city wall of Nanjing was erected. The wall was to consolidate his sovereignty and keep out invaders. This city wall of Nanjing was among the largest city walls ever constructed in China. This 600 year old city wall of Nanjing still stands. Originally, 13 gates were built through Nanjing's walls but this number had grown to 18 by the end of the Qing dynasty. Of the 13 original gates, only Zhonghua Gate and Heping Gate are still standing.Walking along the Ming Wall of Nanjing evokes a spirit of times gone by.

9. Presidential palace of Nanjing

No.292 East Changjiang Road, Baixia District, Nanjing 210018, China +86 25 8457 8718
Excellent
41%
Good
44%
Satisfactory
13%
Poor
1%
Terrible
1%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 738 reviews

Presidential palace of Nanjing

Reviewed By Mark B

Weekends and holidays are very, very crowded, which isn’t a huge problem in winter but would be oppressive in the hot summer. If you don’t speak Chinese or come without a Chinese speaker then you might want to get an audio guide to get the most out of it. It’s a big site with plenty to explore, allow yourself 2-4 hours depending on crowds and how much time you take to view.
It was surprisingly apolitical view of the original KMT Government, even complimentary, which was slightly surprising but welcome.

10. Jiming Temple

No.1 Jiming Temple, Xuanwu District, Nanjing 210008, China +86 25 8360 0842
Excellent
40%
Good
49%
Satisfactory
10%
Poor
1%
Terrible
0%
Overall Ratings

4.5 based on 236 reviews

Jiming Temple

Reviewed By Jarko2015 - Amsterdam, The Netherlands

This is a very special temple and well worth not only the visit but the RMB25 entrance fee. However, the temple is built onto a hillside and visiting requires climbing many, many, very steep stone stairways. Also, the site is spread out left and right, so going up and down to see different halls is pretty much the norm. If you are fit enough for the challenge, it's well worth it. The main pagoda is a bit hard to find, but well worth it as the base courtyard has some wonderful white marble carvings. One of the temples is filled with orchids. It's definitely a must see, but it will be hard on the knees.

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