Nanjing.

With dozens of universities packed into Gulou and the newer Xianlin and Jiangning campus zones, Nanjing's student population is large enough to support a proper going out scene. The riverside Fuzimiao district, China's first National 5A scenic spot when rated in 2010, draws students most evenings for its lantern lit lanes, painted boat cruises on the Qinhuai River and the shopping streets built up around the old Confucius Temple. Around Lunar New Year, the Qinhuai Lantern Fair takes over the whole neighbourhood. Campus clubs and sports teams remain the fastest way into a friend group as a newcomer.

• Fuzimiao, China's first National 5A scenic spot since 2010, is the classic night out.
• Painted boats cruise the Qinhuai River past lantern lit lanes most evenings.
• The Qinhuai Lantern Fair fills the neighbourhood around Lunar New Year.

Living Cost estimates a single person's total monthly budget in Nanjing at around 789 US dollars including rent, or about 419 dollars without it. A one bedroom flat near the centre averages roughly 463 dollars a month, and an inexpensive restaurant meal comes to about 3.73 dollars. Public transport is a bargain too: Nanjing Metro fares run from 2 yuan for short hops to 15 yuan for the longest cross city rides, paid with a Jinlingtong transit card, a QR code in Alipay, or a single paper ticket bought at the station.

• Budget around 419 US dollars a month without rent, or 789 with it.
• A one bedroom flat near the centre averages about 463 dollars a month.
• Metro fares run from 2 to 15 yuan, paid by card, QR code or ticket.

Most exchange students live in dorms on whichever campus they are assigned to: the historic Gulou area shared by Nanjing University and Southeast University, the purpose built university town of Xianlin, home to Nanjing Normal University's main site since 2001, or Southeast University's large Jiulonghu campus further out in Jiangning. Anyone who prefers a room of their own can look at the private rental market near campus, where listings run almost entirely in Chinese, so a local phone number and a friend who reads Chinese make viewings and contracts much easier to get right.

• Campus dorms in Gulou, Xianlin or Jiangning are the usual first option.
• Xianlin, a purpose built university town, has hosted campuses since 2001.
• Private rentals near campus list almost entirely in Chinese, so bring help.

Nanjing Lukou International Airport sits about 35 kilometres south of downtown; Metro Line S1 reaches Nanjing South Railway Station in about 35 minutes for 7 yuan, and airport shuttle buses run roughly every 20 minutes. Nanjing South is itself one of the world's largest railway stations by floor area, handling more than 650 train services a day. From there the Nanjing Metro, now 15 lines and 258 stations across 625.73 kilometres of track, reaches nearly every campus, with single fares from 2 to 15 yuan paid by Jinlingtong card, Alipay QR code or paper ticket.

• Metro Line S1 links the airport to Nanjing South station in about 35 minutes.
• Nanjing South station handles more than 650 train services a day.
• The Nanjing Metro spans 15 lines and 258 stations across the whole city.

Nanjing University, founded in 1902 and now home to around 13,900 undergraduates plus over 21,000 postgraduate and doctoral students, runs Exchange Programs and Degree Programs Taught in English, with around 1,332 international students already on campus. Southeast University, dating to 1921, leads nationally in engineering across its historic Sipailou campus and the newer Jiulonghu site, with over 16,000 students at each of the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Nanjing Normal University rounds out the scene with strong education and geography programmes. Like most Chinese universities, the academic year runs two semesters, September to January and February or March to July.

• Nanjing University runs Exchange Programs and English taught degrees for 1,332 international students.
• Southeast University, founded in 1921, is a national leader in engineering.
• The academic year runs two semesters, September to January and spring to July.

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 eats duck the way few other cities do: the city gets through more than 100 million a year, led by Nanjing salted duck, a geographical indication product since 2012 whose white meat is dry cured, then simmered with ginger, onion and star anise before being cut into strips. The small eats stalls around Fuzimiao make for an easy graze between the Confucius Temple's lantern lit lanes and the Qinhuai River's painted boat cruises. Nanjing also carries heavy history: the Memorial Hall for the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre, free but requiring registration, remains a genuinely solemn site rather than an ordinary tourist stop.

• Nanjing salted duck, a dry cured local dish, is a genuine city specialty.
• Graze the small eats stalls around Fuzimiao, by the Confucius Temple.
• Visit the Nanjing Massacre Memorial Hall with the respect the site deserves.

Gulou, at 54 square kilometres and around 1.1 million people, is Nanjing's historic university heartland, home to both Nanjing University and Southeast University's older campus, the landmark Drum Tower and the Hunan Road shopping street. Xianlin, a purpose built university town started in 2001 and covering more than 340 hectares, hosts Nanjing Normal University's main campus in a quieter, newer setting. Jiangning, further south, is where Southeast University's large Jiulonghu campus sits. Xuanwu district, wrapped around Xuanwu Lake and bordered by the old Ming city wall, suits anyone who wants green space on the doorstep.

• Gulou is the historic university heartland, dense with campuses and shops.
• Xianlin is a purpose built university town started in 2001.
• Xuanwu district sits right on Xuanwu Lake, against the old city wall.

Nanjing South, one of the world's largest railway stations by floor area, runs more than 650 services a day, which makes weekend trips easy to plan. Suzhou, with its UNESCO listed classical gardens and Grand Canal, is under an hour away on the fastest trains. Yangzhou, linked to Nanjing by a direct rail line, mixes canals, the Slender West Lake and its own Huaiyang cuisine tradition, a genuinely different pace from Nanjing itself. With this much rail capacity radiating out from the city, plenty of eastern China's classic sights sit within a single day's reach.

• Nanjing South station runs over 650 train services a day across the region.
• Suzhou's UNESCO listed gardens are under an hour away by high speed train.
• Yangzhou, linked by direct rail, offers canals and its own Huaiyang cuisine.

Nanjing carries the popular, if not strictly meteorological, title of one of China's three furnace cities, so summers are genuinely brutal and worth planning around, saving sightseeing for early morning or evening. Set up a mobile payment app before you arrive: even the Nanjing Metro takes Alipay QR codes alongside its Jinlingtong transit card, and cash gets little use anywhere. Give the Memorial Hall for the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre, which requires registration but is otherwise free, the quiet visit it deserves rather than a rushed stop. Book Xianlin or Gulou housing early to avoid a scramble once term nears.

• Summers earn Nanjing's furnace city reputation, so plan sightseeing for morning or evening.
• Set up a mobile payment app; even the metro takes Alipay QR codes.
• Visit the Nanjing Massacre Memorial Hall with the quiet respect it deserves.