Qinghai Hoh Xil (UNESCO 2017) covers 45,000 sq km of the Qiangtang Plateau at 4,500–6,860 m, the largest terrestrial UNESCO natural inscription in China. The Potala Palace in Lhasa is 1,200 km south; the Mogao Caves at Dunhuang are 800 km north via Golmud (8h by road).
Hubei Shennongjia (UNESCO 2016) is a 73,318-hectare mountain forest in western Hubei with 3,767 higher plant species spanning an elevation of 420 to 3,105 metres. The Wudang Mountains are 250 km south (3h by road); the Tusi Sites at Enshi are 200 km west (3h by road).
The Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art (UNESCO 2016) lines 105 km of Guangxi river cliff with 1,900 red ochre figures painted between 500 BCE and 200 CE. The South China Karst at Guilin is 450 km northeast (3h HSR); the Historic Centre of Macao is 500 km east (5h via Guangzhou and ferry).
The Tusi Sites (UNESCO 2015) comprise three hereditary chieftain seat complexes across Hunan, Guizhou and Hubei, spanning the 13th–20th centuries. Wulingyuan/Zhangjiajie is 250 km east of Laosicheng (3h by road); Dazu Rock Carvings are 500 km northwest of Hailongtun (5h HSR via Chongqing).
The Ruins of Yin (Yinxu, UNESCO 2006) in Anyang, Henan, preserve the Shang dynasty capital from c.1300–1046 BCE and the world’s largest archive of ancient Chinese oracle bone script. Dengfeng’s Historic Monuments are 150 km south (2h by road); the Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang are 200 km southwest (40 min HSR from Zhengzhou).
Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan (UNESCO 2003) covers 1.7 million hectares where the Yangtze, Mekong and Salween run parallel for 170 km through gorges 3,000 m deep. The Old Town of Lijiang is 300 km south (4h by road); Chengjiang Fossil Site is 500 km southeast via Kunming (1h from Kunming).
Historic Monuments of Dengfeng (UNESCO 2010) cover eight monument clusters on Songshan mountain, including the Shaolin Temple and the 1276 CE Dengfeng Observatory. Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang are 100 km west (40 min HSR); the Ruins of Yin at Anyang are 200 km north (2h by car).
Quanzhou is 33 km from Fujian Tulou, Kulangsu 74 km. The 46 inscribed earthen clan houses of Fujian were built for defence and communal life between the 15th and 20th centuries.
The Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries (UNESCO 2006) cover 924,500 hectares across the Qionglai and Jiajin ranges, supporting 30% of wild giant pandas. Mount Qingcheng and Dujiangyan are 90 km east (2h); Leshan Giant Buddha is 180 km south; Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan are 400 km southwest.
