China Primers

China Blogs and News Sources – for Travelers and China Watchers

It’s really surprising just how many China blogs and news sources there now are, perhaps a reflection of China’s influence in the global scheme of things. There’s endless travelogues, personal blogs from expats, expat forums, global news agency blogs, independent news agencies along with the state owned news sources. For travelers, it really can be useful to have access to reviews, stories and guides which can help understand the whole journey ahead.

So, here’s some of my picks ( English language that are freely accessible in CN):

Government provided news and information portals:

Xinhua – National and International news

China Daily – English language national daily.

Economic Daily  –  as the name implies

Global Times – national conservative newspaper. The English edition is apparently much more moderate than it’s native language counterpart.

Gov.cn, in their own words “the official web portal of the Central People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China, has been built under the guidance of top Chinese leaders, and with the authorization of the National Informationization Leadership Group.”

Guangming Daily –  The governments key central news portal focusing on ideology and theory.

Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – features department news, reports and articles.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs – statements and news from the Foreign Ministry

Qiushi Journal Online – Publicizing the governing philosophy of the CPC. Its content covers political, economic, cultural and social issues.

PLA Daily – official daily of the People’s Liberation Army.

People’s Daily – voice of the Central People’s Government and CPC Central Committee.

China.org.cn – an online news channel provided by the government.

CCTV News  – China Central Television, the main TV station has numerous channels, including the providing the English news channel, and this is their online site.

CNTVNA.COM is a North America-based China news and culture portal. Most importantly, it features 24/7 live panda streaming see: http://www.cntvna.com/ipanda/

 

Independent news portals and overseas news portals focused on China

South China Morning Post – Hong Kong based English language newspaper, covering mainland news, HK news and international.

The Standard – Focused on local Hong Kong news

BBC China – coverage of China news by the British broadcaster BBC.

Financial Times – China – China news section of FT

Huffington Post – China –  China news from Huffington Post

WSJ China Real Time – China news reporting from the Wall Street Journal

 

Blogs focused on news and issues

Tea Leaf Nation – perhaps one of the higher quality journals on China, in their own words, they provide fresh coverage of brewing trends and grassroots sentiment in China.

China Law Blog – legal commentary, expat life, travel and more.

World of Chinese – The World of Chinese is a bi-monthly English magazine and web portal dedicated to Chinese language and culture.

ChinaSmack – a lighter look at events in Chinese society

Shanghaiist – much the same as above.

WantChinaTimes – independent news coverage and views

Beijing Cream – another site taking a lighter look at news events in China.

China Internet Watch – follows the internet industry and trends.

HaoHaoReport – features user submitted stories from various sources.

See more blogs on the news aggregation page here

 

Travel Blogs and Travel Forums

Tripadvisor – China forum – possibly the most popular place for questions and answers on travelling in CN.

Thorn Tree forum – China – the forum at Lonely Planet is another place to quiz experienced travelers.

Answers @ TravelChinaGuide – another useful place to ask questions

China Travel blog – features posts from various authors on their experiences and destinations in CN.

Wild China – blog for the adventure travel company

China Sense – in the authors own words – With photos and interviews he records the daily life of individual Chinese; most of the time in Beijing, and more recently in Nanjing.

China Travel Writer – Mitchell Blatt is a writer based in China and Hong Kong covering all kinds of topics related to Chinese culture.

 

City specific blogs and travel resources

City Weekend – covers Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Suzhou, for city guide, news and events.

eChinaCities – provides city guides and news for most major cities

Shanghai

Shanghai Street Stories – an easy to read site that provides a deeper different view of Shanghai

Shanghai Expat – forums, articles and news for expats in Shanghai.

Shanghai Daily – government run local English newspaper

Time Out – covers news, events, city guide and more

Beijing

eBeijing – government provided guide to the city

Beijing Boyce – a guide to Beijing’s bars and eateries

theBeijinger – news, events, forums and more.

Time Out – covers news, events, city guide and more

Tianjin

Tinajin gov – Gov site with local news, city facts and and travel guide

Tinajin Expat – forum, reviews and more

Tianjin Plus –  a guide to the city

Dalian

Dalian Living – a blog dedicated to life in Dalian

Guilin

Guilin Expat –  a city and travel guide

Chengdoo

Go Chengdoo – features city guide, news, reviews and classifieds

Chongqing

Chongqing News – news and city guide provided by government

Kunming

Go Kunming – city guide, forums, classifieds and more

Tibet

The Land of Snows –  genuine and detailed travel advice for Tibet

Hunan

Hunan Gov – Government site providing news and travel guide

Hohot

Hohot Info – blog posts, city guide, forum and more.

Dalian

What’s On Dalian – local news, reviews and city guide

Xian

Notes from Xian – more than just Xian, it also covers culture and society.

Xiamen

Xiamen Guide – exactly as it’s name implies

Whats on Xiamen – city and entertainment guide, classifieds and more

Guangdong (including Guangzhou and Shenzhen)

The Nanfang – news, reviews and entertainment listings for Guangzhou, Dongguan and Shenzhen

Deltabridges – covering the Pearl River Delta

ShenzhenParty – nightlife, events and classifieds

Shenzhen Stuff – local expat forum

 ZSRen – forum, city guide and classifieds for Zhongshan

Hong Kong

The HK Shopper – a guide to shopping destinations in HK

Open Rice – Restaurant and dining directory with consumer reviews

TimeOut HK – city guide, dining, bars and more

 Good Eating – dining guide

Discover Hong Kong – comprehensive city guide from the HK Gov

CNN Traveler HK – reviews, guides and news

 Qingdao

Qingdaonese – blog featuring reviews and insights into the life of the city plus forums and more.

Thats Qingdao – city guide, events and news

Hangzhou

Hangzhou gov – local gov site

Go to HZ – official tourism website

More Hangzhou – city guide for expats

Hangzhou Expat – busy forum

Visit Hangzhou – city guide including attractions and things to do

Suzhou

Suzhou official tourism site, also see http://en.visitsz.com

Expat Assoc. of Suzhou 

Whats on in Suzhou – taxi cards, tourist spots and lots of useful info

Nanjing

Nanjing Travel – official tourism website

Nanjing Expat – city guide, forum, news and classifieds

Hello Nanjing – expat forums