Tom O'Malley

Travel writer

United Kingdom

Tom is a travel writer specialising in China, where he lived for 12 years. He also covers Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mongolia, as well as Denmark and Scotland. He is a regular guidebook author for Lonely Planet, DK and others, and reports on travel for The Telegraph.

Portfolio

Latest Work

National Geographic
10/21/2025
Best of the World 2026

From a legendary Alpine range to a less-traveled but no less stunning alternative to the Mediterranean, here are the year's must-visit destinations, handpicked by National Geographic's editors, photographers, and adventurers.

Beijing

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Beijing, 12th Edition

Buy Lonely Planet Beijing (Travel Guide) 12 by O'Malley, Thomas (ISBN: 9781787014022) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Pocket Beijing

From ancient walled capital to showpiece megacity in barely a cent From ancient walled capital to showpiece megacity in barely a century, Beijing spins a breathless yarn of triumph, tragedy, endurance and innovation.

Mandarin Oriental
Your essential guide to Beijing

Beijing is a thrilling tableau of old and new, where grand vestiges of China’s imperial past vie for space with gleaming modern architecture. An unrivalled bounty of cultural and artistic treasures is waiting to be discovered, along with an agenda-setting food scene.

Lonely Planet
14 things you can do only in Beijing

It's incredible to think that a little over a century ago, Beijing was a kind of low-rise walled fortress, its nine humongous gates locked shut every night.

Cathay Pacific
On Business: Beijing

A BLUEPRINT FOR BRILLIANT BUSINESS TRAVEL IN THE CHINESE CAPITAL BY THOMAS O’MALLEY

Open Skies, Emirates
Our Man in Beijing

It began as a barely audible flicker, a tremble in a Jurassic Park water cup rising slowly to a marching crescendo … crunch, crunch, crunch.

Bucket List Travels
Beijing | Expert destination guide

The best things to do & places to stay in Beijing, recommended by China specialist, local resident and leading travel writer Tom O'Malley.

Silverkris, Singapore Airlines
Soul of a City

Tom O'Malley embarks on a journey along Beijing’s central axis, seeking out the historic heart of the capital city.

Fodor's Travel Guides
Fodor's Beijing

Written by locals, Fodor's travel guides have been offering expert advice for all tastes and budgets for 80 years. Fodor's correspondents highlight the best of Beijing, including World Heritage sites, memorable markets, fantastic street food, and world-class nightlife. Our local experts vet...

Silverkris, Singapore Airlines
Little Districts: Dashilan, Beijing

Once a boisterous warren of theatres, opium dens and pleasure houses, the district of Dashilan in central Beijing was thoroughly scrubbed and sanitised by the communist regime in the 1950s. Recently, a reawakening has taken place, with more than a little decadent joie de vivre returning to this increasingly hip ’hood. By Tom O'Malley

Silverkris, Singapore Airlines
Little Districts: Gulou, Beijing

This area – known colloquially as Gulou after its traditional drum tower – is an appealing warren of streets. It boasts Beijing’s best preserved hutong alleyways – and more recently, bohemian culture and nightlife. By Tom O'Malley

Forbes Travel Guide
The Peninsula Beijing - Beijing Hotels - Forbes Travel Guide

One of the city's longest-running luxury hotels, The all-suite Peninsula Beijing has stood witness to more than three decades of breathless change in China.A pair of works by avant-garde ink painter Qin Feng gazes out over fresh acres of pearlescent white marble in the stunning lobby, encircled by d

Mandarin Oriental
One city, five ways: Beijing

Home to multiple Unesco treasures such as the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, Beijing is a city bound to its past. Equally, the showpiece capital of China is forging a new legacy for itself as a centre of innovation, art, and culture.

The Telegraph
Review: Mandarin Oriental Wangfujing Hotel

After a decade of false starts (the first MO burned down before it opened), Mandarin Oriental has finally hit Beijing in a blaze of glorious excess. The capital’s most lavishly appointed guest rooms combine with delicious views of the Forbidden City, a fab rooftop cocktail bar and the most central of locations. By Tom O'MAlley

CNN
Beijing's 20 best hotels | CNN

It's not all flashy five-star high-rises; Beijing timeworn alleyways are home to secluded boutique boltholes and restored courtyard residences, too. Discover 20 of the best hotels when you visit China's capital.

Medium
Rails Through the Snow

On the hour, every hour, the clock above Beijing Railway Station chimes 'The East is Red', the de-facto theme song of the Cultural Revolution. At 10pm on a sub-zero January night, this jingle draws...

Higher View, China Eastern Airlines
Forbidden Treasures

The Forbidden City. Is there a more evocatively titled tourist site anywhere on earth? It’s a name able to conjure up a closed-off world of antique ritual and political intrigue.

CNN
Beijing's 20 best restaurants | CNN

Whether you're carving artfully carved Peking duck, esoteric regional Chinese recipes or top notch global gastronomy, the city has got you covered, and then some.

Fraser Cachet
Live like an Emperor

Capital of China since the Mongol times, today’s hectic Beijing has as many modern marvels as ancient ones, not to mention an unrivalled culinary and cultural scene just waiting to be explored.

ABTA Magazine
Travellers' Tales: Beijing

China’s capital, rooted in politics, tradition and commerce, makes a fascinating place to explore, says Tom O’Malley

Delta Sky
Trending: Dashilan - Delta Airlines

Why Now: The Dashilan district, once an eclectic enclave of Peking opera theaters, opium dens and brothels, was comprehensively cleaned up by the Communists in the ‘50s.

Lonely Planet
Cool Xisi: Beijing's up-and-coming neighbourhood

Xisi (literally 'West Four') is a neighbourhood in western Beijing, so called for its four richly carved paifang (sign gates) that once straddled the crossroads at Xisi Dajie and Fuchengmennei Dajie.

CNN
Beijing's 10 Weirdest Restaurants

Pressure affects people in different ways. Soldiers become shell-shocked. Politicians crack. Restaurateurs, on the other hand, forget the failsafe formula of good food, value and service, and start to think that novelty place mats are a neat idea.

Mandarin Oriental
Six reasons to extend your stay in Beijing

The Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace, the Great Wall - Beijing rivals any world capital for spectacular sights, with more than enough to keep most visitors busy.

DestinAsian
Hutong Hideaways

The regeneration of Beijing’s old hutong alleyways is ushering in a new wave of drinking venues BY TOM O’MALLEY

Travel & Leisure
Perfect Peking Duck

You won't find any bar gain birds at these five-star eateries, but Beijing's esteemed signature is a foodie experience worth splashing out on. BY TOM O'MALLEY

DestinAsian
Zhizhusi Reborn

In central Beijing, a forgotten Qing-era temple compound is once again in the spotlight BY TOM O’MALLEY

the Guardian
Bejing to Shanghai: a train for two cities

Today's launch of a new high-speed rail link between Beijing and Shanghai is yet another example of the country's accelerated development. But you can still get a flavour of old China in both cities, from a Hutong hotel in Beijing to a retro bar in Shanghai's French concession

Mainland China

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet China, 17th Edition

Buy Lonely Planet China (Travel Guide) 17 by Planet, Lonely (ISBN: 9781788687935) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet China, 16th Edition

Lonely Planet China (Travel Guide) : Butler, Stuart, Bremner, Jade, Chapman, Kate, Chen, Piera, Eaves, Megan, Harper, Daisy, Harper, Damian, Holden, Trent, Humphrys, Tess, Lioy, Stephen, Maric, Vesna, Masters, Tom, Mayhew, Bradley, McCrohan, Daniel, O'Malley, Thomas, Parkes, Lorna, Pitts, Christopher, Spurling, Tom, Tang, Phillip: Amazon.co.uk: Books

DK Books
The Travel Bucket List

Counting down the 500 experiences every traveller should have in a lifetime, this is the travel list to end all travel lists.And trust us, we know. At DK Travel, we've helped travellers get closer to destinations around the world for over 30 years. We've celebrated the world's most unforgettable jou...

DK Books
Gardens of the World

A glorious mise en scène of human-made hills, lakes and islets, vaulted arch bridges and sumptuous palace buildings on a truly epic scale, the Summer Palace is a living monument to the power, wealth and refinement of China's last imperial dynasty.

Lonely Planet
What to eat and drink in China

In a country with a food scene as diverse as mainland Europe, where does one start? Read on to discover just a few of the must-try tastes and dining experiences China has in its ample larder.

Morning Calm (Korean Air)
Created in China

Shenzhen, the world’s most ambitious megacity, is coming of age. No longer merely the world’s factory, today it’s a global leader in tech and design, setting the course for China’s future.

Morning Calm (Korean Air)
A Thousand Tiny Paper Cuts

The art of jianzhi , or paper-cut, has been a fixture of Chinese life for centuries. Regionally diverse in style, form and function, it’s both popular folkcraft and high culture.

Discovery
The Fastest Growing Place in China

It's not skyscrapers but vegetables, flowers and an alternative lifestyle that are once again sprouting in Dali, in China's Yunnan province

Lonely Planet
48 hours in Shenyang - Lonely Planet

Former home of the Qing dynasty, boasting royal palaces, ancient tombs and hearty cuisine: here's how to spend 48 hours in the buzzing metropolis of Shenyang, China.

Higher View, China Eastern Airlines
Great Lengths

Tom O'Malley looks at the Great Wall's expanding waistline.

Higher View, China Eastern Airlines
Honing Their Craft

Beers flavoured wih everything from Sichuan peppercorns to Chinese green chillies are all part of a burgeoning craft sfene, explains Tom O'Malley.

Discovery Magazine
City of Eternal Winter

Harbin is famed for its ice and snow attractions every winter, but a new indoor park means its cold-weather sports last all year long.

Silverkris (Singapore Airlines)
An Emperor's Tour of China

Following in the footsteps of China’s ancient roving royalty, TOM O’MALLEY discovers how the inspection tours of old helped establish a template for travel in the Middle Kingdom today.

Discovery Magazine
China's most spectacular new museums

China's art museum landscape is booming. We look at four of the hottest avant-garde spaces that are shaping the country's future contemporary art conversation

Morning Calm (Korean Air)
The Almost Capital of China

China’s center was very nearly not in the north, but in the south. Journey back through time in Nanjing, the country’s “southern capital” and a city that wears its history on its sleeve.

Fraser Cachet
Jewel on the Pearl River

China’s most important trading center for centuries, the city once known as Canton remains a gateway between East and West, where temples, mosques and former consulates coexist with the 21st century architectural statements of this thriving metropolis.

Lonely Planet
The Best Beaches in China

A trip to a beach in China, having more in common with the seaside sanatoriums of Soviet Russia than, say, Surfin’ USA, can be a fascinating cultural experience.

Lonely Planet
Harbin: A Magical History Tour

Harbin, in China's far north, has made a name for itself as a winter hotspot thanks to the Harbin Ice and Snow World, a neon-clad Narnia of frozen fairy-tale castles and ice slides.

Morning Calm (Korean Air)
Plucked From the Past

The guqin, or ancient zither, is one of the oldest and most revered musical instruments in China. Today it’s finding renewed popularity as a meditative counterweight to the frenzy of modern life.

BBC Storyworks
To the people, food is heaven

Welcome to China, a land of culinary discovery where food conquers all and the feast never ends. China is the home of 1.4 billion foodies. That might seem like hyperbole, but in the world's most populous country, food culture is simply just culture.

Aspire, Hong Kong Airlines
Nanjing's Modern Fortress

When is (re-)building a wall actually a good idea? When it helps preserve important parts of a city’s history and culture. BY TOM O’MALLEY

Discovery
Discover the secrets of Shandong

From its ancient temples and historic mountains to the new wave of coffee shops and arts spaces, Shandong is striving hard to be both ancient and modern

Higher View
Wonder Wall

When it comes to visiting the Great Wall of China, a little context goes a long way, writes Tom O’Malley. Photography Ewen Bell

Lonely Planet
What's new in China now that it's reopened

From palaces to pandas to perfectly pleated soup dumplings, the myriad treasures of the Middle Kingdom are once again within reach. But if you're thinking nothing much changed during China's zero-COVID hiatus, think again.

Starwood Hotels
Red Hot Guide to Hunan Cooking

Ask a local what one characteristic defines Hunan cuisine, and you'll get the same answer every time: heat. Chilies dominate almost every dish with what might seem to the uninitiated like reckless abandon.

Mandarin Oriental
Your essential guide to Guangzhou

Guangzhou, once known to Europeans as Canton, has long been China’s gateway to the world. Buzzing with big-city energy, it’s also surprisingly laidback when you delve into its back streets. Do as the locals do and make time for a dim sum brunch, then stroll to a traditional market below the banyan trees.

Lonely Planet
Help me, LP! How can I get a visa for China?

Tom O'Malley, a contributor to our China guidebooks and resident of Beijing for 12 years, explains how to go about getting back to China now that the country has removed all of its pandemic travel restrictions.

Travel & Leisure
Great Wall Getaways

To truly experience China's "stone dragon," consider a stay at one of these dramatically different retreats in Beijing's northern mountains. By TOM O'MALLEY

Higher View
24 Hours in Harbin

In winter the mercury can plummet to minus 30 degrees Celsius. But that’s when Harbin’s tourist season really heats up. Words Tom O’Malley

Virgin Atlantic Australia
A Walk on the Wild Side

Dispense with all the myths and take the hike of a lifetime along China’s mightiest monument. We reveal the real story behind the Great Wall. Words THOMAS O’MALLEY

Rough Guides
Chinese restaurant etiquette: a step-by-step guide

You've heard the one about not sticking your chopsticks straight up in rice, right? (It resembles funerary incense sticks). Honestly? Don't fret. Because let's face it; you've got bigger problems than antiquated cultural faux-pas.

Hong Kong & Macau

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Pocket Hong Kong (Pocket Guide)

Buy Lonely Planet Pocket Hong Kong (Pocket Guide) 9 by Hui, Angela, O'Malley, Thomas (ISBN: 9781838693664) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Hong Kong, 19th Edition

Buy Lonely Planet Hong Kong (Travel Guide) by Parkes, Lorna, Chen, Piera, O'Malley, Thomas (ISBN: 9781786578082) from Amazon's Book Store. Free UK delivery on eligible orders.

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Hong Kong, 18th edition

Lonely Planet Hong Kong: Lonely Planet's most comprehensive guide to the city (Travel Guide) : Parkes, Lorna, Chen, Piera, O'Malley, Thomas: Amazon.co.uk: Books

Lonely Planet
8 unmissable day trips from Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of the world's great urban playgrounds, but this place has another side to its personality beyond the gleaming skyscrapers and shopping malls.

Lonely Planet
Getting around in Hong Kong

High-rise Hong Kong has long been a hive of busy worker bees who depend on the city's efficient transport system to whisk them from apartment to office to mall...

Lonely Planet
Best things to do in Hong Kong

It's hard not to fall in love with Hong Kong at first sight, a disarmingly high-rise metropolis in the dreamiest of island settings. Then you start to discover...

Taiwan

Hong Kong Airlines
The taps run in Tapei

With creative brews that showcase the innovative use of local ingredients, even the most jaded of craft beer drinkers will find something to tickle their taste buds in the capital of Taiwan.

Lonely Planet
Taiwan's 10 most beautiful hikes

In subtropical Taiwan, hiking is practically a national sport. For a place less than half the size of Scotland, this little island packs in a big topography -...

Lonely Planet
Top 7 parks and scenic areas in Taiwan

From the highest mountain pass in northeast Asia to rare saltwater hot springs, Taiwan's national parks and scenic areas have something for everyone.

Lonely Planet
Visas for Taiwan

Read everything you need to know about securing a visa to visit Taiwan, a land of fabulous food, stunning hikes, delightful beaches and much more.

Mongolia

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Mongolia (Travel Guide)

Buy Lonely Planet Mongolia (Travel Guide) 8th ed. by Lonely Planet (ISBN: 9781786575722) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

National Geographic Traveller
Travel Talk: Ask the Experts

Can you recommend an itinerary taking in Mongolia’s cities and wilderness? Kick things off in Ulaanbaatar, an urban anomaly in a land of vast spaces. Tip your hat to Genghis Khan’s statue in Sükhbaatar Square before heading to Bayangol district to nose around the lavish winter palace of the Bogd Khan, Mongolia’s de-facto ruler after its independence from China in 1911.

Lonely Planet
17 Mongolia travel tips: read before you go

A land defined by boundless steppes, blue skies and roving nomads, Mongolia is perfectly set up for adventure and cultural immersion. Memorable experiences are...

Lonely Planet
The 3 best road trips in Mongolia

Imagine bouncing over rolling grasslands in a 4WD, with nothing but rolling green steppe extending in every direction. Mongolia is proof that roads (of the...

Lonely Planet
Do I need a visa for Mongolia?

Here's some great news for anyone who has been dreaming of Mongolia's boundless grasslands and eternal blue skies - travel into the country has recently become...

Morning Calm (Korean Air)
Escapes: Central Mongolia

A boundless ocean of grass beneath the eternal blue sky, Mongolia is one of the least densely populated countries on Earth. From the Gobi sands to the Siberian frontier, space and solitude reign. But this apparently primeval emptiness is an illusion, for Mongolia’s landscape has been carved over millennia by nomads and their herds moving between pastures with the seasons — a tradition that endures to this day.

Morning Calm (Korean Air)
Steppe Soul Music

The pounding of hooves, the moan of wind across the grasslands, the ripple of a horse’s mane — the sounds of the morin khuur are the sounds of Mongolia itself, which explains why the instrument is so revered by the country’s people.

South China Morning Post
Story on a plate: Mongolia

True, you can pick up a slice of pizza or an espresso in Ulan Bator, but outside the capital, the flesh and milk of the sheep, goat and cow remains the staple of all but the most upwardly mobile Mongolian.

the Guardian
Glamping in Mongolia

Mongolia, home to the yurt, is now offering luxury camping in sustainable, nomad-run gers in remote Khan Khentiii, says Tom O'Malley

Summit Magazine
Call of the Wild

Luxury stores and expensive cars may be starting to appear on the streets of Ulaanbaatar, but all around Mongolia’s rapidly modernising capital city lies pristine wilderness, where the skies are big and a slow pace of life prevails. Tom O’Malley explores both sides of this beguiling country.

The Beijinger
Treading Lightly in Khan Country

As the antique Russian bus growled up the slope, he rose into view: a horseman, alert and imperious, solemnly surveying miles of empty steppe. It was Chinggis Khan, 40 meters tall and cast from silver steel that dazzled in the sunlight.

Japan, Korea

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Kyoto, 8th Edition

Lonely Planet's local travel experts reveal all you need to know to plan a multi-week adventure to Kyoto. Geisha-spot in Gion, stroll through beautiful botanical gardens, indulge in soulful bowls of ramen, with our classic travel guide that's packed with comprehensive itineraries, maps, and essential tips so you can cr

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Japan, 18th Edition

With deaths far outstripping births, Japan is quietly disappearing. What can be done to defuse the demographic time bomb? By Thomas O’Malley

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Pocket Kyoto & Osaka (Pocket Guide)

Buy Lonely Planet Pocket Kyoto & Osaka (Pocket Guide) 4 by O'Malley, Thomas, Fay, Tom, Goss, Rob (ISBN: 9781838693732) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Japan, 17th Edition

Lonely Planet Japan (Travel Guide) : Milner, Rebecca, Bartlett, Ray, Bender, Andrew, Forge, Samantha, McLachlan, Craig, Morgan, Kate, O'Malley, Thomas, Richmond, Simon, Tang, Phillip, Walker, Benedict, d'Arc Taylor, Stephanie: Amazon.co.uk: Books

Wanderlust
Tokyo on Two Feet Guide

An 18-page walking guide on Tokyo, printed in Wanderlust and as a supplement for World Travel Market 2023.

Joy of Quiet Places
Guide to Kumano Kodo

For thousands of years, pilgrims have sought salvation in the forested mountains of Japan's Kii Peninsula, the largest peninsula in Japan, on the island of Honshü.

Lonely Planet
The Fixer's tour of secret Tokyo

Shinji Nohara knows Tokyo like no other. A lifelong local, he's the Tokyo Fixer, the foodie who fed fugu to Anthony Bourdain, who consults with some of the world's best restaurants, and who regularly guides the great and the good around Tokyo's lesser-known highlights.

Lonely Planet
What to eat and drink in South Korea

In Korea, food is for the soul as well as for the stomach. Meals are meant for sharing, and eating is seen as a means to better health and well-being. Known...

Amazon
Lonely Planet Korea (Travel Guide)

Lonely Planet Korea (Travel Guide) : Harper, Damian, Morgan, MaSovaida, O'Malley, Thomas, Tang, Phillip, Whyte, Rob: Amazon.co.uk: Books

The Beijinger
Tokyo: A Wonderful Place to Visit!

Like New York suspended in its Art Deco heyday, Tokyo’s street circuitry is hard-wired with an endlessly appealing retro-futurism: the red-and-white Tokyo Tower (stomped on countless times by Godzilla), the monorail built for the '64 Olympics, the chrome-trimmed taxis, sushi conveyer builts, capsule hotels and cone-tipped bullet trains.

Southeast Asia

Playboy Germany
The Whalers of Lemalera

At 7 a.m. the waves were still pummeling the rocks. Hieronymus glumly passed on the news: No hunt today. The sky was slung low and stormy over the village as we prepared for another day aground. Down on the beach, the spotters sat idling, smoking cigarettes rolled in palm leaves and gazing out to sea like they were waiting for a bus. Something bus-sized, at least.

Medium
Bodies Below the Banyan Tree

A pair of pantomime effigies, arms limp like dolls, beckon in the living. One is a man, with lips framed into a juicy smile. His suit jacket is rotting away, revealing the warped bamboo frame of his...

Denmark, Scandinavia

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Scandinavia, 15th Edition

Lonely Planet's Scandinavia is our most comprehensive guide that extensively covers all the region has to offer, with recommendations for both popular and lesser-known experiences. Be awed by the aurora borealis, explore waterfalls in Iceland and be inspired by innovative Scandinavian design; all with your trusted trav

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet Denmark, 9th Edition

Lonely Planet Denmark (Travel Guide) eBook : Connolly, Sean, Elliott, Mark, Murray Nielsen, Adrienne, O'Malley, Thomas: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store

Lonely Planet
The Lonely Planet guide to Legoland

The faintly surreal company town of Billund, Denmark, is a fantasyland for just about any child - as well as registered AFOLs (adult fans of Lego) anywhere. In...

Lonely Planet
Odense, Denmark: best things to do

Odense is a living homage to its favorite son, fairy-tale maestro Hans Christian Andersen. Visitors to Denmark's third-biggest city will find tributes to the...