What's the must-see thing in Guangzhou?

Chen Clan Ancestral Hall sits on Zhongshan Qi Lu in Liwan District, a 2-minute walk from the Chenjiaci metro stop on Line 1. The Chen clan built it over four years in the early 1890s as a study hall for examination candidates from 72 counties across Guangdong province. The Guangdong provincial government turned it into the Guangdong Folk Art Museum in the 1950s, which is the only reason the compound survived the demolition campaigns that followed. Walk through the entrance gate and the first thing you notice is old camphor timber, dry and faintly sweet, from beams that have been holding the roof for over 130 years. The ceramic ridge figures on the main hall roof depict Cantonese opera scenes in fired clay, some over a metre tall, glazed in cobalt blue and mustard yellow. Inside, the wood panels carry carvings so deep they become nearly three-dimensional, with layers of figures receding into the timber like theatre flats. The halls open at 8:30am and close at 5:30pm daily.

Sacred Heart Cathedral on Yide Lu in Yuexiu District is the second stop. The church dates to 1888 and is built entirely from granite blocks, which earned it the Cantonese name Shishi, meaning Stone House. The twin spires rise 58.5 metres, and the stained glass was shipped from France in the 1880s. Step inside on a humid Guangzhou afternoon, when the heat index pushes past 30°C, and the stone interior feels noticeably cooler against your skin. Light through the rose window falls on grey granite floors worn smooth over 138 years of foot traffic. Mind you, the cathedral sits in the middle of the Yide Lu wholesale district, where the air smells of dried seafood and the pavement gets sticky with fish-oil residue from delivery trucks. Free entry, and Haizhu Square station on Line 2 sits about 300 metres west.

Canton Tower, finished in 2010, stands 600 metres tall on Haixinsha Island in Haizhu District, directly across the Pearl River from the Guangzhou Opera House. The outdoor observation deck at 488 metres is the main draw. On a clear day you can pick out container ships on the river as it bends south toward the Pearl River Delta ports. Clear days are uncommon in Guangzhou, where humidity often sits above 80%. Visibility drops to 3 to 5 km by midafternoon, and the Tianhe CBD skyline turns into a white-grey wash. Go around 5:30pm for the dusk transition instead. After dark the tower's LED panels shift through colours, and the city's neon grid spreads out below in a way that rewards the 150 CNY ticket (about $22 USD at roughly 6.71 CNY per dollar). Line 3 to Canton Tower station puts you at the base in under 5 minutes from Zhujiang New Town.

If you have one day, do all three in sequence. Start at Chen Clan Ancestral Hall at opening, spend 90 minutes, then take Line 1 east to Gongyuanqian and transfer to Line 2 south to Haizhu Square for the cathedral. That ride takes about 25 minutes. The cathedral needs 30 to 40 minutes. From Haizhu Square, Line 2 continues south to Changgang, where you transfer to Line 3 and ride east to Canton Tower station. You'll arrive around noon, which is too early for good light. Get lunch in the Zhujiang New Town district nearby. Try zhū cháng fěn (rice noodle rolls filled with pork) at any Cantonese dim sum counter. The silky rice sheets have a faint fermented tang and come doused in sweet soy for around 15 to 25 CNY per plate. Head to the tower around 5pm and stay through sunset. The observation deck's last entry is 9:30pm.