4 Best Sights in Pearl River Delta, China

To get a sense of how fast Guangzhou is growing, head to the Tianhe District. Among the buildings is the 391-meter (1,283-foot) CITIC Plaza, one of the tallest buildings in the world. It houses upscale shops, a variety of restaurants, and the offices of many Fortune 500 companies.

This is Shenzhen's most popular—and perhaps strangest—tourist attraction. It's pretty cheesy but young kids might get a kick out of it. Essentially, it's a decommissioned Soviet-era aircraft carrier that a group of business executives bought in the late 1990s. Parked in perpetuity on the top deck of the ship (which is as long as three football fields placed end to end, and gets wickedly hot in the summer) are several Soviet fighter planes and helicopters.

With miniature versions of more than 130 of the world's most famous landmarks, Window of the World is one of China's biggest and busiest homegrown theme parks. Divided into five geographical areas connected by winding paths and a monorail, it includes—not at all to scale—the Taj Mahal, Mount Rushmore, the Sydney Harbor Opera House, and a 108-meter-high (354-foot-high) Eiffel Tower that can be seen from miles away. There is also a fireworks show at 9 pm on weekends and holidays.

Guangzhou's largest park covers 170 rolling acres and includes landscaped gardens, artificial lakes, an Olympic-sized swimming pool, an amusement park, and playgrounds. The famous Five Rams Statue (五羊塑像, wǔ yáng sùxiàng) celebrates the ancient legend of the five celestials who appeared riding on goats to bring grain to the townspeople. Another must-see is the Zhenhai Tower, which has been converted into the Guangzhou Museum, where you'll find a fascinating mix of Guangzhou's archaeological findings.