China's youngest Tier-1 city — a fishing village 40 years ago, now a city of mirrored skyscrapers planned to be modern from the start · home to the 599-metre Ping An tower and its Free Sky deck looking out over the whole city · high-speed rail from Futian station into Hong Kong's West Kowloon in about 14 minutes · theme parks like Window of the World, the miniature-China park Splendid China and Happy Valley for a full day out · walks by the water at Shenzhen Bay Park · shopping in Dongmen and art cafés at OCT-LOFT · Cantonese cooking and migrant-city food from across China · and Thai passport holders enter visa-free
Shenzhen (深圳) is China's youngest Tier-1 city, in Guangdong province right up against Hong Kong. Honestly, it's wild to think this was a fishing village 40 years ago — today it's a city of mirrored glass towers laid out to be modern from the ground up, so it has no ancient old town like other Chinese cities. The heart of it is the skyline and the tech — the Ping An Finance Center (平安金融中心) rises 599 metres with a Free Sky deck that sees the whole city · on the fun side there's a full set of theme parks: Window of the World (世界之窗) shrinks global landmarks into one place · the miniature park Splendid China (锦绣中华) · and Happy Valley (欢乐谷) packed with rides · take in the sea air at Shenzhen Bay Park (深圳湾公园), looking across the bay to Hong Kong · grab cheap finds in Dongmen (东门) in Luohu · sip coffee in the old-factory art zone OCT-LOFT · and the food is proper Cantonese plus migrant-city cooking from all over China · best of all, high-speed rail from Futian station reaches Hong Kong in about 14 minutes, and Thai passport holders enter China visa-free.
From the Ping An skyline in Futian CBD to Window of the World, Splendid China and Happy Valley, plus Shenzhen Bay Park, Lianhuashan Park, the Dongmen streets, OCT-LOFT and Dameisha beach — this is the atmosphere you'll really find in Shenzhen.
The full Shenzhen travel guide is growing piece by piece · the Stay tab is ready now, Eat and See are in the works, and for Plan and Prep there are China guides to read first — choose a tab below to get started
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9.0Ping An tower · Window of the World · Splendid China · Happy Valley · Shenzhen Bay Park · Lianhuashan Park · Dongmen — see where each one is and plan your route more easily.
Pick by budget and the area you want — compare prices across three sites before you book · Trip.com has the most China hotels
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🏆💎💎🏙️💎💎💎🚄💎⭐🛍️🎒A great trip doesn't have to stay in one city — three spots around Shenzhen you can reach by high-speed rail or a border crossing for a day trip or an overnight.
Shenzhen (深圳) is China's youngest Tier-1 city, in Guangdong province right next to Hong Kong — a fishing village 40 years ago, today a city of mirrored glass towers planned to be modern from the start, so it has no ancient old town. Its defining feature is the skyline and its new-city energy · the Ping An Finance Center (平安金融中心) rises 599 metres with a Free Sky deck · Window of the World (世界之窗) shrinks the world's landmarks into one park · the miniature park Splendid China (锦绣中华) · the ride-packed Happy Valley (欢乐谷) · Shenzhen Bay Park (深圳湾公园) on the bay looking across to Hong Kong · a city-centre hill walk at Lianhuashan (莲花山公园) · cheap shopping in Dongmen (东门) in Luohu · coffee in the OCT-LOFT art zone · and to finish, Cantonese dim sum and migrant-city food from all over China.
Shenzhen works on any budget — backpackers around ฿1,200-2,500/day · mid-range ฿3,000-6,000/day (excluding flights; skyline-view luxury runs higher) · get around the city on the Metro, which covers it well, plus taxis and DiDi · the big draw is being the gateway to Hong Kong — high-speed rail from Futian station reaches West Kowloon in about 14 minutes, or cross at Lo Wu and Huanggang · the best time to visit is October–December, late autumn into early winter when it's dry and comfortable (skip the May–September summer with its heat, humidity and typhoons, and around Chinese New Year when some shops close) · Thai passport holders enter China visa-free (Hong Kong is a separate jurisdiction with its own rules) · and don't forget a VPN · eSIM · Alipay/WeChat Pay before you go.
The Wherebest team is steadily adding in-depth Shenzhen hotel reviews and travel guides — best areas to stay in · things to see · what to eat · trips around the Pearl River Delta. Start planning your trip with our complete China travel guide →
Start planning from the China travel guide, then take in Shenzhen one area at a time