Sights and landmarks in Harbin

Sights and landmarks in Harbin

1. See

   Dragon TV Tower

   龙塔 Lóngtǎ

   Tallest steel structure in northeastern Asia. Only built for the Chinese need of having something as the biggest and the best. Somewhere along the way they forgot to add any pleasant looking qualities to it. There is a revolving restaurant on top and views of the city. You can walk outside at the top and even strap on a harness for a thrill.

2. See

   Flood Control Monument

   防洪胜利纪念塔 Fánghóng Shènglì Jìniàn Tǎ

   Built in 1958 to commemorate the successful defense against the 1957 Songhua River flood. The 22.5-meter-tall tower features a circular platform with relief sculptures. It marks the northern end of Central Avenue and is a popular spot for riverside views.

   24 hours·Free

3. See

   Gondola ride over Songhua River

   A nice way to work your way back from Sun Island in a gondola car that takes you over the banks of the Songhua.

   ¥35-50

4. See

   Grape Kingdom

   葡萄王国 Pútaowángguó

   A live operating "organic farm" that has expansive grape and corn fields. In the fall you can enter the fields and pick as many fresh grapes as you want and watch how the Chinese process corn.

5. See

   Harbin Confucius Temple

   哈尔滨文庙

   This Confucius temple is one of the largest of its kind in northeast China. The Heilongjiang Museum of Nationalities can be found inside the temple.

   08ː30-16ː30, closed on Wednesdays·Free

6. See

   Harbin Ice and Snow World

   冰雪大世界

   A magical kingdom built with 400,000 cubic meters of ice and snow. Highlights include the 500-meter super ice slide, the Snowflake Ferris Wheel, and the Asian同心 Main Tower. Lights turn on around 16:00-16:30, creating a dreamlike atmosphere.

   Closed · opens 11 am·¥328

7. See

   Harbin Jewish New Synagogue

   哈尔滨犹太新会堂 Hā'ěrbīn Yóutài Xīnhuìtáng

   Has been restored and contains an impressive collection detailing the history of Jews in Harbin. There were 20,000 at one point and the synagogue is well worth a visit. Further up Tong Jiang Jie is the old synagogue that is now a youth hostel and cafe, with the old Jewish school next door -both worth a detour to look at from the outside.

   ¥25

8. See

   Heilongjiang Art Museum

   黑龙江省美术馆

   A provincial art museum founded in 1962, housed in a three-story European-style building from the 19th century. Its collection focuses on modern and contemporary Chinese art, especially woodblock prints from the Beidahuang and Heilongjiang schools. The museum also holds a significant collection of Russian oil paintings.

   09ː00-16ː00·Free

9. See

   Heilongjiang Provincial Museum

   黑龙江省博物馆 Hēilóngjiāngshěng Bówùguǎn

   A comprehensive museum housing Heilongjiang's history, nature, and art collections. Permanent exhibitions include "Heilongjiang Historical Relics," "Natural History," and the "Harbin Past — Early 20th Century Social Life" exhibition, which recreates scenes of the city a century ago. Built in 1922, the museum is a landmark of Harbin.

   October 8th to March 31st: 9AM-4PM; April 1st to October 7th: 9AM-4:30PM·Free (but remember to bring your ID)

10. See

    Northeast China Revolutionary Martyrs’ Memorial Hall

    东北烈士纪念馆

    During the Japanese occupation, this building was used as the Harbin police headquarters of the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo. It played a pivotal role in the suppression of all those opposed to Japanese rule. A number of prominent Chinese patriots were imprisoned and tortured here. In 1946, about one year after the Japanese surrender, Harbin came under the control of the Communist Party of China, and the Party decided to turn this place into a martyrs’ memorial. The memorial opened in 1948. Today it has exhibitions on 162 individuals who died fighting the Japanese and 118 individuals who died during the Chinese Civil War.

    Free

11. See

    Riverbank Park

    江畔公园 Jiāngpàngōngyuán

    Long tree covered walkway that stretches the city-side banks of the Songhua river, a really nice and pleasant walk.

    00：00-24：00

12. See

    Siberian Tiger Park

    东北虎林园 Dōngběi Hǔ Línyuán

    This is without a doubt Harbin's "must see". Not for the faint hearted or obsessive animal lovers. There are literally hundreds of tigers in several huge pens. If you want to go by bus instead of taking a taxi, take the 88 line (facing the train station, walk into the small street on your left for 300 m before seeing the bus stop) to Shangye Daxue 商业大学. It should take about 30 minutes, and it is the third stop after the long stretch of highway crossing the river. Then, take the 54 bus towards the same direction, and you will see the entrance to the Tiger Park on your right after 5 minutes or so.

    Closed · opens 8:30 am·For just ¥100 (¥90 to get in and another ¥10 for the bus) you can ride in an open bus with metal caging around it. The ride is about an hour long and while on the bus you can purchase strips of meat (¥10) to hand feed the tigers. Live chickens (¥50), pheasants (¥100), ducks (¥100), goats (¥600) and even cows (somewhere around US$200)

13. See

    Songhua River Bridge

    Built in 1900, this bridge was the first bridge across the Songhua river in Harbin and has served the railway system for more than 100 years. In 2016, with the opening of a new bridge nearby, it was converted into a pedestrian bridge for visitors.

    free

14. See

    Songhua River Railway Bridge

    松花江铁路桥

    Built in 1900, this was the first bridge across the Songhua River in Harbin and served the railway system for over 100 years. In 2016, with the opening of a new bridge nearby, it was converted into a pedestrian bridge. It offers excellent views of the river and the city skyline.

    24 hours·Free

15. See

    St. Sophia Cathedral

    圣索非亚教堂 Shèngsuǒfēiyà Jiàotáng

    One of the few still standing Orthodox churches in the city. It is now converted into a Harbin Museum of Architecture. Inside there are exhibitions of many photographs from old times. Definitely worth going into, however, if you are used to European Churches do not expect the quality.

    ¥20

16. See

    Sun Island

    太阳岛 Tàiyángdǎo

    Park offering a pleasant to stroll during the warmer months and on the weekends newly married couples can be seen taking pictures. In the winter it becomes part of the snow sculpture festivities. However, as with everything in Harbin, the park is still very Chinese with a cage full of squirrels, a petting deer area (just have to buy them some food), go carts, a pond that is just full of turtles, and newly weds sporting bright colored dresses.

    Closed · opens 8 am·Free

17. See

    The Liao & Jin History Museum of Heilongjiang

    黑龙江辽金历史博物馆

    As the name indicates, this museum focuses on the history of the Liao and Jin dynasties. It is said to contain over 10,000 artefacts.

    Closed · opens 9:30 am·¥60

18. See

    Unit 731 Museum

    侵华日军第七三一部队罪证陈列馆 Qīnhuá Rìjūn Dì Qī Sān Yāo Bùduì Zuìzhèng Chénlièguǎn

    A museum at the site of a former bio-chemical weapons research and testing facility built by the Japanese army during World War II and used to perform experiments on over 10,000 civilians and POWs. The museum tells the story of these individuals. The displays are very extensive with detailed information in both Chinese and English, though you may struggle to see everything due to the very large number of people that typically visit the museum. After looking around the museum, you may then visit the actual buildings where Unit 731 carried out its notorious research, including the main administration building and the burnt-out remains of the prison facilities.

    09:00-17:30 (April 15 to October 15); 09:00-16:30 (October 16 to April 14); last entry is one hour before closing time; the museum is completely closed on Mondays·Free

19. See

    Zhaolin Park

    兆麟公园 Zhàolíngōngyuán

    During the winter this park houses ice sculptures for the festivals, but during the off season, it is a pleasant stroll as well.

20. See

    Zhongyang Dajie

    中央大街 Zhōngyāng Dàjiē; lit. Central Avenue

    This cobblestone lined street is a pedestrian only street that could serve as a perfect remnant of the bustling international business activities at the turn of the 20th century. The 1.4-km long street is a veritable museum of European architectural styles, including Baroque and Byzantine façades, Jewish architectural wonders, a Russian restaurant, French fashion houses (Fake Chinese Brands), American snack food outlets (Mcdonalds and KFC and a Chinese owned "American Bar"), and a Japanese restaurant. In winter, one can walk out onto the ice or take a dog sledge or horse sledge ride. It is the prettiest site in Harbin as far as the city itself is concerned, however, if you go mid-day during the weekend be prepared to push through the crowds.

    Pretty much closes by 22:00 (weekend nights included)·Free

21. See Not mapped

    Huining Fu

    A few kilometres south of Acheng centre, you'll find the ruins of, the capital of the 12th century Jin dynasty. It's been declared a national historic reserve, and apart from the ruined city walls there's a museum on the site as well.

22. See Not mapped

    Laodaowai

    老道外

    Laodaowai used to be the poorest part in Harbin. A century ago there were only two districts in Harbin, east (Daoli, "Dao" means Avenue, and "Li" means inside.) and west (Daowai, "wai" means outside). The rich expats lived in the east part, and the poor locals lived in the west part. In the early 1920s, some Chinese businessmen started their business in the area. The constructions they built around that period were combined with Chinese elements, such as crane and peony designs, and baroque styles, and form a unique "Chinese Baroque" architectural style. In 2014, the government renewed the area and now it is a tourist site. Nowadays, Laodaowai ("lao" means old.) is an area for one to experience "local's" lives (that means the unique architectural style, and food, food, food, food, and food). The area is vaguely defined within Shengping St 升平街 (north), Jingyang St 景阳街 (west), Nanxun St 南勋街 (south), and Nanershi St 南二十街道 (east). If you are confused for where to start with, at Jingyang St, in between Nanxun St and Jingyu St 靖宇街, there is a later-made entrance for the LaoDaoWai area. Start from there and walk to the east, and you will see all the small streets cross one another. There are many doors (locals call them "MenDong" 门洞), which from the first sight might look like private property, in between small stores. Walk through the doors and you will reach the garden inside and the next street. There are countless snack bars and restaurants in the area, and they are a main attraction. Keep in mind the snack bars are by Chinese definition, and many are small with few tables. They are the taste of Harbin and very popular. But in case you expect western styles (air condition, waitors speak/menu in your native languages, etc.), do not bother to go. Also if you are one of those count calories for every bite, do not go either, since watching others eating while you cannot eat is unhealthy. Some of the popular nosheries are (from west to east): Zhang's Stuffed Bun 张包铺 at the

23. See Not mapped

    Old Quarter

    A section of the city just west of Zhongyang Dajie is still dominated by Russian buildings built around the turn of the century. Not well maintained but an interesting walk and you can maybe find Russian antiques in some of the thrift stores.

24. See Not mapped

    Russian Buildings

    Harbin's old quarter, which covers a wide area of the city near the Songhua River, is still today mostly made up of buildings that were constructed by the Russians at the turn of the 19th century. Most of them are built in baroque or byzantine style with spires and cupolas and interesting shades of yellow, white, green, or red. While St. Sophia is known as the main architectural attraction to the city, areas of the city such as Harbin's old quarter are made up of buildings that have been left untouched since the Russians left. While most of these streets are fairly decrepit and in need of repair, at least the area has been free from the wrecking ball like many other historical districts in China. Only because Harbin has yet to attract the world's investment.

25. See

    Heilongjiang Science and Technology Museum

    黑龙江省科学技术馆

    1458 Taiyang Avenue, Songbei District (松北区太阳大道1458号)

    09ː00-16ː00, closed on Mondays·Free

26. See

    Temple of Heavenly Bliss

    极乐寺 Jílèsì

    Large and active Buddhist temple.

    ¥10

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Harbin (CC BY-SA 4.0).