5 Days in Tangshan

The memorial walls are sobering — go in the morning; the museum's ceramics hall and the Nanhu lakeside make a gentler afternoon.

1. Tangshan Earthquake Memorial Park
2. Tangshan Museum

Descend into a century-old coal shaft at the mine park, then bike Nanhu's lakeside loop; end at Hetao Old Street's night market.

1. Kailuan National Mine Park
2. Nanhu Park
3. Hetao Old Street

Allow 1.5 hours each way to Zunhua — five imperial tomb complexes in pine valleys; hire a guide for the underground palaces.

1. Eastern Qing Tombs

Ferries run roughly May to October — mudflat walks and crab shacks on Yuetuo, temples and woods on Bodhi; book island beds ahead.

1. Bodhi Island
2. Yuetuo Island

A rebuilt northern water town about 1.5 hours away — go late for the lantern-lit canals and stay for the folk shows.

1. Luanzhou Ancient City