Guangzhou gives you the real, everyday China of markets, family-run restaurants and relentless commerce, plus some of the country's best food and a genuinely international feel. Its universities cluster in a purpose-built university town, the metro is excellent, and high-speed rail links you to Hong Kong in under an hour. Summers are long, sticky and wet, but winters are mild.

• You are an hour from Hong Kong and half an hour from Shenzhen by high-speed rail.
• Cantonese, rather than Mandarin, is the mother tongue here, though everyone studies Mandarin too.

Most universities sit together on Xiaoguwei Island, so campus life is close-knit and social, while the city's nightlife concentrates in Tianhe. It is easy to bounce between cheap campus canteens and the riverside bars.

• The bars and clubs along Party Pier (Zhujiang-Pijiu) in Tianhe are the mainstream night out.
• University Town (Daxuecheng) on Xiaoguwei Island keeps student life busy and central.
• Ask the Guangzhou group on Studcasa about language-exchange meet-ups for Cantonese or Mandarin.

Guangzhou is a tier-one city but noticeably cheaper than Shanghai or Beijing, especially for food. Budget roughly 4,500 to 7,500 yuan a month (about 580 to 970 euros) once everything is counted.

• Dim sum (yum cha) with friends is around 40-70 yuan a head; canteen meals stay under 20 yuan.
• A shared room near University Town costs roughly 1,800-3,200 yuan a month.
• Alipay and WeChat Pay cover everything; keep a little cash only for your first day.

Campus dorms on Xiaoguwei Island are the simplest start, and many students then move into the city for more life on their doorstep. Listings are mostly in Chinese, so get help viewing.

• Campus dorms on Xiaoguwei Island are the easiest choice for a first semester.
• For city living, look at Tianhe and Haizhu and search Ziroom or Lianjia for managed rooms.

The Guangzhou Metro is fast, clean and cheap, and ferries across the Pearl River add a scenic option. Getting around the sprawling city is easy once you have a payment set up.

• Use a Yang Cheng Tong card or scan a QR in Alipay to ride the metro.
• The APM line and Pearl River ferries are handy in the centre.
• Reckon on 150-200 yuan a month for transport, with fares from 2 yuan.

Guangzhou has strong, research-focused universities with large international cohorts and well-run exchange offices. Most teaching is in Mandarin, though English-taught programmes exist.

• Sun Yat-sen University (Zhongshan Daxue) is the region's most prestigious, with a historic riverside campus.
• South China University of Technology (SCUT) and Jinan University also host large international cohorts.

For a full semester you need an X1 student visa; anything under 180 days uses the X2. Your host university sends an admission letter plus a JW201 or JW202 form, and you take both to a Chinese embassy or visa centre back home. Requirements and fees swing a lot by nationality, so check your own local embassy rather than trusting a mate from another country.

The bit people forget: an X1 visa only gets you in the door. Within 30 days of landing you must convert it into a residence permit at the local Public Security Bureau (Entry-Exit office), which means a health check and passport photos. Miss the deadline and the fines are real.

• X1 visa, stays over 180 days, needs JW202 + admission letter
• Residence permit, apply within 30 days at the local PSB
• Medical exam, required for the permit, budget €50–80
• Rules vary by nationality, always check your own embassy

Guangzhou is the capital of Cantonese cuisine, so the food alone justifies the semester. Slow morning tea and old-town wandering are the everyday pleasures here.

• Do morning tea properly: har gow, char siu bao and a pot of tea at an old house like Panxi or Taotaoju.
• Seek out roast goose, wonton noodles and clay-pot rice in the Liwan (Xiguan) old town.
• Shamian Island's colonial streets make a calm break from the city heat.

The city splits between the modern towers of Tianhe, the old lanes of Yuexiu and Liwan, and the student world of Panyu. Each is well connected by metro.

• Tianhe is the modern core, with the Canton Tower, Zhujiang New Town skyline and most nightlife.
• Yuexiu and Liwan hold old Guangzhou: temples, arcades and the best traditional food.
• Panyu, home to University Town, is where most students actually live.

Guangzhou sits at the centre of the Pearl River Delta, so world cities and quirky countryside are both close. High-speed rail makes weekends effortless.

• Hong Kong is under an hour by high-speed rail from Guangzhou South to West Kowloon.
• Shenzhen is about 30 minutes by fast train, and Macau is reachable via Zhuhai.
• The Kaiping watchtowers (diaolou), a UNESCO site, make a striking day trip into the countryside.

Guangzhou is easygoing, but the heat, the language and the border logistics catch newcomers out. A little preparation smooths all three.

• Learn a few words of Cantonese; locals warm to it even though Mandarin works everywhere.
• Summers are brutally humid, so carry an umbrella for both sun and sudden downpours.
• Check whether you need a separate visa or permit before nipping across to Hong Kong or Macau.