Qingdao, China, was not a city we had ever considered visiting. I only knew the name through reading a Lonely Planet Guide on China nearly 20 years ago. Little did I know that in the future, our 18-year-old daughter would move to Qingdao on a cultural exchange for 12 months.
My wife, my sister and our youngest teenage daughter headed to Qingdao to learn about the city and its attractions and see where our 18-year-old was living. Like most parents, it was nerve-racking to have our daughter move straight from home to an unknown city so far away.
We hope our time here in Qingdao (pronounced Chin-dau) will help visitors plan their Qingdao itinerary and get the most from their stay in this amazing city.
Qingdao is a big city with a population of around 10 million people, which is enormous by Australian standards but not that big in China.
It takes 11 hours to fly between Melbourne, Australia )where we live), and Qingdao, China, but luckily, there is only a 2-hour difference in time, meaning we did not suffer any jetlag on this trip to China.
Qingdao receives a lot of domestic tourists but not many international tourists. Most menus and information at attractions are in Chinese only, which can make it challenging but certainly not impossible to put together a great Qingdao itinerary.
The people in Qingdao were more than happy to help and had Google translate ready in case we all started to struggle!
Planning our Qingdao itinerary
Before I start sharing our itinerary for Qingdao, here are a few things to keep in mind when reading this travel guide.
We didn’t try to jam in as much as possible. We were more in Qingdao to visit our daughter than to sightsee, but in saying that, we think we ticked off most of the best attractions in Qingdao.
We didn’t visit any museums, but we felt that we had covered the must-see places in Qingdao.
We tried to limit places that would require lots of reading because Willow told us most of the text was in Chinese.
The weather was also over 30 degrees every day, so we did things slowly as my sister Rosie was travelling with us. Rosie was worried about the heat and lots of walking.
Our days of seeing the best Qingdao tourist attractions didn’t kick off till around 10.30-11.00 am each day. Breakfast was included at our hotel, some of us had a sleep-in and we had to wait for our eldest teenager to meet us at the hotel every day.
We had planned a few things we wanted to see and do before arriving in Qingdao. Many places in China that are outside of the main tourist cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Xian, are hard to research.
We were lucky and had suggestions from the family hosting our daughter during her cultural exchange in Qingdao. This was invaluable for us to see some of the best places in Qingdao!
Day 1 – Qingdao 3-day itinerary
We were staying at a central location in Qingdao at Holiday Inn Express City Centre, which is located on one of the main roads, Hong Kong Middle Road. Our daughter Willow made her way into the hotel to meet us daily, and we set off to view Qingdao literally.
Haitian Tower Complex
Our first stop was Qingdao 369, a viewing platform at the tallest building in Qingdao located in the Haitian Tower Complex. The Haitian complex consists of 3 towers, all at different heights.
The Haitian Tower Number One is much shorter and home to the St Regis Hotel, and Tower 3 is home to a shopping centre.
The viewing platform is in Tower Number Two, which is the tallest building in Shandong Provence. Tower number two is 160 meters higher than the other two towers and is home to the Qingdao 369 viewing platform.
The platform sits 369 meters above the ground and gives fantastic 360 views of the city and coast. For thrill-seekers or maybe just the adventurous, there are three small glass bottom sections where you can walk out to see the views below.
This is not for the faint-hearted, that’s for sure, and Bec is scared of heights but was a real trooper when she ventured out onto the clear glass floor.
It was 3.8 kilometres from our hotel, and we ordered a Didi (rideshare) on Alipay to get there.
Click here to read a full review of our visit to Qingdao 369
After taking in the fantastic views and enjoying a coffee at the cafe, we headed into the shopping centre at Haitian Tower Number 3 to look around.
We grabbed some lunch in the shopping centre while we looked around. There were a number of places to eat local food and a Burger King for those looking for Western food.
The Budaguan Scenic Area
After some window shopping, we headed to the Budaguan Scenic Area. Qingdao is a very green city with lots of parklands, and the Badaguan Scenic Area is popular with visitors to Qingdao. This part of town has several green areas and two famous houses to visit.
The Princess House was named for Queen Margarete of Denmark. Price Axel visited Qingdao and was so impressed with the Badaguan area that he bought some land and built a house for his prinecess.
Unfortunately, she never visited Qingdao to stay in the house built for her.
Today, the three story house has several small exhibitions and traditional furniture. Outside is a really cool statue of someone playing a cello, great for pictures.
Straight over the road from the fairytale house is the Spanish House. We wandered over the road and checked it out.
This house was definitely a tribute to all things Spanish, with a bull in the front yard (don’t be alarmed. It was a statue). Inside, there were sections about flamenco dancing and Spanish weapons. It’s quite an eclectic collection to see here.
If you are visiting on a hot day be warned. The Spanish House is stiflingly hot inside. Mark was not able to stay in for long and to be honest I really struggled in there too.
*There is also a Butterfly House but we decided not to visit that one.
Qingdao Swimming Beach number 2
Just two blocks away is the Qingdao Swimming Beach number 2. You are greeted by large sand beach and blue water. The area that is family friendly with changing areas, toilets and places to eat and drink.
The swimming itself is safe as there are no waves and you swim in a netted-off area. It is a great option on a hot day when you are exploring the Budaguan Area in Qingdao.
The MixC Mall
We finished off day 1 in Qingdao by heading to the MixC Mall, one of the biggest and flashiest malls in Qingdao. With six floors above ground and two underground, this place was huge.
It had all the Western brands you would expect, like Nike, Apple, Sephora, Pizza Hut and more, to spend money. You could literally spend the whole day here, its a destination in itself with shopping, dining, cinemas, gaming and even an indoor ice skating rink.
We took the opportunity to have dinner in the food court while we were there. There was a wide choice of options, from Chinese food to sushi, burgers, and more—enough to suit the whole family.
While Bec and I had noodles, Willow had a Japanese bento box, Marley had a chicken katsu and Aunty Rosie had a taste of it all before settling for some not spicy noodles!
Day 2 in Qingdao
Breakfast at Holiday In Express is one the best we have had at this chain anywhere, plenty of food for people who like Asian and Western foods. Aunty Rosie is not a huge fan of spicy Asian food but she found plenty of options at breakfast.
Polar Ocean World
Today we were headed for Polar Ocean World, north of the Qingdao city centre. Willow had been to Polar Ocean World before and highly recommended it as something we just had to see in Qingdao as one of the top attractions.
Our daughter was on the mark, that’s for sure. What set Polar Ocean World apart from, say, Sealife was the type of animals they had.
All or most of the animals were from Arctic regions in the northern hemisphere. We were blown away seeing Bulga Whales, Sea lions and more.
During the day, there were shows put on, as you would see at SeaWorld and similar places. It was so exciting to see a Beluga Whale, they are something we had only ever seen on tv.
What struck me about the show we witnessed was that it was mostly based on some acrobats with only partial involvement at the beginning and end with animals. There was also minimal animal contact during the show which we were really surprised with.
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You could spend as much time as you like here, but I would say if you want to see some of the shows they put on and go to the 5D cinema, allow at least 4 hours or more. There were plenty of places to get food. They even had Subway on site, and it was all reasonably priced.
We left and went for lunch at a nearby restaurant and then returned for a few more hours in the afternoon. This was one of the best things about the park, and this is not something we are used to being able to do at home.
It is really hard to name the restaurants we ate at because there are sometimes no English translations. It was a Korean BBQ-style lunch, and we cooked the meat ourselves on a rotisserie-style grill. There was plenty to choose from and it was a heap of fun.
One thing I will say is that aquariums and zoos in Asia are generally not of the standard you would find in Western countries. We found Polar Ocean World to be a good standard.
*Our daughter Willow is really strong on things like this and refuses to go to any zoos in Asia because of the way the animals are housed and treated. Just be warned, it may not be everyone’s cup of tea to visit places like this.
We walked out around 5 pm, and just 50-odd meters away from Polar Ocean World are steps and an escalator that takes you to the beach.
There are a number of places to get some food and drinks with views of the Yellow Sea, which is stunning on a nice night before sunset. We sat down at Master Puffy for a rest and a local Tsingtao Beer before heading back into the city.
Willow headed home from the Polar Ocean World while Bec, Rosie, Marley and I headed back into the city. Just a few hundred meters from our hotel on Xianggang Middle Road is the Yohno King restaurant.
The three of us ate there for around $6 AUD each, including a drink. We had noodles with pork belly and crumbed chicken.
It is fantastic value for money and a way better option than the McDonald’s next door. Just quietly, we did sneak in for a McFlurry afterwards! We tried to eat at different places most nights so that we could try a variety of foods in Qingdao.
Day 3 in Qingdao
We started the day by heading down to May the Fourth Square, which has the largest metal sculpture in China.
May Fourth Square
This sculpture is one of the symbols that people know best in Qingdao. Everyone who visits Qingdao comes down to see this amazing sculpture at May Fourth Square. It is painted bright red in the nationalistic colours of China.
The Olympic Sailing Centre
The Olympic Sailing Centre starts only a few hundred meters from May 4th Square, and you can easily walk between the two on the seaside promenade.
Qingdao is renowned for its coastline, which makes it really popular with domestic Chinese tourists. One of the draw cards is the Qingdao Olympic Sailing Center. When the 2006 Olympics were held in Beijing, all the sailing events were held in Qingdao.
Now this area takes pride of places and is classified a national tourist area.
Qingdao Harbour Cruise
One of the most popular things for tourists to do in this area is to jump on a cruise around the harbour area.
After asking in the tourist information centre, we were pointed toward the ticket office. We could buy tickets for $20AUD for a 60-minute cruise around the harbour.
One thing about China is that you are never sure what you are doing because the language barrier is ever-present.
So we didn’t know where this cruise went or what we would see. In the end, the boat just went out and around the Olympic Area to give us some amazing views of the Qingdao City Skyline, including the Haitian Tower we had visited on day 1.
Olympic Torch at the Qingdao Sailing Centre
If you want to explore the Sailing Centre in Qingdao further you will a giant replica of the Olympic torch a massive convention centre, shopping centre, Qingdao yacht club and a breakwater that has restaurants all down one side. The area is just so huge.
It was time for a drink stop. In China you will find Luckin Coffee everywhere, they are basically the Chinese version of Starbucks. Luckin has developed a reputation as the Starbucks killer.
They are opening shops every week across China, while Starbucks is closing shops just as fast. Their menus are similar, with different types of hot and cold coffee and special seasonal drinks at half the price of Starbucks.
Zhansghan Temple complex
In the afternoon, we headed to the biggest Buddhist temple in Qingdao. Zhansghan Temple complex is located in Zhongshan Park and it is one of the biggest green areas in the city. The park is also home to the Qingdao Zoo and the Qingdao TV Tower.
We thought it was just a small temple, but upon entering, we discovered it was a whole complex of temples and pagodas. The lake at the front of the temple was filled with Koy fish and giant lily pads, which is very quintessential Asian.
Temples are more interesting for Bec and me than the girls, so they found a seat to sit and chat while we walked around the complex exploring buildings, doorways and gates.
*While the girls were waiting for us the monks that live at the Temple shared some watermelon with the girls. It was hot, and they just came over and offered us some, too. None of us spoke each other’s language, but it was a lovely moment for us all.
Yunxiao Road Food Street
By now, dinner time was approaching, and Yunxiao Road Food Street was right across the street from our hotel. Qingdao cuisine is heavily seafood-based since it is on the coast.
The Yunxiao Road Food Street stretches for several blocks with restaurants all selling seafood dishes. You will not get far up the street without someone approaching you and telling you about their offerings, and yes, it will be in English, but not fluent!
These restaurants have huge tanks full of fish, and everything is cooked ultra-fresh on the spot. We had dinner at Yu Wharf and enjoyed a whole deep sea fish.
We are not usually big seafood eaters, but since Qingdao is renowned for seafood, we thought we would give it away.
Qingdao Light Show on the Promenade buildings
After dinner, we headed to the waterfront to view the Qingdao Lights Show. During the summer months, the buildings along the water all light up like nothing you have ever seen before. It is simply stunning and bes tof all, completely free.
Even for teenagers like Marley, who has a short attention span, she was totally engrossed by the different light displays that danced across the buildings of Qingdao. The display runs nightly in summer for around two hours.
*You will find food trucks and stalls selling snacks and drinks to enjoy while watching this fantastic fee display in Qingdao.
Day 4 in Qingdao
We decided to try something different for breakfast, so we headed to McDonald’s. McDonald’s breakfast is similar to many around the world.
China seems to have a fascination for coffee with orange juice, as I have seen in a few places. I just had to try one, and you know what? It was pretty good, I must say.
Another good option is switching your hashbrown for a fried bread stick, these are so yummy.
Qingdao Old Town
No trip to Qingdao is complete without a trip to the old centre of the city. Qingdao was once controlled by Germany at the end of the 18th century and at the start of the 19th century.
Walking around this area felt familiar to us as we have been to Germany many times. This area of the Qingdao Old Town is full of restaurants, coffee shops and food stalls.
Bec and the girls took the opportunity to try some candied fruit on a stick. It was still a little frozen, so we put it in a bag, which was a big mistake! It thawed out and went everywhere!
St Michael’s Cathedral – Zhejiang Road Catholic Church
When you see the cathedral, you would swear that you are in Europe. It is a classic Catholic Church with an interior that looks like it was straight from a city in Italy.
For us, it was similar to many we have here at home and have seen while travelling, but it was lovely to see it through the eyes of some of the other visitors to it.
There were many Chinese visitors and we also met some people in line from Germany and Spain.
Very Qingdao – Drinking beer from a bag!
Our oldest teenage daughter is now of drinking age, so we just had to try something very unique to Qingdao: drinking beer out of a bag. Yes, you heard right. You may see people in tourist areas with a plastic bag half full of beer, drinking it through a straw.
Another legacy of the German occupation is beer, Qingdao is home to Tsingtao Beer, the most popular beer in China and well known world wide.
Qingdao Pier
A short stroll from the old town down Zhongshan Road will lead you to Qingdao Pier. The pier is one of the more popular attractions in Qingdao. It’s only a short walk to the end, maybe a few hundred meters away.
Along the side of the pier, you will see pontoons, where you can pay for a boat ride around the area. Expect to find this area one of the most crowded in Qingdao. People also enjoy the beach and exploring rock pools around this area.
Taidong Night Market
No trip to Qingdao is complete without experiencing the Taidong Night Market. This market has just about everything from fake designer brands to good bargains if you are willing to take the time and look around.
The Market starts at 5.30 each night and continues well into the night. It can be intimidating with so much going on and the amount of people around.
Bec and Marley bought some slides for just a couple of dollars, while there were many clothes and electronics on offer. It is not just retail items. You will find a food section selling all types of drinks and food, including spiders and bugs for the adventurous.
FAQ’s about Qingdao
This was not our first trip to China, so we had some idea how things worked before we left. Below are some of the things we learned during our time there that will help you.
Money in China
Using money and paying for things can be a challenge in China. Most payments in China are made through either AliPay or WeChat Pay. It is much like tapping your credit card, except they use QR codes in China.
Either they will scan your QR code much like an Eftpos Transaction, or you will scan their QR code, put in the amount and show the retailer.
Cash is not well used, but in reality, it is against the law to refuse cash payments in China. The problem with this is that many small retailers may not have the correct change when using cash.
*We didn’t have too many issues using Alipay and WeChat. When we did the vendor would usually take our phone and sort it out for us. At no stage was I worried about this as they took the time to show me the steps that they were doing and the amounts on thier side as well.
How to get around Qingdao
Qingdao has a comprehensive metro system with seven lines covering most city areas. The metro operates from 6:00 AM to 10:30 PM, with a train every 2-5 minutes during peak hours.
The trains we went on were very clean and organised. The line stops were in English, as were the announcements over the PA. There was an English option on the ticketing system too when we purchased our tickets
We found the DiDi ride-share service (like Uber or Grab) to be a great way to get around Qingdao. It was easy to organise and very cheap to use, and in hot weather, it was air-conditioned!
How to get to Qingdao
Qingdao is located on the coast some 650 kilometers south east of Beijing. You can easily visit Qingdao by flying into Qingdao Jiaodong International Airport. The airport accepts both International and Domestic flights.
The airport is located around one hour from Qingdao and has direct metro access to the city, alternatively you can book an airport transfer like we did.
The city is part of China’s High-Speed Rail network and is connected to Jinan (the capital of Shandong) and Beijing. We caught the high-speed train from Qingdao North Train Station to Beijing.
It took a little over 3 hours. Watch our YouTube video review of Qingdao North Train Station. The best place to book your China rail tickets is on Trip.com.
Read more about how easy it is to catch a high-speed train from Qingdao North Railway Station.
Where to stay in Qingdao
We stayed at Holiday Inn Express Qingdao City Centre, an IHG Hotel. Not knowing much about the quality of local hotels, we chose to stay here because we knew Holiday Inn would be of a certain standard.
The hotel was located in a great location just 10 minutes walk from the seaside and May Fourth Square.
Just across the road were Yunxiao Road Food Street, The InZone Mall and McDonalds. If you are coming from the airport by metro, there is a stop just 100 meters from the hotel called Fushfansuo.
The rooms were comfortable, and the included breakfast had a good range of Western and Asian foods. Things such as bacon, eggs, toast, cereal, yoghurt, pizza and nuggets for Western food lovers, while Asian meals such as congee, dumplings, fried rice, stir fry, wantons and more.
The best time to visit Qingdao
The summer months bring hot and humid weather with temperatures in the 30s, while winter sees the cold set in with average temperatures around 2 degrees.
Final thoughts on Qingdao
Qingdao is a great city to visit for a few days and not somewhere that many would choose while in China, but I am glad we visited. We felt safe at all times, and I actually felt safer there than I would in Melbourne.
The streets were clean, the weather was great, and the infrastructure was fantastic. Lots to see and do, and easy to get around.
We highly recommend a visit to Qingdao. We hope this article on Wyld Family Travel has helped shine a spotlight on Qingdao.
More reading material for you:
- – 5 epic days in Beijing
- – Know before you go. Our top tips for travel in China
- – 13 unforgettable things to do in Xi’an, China
Author bio:
Father, husband, traveller, and chief destination manager here at Wyld Family Travel. When Mark is not discussing travel or planning travel, you will find him working in disability support. Mark is a family travel advocate, having travelled to over 45 countries with his kids from 10 months to their teenage years. You will find his work here and on other popular websites.
Mark Wyld
Content Creator