30 Futuristic Landmarks You Must See In China : Ultimate Bucket List (2025)

Bucket List
Written By YenKid

Introduction

  • Many people visit China for its ultra-modern architecture. China’s quantity of futuristic buildings is possibly more than the rest of the world combined.

  • Maybe you’ve only heard of the obvious ones. There are many more landmarks worth visiting. For that reason, I have picked 30 of the most futuristic landmarks in China for you to visit.

  • This list covers mostly major cities as that’s where most futuristic landmarks get built. The cities most known for futuristic design are Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Shanghai, and Chongqing. New ones are being added every year in cities across China.

  • No doubt you will be “wowed” by these landmarks. Remember to check it out up close to get a sense of the scale and detail.

  • Wishing you an amazing trip throughout China! Do your best to “collect” as many landmarks as you can during your trip!

East China

1. Oriental Pearl Tower, Shanghai | 东方明珠 | a futurist TV tower with two large spheres

2. Shanghai Tower | 上海中心 | world’s tallest twisted building, 2nd tallest overall

3. Shanghai WFC | 上海环球金融中心 | the iconic bottle opener building

4. Jin Mao Tower, Shanghai | 金茂大厦 | stepped pagoda-inspired building

5. Gate to the East, Suzhou | 东方之门 | the “pants” building

North China

6. CCTV Headquarters, Beijing | 中央电视总部 | two connected L-shaped towers, nicknamed “Big Pants”

7. China Zun, Beijing | 中国尊 | tower shaped like a Chinese zun with the narrowest width halfway up the building

8. Bird’s Nest Stadium + Water Cube | 鸟巢 + 水立方 | the famous venues at the centre of the Beijing Olympics

9. Beijing Daxing Airport | 北京大兴机场 | star-shaped radial building, the world’s biggest single-terminal airport

West China

10. Hongyadong + Qiansimen Bridge, Chongqing | 洪崖洞 + 千厮门大桥 | brightly lit stilted buildings and colourful cable-stayed bridge

11. Chongqing Art Museum | 重庆美术馆 | red towering beams like a stack of chopsticks

12. Raffles City Chongqing | 重庆来福士广场 | world’s 2nd highest skybridge and eight skyscrapers, resembling a sailing ship

13. Chongqing East station | 重庆东站 | world’s largest railway station in 2025 with a grand forest canopy and white tree pillars

14. Towers of Vitality + New Century Global Center, Chengdu | 生机之塔 + 新世纪环球中心 | six colourfully lit water columns and one of the world’s largest buildings

15. Huajiang Canyon Bridge, Guizhou | 花江峡谷大桥 | world’s highest bridge in 2025 (625m above the canyon below)

16. 72 Strange Buildings, Zhangjiajie | 七十二奇楼 | world’s highest stilted building in 2025 (109.9m)

South China

17. Canton Tower | 广州塔 | twisting steel lattice tower, nicknamed “Slim Waist”. World’s 2nd tallest TV tower.

18. Guangzhou Twin Towers | 广州周大福金融中心 + 广州国际金融中心 | crystalline tower with angled setbacks and a terracotta facade + curved triangular tower with transparent glass facade

19. Guangzhou Circle | 广州圆大厦 | building with a circular hole, resembling an ancient Chinese coin

20. Guangzhou Baiyun Station | 广州白云站 | “cotton flower” canopy with a towering atrium

21. Ping An Finance Centre, Shenzhen | 平安金融中心 | chevron-shaped tapered facade, world’s 5th tallest building

22. China Resources Headquarters, Shenzhen | 中国华润大厦 | The “Spring Bamboo” building

23. Gangxia North station, Shenzhen | 岗厦北站 | huge, open atrium with a spiral ceiling and the sky window called “Shenzhen Eye”

24. Shenzhen Civic Center | 深圳市民中心 | iconic, sweeping roof like a Dapeng eagle spreading its wings

25. DJI Sky City, Shenzhen | 大疆天空之城 | suspended twin towers with exposed steel trusses, connected by a skybridge

26. Tencent Binhai Mansion, Shenzhen | 腾讯滨海大厦 | twin towers connected by three skybridges

27. Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport | 深圳宝安机场 | terminal shaped like a manta ray with a honeycomb facade

28. Zhuhai Opera House, Zhuhai | 珠海歌剧院 | double vertical seashells

29. Bank of China Tower, Hong Kong | 中银大厦 | triangular prism facade with glass and aluminium curtain wall and double antennae

30. Morpheus Hotel, Macau | 摩珀斯 | steel and glass rectangular exoskeleton with a central void resembling the number eight

YenKid
Next

Hong Kong: Ultimate Travel Guide By A Local Chinese (2025)