London to Qingdao, China from £424

🌍 About Qingdao, China

Qingdao is the most singular city on China's coast, a former German concession where red-roofed European villas tumble down hills to the Yellow Sea. The old town's cobbled streets lead to a twin-spired cathedral and the long wooden pier of Zhanqiao reaching into the bay. This is the home of the country's most famous beer, brewed here since the concession days, and summer brings an exuberant beer festival along with crowds on the soft-sand beaches. Fresh seafood is the obsession: clams, prawns, and grilled squid washed down with draft beer poured into plastic bags by the locals. Climb nearby Laoshan, the misty Taoist mountain dropping straight to the sea, and stroll the Badaguan villas where eight streets are each lined with a different blossoming tree.