Guangzhou 广州

Guangzhou at dusk
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Guangzhou_dusk_11-5-2008.png
Author: Myouzke


Guangzhou is the biggest city and provincial capital of Guangdong Province, China. In fact, it ranks third behind Shanghai and Beijing in terms of population as well as land area. As of 2000, the city of Guangzhou has a population of 6 million people. It is located within a metropolitan area with a population of 12 million. The entire urban sprawl of Guangzhou has as many as 24 million people, making it the second biggest urban area in the world behind Tokyo.

Guangzhou (广州) was formerly known in English as Canton, from which we get the dialect Cantonese. It is also known as Kwangchow.

Tianhe District, Guangzhou, China
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tianhe_CBD.jpg
Author: Ludwigqin


The history of Guangzhou goes back to 214 BC, when a settlement was founded here called Panyu. By 206 BC, Panyu became the capital of Nanyue Kingdom, an ancient kingdom that encompassed part of Vietnam.

Places of Interest in Guangzhou

Nanyue was conquered and absorbed into the Han Dynasty in 111 BC. Panyu became the provincial capital and seat of the Guang Prefecture, or "Guangzhou". The name Guangzhou actually refers to the prefecture, but the name eventually replaced Panyu for the city. Panyu continued to be used as the name of a medieval section of Guangzhou right up to the end of the Qing Dynasty. Today the term Panyu refers to the section south of Haizhu District.

The Portuguese arrived in Guangzhou and established a trading harbor there in 1511. They were forced to relocate to Macau in 1557. It was through the Portuguese that we got the name Canton, and eventually Cantonese, derived from the Portuguese transcription of Guangdong to Cantão.

Chen Clan Ancestral Hall, Guangzhou
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Guangzhou_Chenjia_Citang_2012.11.17_13-44-12.jpg
Author: Zhangzhugang


In 1949 Guangzhou became a temporary capital after the fall of Nanjing. When the Communist forces advanced into Guangzhou, the Nationalist government fled to Chongqing.

Guangzhou grew rapidly in the second half of the 20th century, propelled by fast developing Hong Kong, a low labor cost that helped fuel the development of factories, and relaxed tax regulations that make it conducive to set up manufacturing plants. As the capital of the booming and prosperous Guangdong Province, Guangzhou attracted immigrants from rural China fuelling its growth to become the third largest city in China.

Planning your trip to Guangzhou

By Plane
The gateway to Guangzhou for international travelers is the new Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN). It receives flights from most major cities in China as well as international flights from many neighboring countries.

By Train
You can reach Guangzhou by train from Hong Kong. It takes just about 2 hours to make the 182-kilometer journey. The tickets are sold by Hong Kong's MTR.

Guangzhou Metro
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gzmtr4line.jpg
Author: Chintunglee

Exploring Guangzhou

Guangzhou Metro is the subway covering the city center and places in the outskirts. The fare ranges from ¥2 to ¥12. Tickets are sold from vending machines that accept the ¥5 to ¥10 banknotes and coins from ¥0.50 to ¥1.00. Single journey token looks like a coin (or a chip in the casino) which you swipe over the sensor as you pass the turnstile, and insert into the machine as you exit at the end of your journey. If you are going to use the subway for quite a bit, I suggest you get the multipass which can be purchased from the customer service counter.

There are presently four lines on the Guangzhou Metro. Line 1 and Line 2 are the most useful for visiting the tourist attractions.

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