China has quietly built some of the most extraordinary places to play tennis on earth, and almost nobody outside the country is talking about it.
Imagine finishing a morning on court, stepping into a hotel that feels like it was designed by someone who genuinely loves beautiful things, then spending the afternoon somewhere that changes how you see the world. That is a tennis holiday in China. The courts are just where the day begins.
Why Take a Tennis Holiday in China?
Most people don't think of China when they think of tennis travel. They think of the French Open and Roland Garros clay, Wimbledon's lawns, or the hard courts of New York. They should think again.
China has invested in tennis infrastructure with the same ambition it brings to everything, and the results are spectacular. The country now hosts some of the most prestigious tournaments on the global ATP and WTA calendars, drawing the world's best players to its courts each autumn. More than that, it has built courts in settings that simply don't exist anywhere else on earth.
Snow mountains. Tropical beaches. Ancient imperial architecture. Forest clearings. A private terrace above a lake.
Beyond the courts, the rest of China delivers in equal measure: hotels of extraordinary quality and design, a cuisine so alive with technique, history and flavour that it earns an itinerary of its own, culture that takes days to absorb properly, and nature that makes the rest of the world feel smaller.
Come for the tennis. Leave with something far harder to explain.
Six of the Best Tennis Courts in China
Check out the photos and locations of these courts on our instagram @curiouseasttravel
2. In the Shadow of History: Chongqing
Blue hard courts sit in the shadow of the Great Hall of the People, one of China's most dramatic pieces of architecture and arguably the most surreal backdrop any tennis court has ever had. Chongqing itself is one of China's most exhilarating cities: vertical, chaotic, and completely unlike anywhere else.
3. On the Beach: Hainan Island
A grass tennis court set directly on the white sand of the South China Sea. Hainan, China's tropical island province often called China's Hawaii, has built a resort scene that rivals anywhere in Southeast Asia. The court looks like someone drew it from imagination. It is entirely real.
4. Above the Treeline: Hainan Island
Two elevated hard courts suspended above a tropical bay, the South China Sea stretching to the horizon beyond the fencing. One of those rare settings where the game almost becomes secondary to the view.
5. Against a Snow Mountain: Lijiang, Yunnan
Red clay courts at 2,400 metres, with Jade Dragon Snow Mountain filling the sky behind the baseline. Lijiang is one of the most beautiful small cities in China, a UNESCO World Heritage old town surrounded by mountains. Playing tennis here feels quietly absurd, in the best possible way.
6. A View That Earns the Journey: Ace Café, Yuxi, Yunnan
A private clay court perched at Ace Café above Fuxian Lake in Yuxi, Yunnan. Misty mountains, mirror-still water, black market umbrellas beside the court. This is Yunnan at its most cinematic, and Fuxian Lake, one of the clearest and deepest lakes in China, is a destination worth visiting regardless of whether you play a single point.
Tennis Tournaments in China: The Autumn Calendar
China hosts some of the most prestigious tournaments on the global tennis calendar, and September into October is peak season, when the world's best players arrive just after the US Open.
Rolex Shanghai Masters: ATP Masters 1000
When: Early-to-mid October | Where: Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena, Shanghai
The Shanghai Masters is the jewel of Chinese tennis, Asia's only ATP Masters 1000 event, attracting the world's top men's players every autumn. Recent champions include Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer. The arena holds over 15,000 spectators, and the standard of play rivals anything outside the Grand Slams. Shanghai itself is one of the great cities of the world for food, culture and design, making this the ideal trip to build a proper China experience around.
China Open: WTA 1000 & ATP 500
When: Late September into October | Where: National Tennis Center, Beijing
Held at the National Tennis Center in Beijing, where the signature Diamond Court seats 15,000, the China Open is a dual ATP 500 and WTA 1000 event. The women's tournament has run since 2004, with past champions including Serena Williams, Iga Świątek and Coco Gauff. Beijing's combination of imperial grandeur, extraordinary food and world-class museums makes it an ideal base for a tennis trip to China.
Wuhan Open: WTA 1000
When: Mid October | Where: Optics Valley International Tennis Center, Wuhan
Founded in 2014, the Wuhan Open is a WTA 1000 event that returned to the calendar in 2024 after a four-year hiatus. The Optics Valley International Tennis Centre hosts the tournament, with a Central Court stadium holding up to 15,000 fans. Wuhan is a city undergoing a remarkable renaissance, and the food scene alone is worth the detour, with its legendary hot dry noodles and riverside night markets.
Planning a Tennis Trip Around the October Asia Swing
Korea, Japan and China take centre stage in October, with tournaments in Seoul, Beijing, Wuhan, Shanghai and beyond, making the autumn Asia swing one of the most exciting windows in the global tennis calendar. For the serious tennis traveller, building an itinerary around two or three of these events, combined with proper time to explore the cities themselves, is one of the most distinctive sporting trips available anywhere right now.
What Else to Expect on a China Tennis Holiday
Hotels. China's luxury hotel scene is genuinely world-class, from design-forward properties in Shanghai and Beijing to extraordinary boutique experiences in Yunnan. Standards are high, service is exceptional, and the value compared to equivalent properties in Europe is striking.
Food. Chinese cuisine is not one thing, it is many. Sichuan's numbing spice. Shanghainese sweetness and precision. Cantonese restraint and technique. Yunnan's wild herbs and mountain flavours. Eating properly in China is one of the great culinary adventures available to anyone, anywhere.
Culture. China rewards the curious traveller with a depth of history, art, architecture and living culture that takes years to scratch the surface of. A tennis trip that includes a morning in a Hangzhou temple garden, an afternoon in a Shanghai gallery, or a walk through Lijiang's old town at dusk is a very different experience from a standard tour.
Nature. From the tropical beaches of Hainan to the Tibetan plateaus of Sichuan, the rice terraces of Yunnan and the karst landscapes of Guangxi, China's natural environments are among the most extraordinary on earth.
How Curious East Can Help
We build bespoke tennis holidays in China for people who want to travel well and play well.
Whether you want to time a visit around the Shanghai Masters or China Open, find a court in a setting you've never imagined, or simply build a trip to China that happens to include the best tennis the country has to offer, we know these places personally and would love to help you plan it properly.
