Hi All,

After two years of circumstances preventing me from getting to mainland China, I am optimistic that I will get there in 2005. I am in the early stages of planning a two-city itinerary, one of which will be Beijing. I am lookign for advice on where to go for the second city. My time is somewhat limited, with an anticipated arrival in Beijing from Hong Kong on the evening of Oct. 14 and a departure back to Hong Kong on the evening of Oct. 20. I am thinking of spending three full days in Beijing (Oct. 15, 16 and 17), so I am looking to fly to the second city on the morning of Oct. 18. I could fly directly back to Hong Kong from that city or return to Beijing and fly back to HKG, whichever makes more sense.

My main interests are historical/cultural tourism, but a scenic setting that could allow for a hike or something would be nice too.

Any ideas?

Thanks!