Tianjin

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Tianjin Gulou East Street 20150522 RM 111834, Tianjin, Tianjin, China

Tianjin Tower from River panoramio, Tianjin, Tianjin, China

View in front of north entrance of Guwenhuajie Street, Tianjin, Tianjin, China

Paifang on north entrance of Guwenhuajie Street 2, Tianjin, Tianjin, China

About Tianjin

Few Chinese cities wear their history as openly as Tianjin. Once the seaport for imperial Beijing, it became a treaty port after 1860, and nine foreign powers carved out concessions along the Hai River. The result is a megacity of more than 13 million where Qing-era temples, French cathedrals, Italian piazzas and British villas sit a short walk apart.

The river is the city's spine, lined with promenades, bridges lit up at night and the Tianjin Eye. Leafy Five Great Avenues and the restored Italian Style Town show off the concession architecture, while Ancient Culture Street keeps old crafts alive with clay figurines, woodblock New Year prints and kites. Food is a point of pride here: Goubuli steamed buns, crisp jianbing guozi pancakes and fried dough twists are local classics, and teahouses still stage xiangsheng comic crosstalk.

High-speed trains reach Beijing in about half an hour, making Tianjin an easy add-on to a capital trip. Farther out lie the striking Binhai Library and the Huangyaguan section of the Great Wall.

Best seasonApril to May and September to October, when it is mild and dry; summers are hot and winters cold and windy.

Ideal stayTwo to three days for the river, the concession quarters and a Great Wall or Binhai day trip.

ArrivingTianjin Binhai International Airport serves the city, and intercity high-speed trains from Beijing South reach Tianjin Station in about 30 minutes.

12 Unforgettable Things to Do in Tianjin

Landmarks 3

Tianjin Eye

This giant observation wheel stands right on top of Yongle Bridge, spanning the Hai River, and rises about 120 meters above the wa...

Porcelain House

On Chifeng Road in Heping District, an old French-style mansion was transformed by its owner into a fantastical showcase covered i...

Tianjin St. Joseph's Cathedral

Known locally as Xikai Church, this Catholic cathedral was completed in 1916 and is the largest church in Tianjin. Its facade of r...

Neighborhoods 3

Ancient Culture Street

Near the west bank of the Hai River, this pedestrian street of carved and painted Qing-style shopfronts is the place for tradition...

Italian Style Town

The only Italian concession ever established in China has been restored into a quarter of villas, arcades and piazzas in Hebei Dis...

Five Great Avenues

Wudadao, the Five Great Avenues, is a grid of quiet tree-lined roads in the former British Concession lined with more than 2,000 v...

Museums 1

Tianjin Museum

The city's main museum, at the Tianjin Cultural Center, gathers bronzes, jades, porcelain, calligraphy and classical paintings fro...

Arts 1

Tianjin Binhai Library

Opened in 2017 in the Binhai New Area, this library became famous for its atrium of curving white terraces that climb from floor t...

History 3

Wanghailou Church

Our Lady of Victories, better known as Wanghailou Church, was first built by French missionaries in 1869 near the junction of the...

Shi Family Grand Courtyard

In the old canal town of Yangliuqing, in Xiqing District, the Shi family residence is a sprawling Qing dynasty merchant compound o...

Huangyaguan Great Wall

In the hills of Jizhou District, far north of downtown, this restored Ming-era section of the Great Wall climbs steep ridges betwe...

Temples and Shrines 1

Dabeiyuan Monastery

Dating back to the early Qing dynasty, Dabeiyuan in Hebei District is the largest Buddhist monastery in Tianjin and still an activ...

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