Qingdao
Qingdao is the seaside city of the north: a hilly German-built old town of red tiles and granite, beaches along the bay, and Laoshan's Taoist mountain at the end of the coast road. Three hours from Beijing and a different climate.
- Region
- Shandong, East
- Best months
- May–Jun, Sep–Oct
- Airports
- TAO
- Suggested stay
- 2–3 days
Overview
Germany held Qingdao for sixteen years and left it a cathedral, a governor's mansion, a brewery and a grid of villas on the hills above the harbour. The old town is the reason to come: walk up from the Zhanqiao pier through the granite streets to Signal Hill and look down over the roofs.
East of it the city becomes modern and long, following the coast for thirty kilometres past beaches, the Olympic sailing marina and the May Fourth Square towers. Laoshan, at the far end, is a real mountain dropping straight into the sea.
August brings the beer festival and the crowds. Early summer and autumn are clear and mild; the sea is warm enough from July into September.
Getting there
Jiaodong (TAO) is 40 kilometres north-west; metro line 8 reaches Qingdao North station in about an hour. High-speed trains from Beijing take around three hours, from Shanghai about four and a half, and from Jinan an hour and a half, arriving at Qingdao station on the old-town waterfront or Qingdao North on the metro.
Rail tip. Your passport is your ticket. Book on 12306 or Trip.com, then go straight to the gate. See Getting around.
Where to stay
Old town
老城区German villas, the pier, the cathedral. Stay on the hill.
Between Qingdao station and Signal Hill. Boutique hotels in restored houses along Guanhai and Huangxian Roads; the metro is at the station.
Badaguan and Taipingjiao
八大关·太平角A quiet villa quarter by the sea. Leafy and slow.
The eight streets named for eight passes, each planted with a different tree. Guesthouses in old villas, the second beach at the end of the road.
May Fourth Square and the marina
五四广场·奥帆中心The modern waterfront. Big hotels, night lights, an easy metro.
Chain hotels along Fushan Bay. Fine for arriving late; a taxi to the old town is fifteen minutes.
Things to do
Zhanqiao Pier
栈桥The pier on the beer label, with a pavilion at the end and the old town behind.
Badaguan
八大关Villas from the 1930s in every European style, under trees that change colour by street.
St Michael's Cathedral and Signal Hill
浙江路天主教堂·信号山The twin-towered cathedral and the hill above it with the whole old town laid out in red tiles.
Tsingtao Beer Museum
青岛啤酒博物馆The 1903 brewery, still working, with two glasses at the end. Better than it needs to be.
Laoshan
崂山A Taoist mountain falling into the sea, an hour east. Temples, granite and tea terraces.
Old Governor's Residence
青岛德国总督楼旧址The German governor's mansion of 1907, Jugendstil inside, granite outside.
Eat
Seafood, plainly cooked: clams stir-fried with chilli, sea urchin, mantis shrimp in season, grilled squid on the beach. Draft Tsingtao is sold by the bag from corner shops, unpasteurised and fresh from the brewery that morning. Shandong cooking means big flavours and wheat: pork bone soup, dumplings, and sesame shaobing from the ovens in the lanes behind Zhongshan Road.
From travellers in Qingdao
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