Nanjing balances heavyweight history with a young, studenty energy from its many universities, without the crowds or prices of Shanghai. You get tree-lined streets, the forested Purple Mountain inside the city, and excellent food, all wrapped in easy rail links across eastern China. Summers are famously hot, one of China's furnace cities, but spring and autumn are lovely.

• Purple Mountain (Zijinshan), with the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum, is a huge green escape inside the city.
• Shanghai is about 1.5 hours away and Suzhou just 40 minutes by high-speed rail.

With hundreds of thousands of students, Nanjing has a lively but affordable scene focused on the 1912 quarter and the riverside around the Confucius Temple. Campus societies are the easiest way in.

• The 1912 bar and restaurant quarter near the Presidential Palace is the classic night out.
• The Fuzimiao (Confucius Temple) area along the Qinhuai River buzzes with students in the evenings.
• Ask the Nanjing group on Studcasa which campus societies welcome exchange students.

Nanjing is a major city but distinctly cheaper than nearby Shanghai. Budget roughly 4,000 to 6,500 yuan a month (about 520 to 850 euros) all in.

• Canteen meals run 12-20 yuan and a plate of salted duck to share is around 40 yuan.
• A shared room near Gulou or Jiangning costs roughly 1,600-2,800 yuan a month.
• Alipay and WeChat Pay handle nearly all payments, so set them up before you arrive.

Dorms across the Gulou and Xianlin campus areas are the simplest start, with shared flats a common next move. Listings are mostly in Chinese.

• University dorms are the simplest option and are dotted across the Gulou and Xianlin campus areas.
• For flats, Lianjia and Ziroom list managed rooms, mostly in Chinese.

Nanjing has one of China's largest metro systems, reaching the airport and nearly every campus, backed by cheap shared bikes. Getting around is fast and inexpensive.

• The Nanjing Metro is one of China's largest and reaches the airport and most campuses.
• Pay with a QR in Alipay or a Jinlingtong card; single fares start at 2 yuan.
• Shared bikes cover the flat city centre for short hops.

Nanjing is a heavyweight academic city with several nationally ranked universities and beautiful campuses. Exchange offices are experienced and the choice of subjects is broad.

• Nanjing University (Nanda) is one of China's oldest and most respected, strong across the humanities and sciences.
• Southeast University leads on engineering, while Nanjing Normal has a beautiful traditional campus.

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

Nanjing is duck country, and its small-eats culture is a delight to graze through. History is everywhere, from the city wall to the lakes.

• Nanjing is duck city: try salted duck (yanshuiya) and duck-blood-and-vermicelli soup.
• Graze the small-eats stalls around Fuzimiao and Xinjiekou.
• The Ming city wall and Xuanwu Lake make good walking between meals.

The leafy Gulou university heartland, the downtown of Xinjiekou and the new campus zones each suit different students. All are metro-connected.

• Gulou is the leafy university heartland and a natural student base.
• Xinjiekou is the downtown shopping and business core.
• Jiangning and Xianlin on the edges hold the big new campuses.

Nanjing sits at the heart of the Yangtze delta, so gardens, canals and mountains are all short train rides away. Weekends are easy to fill.

• Suzhou's classical gardens are 40 minutes away and Shanghai about 1.5 hours by fast train.
• Yangzhou, with its canals and gardens, is an easy hour by train.
• Huangshan (Yellow Mountain) is reachable for an ambitious weekend.

Nanjing is straightforward, but the summer heat, the apps and the city's solemn history all deserve a heads-up. A little respect and preparation go a long way.

• Prepare for brutal summer heat and humidity, and plan sightseeing for early morning or evening.
• Sort a VPN before landing for any blocked apps.
• Visit the Nanjing Massacre Memorial with respect, as it is a solemn, moving site.