Guangzhou's long history of contact with the West sets it apart from other Chinese cities, creating an environment where Western ideas and approaches found earlier acceptance than in other Chinese cities, but where rich cultural traditions have continued to thrive. For the visitor, this means that Guangzhou is an exhilarating mixture of the familiar and the exotic: nowhere is this truer than in the world of Guangzhou entertainment.

For those in search of Western-style diversions, there are any number of golf courses, tennis courts and bowling alleys. After dark the city has as wide a range of KTVs, pubs, bars and restaurants as you could want, from places where Chinese and foreigners mingle freely to all-expat hangouts.

In the evening, the Pearl River (Zhujiang), rippling with neon reflections, offers an age-old form of relaxation in the form of night cruises on the river: these can vary in price; going all the way up to a luxury cruise with dinner on the water. On land, there are plenty of options for traditional entertainment. Guangzhou is dotted with teahouses that offer wonderful tea ceremonies and the chance to while away a few hours as Chinese people have done for centuries, drinking tea and letting the world slow down.

Guangdong province is the home of Yue Ju (Cantonese Opera), which is sung in the Guangzhou dialect and is characterized by rising and falling rhythms with harmonious and graceful melodies. Visitors interested in experiencing this traditional performing art can head to Guangzhou Art Center Friendship Theater, Huang Hua Gang Theater or Lijiang Pearl Opera House. Make sure you call ahead to book as these performances are extremely popular. Another traditional art form in Guangzhou is Yuequ – Guangdong melodies or Guangdong arias. They can also be heard in Guangxi Autonomous Regions, Hong Kong and Macau. To Chinese ears, this type of music is sweet, tender, delicate and soft. Traditionally, it is sung in Cantonese dialect with the performer dressed simply or at times wearing their street clothes. These performances can be experienced at Yunxiang Restaurant, starting at 14:30 and lasting for two hours.

Other traditional performing arts include Cantonese music, (Guǎngdōng yīnyuè), which is a traditional Chinese instrumental music from Guangzhou and surrounding areas. The name of the music doesn't really reflect its origins. In fact, it originated in Shanghai ballrooms in the 1920s and 30s when the music was popular in the form of "Jīngshěn Yīnyuè" . Since the performers were originally from Guangdong, Shanghai natives began to call it Guangdong Music. The genre draws on Yueju (Cantonese opera) music and fuses it with modern compositions. Some of the pieces have jazz and western music influence and tend to use syncopation. Rather than emphasizing social aspects, Guangdong music emphasizes natural scenery and objects, which bring a feeling of relaxation. Guangzhou Art Center Friendship Theater and Xinghai concert hall provide great venues for Guangdong music performances.

Many traditional Guangdong ballads, storytelling arts, comic dialogues and spoken-word art forms like "clapper talk" and "cross-talk" are now dying since the younger generation is not receiving the necessary training. In 2005, the provincial government began to make efforts to keep these art forms alive, and introduced the Guangzhou Folk Art Festival, which is held in conjunction with the Polo Temple Fair. The festival is held yearly in March in Huangpu District in the east of Guangzhou. In addition to these folk performances, the festival is the venue for the Lion Dance Show, Aoyu fish Dance Show and Longzhou Song.

Guangzhou has a marvelous tradition of acrobatics: the Guangzhou Acrobatic Troupe and Guangzhou Armed Forces Acrobatic Troupe have often represented China at international competitions. Visitors wanting a taste of this high-octane entertainment can try the Lijiang Pearl Opera House and Guangzhou Art Center Friendship Theater. Guangzhou's Chime-Long International Circus is another spectacular showcase for the circus arts, with a more international flavor: Chime-Long's huge cast of performers – human and animal – come from all four corners of the world.

Guangzhou celebrates its uniqueness through a range of colorful festivals. The Spring Festival Flower Fair is part of a tradition in southern China to welcome the new year with flowers and fruits. The city comes alive with flowers, both artificial (pasted on doors and windows and adorning young girls' hair) and real. The tangerine is the most popular fruit for decorations during this festival. The Polo Temple Fair, which is also held around Chinese new year, takes place in villages surrounding Guangzhou when the local people honor Polo, the Sea God of southern China. They get together to hold processions, performances and, of course, local food festivals. Around May or June, one of China's most colorful festivals, the Dragon Boat festival, takes place in Guangzhou. Also known as Duan Wu Jie, the festival honors the memory of Qu Yuan (339-278 BC), a patriotic poet and official who took his own life as a protest against corruption. Today, the people of Guangzhou mark the festival by preparing Zongzi, triangular rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves. The festival culminates in spectacular dragon boat races on the Pearl River. High summer is the time for eating lychees all over southern China, and there is a colorful festival centered around Zengcheng in the east of Guangzhou which celebrates this delightful Chinese delicacy with dancing, exhibitions, fairs and song. Another icon of China – the lotus – is celebrated in the August Lotus Festival when these luscious flowers are in full bloom. Then as winter draws in (late November), Guangzhou comes alive to the Guangzhou International Gourmet Festival, which is part food fair and part trade fair, but mainly a celebration of one of the province's greatest gifts to the world - Guangdong cuisine. 

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