Guangzhou Unfiltered: A Must-Read for First-Time Visitors (and Maybe Your Last? 😉)

[Darren Sawayn]

Hello everyone! I've just spent a week in Guangzhou and would like to share my experiences:

• Where to find local delicacies?

  • For those who want to try Guangzhou's signature snacks, I personally don't recommend Yongqing坊 (since it might be too crowded with tourists and overly commercialized).
  • You can try the Beijing Road Pedestrian Street, the Xihua Road beside Chen Clan Ancestral Hall (a renowned traditional building), or look around near Cultural Park. Fellow Guangzhou locals, feel free to share other recommendations!

• "Flies' Cafés" vs. Internet celebrities' shops

  • The unassuming, small eateries frequented by local people (known as "flies' cafés", not literally infested with flies but places serving authentic flavors), are often far tastier than those highly publicized internet-famous hotspots.
  • There's no need to queue up at those trendy venues. Just venture into any of the nearby alleyways and try the lesser-known local eateries for yourself.

• Watch out for inflated prices meant for tourists!

  • Always compare prices in different stores before purchasing goods to avoid paying "tourist prices", especially if you're buying items near tourist sites or outside them, which might result in overpricing.
  • Merchants in Guangzhou (probably everywhere else too) seem to raise their prices whenever they notice the visitor is from afar.
  • Caution: Though it may cost a tad more, you'd better pick shops that provide clear price tags. For example: a bowl of the sweets mentioned in photo p5 might cost 38 yuan near Sacred Heart Cathedral, while a similar dish can be yours for under 20 yuan in a common small-scale store on ordinary streets.

• Looking for keepsakes?

  • For petty items and souvenirs, head towards De Bao Trading Plaza and Wanheng Plaza, located near Sacred Heart Cathedral.
    • Shown in the top-left of image p7 is a Sacred Heart fridge magnet, adorned with "Manchurian Window"(a Cantonese tradition, colored glass windows). It costs 49 yuan at souvenir shops outside the Cathedral, claiming to sell products under official collaboration pricing. However, for the same item in De Bao Trading Plaza, just across the road, it only costs 25 yuan.
    • The number of foreign buyers in Wanheng Plaza greatly outweighs that of Chinese customers, bearing an uncanny resemblance to Jinyi's wholesale market (Jinyi, known for offering massive quantities of low-cost petty goods). With seven stories, items of various types are being sold: from soft toys, small knick-knacks, mugs, tea sets to electronics and artworks – almost everything a buyer might dream of. And many foreigners dragged suitcases to shop en masse here.
    • Watch out! Prices are not explicitly marked, so make sure you bargain. One cup I was interested in at ground floor costed 190 yuan, but after searching online, I found the identical price online at less than 150 yuan.
    • Moreover, take note! Since taking photos are not allowed at this site, consider subtly using your online apps in comparing prices; furthermore, numerous products might not even exist online or have extremely limited supply, which suggests its possible relevance towards export trade. Although a foreign friend got his Bluetooth headphones sourced from an online store cheaper than store prices in Guangzhou, I feared its origin might be related to Huaxiangbei (Shenzhen’s most notable electronic trading platform, infamous in its complicated and confusing business conduct); so I decided to buy it from the store.

• Must-visit spots for photographing Canton Tower

  • Several scenic angles are great for taking photographs with Canton Tower in sight!
  • Riding APM subway line (an automated subway line) to Grand Theater Station yields fantastic panoramas of the tower right where you'll exit.
  • Same station also houses South China Museum, which stocks plenty of fridge magnets as souvenirs. My two golden-circled magnets were purchases of Iranian Art exhibition collections, also perfect background for pictures with Guangzhou Tower, akin to what is visible on photo p8.
  • A further stop away, Haishesha (a riverside island) provides striking night viewscapes as you look across the Pearl River (the major river flowing through Guangzhou).

This concludes my personal experiences and insights into the city. Hope you all enjoyed the read and find it useful.