Why go
Knowing the landforms makes a route easier to read: the Tibetan Plateau is not the lower Yangtze, and the northwest's basins differ from the karst hills near Guilin. Mountains and deep valleys can complicate overland travel. Use this guide to group places by terrain as well as distance.
The full story
The country's western and southwestern heights include the Tibetan Plateau and major mountain ranges. Rivers such as the Yangtze and Yellow River run from high country toward the more densely settled east. Plains, basins and coastal lowlands create very different travel corridors from the steep valleys and plateaus farther inland. A map can hide that difference. Mount Emei, Jiuzhaigou and the Leshan Giant Buddha all sit within Sichuan, yet they occupy distinct landscapes and require separate travel planning. In the east, Hangzhou's West Lake, canal towns and the Grand Canal help show how water routes shaped settlement. Around Guilin, the Li River winds between karst hills unlike the broad northern plains. Use terrain to decide whether two places belong in the same day. Regional grouping is a first step; actual transport time and the route into a mountain or valley decide the rest.