One of the great things about Lingoinn’s homestay service is that you get both a great choice of cities in China and a course tailored to your Mandarin learning needs. Each day during your trip will vary from city to city and course to course. But all stays include an immersive, interactive balance of structured lessons, free time to explore, and time spent with your host teacher and their family in their home.
Here’s an example of a day spent in Dalian – one of the many cities we offer – on a course with 10 hours of lessons per week.
Morning
After breakfast with the family, you’ll have around two hours of lesson time with your host teacher, based on a topic and goal of your choice (for example general Mandarin, business Mandarin or working towards an HSK exam).
After the lesson, it’s time to explore the city, absorb some Chinese culture and put your Mandarin skills into practice. Of course, it’s impossible to enjoy all of what Dalian has to offer in just a single day, and you might want to take things slower or faster. So this is just a suggestion of what one day of sightseeing could look like.
Late Morning / Early Afternoon
Either with your host teacher as a guide, or on your own, make your way to Dalian Labour Park (大连劳动公园, dàlián láodòng gōngyuán). Take a relaxing stroll while taking in the beautiful surroundings. You can ride a pedal boat on the lake, and take the cable car to enjoy sights across the city from a viewpoint.
For lunch, you can visit a food court in one of the nearby shopping centres north of the park, and then hit the shops themselves afterwards. Or, if you’re feeling fancy, book yourself into Bohai Mingzhu Revolving Restaurant (渤海明珠旋转餐厅, bóhǎi míngzhū xuánzhuǎn cāntīng) at the top of Bohai Pearl Hotel, just east of the park. Enjoying fresh seafood is a must in Dalian, so make sure you give it a try.
Late Afternoon / Evening
For a drastic change of scenery, head further north of Dalian Labour Park to Russian Street (俄罗斯风情街, èluósī fēngqíng jiē). Dalian used to be under Russian occupation from 1895 to 1905, and you can still see a lot of the cultural influences left behind in the architecture and food here. Take plenty of pictures of the 19th Century Russia-style buildings. And if you’re not too full after lunch, you can try pierogi – Russian dumplings. But make sure you save room for the next stop.
A little south of Russian Street is Yinxiangxiaochi Street (印象小吃街, yìnxiàng xiǎochī jiē), which is a must-visit for street food and bustling night market atmosphere. Be sure to enjoy some barbecued seafood and skewers.
Finally, it’s time to have dinner with your host teacher’s family in their home. This is a great chance to catch up on what you got up to during the day and chat in Mandarin in a casual setting. Then you can wind down and get plenty of rest for another day of adventures in the city.
Want more travel inspiration?
Check out the different places in China we offer – along with some sightseeing suggestions – by clicking on the ‘Cities’ button in the top navigation bar of Lingoinn’s homepage
