Travel Guide: Kaiping

Around 3 hours from Hong Kong by ferry, the little-known city of Kaiping is great for a weekend break. We organised a tour with MICE2CHINA where all meals, transport, a tour guide, entrance fees and one-night hotel stay was included in the price. Departing at 8:30am on a Saturday morning from China Ferry Terminal in Tsim Sha Tsui to Jiangmen, your guide will pick you up from the port and take you straight to lunch for some juicy roast goose.

Kaiping’s attraction is its Diaolous, fortified multi-storied towers first built in the Qing Dynasty. There are around 1800 of these UNESCO World Heritage listed towers dotted around villages set in the countryside. Many of them are still furnished with original Chinese antiques, tiles, and traditional kitchens providing an insight into village living.

Taking 10 years to construct, Liyuan Garden features lush gardens, canals, an aviary and European inspired pavilions built by an overseas Chinese American, Xie Wei Li in 1926. A fusion of Chinese and Western architectural styles makes this place unique and a must-see. 

In the mid-1930s, Chikan’s western style architecture attracted movie producers who used the ancient town as a movie set. Several scenes from the popular martial arts movie, Ip Man were filmed here.

Wander around the old streets and soak up the atmosphere, peek in a few old shops and sample some of the street food like dau fu fa (tofu pudding) and handmade ginger peanut brittle.

Overall, Kaiping allows you to experience a different side of China to the shopping malls of Shenzhen, offering a combination of culture and relaxation. Convenient to get to and reasonably priced, you've got your next weekend escape sorted.