Harbin Attractions - Things to Do

Map of Tourist Attractions

Top Things to Do

 The 40th Harbin Ice Festival, 2024
 Harbin Ice and Snow Festival
 Ice Lantern Garden Party
 Harbin Ice and Snow World
 Sun Island Scenic Area
 Harbin Polarland
 Siberian Tiger Park
 St. Sophia Cathedral
 Dragon Tower
 Central Street
 Yabuli International Ski Resort
 Jile Temple
Beiji Village
China Snow Town

The ice and snow are the top attraction in Harbin. Multicolored ice lanterns, vivid ice and snow carvings and exciting ice sports will be sure to bring you lots of fun. If you wish to enjoy the great fruits of nature and wisdom, please come to the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival held between the 5th of January and the end of February every year. Ice Lantern Garden Party is the other appealing destination in this city that is equally wonderful as the Ice and Snow Festival despite their different characteristics. From the third festival in 2001, the site of Harbin Ice and Snow World has been relocated to the western zone of Sun Island. Moreover, established in 1985 and held annually from January 5, it is China's original and greatest ice artwork festival.

In terms of fun, visiting the Sun Island Scenic Area is considered to be one of the best things to do in Harbin summer. It consists of Sun Island together with some smaller islands. Alongside the Songhua River and influenced by the monsoon climate, there is a clear distinction between the sceneries of the four seasons on the islands. However, it is in winter, when the whole island is covered with snow, that it is the time to attend the famous Snow Carving Festival here. There are buses to the Flood Control Monument, you can take a cruise liner or a cable way to get to the island.
Nearby Attraction: Harbin Polarland

Ice Lantern Party in Zhaolin Park

Ice and Snow World

Siberian Tiger Park which is adjacent to the Sun Island should be your next destination. The park rears more than five hundred beautiful but endangered purebred Siberian tigers. Vivacious little tigers and fierce fully grown tigers will introduce you to their fascinating world. It will take you about one hour to complete the trip; you will have to take a car to visit most of the viewing spots.
 

St. Sophia Church

As well as these bewitching scenic spots, the city also has a number of other sights waiting for you. St. Sophia Cathedral, also called Harbin Construction Arts Gallery, is the largest Orthodox Church in the Far East. You can visit here from 8:30 to 17:30 every day by purchasing the entrance ticket of CNY20. Another pearl of this city is the Dragon Tower; actually, it is the Heilongjiang broadcast and TV tower, ranked as the first highest in Asia and second highest in the world.

Since the city is also known as the Eastern Moscow, some Russian architecture can be found here. The best sights that vividly reflect the foreign styles is Central Street (Zhongyang Dajie) which includes a great number of buildings in the European architectural styles ranging from Renaissance and the baroque to eclecticism. Meanwhile, it is also the most prosperous pedestrian street in this city, housing multitudinous department stores and restaurants. If you want to try more exciting sports during your trip, don't worry, the Yabuli International Ski Resort which is located in the Yabuli Winding Village is recommended. This resort is considered to be China's monument to its skiing industry.

As one of the four well-known buddhist temples in the three northeastern provinces (Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang) of China, Jile Temple is also worth a visit. The other three are Banruo Temple in Changchun, Ci'en Temple in Shenyang and Lengyan Temple in Yingkou.