PART IIIDEEP IN CHINA

1. Chengdu Giant Panda Base2. Leshan Big Buddha3. Wulong Geopark

4. Fenghuang & Furong ancient town5. Mengdonghe River Rafting

6. Tianmen Mountain7. Zhangjiajie National Forest Park

REISEPLAN CHINA 2018

Tag 1 - MI, 11.04: Flug Wien - Peking

Tag 2 - DO, 12.04: Peking

Tag 3 - FR, 13.04: Peking / Chinesische Mauer

Tag 4 - SA, 14.04: Datong

Tag 5 - SO, 15.04: Mianshan und Pingyao Ancient Town

Tag 6 - MO, 16.04: Pingyao + Xi’an

Tag 7 - DI, 17.04: Xi’an / Kunming (Flug)

Tag 8 - MI, 18.04: Kunming / Shilin Stone Forest, Dongchuan

Tag 9 - DO, 19.04: Kunming / Dongchuan, Kunming Town

Tag 10 - FR, 20.04: Kunming / Yanmou Earth Forest, Dali

Tag 11 - SA, 21.04: Lijiang / Lijiang Ancient Town

Tag 12 - SO, 22.04: Lijiang / Shangria La (via Tiger Leaping Gorge)

Tag 13 - MO, 23.04: Shangria La

Tag 14 - DI, 24.04: Chengdu

Tag 15 - MI, 25.04: Chongqing / Wulong

Tag 16 - DO, 26.04: Fenghuang

Tag 17 - FR, 27.04: Furong Ancient Town

Tag 18 - SA, 28.04: Zhangijaije / Tianmen Mountain

Tag 19 - SO, 29.04: Zhangijaije / National Forest Park

Tag 20 - MO, 30.04: Guilin I (Private Tour)

Tag 21 - DI, 01.05: Guilin II (Private Tour)

Tag 22 - MI, 02.05: Guilin III (Private Tour)

Tag 23 - DO, 03.05: Guilin IV (Private Tour)

Tag 24 - FR, 04.05: Sanqingshan

Tag 25 - SA, 05.05: Hangzhou

Tag 26 - SO, 06.05: Shanghai

Tag 27 - MO, 07.05: Rückflug Shanghai – Wien

TAG 14, 23+24.04 (MONTAG, DIENSTAG):

CHENGDU 成都 : sunrise 6:30, sunset 19:35

TAG 1:Anreise: Flug MU9745 ab Shangri-La, 17:25-18:45Übernachtung: Hollys Hostel, CNY 178, Flughafenshuttle, Frühstück inklusiveAdresse: 246 Wuhouci Street, Chengdu 610041

Neue Metro 3 liegt in der Nähe vom Hotel! kein Shuttle nötigTake Metro Line 3 and get off at Gaoshengqiao. And then walk eastwards along Wuhouci Avenue for 3-5 minutes to find the temple.

Metro 10 bis Taipingyuan (11min), dann auf Metro 3 bis Station Gaoshengiao (4min)

Passengers can take metro line 10 at T1 & T2 of Shuangliu International Airport nowadays. Upon landing, detailed English signs at the airport can help passengers find the metro station easily. This line has stretched to Taipingyuan, Cujin, Huaxing and Jinhua.  It costs CNY4 for the whole single trip, opening from 06:00 to 23:00. For passengers who want to visit Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, they can take metro line 10 to Taipingyuan Station, then transfer to line 3 and arrive at Dong Wu Yuan Station. Get out from Exit B and then take bus 198 or 198A direct to the base.

 Taxi: The taxi fare is about CNY80-100 from the Airport to North Railway Station, about CNY60 to East Railway Station, and about CNY20-30 to South Railway Station. Usually, you can negotiate the price with the taxi driver. The acceptable bargain price is about CNY50 by taxi to the city center area.

Chengdu Metro:The subway in Chengdu is fabulous:cheap (less than$1 USD for most journeys), clean, efficient, and easy to use even if you do not know Mandarin. The automatic ticket dispenser has an English option and is quite simple to use. Just click English in the lower right corner, and take it from there. Look up your destination by name or map, choose number of passengers, and purchase the ticket. Fares vary by distance. You can also purchase a frequent use card at the same machine and top it off as needed. To get to the train, walk through the security area at each entry (if you have a bag of any sort it has to go through a scanner). Scan your card/pass and go towards the rail line and direction you need. Lines are all color coded with good directional signage in Mandarin and English. Inside the cars shows direction and each stop, and announcements for each stop are made in Mandarin and English. When exiting the station at your destination, you will scan your pass again. If you bought a single journey ticket, it will be collected in a slot as you exit. Although you can get just about anywhere you need to go in Chengdu, including the airport, there are additional lines still under construction.

Wuhou Memorial Tempel und Garten: RMB 60, 8-18:30 Uhr (leider schon geschlossen)Chinese name: 武侯祠 (Wu Hou Ci) – Orientierungspunkt für HotelLocation: No.231 Wehouci Street, Chengdu City, Sichuan Province.

Programmpunkte:1 Jinli Pedestrian Street – gleich beim Hotel: entweder nach Ankunft oder am nächsten Tag (10min)The street is located to the east of the Wuhou Temple of Chengdu. At one end of Jinli Street is an imposing archway with 'Jinli Street' carved on it. From there the lane, paved with green flagstones, winds through Chengdu for a length of 350 meters (382.8 yards).

Very crowded on the weekends, a lot of street vendors in this restored ancient streetA big variety of tasty street food available. Good for souvenirs.

2 Chendu International Finance Square @ Chunxi Road / Chunxi Pedestrian Street: Metro 3 (Exit D)If one travels to Chengdu for the first time, Chunxi Road Pedestrian Street is a place that should not be missed. Located in Jinjiang District, this road in a broad sense covers an area of about 200,000 square meters (2,150,000 square feet). It stretches to the east of Beixin Street, the west of Hongxing Road, the south of Zongfu Road, and the north of East Street.

The IFS mall here has a giant panda hanging off of it. You can go to the top floor of the mall to take photos with it. Also there's a pizza restaurant next to it too.Many high-end shops here, good to walk around and window shop. This is where you find the Chengdu "panda butt", a giant panda climbing the side of a tall building. Take a ride to the top to visit a garden and see the panda's head.

3 Tianfu Square: muss nicht seinI didn't realize this was an access point to an underground shopping center (That is MASSIVE) simply take the stairs down and you will have plenty of shopping and food places! This is very easy to find and is a subway stop!

4 Panda Post: 9:30-21 Uhr, gleich bei Wide & Narrow AlleysAddress: No. 43, Shaocheng Road , Qingyang District, Chengdu

Situated nearly 5 minutes away from Wide and Narrow Alley and opposite to the People's Park of Chengdu, the first Panda Post Office opened on October 9, 2013, coinciding with the 44th annual World Post Day. Unlike an ordinary post office, it has a unique post code and post mark in the pattern of the giant panda. The postcode, 610088, was deliberately chosen as "8" is both considered lucky in China, and also resembles a panda's rotund figure. Moreover, you can set up a specific time and date to send mail, or preserve your letters and mail for the future for up to 20 years!

5 Wide & Narrow Alleys (Kuan Alley & Zhai Alley): abspazierenA collection of 3 streets lined with old fashion looking houses or mansions refurbished into eateries, restaurants and craft shops. Most outlets are welcoming even if you do not intend to purchase anything, they allow you to walk in to admire the refurbished buildings/structures. There's a jewellery and tea shop housed in an old mansion and the management engaged traditional musician to play at the courtyard. Another had a giant dragon head at it's entrance to attract passer by to walk in to find that this is actually a restaurant. Even Starbucks blended in with an local chinese building exterior. Along the street you will also find interesting snack food stalls and even a most peculiar activity of ear cleaning. Towards the quieter lanes, I found a stretch of wall where you can see the changes in brick laying pattern through the times way back to ancient days and also interesting 3D images of the favourite pastime activities of locals in the area.

6 Anshun bridge & Jiuyanqio Bar Street: 66 Binjiang E Rd | Jinjiang Qu, Chengdu 610061, China, Haltestelle Metro 2 (gelb): Niuwangmio oder Dongmen

Must visit at night. Perfect for a leisurely stroll around the bridge and surrounding nightlife. Try and grab dinner before going, as many of the surrounding locations are strictly bars.

Actually, the entire area of the city where the bridge is located is pretty will lit up at night and is fun to walk through.There are a lot of bars and nightclubs, along with high end hotels in the surrounding blocks. The bridge itself is home to a high end restaurant. Definitely worth a visit to get a photo from another bridge farther down the river.

This is a great stroll along the river in the evening where the young generation of Chengdhu are hanging out and many life music pubs are there. Lots of bars and places to relax. Mostly very Chinese places. We stopped at Shangrila for a few drinks and they were delicious!

Jiuyanqiao Bar Street is named for the nearby Jiuyan Bridge which is over 400 years old.  The bridge has nine holes and the bridge floor is paved with blue stones. The whole bridge is in Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) style, measuring 120 meters (384 feet) long and 25 meters (82 feet) wide. Under the north of the bridge is a road, shaping the whole bridge as a half flyover road.

If you would like to enjoy some peaceful folk songs quietly on Jiuyanqiao Bar Street, we recommend SOHO Bar, Bund No.1 Bar, 88 Bar, White Night and 1855. The bars are here are relatively small and intimate.

It's worthwhile to mention that the host of White Night is a female poet, and she makes the bar more like a salon. It is decorated with many bookshelves, so many poets, artists and musicians like to enjoy themselves here. Another bar, 1855, has become a favorite of local students because of its affordable prices.

7 West Pearl Tower (nur wenn Zeit): CNY 100 (dienstags angeblich nur CNY 50 – CHECK), 10-21 Uhr

Essen: Am Weg (z.B. Jinli Street oder Kuan & Zhai Alley)Longchaoshau (bei Metro Chunxi Road – siehe Karte)Dave’s Oasis: Burger/Amerikanisch, 1-21 Binjiang Middle Road, Chengdu, China

Letzte Metro zwischen 22:30 und 23 Uhr

TAG 2:

1 Chengdu Panda Base Research Centre: Öffnungszeiten 7:30 Uhr – 18 Uhr, CNY 58 p.p.Anfahrt: Metro M3 bis Panda Avenue, erste Metro 6:34-7:01 oder Taxi (nicht teuer)

Entrance Fee CNY 58;Free for children under 1.3m (4.3ft).

Opening Hours 07:30 to 18:00 (tickets sales closed at 17:00)Best Time to Visit 09:00-10:00 in the morning for it is active breakfast time

 By metroTake Metro Line 3 and get off at Dong Wu Yuan Station. Get out from Exit B and then take bus 198 or 198a direct to the base. Or you can take the same metro to Panda Avenue, and then take bus d025 to the base.By taxiTake taxi from the city proper and it costs CNY 40 or so.

Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding 成都大熊猫繁育研究基地 No.1375 Xiongmao Avenue the Outside Northern Third Ring Road, Chenghua District, Chengdu 610081, China

So früh wie möglich dort sein, weil nur in der Früh aktiv, Fütterungszeit zwischen 8:30 und 10 UhrABER: zuerst im Hotel Frühstücken (inklusive)

The park opens at 07:30 (closes at 18:00), no queue to buy your ticket, less people and very active panda’s

Currently, subway line doesn't directly lead to the base and this is the same in May, 2018. You have to take line 3 to Panda Avenue and change to bus no. 198 to get there.

To get there - subway line 3 is operational now. Take it to “Panda Avenue” station. Walk out the station and there’s a yellow office, where you buy your entrance tickets with free one-way shuttle bus to the base. That was 55RMB. (On the way back you find the same spot you get dropped off and pay 2RMB for the return ride to the station). Buses were lined up, waited for about 10 minutes then took off to the Panda Base!

Am Ausgang findet man einen Shuttlebus der einen für 2rmb zu einer Station der Linie 3 fährt. Auch zum Park hin. Daher kann man für wenig Geld hin und zurück gelangen.

Take subway to Panda Avenue, take Exit A, and board the yellow microbus to the park.

This Centre is close to Chendgu, just catch the train to panda ave station, then the free bus is D0025, if you are over 60 with your passport they sell you a ticket on the bus for RMB29. You could also get bus 189 for 2RMB. The centre has lots of pandas and the centre is well laid out . The only tourist attraction with English directions.

Tour Bus ServiceThe Chengdu Panda Base covers an area of 165 acres, and will take about 3 hours to walk and 1-2 hours by bus. Tour bus is optional for tourists. Currently there are eight motor-driven tour buses available for Chinese and foreign tourists at the panda base.

Fare of tour bus: RMB 10.00/person.

1. Tour bus route: Entrance—Giant Panda Sunning Nursery Room—No.2 Giant Panda Villa—Red Panda Nursery Room—Giant Panda Moon Nursery Room—Kitchen in No.1 Giant Panda Villa;

2. Peak seasons (from April to October): 8:00~17:30; off-peak seasons (from November to March): 8:00~17:00;

3. On the tour bus, each row can sit only three people; children taller than 1.2 M are required to buy tickets;

4. Scenic spots and service facilities are located around each tour bus Stopp

Unbedingt zu Fuß gehen und auf die kleine Bimmelbahn verzichten!

Im Moonlight Bezirk sieht man die jüngsten: We visited the Moonlight Delivery House to see if there were any cubs but none. We did see young Pandas in the Sunlight Nursery behind glass enclosures.

Unbedingt früh kommen. Dann sieht man die Pandas aktiv und auch die kleinen Pandas im Panda Kindergarten haben ihre Spielstunde. Fütterungen etc. finden vormittags statt.

Man sollte schon spätestens um halb 9 bei den ersten Pandas sein. Ab 10 ist bei den normalen Pandas tatsächlich Schlafen angesagt. Nur eine Mutter hat mit ihren Kinder in der Moon Nursery Station rumgespielt. Die roten Pandas waren etwas länger aktiv, haben aber auch gegen 11 die Schlafplätze aufgesucht.

Empfehlung: Frühmorgens zum Park und um 8.30 zu den Roten Panda BärenGerne um 8.00 zur Baby Station der Panda s da noch keine Gäste da sind und die Panda Teens draußen spielen in unserem Fall 6 Tiere. Ab 9.30 die großen Bären. Grob würde ich 2-3 Stunden fuer den Park empfehlen einzuplanen. Ein Highlight sind die Pandababies, Hierfür muss man sich anstellen und wird relativ zügig an der Glasscheibe entlang geschoben.

WARNING! the Red Panda enclosures fence is electrified!

We arrived early by taxi. There is NO NEED to organise a guide - the exhibits are very self-explanatory and it is easy to navigate around the park. Do NOT line up for the courtesy bus - it's a short walk to all the enclosures. The pandas looked well cared-for and were amazing to watch! Taxi was around RMB 60 each way from the city centre.

You should be able to finish the base in 3-4 hours if you take the bus inside the base. It takes 1 hours to walk to the hall at the top but you can pay RMD10 to save the time and energy.

The red panda area was my favorite part (after the 10 one year olds), a cool walk through enclosure where you can try to spot the little dudes, and a smaller more normal zoo like enclosure where you are guaranteed to see at least a couple doing whatever it is that they do.

There are a number of panda enclosures you can visit on a circular route and they’re all very well laid out - not at all like visiting a zoo. You will need ample time, suggested at least 3 hours, though you can do it in 2 hours...

Tips1. Make sure to arrive there at 7:10 or else the line will be so long and people will cut the lines and it will drive you crazy. Get there at 7:10 and stay calm because around 7:25, the people will become frantic and will begin to push you. Look at them and say STOP. They will stop when they know you mean business.2. Don’t wait for the tram once inside the park. It’s 300 Meters up a hill to the panda enclosures but it’s a nice walk and if you’re there early, it will be fine and you will arrive before the trams.3. Take a taxi and from Chunxi Road, the fare was only 43RMB. Don’t take the subway and bus as it’s too time consuming. We left Chunxi Road at 6:45 and arrived by 7:10 and were in good position.4. Avoid Chinese Holidays and Christmas at all costs. We were there on Christmas Day at 7:10 and were fine but the park is free on Christmas Day for Chinese so the crowds will be super packed by 11:00 and your day is over at that point with the pushing uncivilized crowd.5. If you decide to get there at 11:00, you might as well skip this place as it will be sheer madness. From 7:30-10:30 it was a very pleasant and wonderful experience.6. Take pics of the pandas first and watch the movie, shop, eat, visit the museum around 10:30 when people begin to arrive. Leave the panda area aroun10:45 because you will just become infuriated with the people as they yell, scream and holler at the pandas. It’s their national treasure and they treat their dogs better than the pandas! They will push you trying to get your position.7. Carry your wallet in your front pocket because the people will crowd you and I felt some hands go near my back pocket.8. Take a taxi instead of the buses to return to your hotel. You will get annoyed with the crowds. Negotiate the price of a green taxi. He will try and take advantage of you since you are a foreigner. Show them where you want to go and decide on the price. They won’t run the meter there at all. They wanted to charge my wife a fare of 80 RMB from there to Chunxi Road and she is Chinese! Imagine what they will try and do to you. Because my wife is Chinese, she was able to negotiate a black taxi for 50 RMB but I doubt you will be able to do likewise.9. Have fun, be patient and stay calm but be firm when people will push you. It is in the culture to do so and unless you show disapproval, they won’t stop.

Transport Panda Base – East Railway Station 成都东客站 : je nach Zeit gleich mit Taxi ab Panda Base oder Shuttle + Metro

Address: No. 4, Wanke Road of Chenghua District Bus/Metro: Shuttle bus to Panda Avenue – M3 bis Simaqiao (6min) – M7 bis East Railway Station (19min) ODER M3 bis Chunxi (16min) – M2 bis East Railway (13min)Taxi: ca. CNY 50Infos East Railway Station:Ticket: Passengers may buy tickets from the 100 ticket windowsspread all over the station. Tickets for departures from this station are also available at other stations and ticket outlets in the city. 

Taxi: It takes about CNY 40 and 20-30 minutes from this station to Chengdu Railway Station and about CNY 60 - 80 to the airport. 

Arrival by taxi:Passengers arriving by taxi will be dropped off at the west or east square.From Tianfu Square (city center): It takes about 25 minutes and costs CNY25.From Chengdu Railway Station: It takes 30 minutes and costs approximately CNY35.From South Station: It takes 15 minutes or so and the cab fare is CNY25.From Shuangliu Airport: The duration is around 30 minutes and it costs about CNY60.

This station is one of the largest modern stations in west China, with an east square, a west square, and a five-storey terminal building. It has convenient connections to long-distance bus station, bus stops, subway station, taxi stands and parking lots.

 2F: waiting hall, ticket office, information desk, check points, left luggage service, toilets, hot drinking water, stores, restaurants

 1F: platforms, ticket office, escalators, lifts, left luggage service, toilets, exits, convenient stores -1F: arrival hall, ticket office, tourist reception center, bus stops (pick-up), taxi stands (pick-up), convenient

stores -2F: platforms for subway line 2 -3F: platforms for subway line 7

Arrival by subway:Line 2: Passengers should get out from exit 1 or 2 to reach the east square.Line 7: Get out from exit to reach the railway station. Ticket Check and BoardingA number of check points are located inside the waiting hall. Passengers need to read their tickets carefully to know exactly where to have the tickets checked before checking in. After that, follow the direction boards to the platforms to board. One thing to remember is that the station is equipped with automatic ticket check machines and blue tickets can be checked automatically, while pink ones still needed to be handled manually by staff. Please note that the check points are usually opened 30 minutes before departure and closed 5 minutes before.

Facilities and ServicesTicket Office: Altogether eleven ticket offices are available in the station to deal with ticket changes, ticket

refunds, ticket loss and ticket purchasing; and seven of them with 86 ticket windows are located at the two sides of the waiting hall on 2F. Another four are spread respectively on 1F and -1F to satisfy passengers’ needs to purchase tickets.

 Waiting Hall: The waiting hall has 3,360 chairs, Inquiry Center, restaurants, tea house, café, and 24-hour self-serviced supermarket. Inside the hall, there is also a “Youjia Service Desk”, offering miscellaneous services including inquiry, complaints, and help for the weak, elder, disabled, pregnant, and others. 

Zug Chengdu East Railway – Leshan: C6303 11:07-12:00, gebucht und bezahlt (€ 24)auch in Ordnung (wenn wir Zug versäumen): C6267 11:16-12:35, spätestens: C6305 12:29-13:34

2 Leshan Big Buddha: mit Zug ab Chengdu Dong (East), Bus 3 ab Leshan Bahnhof (oder Taxi CNY 50)Adresse: No.2435 Lingyun Street, Shizhong District, Leshan 614000, China

Leshan: 乐山; Lèshān / Leshan Big Buddha: 乐山大佛 lèshāndàfóAdmission Fee: CNY 90 (Excluding CNY 70 for a boat trip)Opening Hours: 09:00 to 16:50Recommended Time for a Visit: One day

After arriving at the Leshan Railway Station (about 10km to Leshan Giant Buddha), travelers can take Bus No. 3 to Leshan Giant Buddha, and this will spend about 40 minutes. If travelers take taxi or private car to Leshan Giant Buddha, it will only take about 20 minutes to there.How to exit and leave Leshan Railway Station

Upon arrival, all passengers will be led to 1F transfer hall for exiting. After exiting, passengers can follow the signs to find buses, taxis or sightseeing line to leave the station.

 Leave by bus: Passengers can go to the bus stop to the west of the station to find the bus they need to take. Leave by taxi: Passengers can go to the west of the station to take taxis.

There are two ways to see the Giant Buddha. One is climbing on the mountain and watching the Buddha from a very close distance. In this way, traveler will enter into the scenic area, and get to the Buddha feet through Nine Bends Plank Road. If you don’t want to climb on the mountain, or want to see the panoramic view of the Buddha, travelers can take boat to see the Giant Buddha. There are two ways to take boat.

Another way is taking steamship or speedboat and they will drive to the front of the Buddha, and travelers can enjoy the panoramic view from a very close distance. There are two piers where can take the steamship and speedboat. One is Baxiandong Pier which is next to the scenic area and travelers can get to it by Bus No.3, and get off at Baxiandong stop, the last stop of Leshan Giant Buddha scenic spot. Another is Leshangang Pier, which is located across the river facing the Giant Buddha. The ticket for steamship is ¥50/person, speedboat is ¥70/person. The cruising time is about 30 minutes, thus, we only recommend this way for those who are short in time or who prefer a very easy trip.

Only advice is regarding boat operators. There is an Express boat which was way faster (dock is closer to Buddha). Lack of English and integrity got me told I was on the fastest boat only to find it was the slower boat AND we would wait for our boat to fill up before leaving. Watched casters small boats go out and come back many times before we left.

We arrived around 08:36 outside the station we easily found the free bus to the attraction by repeating “free bus” which was understood. It took 40 minutes to get there, once there you have 2 choices get off the bus and see the Giant Buddha or stay on the bus and see the other attractions. The first will cost you 90rmb the second will cost you 80rmb plus the 90rmb, total 170rmb. We took the 170rmb it was well worth it, there is so much to see, if you have done your homework and are interested you will know the detail. One of the previous reports mentioned starting at the North Entrance and ending at the South, great advice!After the visit to the park we walked 15 minutes to the speedboats and for 70rmb got the classic view of the Buddha from the water. There were no hassles that others mentioned, the boat went out stopped at the Buddha we took pictures and went back it took about 20 minutes max. We took the number 3 (or the number 13) bus back costing 1rmb got off at the station, ate very cheaply at a nearby restaurant and got the train back to Chengdu and metro to the hotel. Total cost for 1 – 333rmb (248rmb over 60s) including taxi and meals.

Due to the volume of people you don't have a lot of time to take in this magnificent statue when going down the stairs. Once at the bottom you can take your time to admire. The walk back up is challenging, and I saw a lot of older people and not so fit people, including myself struggling with the stairs, so be warned the walk back up can be difficult. We exited at the East entrance which was great, lots more to see and nice street food once you exit the park.

The park is huge and the ten thousand Buddha cave at the back of the park is a must. The actual cave is better then the Buddha itself. There is also a pagoda situated kind of near the viewing point of the Buddha at the top of the staircase. Brings lots of drinking water and expect to be there around 3-4 hours as there is lots to do!!

From LeShan u can take bus, but since we had limited time we decided to take a cab, which cost 50 yuan and ask to bring us to ticket place. The drivers were awesome since they brought us directly to 1000 buddhas canvas, entrance is 80 rmb and for Giant Buddha was around 50 rmb. We bought both tickets, but we didnt know since it is Spring Festival there will be around 800 Chinese in line! Anyway we had a calm and wonderful time walking around Buddha canvas and park it self. It takes around 2 hours if u do it slowly, then we went to look for a boat, because we couldnt get in to take a look from down, but actually maybe be better. Boat Station is, at east entrance/exit, you have to go out the park and then around 4 min walk on left. You can have a small boat 10 persons in one, cost 70 rmb (speedboat). Even tho line was like 100 m long it went super fast. We stand like 30 mins. But definitely worth it! It takes with speedboat just round trip around 10 mins, but view is worth it! If u do it all way around, first boat then park it’s also cool, depends u take a cab or a bus! Also u can go with big boat around half hour, but too much Chinese for us and time limitation forced to be fast.

We did the boat trip first which was nice and pleasant and worth the 70Rmb price tag. We had to wait for the boat to fill so we enjoyed a little Picnic lunch on the deck whilst waiting. Afterwards we entered at the North gate and wandered up to the head of the Leshan Buddha before walking the steep steps to the feet and back up again. It really is amazing to see. Luckily it wasn’t busy so we had done it in less than 30 minutes. After that we spent over an hour looking for the Buddha caves mentioned in another trip advisor post. We did eventually find the caves, which was not helped by the fact that it is called something different on every sign in the park. “1000 Buddha” “oriental Buddha park” “Buddha theme park” “Buddha caves”. Eventually, after going to every single point on the map (the whole place is badly signposted with lots of places vanishing from one sign to the next) we found the entrance within the Leshan Buddha park itself. You do have to pay 80RMb, but this is totally worth it. If I had to choose, I would just do the caves, as some of the Buddha’s are only slightly smaller than Leshan and so much cooler! We paid our money and wandered along the paths ( it felt like a zombie apocalypse as it was Chinese New Year eve and we didn’t see anyone for a whole hour- this is unheard of anywhere I have been in china!). Eventually we found a signpost for a “pharmacy Buddha” and found an enormous 55 meter high cave Buddha! If it weren’t for the fact that a person came out from behind his feet we would have never know that there were a whole series of caves and additional beautiful Buddha’s in chambers behind. It was truly wonderful. We wandered through, seeing what felt like hundreds of Buddha’s and eventually came out into daylight. There were more Buddha’s set in a park called the ‘Buddha Theme Park’. We finally left, having spent 1 hour on the boat trip, 30 minutes seeing Leshan Buddha by foot, 1 hour getting lost and wandering and 3 hours exploring the Buddha Park. We finally emerged out the official entrance to the Buddha park which is not well signposted, just had a little guy and a ticket booth. It appears that you can go either way, with either the Leshan Buddha first or the Buddha

park first. It would be a terrible shame if you missed the Buddha park. If you want to do the Buddha park first, go two bus stops past the boat dock, and 1 past the Buddha park entrance and the Buddha park entrance will be on your right.

The Leshan Buddha is very impressive however there is another part you can pay an extra 80¥ for that is way more impressive, as there are caves and tombs with amazing wall carvings and statues inside.

Many people just take a boat across the river, climb the Giant Buddha in a line of people and return. They miss the best. Start on the land side at the East Gate and go through the Caves of a 1000 Buddhas. While the Giant is impressive, the Caves are filled literally with 1000's of beautiful carvings of Buddha's life. One was 30 meters tall. (Be prepared for some that depict his uncensored hedonist youth.) Between the caves you walk in a park with views over the surrounding country side. Once you go through the caves, you come to top of the Giant. You can walk down and back up, but I was happy to just take a few pictures. There are separate admissions for the Giant and the Caves, 160 yuan total I think. Worth the money. Frankly, if I only could do one, I would do the Caves.

Nine Bends Plank Road: On the right cliff of the Giant Buddha, there is a plank road built along with the Giant Buddha. From the top to foot, the plank road has nine turns, thus it’s called Nine Bends Plank Road (Jiuqu Zhandao, 九曲栈道). The widest park of the road is 1.45m and the narrowest part is only 0.6m, and there are 217 stone steps in total. The road starts from the Buddha head, and tourists can reach to the Buddha feet with the road.Oriental Buddha Park (东方佛都): Oriental Buddha Park is only 1km from Leshan Giant Buddha. Covering an area of over 20,000 m2, Oriental Buddha Park is a stone carving theme park, which combines religious art, sculpture art and garden art together. The park has modeled over 3000 Buddha statues with different materials, including rock, bronze, clay and jade. The whole park represents the art style of Chinese Buddhism and Southeast Asia Buddhism. The park has a 170 meters long sleeping Buddha statue, which is the largest and longest sleeping Buddha statue in the world. Notice: Oriental Buddha Park requires an entrance ticket,¥80/person. Lingyun Temple: Lingyun Temple is located next to the Giant Buddha (traveler can get to the Buddha head by crossing Lingyun temple), and thus it’s also called Giant Buddha Temple. Travelers will climb long stairs to get to Lingyun Temple, please wear comfortable shoes.Wuyou Temple: Wuyou Temple is located on Wuyou Mountain and was built in Tang Dyansty. After getting down to the Buddha feet through Nine Bends Plank Road, keep walking to the left of the Giant Buddha and travelers can reach to Wuyou Temple. The temple has seven halls, which are surrounded by bamboo and wintersweet. Comparing with the crowded Lingyun Temple, Wuyou Temple is more tranquil and quiet. Not many visitors here and the air quality is very good. It’s a great place to relax and wash your lungs with the fresh air.

If you go late in the day, you will not have to compete with many Chinese tour groups who seem to go in the morning. The ferry will cross the river and stop in front of the statue for 10 minutes for everyone to go to the top deck and take pictures and then return to the dock. Taking the ferry allows you to view the two guards carved into the cliff face which are not visible by foot. The total trip will take around 40 minutes. The view from the ferry is not much different from the view at the base of the statue, which would make it unnecessary unless you're dead set on having a photo taken of yourself with the Buddha. An alternative is take a taxi or bus (#13 from downtown) to the statue and climb up and down on the cliff surrounding the Buddha. Costs ¥90 (¥50 with a valid student ID) to enter the park. There is a staircase next to the Buddha to take you down to its feet. In the mornings, long lines develop to walk down the cliff to the base of the Buddha and you can expect to wait for around 2 hours. Arrive very early or in the late afternoon to avoid the lines. There are several other (newer) things to see on site, so perhaps seeing them first and saving the Buddha for last is a smart strategy.

Programm abhängig von Zeit: Fähre Wuyou Dock – Biaxiandong Dock lt. Plan, aber keine InfosMögliches Programm bei plangemäßiger Ankunft (ca. 12:30 Uhr):

1. Speed Boat Dock (Biaxiandong): 70 RMB2. North oder East Gate Entrance: Pagoda, Lingyun Tempel, Giant Buddha runter/rauf3. Wuhou Tempel und Brücke (nur wenn Zeit)4. Buddha Park (via Back Gate entrance)

Zug Leshan – Chengdu: nicht vorbuchen, kurzfristig buchbar, CNY 51 / USD 8:C6268 16:31-17:20 Shuangliu Airport / 17:38 Chengdu East, C6270 17:12-18:15 Chendu South,C6272 17:41-18:23 Shuangliu Airport / 18:35 Chengdu South

How to get to Leshan Railway Station? Arrival by bus 1, 3, 22 and night line:

Passengers arriving by bus, or taxi, will be dropped off at the east side of the station. For those with a ticket, please enter the station directly. Then take the escalators to the waiting hall on 2F. For those without a ticket, go to a ticket office at the east side of 1F to obtain one first, and then go up to the waiting hall.

 Arrival by taxi:From the city center: fare approx. CNY25 for 30 minutes.From the Giant Buddha: fare approx.CNY30 for 35 minutes. Ticket Check and BoardingThere are 8 automatic ticket check points on the second floor. Passengers can check their tickets at any check point. Please note that the check points are usually opened 30 minutes before departure and closed 5 minutes before. Go to the platforms along the entry passageway.

 Ticket offices:At the east side of the terminal building, the ticket office can be found. There are eight ticket windows including one barrier-free ticket window. Passengers can buy tickets there or use other services such as ticket exchange, ticket refund or ticket loss.

3 Chengdu Downtown: alles möglich, was am Vortag offen geblieben ist (siehe oben)M1 Chengdu South – Tianfu (von dort alle Möglichkeiten Downtown): 11minM10 / M3 Airport Chunxi: 19min (ohne Umsteigen)

4 Zug Chengdu East – Chongqing North: G8543 (north terminal – siehe unten), 21:42 – 23:15, gebucht, bezahlt (€ 52,27), Ticket erhaltenFahrzeit Metro: M3 Gaoshengqiao – Taipingyuan (4min), M7 Taipingyuan – East Railway (21min)Fahrzeit Metro: M3 Gaoshengqiao – Chunxi (11min), M2 Chunxi – East Railway Station (13min)Fahrzeit Taxi: auch mindestens 30 Minuten

Chongqing North railway station:The station consists of two terminal buildings and two squares on the north and south sides of the railway tracks. The two terminal buildings are used to operate different trains. The C/ D/ G trains, Z49, Z50, K504, and K503 use the north terminal and thus passengers need to enter via north square. The Z96, Z223, and other normal type trains use the south terminal and travelers need to enter from south square.

The bus no. 663 is shuttling between north and south square from 05:00 to 24:00.Besides, there is an underground passage connecting the two terminals, but passengers are only allowed to walk via it from north terminal to south terminal, taking about 10 minutes; and the passage only opens from 08:00 to 23:00.

South TerminalThe south terminal building has two floors linked by escalators, stairs and lifts for the disabled. It has seven waiting rooms in total, including two regular waiting rooms, a VIP waiting room, a soft seat/sleeper waiting room and three rooms respectively for the disabled, servicemen and mother & baby. A large LED screen displays the train numbers, their arrival and departure times, and waiting rooms. Use it to find your waiting room and follow the direction boards to get there for boarding. There is also a game center on the 2F, so passengers can spend their time here. Passengers can watch TV, enjoy free WI-FI and charge their mobile phones in the waiting rooms. McDonald’s provides passengers with food and drink. Passengers waiting on 2F can reach the platforms via a foot bridge.

Two ticket offices are available here. One is to the east side of the station entrance; the other is close to the exit 2 of subway station- North Train Station on line 3 on the South Square. On the South Square, there is Longtousi South Coach Station, taxi stands, bus stations, and ticket office and the subway station mentioned above.   

North TerminalThe north terminal building has six floors. There is a large waiting hall on 1F. At two sides of the waiting hall, toilets and hot drinking water are provided. Boarding gates are also on two sides of the hall. Read your ticket to see which boarding gate you should use. In addition, restaurants and dessert shops are also available. Two ticket offices are located at the east and west sides of the waiting hall on 1F; and the third one is located on 1F.

 1F: ticket office, waiting hall -1F: platforms, café, restaurants, shops, bookstore, ticket office -2F: taxi pick-up stand, parking lot -3F: arrival hall, passage to South Square (not opened yet) -4F: platform for subway line 10 -5F: platform for subway line 4 (under construction)

On the North Square, there are also city bus stations and Longtousi North Coach Station. If you want to use the subway, Longtousi Subway Station also on line 3 is the closest, about 10 minutes’ walk away. If you do not want to walk, the bus no. 665 runs between the Longtousi Subway Station and the North Square.

How to transfer between North Railway Station and downtown/nearby cities By subway: line 3 & line 10

Two subway stations are available in the station: one is Chongqing North Train Station South Square, and the other is Chongqing North Train Station North Square.

 By taxi:Passengers can be dropped off at either South Square or North Square. Three taxi pick-up stands are as follows: at the underground passage of south square, next to Longtousi South Coach Station at South Square, and on -2F of north terminal building respectively.From/To Duration (Minutes) Cost (CNY)Railway Station 20 25

 By long-distance bus:If traveling by long-distance bus, passengers will arrive at Longtousi South Coach Station on South Square or Longtousi North Coach Station on North Square. The former one has coaches to/from Kashgar, Fuzhou, Xiamen, Jinan, Qingdao, Heyuan, Kunming, Xian, Guangzhou, Leshan, Jiuzhaigou, and Wanzhou etc. The latter one operates coaches to/from Yongchuan, Dazu, Tongliang, Jingjin, Hechuan, Guang’an, Wanzhou, Fenghuang, Longtan, Nanchuan, and Chengdu etc. 

Übernachtung: Mr. Xu’s Space Capsule Youth Hostel, CNY 159, kein FrühstückAdresse: 401, Block C, Dongli International, Yubei District, Yu Bei, Chongqing 661000

+86 13008310219 My address:the dynamic international C building 401,northern Chongqing district. 酒店地址：重庆市渝北区动力国际 C 座 401

Kosten ChengduEintritte und Transport: CNY 596 (inkl. Buddha Park)Hotel: CNY 337 (inkl. ÜN Chongqing)Transport (Zug): € 52,27 (bezahlt) + CNY 210

TAG 15, 25.04, (MITTWOCH):

WULONG + FURONG CAVE: sunrise 6:15, sunset 19:25

Day tour mit driver/guide Dennis (CNY 1.500 / US$230 inkl. Furong Cave), gebuchtPlease send me information on April 20th to reminder me. Whatsapp: 0086-13036310912 (mobile)Wechat:21394976Email: dennis-yu@qq.com, bzw. 21394976@qq.com

Variante self-guided (wenn guided doch zu teuer):- Zug Chongqing North – Wulong, K73 8-9:59 Uhr, CNY 79 / USD 13 (hard sleeper), USD 4 (hard seat)- Am Bahnhof Wulong Taxi/Fahrer für den ganzen Tag mieten

1) Furong Cave (Lotus Cave): CNY 120 – geht sich bei self-guided nicht aus2) Wulong Karst: CNY 135, 8:30-16:30 Uhr

a. Three natural bridges (5km walkway, sollte in 2 Stunden machbar sein)b. Longshuixia Gap

Upon arrival, take a bus or taxi from the bus station to go to Xiannü Town Tourist Center. Bus fare is CNY 8 or so. The tourist center has bus bound for the Three Natural Bridges, and the fee is included in the entrance fee. After visiting the Three Natural Bridges and two pits, if you are not tired, take the shuttle bus from the Three Natural Bridges to Longshuixia Fissure Gorge about 0.6 miles (1 km) away. Or you can go there on foot. The fee for the shuttle bus is CNY 15.

Chongqing direct buses to Wulong Railway Station. Then go to Wulong Bus Station and take the direct bus to Wulong Karst.

Take a bus outside Wulong Bus Station to Furong Cave.

You can easily do this independently of a tour group by taking the long-distance bus from Chongqing (about 2 hours) to Wulong followed by a half-hour shuttle bus (passenger van) up to Xian Nu Shan (sometimes pinyin is Xiannvshanzhen) where, at the huge new tourist centre (can't miss it + at least one english-speaking staff on-hand), you catch another bus to the Three Bridges area. The hike through the area will take about 2 hours so the whole thing is easily a day trip from CQ if you get an early start. The next day we took the train back to CQ from Wulong just to mix it up a bit and anyway, as it turned out, the hard-sleeper was much more comfortable than the bus. The train station was just a short (10 RMB) cab ride from the Wulong bus station where we had been dropped off. Note that the shuttles to/from Xian Nu Shan only leave when full so it can be a bit of a wait (approx 20 mins in our experience) for them to fill up and get going. Note also that if you do stay, walk a few hundred meters downhill (south back towards Wulong) to the older, less touristy part of town, for more plentiful and cheaper restaurant choices.

Zug Wulong - Chongqing (retour): K74, 17:06-19:16, CNY 79 / USD 13 (hard sleeper), USD 4 (seat)Zug Wulong - Tongren, K775 18:21-22:55, US$17 hard sleeper, K813 23:00-3:43, US$ 25 (soft sleeper) grundsätzlich keine Notwendigkeit, nach Chongqing zurückzufahren

WULONG KARST: 武隆喀斯特Wulong National Geology Park is a Unesco World Heritage site. Three Natural Bridges

Three Natural Bridges + Two Giant Dolines Longshuixia Fissure Gorge Furong Cave

Entrance Fee

March - October: CNY 135November - February: CNY 95

March - October: CNY 115November - February: CNY 85

March - October: CNY 120November - February: CNY 65

Note: The ticket fee includes the entrance fee, shuttle bus fee from the tourist center to the scenic area entrance, and elevator fee.

Opening Hours

March - October: 8:30-16:30November - February: 9:00-16:00

Three Natural Bridges (天生三桥 – Tiānshēng Sān Qiáo).

The three natural bridges are situated in a 0.7 mile (1.2 km) long gorge. They evolved due to tectonic uplift and the erosion by underground water. Some parts uplifted forming the bridges, and others collapsed to form karst pits. Therefore, the unique landscape of Three Natural Bridges enclosed with Two Pits is solely natures creation.

This place is a nature wonder. First, need to go to the wulong tourism center to get a ticket (please include the transport, elevator and entrance fee ). then on take their bus to the site entrance about 20 mins. The moment you reach you will have to walk and take the elevator down to the bottom about 20 story in height. Need to walk down another 10 story high to the bottom, look up and you will see a stone bridge ( one of the three bridges ).And walk along will see the house as shown. Stunning nature stone surrounding you. It takes 2.5 hours to walk through with very clean and fresh air. A place on earth you MUST go.

There are shuttle buses to localities but three bridges has two entrances.One western entrance involves more walking but at its locality is an extra option of a Skywalk or viewing platform for extra 25Yuan.It involves more walking down winding steep steps and also at bottom you hit the gorge bottom as a T section so have to go right(west) first to its end and then come back on yourself.You will also run head on into people coming at you from their western elevator and BumbleBee entrance.This second entrance enters the gorge by way of an elevator and then steps but once at bottom it is a straight-forward walk ahead of yourself to the east all the way (= NORMALER EINGANG, ANDERER EINGANG WAHRSCHEINLICH NUR WENN SEHR VIEL LOS ).No duplicating of route.This second entrance is also where everyone talks about seeing the Transformer BumbleBee at the start. You do not get a choice of entrances.They do this so as to reduce bottlenecks at entrances and stairs/steps.

People have different ideas on whether to go to 3 Bridges or Fissure first. Really there is no rationale.In high season may be better to go to fissure because everyone goes to three bridges but in the end terrible bottlenecks must exist in high season.Three bridges is more popular as a first destination after can carry on by shuttle to fissure.Be prepared that if you turn up at Tourist Centre and want to go to Fissure that there may not be enough for one bus.So they put you on three bridges bus then after they get off they carry on with remainder of you to the fissure.So just please be prepared for variations.Be understanding.Well read.Talk to people.Show tickets and double and triple check with drivers etc.People will be most helpful its their job but you need to know to ask the questions.

One other thing after all the walking in three bridges and if like me you had to do more from non elevator entrance then when you come to the end you have a choice you can walk up and out of the gorge by steps and take 30 minutes to shuttle bus car park to go to Tourist Centre or you can pay and go up to shuttle bus car park by electric car .I was not happy with this set up because second entrance was a longer walk and many steps to start with.To have to climb back up steps was time consuming.So if trying to complete in a day and maybe even try for cave as well then take every opportunity of transport.

This site took about 1.5 hours to walk through. You enter at one end of the valley, walk down and follow the creek through the three bridges. There's small "buses" to take you out of the valley at the end so no need to walk back up. Depending on what sort of tour you're on, you then jump on a normal bus and go to the next attraction.

It's located at XianNuShan (仙女山) in Wulong county. We've got Wulong town by a train from Chongqing (it rides 4 times per day). The bus terminal is in 5 minutes riding (use only municipal taxi on green cars). Then you can get XianNuShan by a bus or hire a local driver (because there are no buses after 6-30 PM) They all will go to Wulong Karst Visitor Center where you can by a ticket. They have a guide service and even english-speaking guide at the entrance to the park. Also if you are interested in Transformers you can ask a guide Yang, she is chinese, but she likes the film and was at the filming and can tell many interesting things!

The visit is 1h30 to 3 hours if you really take your time enjoying the magnificient scenery of nature at work. Actually, if you are prepared for dirty hiking (shoes and pants), you can sneak outside the common path, when you pass the first natural bridge, on your left. There is a door with no entry sign, and here you go, in the wild valley surrounded by gigantic cliffs, and NO ONE TO MAKE NOISE AROUND YOU. Worth it, if you dare (I did ^^). Please be respectful to not damage or litter this non-touristic area if you choose to enter it. The 135 RMB ticket is quite stiff, but largely worth the entrance. It is important to preserve such area from business and pollution, and they seem to do a good job at it so far, even displaying scientific explainations in English to comment the natural bridge formation. To get there, take a train from Chongqing North train station to Wulong (24.5 RMB - 2 hours), then a but from Wulong main bus station to Xian Nu Shan Village - Wulong Karst Tourist Center (Xian Nu Shan Zeng - 8 RMB), where you can buy the ticket to the Three Bridges.

In the end of the place, there are the little electric golf car to go up (you have to pay it or choose to walk instead of). And take the National Park's bus to back to the car park again.

You can travel yourself by local bus (from Sigongli station) to Wulong bus station (60 RMB in 2013), then take a van (8 RMB) from there to the main office to purchase a ticket to Wulong three National Bridges. For children 0-15 years will get a special rate, just simply show a passport. From the main office, you have to take a bus (include in the ticket) to the main entrance walk in a jungle and take a v e r y h i g h elevator down to the bottom of the mountain where the route start from here. The route is one way, and on the way back, you have to climb up the mountain. (If you could, a very beautiful view). Then, you have to back to main office by bus, take a van to Wunlong bus station. Make sure that you have a full day for this paradise on earth!

Do not must the glass balcony where they buitl to see the steep karst.

Longshuixia Gap 龙水峡地缝Longshuixia Gap is located in Xiannv Town and is 15km from the township. The gap was formed due to the orogeny tens of millions years ago. Longshuixia is actually a gap-style gorge and it's the important part of Wulong karst landform. The whole gorge is 5km long and the tour part is about 2km. The gorge is magnificent and the depth of it is from 200m to 500m. Nature has spent thousands of years forming these wonderful landscapes. Primitive forests, waterfalls, springs and gorges, here you can actually feel the Earth is older than a city and more powerful than a rocket.

Ticket: March 1st ~ October 31st: ¥115/person; The ticket includes ¥35 for travel bus, which is running among the Xiannv Town Tourist Center, Longshuixia Gap entrance and Three Natural Bridges entrance)Opening Hours: 09:00 ~ 17:00 (it will stop selling ticket at from 16:00)Transportation: Tourists can take bus from Wulong Bus Station to the Wulong Tourist Center, and then transfer to travel bus to the scenic area. From Three Natural Bridges, tourists can take travel bus at the parking lot of Three Natural Bridges and then transfer to Longshuixia Gap, and the drive is only about 10 minutes

If you seen my review of the Tienkeng Three bridges. This place is just next to it. Normally, when people to there will cover these two place. It takes 2.5 hours to walk through with valley and waterfalls almost everywhere. A lot of step climbing and walking. breezing with fresh air. So clean and natural that you would like to stay longer. Must go

The fissure gorge is pleasantly straightforward compared to three bridges.It has one entrance and one exit.It was different to three bridges in that gorge is very narrow compared to three bridges.Waterfalls are very close.Step platforms themselves are very feng shui.Good pictures can be taken in both localities.Good backdrops for lovers and groups.No extra costs.Is cheaper than three bridges and when you finish you finish in shuttle bus car park with food stalls.No steep climb out. Buses are there.So a relaxing walk with things to see and good pictures to take.The walking tour was paved all the way and had a glass elevator to get down part of the way - but still managed to feel like it retains a natural environment. Also got to venture onto a canterlevered glass platform that has been built overlooking the gap.

The Longshuixia Fissure is a narrow fault line that has been carved out by the river that just tears through the gorge that is only a few metres wide in places. I went on a rainy day so the water was running hard and brown, but it was awesome. Once you climb down the several hundred steps through the caves at the start, then down the elevator and a few hundred more steps to the bottom of the gorge, you start to appreciate the scale of everything around you. The gorge would be a few hundred metres deep and only about 5 metres wide.

Same as for Tian Sheng Three Bridges, yet different, nature has spent thousands of years forming these wonderful landscapes. Grottoes, riffs, underground rivers, you will feel that Earth is older than a city and more powerfull than a rocket.

I would highly suggest to come here as early as you can. First bus from Wulong Karst Tourist Center is at 8:30am, if I'm not mistaken, but the place itself may open earlier. You will walk on a narrow path, and crowd would definitely damage the peaceful and majestuous atmosphere of the area... as well as your souvenir photos.Price is 115 RMB and it is a 1h30 to 2 hours walk. Definitely worth the money.

Furong Cave: Furong Road, Guangkou Town, Wulong County 408500, China

Furong Cave (Chinese: 芙蓉洞) is located in Jiangkou Town (江口镇), Wulong County some 20 km (12 mi) from the county town, near the confluence of the Furong and Wu rivers.[

Furong Cave is a large-scale limestone cave and located next to Furong River in Jiangkou Town of Wulong County, which is about 190km from Chongqing City center. Formed about 1.2 million years ago, and discovered in 1993, the main cave of Furong Cave is about 2700m long, and covers an area of 37,000m2. There are over 70 kinds of karst sediments in the Furong Cave, and it's reputed as a splendid underground art palace and science museum for caves. The most magnificent part of Furong Cave is the "Splendid Hall", which covers an area of 11,000m2. Besides that, there are 15m wide and 21m high rock waterfall, smooth palm-shape stalagmite, numerous helictite and stone flowers, etc. and the red coral and fang-shape calcite crystal in the cave is very precious and stunning. The various shapes and kinds of the stalactites in the cave have recorded the evolution process of history.

Ticket: March 1st ~ October 31st: ¥120/personOpening Hours: 08:30 ~ 17:00Transportation: From Wulong County, tourists can take bus to Jiangkou Town from Wulong Bus Station. You need to tell the driver you will go to Furong Cave in advance, if the bus can't go to Furong Cave, then you need to transfer to minibus at Jiangkou Town to Furong Cave, and it will take about 1.5 hours from Wulong to Furong Cave. Another way is chartering a car or take a private car. This is more convenient, and you can drive directly to the entrance of the scenic area.

About 60 km from Wulong Tourism center, along the way very nice view and jiangkuo town and rivers. When reach you need to take a cable car to the top, enter from a hole, inside the cave all are limestone. Very natural, it about 1 hour walk through. just like anyother cave aroud the world. Good to visit if you have time.

Once you did the first step downstairs, you just enter to awesome, almost extraterrestrial environment! Different colours of lighting beautifully emphasize stalactites and stalagmites. You fast understand that every structure is unique and have its own very-very long story. There are some incredibly interesting objects, such as 1000-arrows hall, cave grape, sleeping Buddha and snow-white 20-meters stone waterfall! To get this place we used train from Chongqing to Wulong, which rides 4 times per day, then got bus terminus by municipal taxi (only 5 yuan) and then got Furong cave by a bus through JiangKou town. You should keep in mind that the cave is cold and wet place and wear appropriate clothes.

They have put neon and colored lights inside the cave as well to enhance the visuals as you walk through. The cave itself is massive and has some great stalagmites and stalactites worth a view. It takes about 20 minutes to walk through the cave system and there are shops and food in the parking lot, as well as other activities to make for a fun day trip.

Programm: 1. Three Natural Bridges, 2. Longshuixia Gap, 3. Furong Cave (nur wenn noch Zeit)Abfahrt Chongqing zwischen 6 Uhr und 6:30 Uhr, so dass um 8:30 Uhr beim Tourist Centre. Normalerweise müsste dann 1+2 bis Uhr fertig sein, Essstop in Wulong, dann Furong Cave (spätestens um 16 Uhr dort sein). Danach Rückfahrt Chongqing

CHONGQING 重庆; ChóngqìngVariante guided: Rückfahrt nach Chongqing, Stopp am Aussichtspunkt Yikeshu, evtl. drop off beim Cable Car und mit der Seilbahn für CNY 20 p.p. über den Yangtze in die Stadt (alternativ dort absetzen lassen bzw. eventuell driver auch noch für Rückfahrt zum Bahnhof!), Dowtown Chongqing (Times Square, People’s Liberation Monument, Arwan Tempel), Hongya Cave

1. Yikeshu Viewing Platform: 9 AM-10:30 PM, 30 RMB: Single Tree Vista, known as YikeshuVista,Yikeshu OverlookFrom Yikeshu of South Mountain (Nan Shan), on the South of Yangtze River.auf chinesisch: 揚子江南岸の南山にある一果樹（一本の木）展望台から。south mountain yikeshu (南方一棵树)Pipa Mountain, Erling Park and "Yikeshu" (A Tree) on South Mountain are some of the famous scenic spots of the mountain city of Chongqing, and can be enjoyed day and night. Yikeshu Viewing Terrace on the South Mountain, where the altitude offers a spectacular view of the entire

city. How to get there: Take bus numbers 346 and 384. Get to Nanping and transfer to a mini bus to Yikeshu. Tel: 00862362467710

The boat tour from Chaotianmen Wharf to the Yangtze River Bridge and then on to the Huanghuayuan Bridge on the Jialing River: While traveling along the river, reflections appear like a sea of lights.

2. Yangtze River Cable Car 长江索道 (長江索道, Chángjiāng suǒdào): wenn keine Zeit oder zu viele Leute eventuell zu Fuß über Dongshuimen bridge oder per Metro M6 Shanxin Street – Xiaoshizi Station, CNY 20, fährt alle 10 MinutenThe Jialing River and the Yangtze River at Chongqing can be crossed by cablecar. The Jialing River Cableway spans the Jialing River and connects CangbaiRoad in the Yuzhong District and Jinsha Street in the Jiangbei District. TheYangtze River Cableway on Xinhua Road crosses the Yangtze River. They run from 07:00 to 22:00. It costs CNY10 per person for a single trip and CNY20 for a round trip and takes four to five minutes one-way to cross the cableways.

3. CBD (Jiefangbei Pedestrian Street, People’s Liberation Monument, Arwat temple)People's Liberation Monument, Jiefangbei

Chongqing Jiefangbei Pedestrian Street (Jiefangbei Shangye Buxingjie) (重庆解放碑步行街).Get off at Xiaoshizi Station on Line 6 and get out from Exit 6.Jiefangbei Pedestrian Street or Jiefangbei Square, is the busiest and most prosperous business district in West China. The whole pedestrian street, taking an area of 36,000m2 (approximately 43,055 sq yd), centers on the People's Liberation Monument, or Jiefangbei in Chinese and includes Minquan Road, Minzu Road and Zourong Road. It's now a must-go destination for tourists to Chongqing, where one can enjoy shopping and various delicious foods. Erinnert bei Nacht sogar etwas an den Times Square in New York.

Eating in Jiefangbei CBD: Bayi(lu) Road Food Street is the most famous food street in this area. You can taste all kinds of Chongqing snacks here including Shancheng Tangyuan, hot and sour rice noodles, Dandan noodles, rabbit heads, iced powder and so on at a very cheap price. Most of the

shops are open air and you may have to queue to buy them. You will not be dissatisfied if you are a fan of Chongqing flavor.

4. Hongya Cave Scenic Spot 洪崖洞: kein Eintritt, zu Fuß via Cangbai RoadFour Cultural Streets

 2nd Floor: Zhiyanhe Bar Street is crowded with numerous well-known bars including the most spiritual one in Chongqing - Feiyu Music Bar, which is close to Hongya Dripping. The street has a traditional appearance but is filled with modern elements. There, visitors can view the night scenery of the riverside while drinking outdoors.

 4th Floor: Tianchengxiang Bayu Culture Street presents traditional local dwellings with red eaves and grey tiles. It is filled with restaurants selling traditional Chongqing food like Chongqing Hotpot, Pork Dumplings, Walnut Cookies, Hot and Sour Rice Noodles.

 9th~10th Floors: Foreign dishes, such as pasta, Japanese dishes, and Korean snacks, can be tasted in Banquet Food Street. It is highly recommended to taste the NenluTea dessert which has been praised by Lonely Planet Magazine.

 11th Floor: In Exotic Balcony Street, visitors can buy exotic garnitures and handiwork and also have coffee and hamburgers there. There is also a ship-like pirate-theme bar with half of a ship’s hull suspended from the ceiling. As well, visitors can overlook the stilt house and Jialing River from the balcony. 

Nightscape from 18:00 to 22:00The nightscape of Hongya Cave is a highlight and is a unique feature of Chongqing. When dusk falls, warm-toned lamps and lanterns brightly light up the stilt house. Together with its reflection on the water, this shining complex is like a dreamlike pavilion floating among the surrounding towering skyscrapers. Visitors can view the stunning nightscape from different angles. Best Viewing Points of the Nightscape1. Qiansimen Bridge: Visitors can admire the lights and shadow of Hongyadong from the front when strolling along Qiansimen Bridge, next to the stilt house.2. Exotic Balcony on the 11th floor: Roofs of the stilt house complex look like several dazzling stairways if seen from above. What’s more, an overview of the Jialing River can be gained from this highest platform. 3. Cruise along Yangtze and Jialing Rivers: The journey starts from Chaotianmen Dock and will pass by Hongya Cave at the halfway point. It will provide you a different way to admire the nightscape.4. Jiabin Road: Jiabin Road is at the foot of Hongyadong. From there, visitors can enjoy the charming night scene from a very close visual angle. If using time-lapse exposure, you will be able to take good shots of the stilt house floating in the ‘Milky Way’ made by lights of long stream of cars. How to get to Hongya Cave

 By subway: Take subway line 1 or line 6 and get off at Xiaoshizi Station; use Exit 6 and walk northward along Cangbai Road for about 700 meters (750 yards) to the stilt house. This place remind me of the movie "spirited away". Especially at night when the whole place light up it is just so mesmerizing. The food they sell there is nothing special, you can find it all over Chongqing easily. Overall, the whole place is just a beauty at night, you can view it from Qiansimen Bridge too, you can miss the bridge.

Stunningly lit up at night, coupled by the views of the bridges across the JiaLing and Yangtze rivers. A must see , if one visits Chongqing .

This attraction is well worth a visit, not least for the spectacular views from the viewing point up top. Underneath you are shops and cafes if that's your thing, but if you're a keen photographer you can get great shots from this vantage point. Take the lift and see for yourself, well worth it.

Bootstour: wohl keine Zeit, weil kaum eine Bootstour unter 1 Stunde – Check DennisChaotianmen Dock 朝天门: Ferry über Yangtze? (angeblich nicht am Abend – Check Dennis)Chaotianmen is the largest dock in Chongqing and one of the busiest docks in China. The Yangtze River cruise ships, the city sightseeing ships, and the city ferries all start off from the dock. Yangtze River Cruise is the best way to appreciate the most beautiful section of Yangtze River, Three Gorges. The sightseeing ships shuttle between Chaotianmen Dock and Jialing River Bridge, or the Yangtze River Bridge; it is a good way to appreciate the landscapes and night view of the city. The ferries run between the dock and Foreigners’ Street (CNY 25?), a place with architecture in various styles and delicious food.

How to Get to Chaotianmen DockTake the subway line 1 and get off at Xiaoshizi Station. Get out from Exit 8. At present, because of the construction nearby, you need to walk on a small path along Yangtze River to Chaotianmen Square.

Nachtzug Chongqing North – Tongren: K1077 (T south), 23:53-8:38, bezahlt € 65,55, Ticket erhalten

Kosten Eintritte: CNY 840 mit Dennis / CNY 600 self-guided (ohne Furong Cave)Fahrer: CNY 1500 Dennis, CNY (2 Personen) / USD 45-62 Zug (inkl. 1x Servicegebühr) + Taxis CNY 400

Transport (Zug): € 65,55 (bereits bezahlt)Hotel (eventuell bei Option self-guided): CNY 118 – Zhenshui Renja Inn,Einsparpotential self guided: bis zu CNY 1.133 (evtl. minus Hotel)

TAG 16, 26.04 (DONNERSTAG):

FENGHUANG 凤凰; Fènghuáng: sunrise ca. 6:10 Uhr, sunset 19:15 Uhr

Anreise: Ankunft Tongren um 8:38 (siehe oben)Taxi nach Fenghuang kostet ca. 200 CNY, Fahrdauer ca. 1 StundeGrundsätzlich kein Stress, daher eher mit Bus: CNY 20 p.p.

Via Tongren Take a direct bus to Fenghuang from Tongren North Bus Terminal, opposite Tongren Railway Station. The duration is about 1½ hours and the fare is 30 yuan.Buses depart around every one hour from 07:30 to 16:30. Bus fare is around CNY 20. It takes about 1.5 hours.Tongren North Bus Terminal is just on the opposite of railway station. The bus for Fenghuang runs from 0730 to 1630. It departs once it is full. The duration is about 1.5 hrs and fare is CNY20-30 per person per way.

About 60km (37miles) are between Fenghuang and Tongren. In 2011, all taxi drivers had the same fare – 160 yuans (800 roub. / $ 25). A female taxi driver who took me from Fenghuang, flatly refused to take me to the hotel in Tongren, and put me down at the entrance to the town square in front of the railway station. And immediately a local taxi driver started to honk to me. Coincidentally, it was the same driver that drove me to Fenghuang.

bei Taxi zu überlegen: am Weg bei Southern Great Wall/Huangsiqiao stoppen (siehe unten).

Bei Anfahrt mit Bus: wenn nicht vorher möglich (CHECK CHRIS TAN), gleich nach Ankunft in Fenghuang (Fenghuang General Bus Station) Bustickets für nächsten Tag nach Jishou kaufen!

Fenghuang General Bus Station: (凤凰汽车客运总站)

Address: Fenghuang North Road, Fenghuang County 凤凰县凤凰北路Opening Hours: 06:30 to 19:30

Destination board and direction signs are available to guide the way

Fenghuang General Bus Station (凤凰汽车客运总站), which is also known as Fenghuang Chengbei Bus Station (凤凰城北汽车站) or Fenghuang North Bus Station (凤凰汽车北站), is the largest bus station in Fenghuang. To most people, it's their first destination to travel to Fenghuang. The General Bus Station locates 3 km northwest to the Ancient Town. To travel here for the ancient town, you can take No. 1 bus and drop off at Nanhua Gate (南华门) station. Riding time is about 20 minutes and ticket price is CNY 1 Yuan. It costs about CNY 10 Yuan to travel by taxi between the bus station and the ancient town and riding time is less than 10 minutes.

The bus station has a two story building. The 1st floor is used as ticket office. Ticket holders can then walk up through the wheelchair accessible stairs to the waiting room on the 2nd floor to take the bus. Once you have

entered the waiting hall, you can find destination board at each boarding gate directing you to wait at the right place. The bus station has borading areas for both short distance and long distance travel. Even though Fenghuang General Bus Station has excellent service, it's complained by some travelers saying that it has no lift to transport heavy luggage to the waiting hall on the 2nd floor.

Fenghuang General Bus Station Schedule and Ticket Price:Jishou West Bus Station 07:00 to 19:00, it's available for every 30min 1 hour 24 Yuan

Jishou Railway Station 07:00 to 19:00, it's available for every 30min 1 hour 25 Yuan

Tongren 07:30 to 16:30, it's available for every hour 1.5 hours 25 Yuan

Wulingyuan 08:30, 14:30 4 hours 100 Yuan

Zhangjiajie 09:00, 10:00, 12:00, 14:00, 15:00 3.5 hours 80 Yuan

Other Bus Stations in FenghuangBesides the General Bus Station, Fenghuang has another two small scale bus stations naming Fenghuang Tuotian Bus Station (沱田客运站) and Fenghuang Tuqiaolong Bus Station (土桥垅汽车站).Tuotian Bus Station locates in the east of the Ancient Town. Tuqiaolong Bus Station is 2 km southwest to the Ancient Town and the two places are connected by No. 2 bus. Tuotian Bus Station and Tuqiaolong Bus Station have short distance bus services only. That is, Tuotian Bus Station has buses going for Mayang County, Zhijiang County, Hongjiang Ancient Commercial Town and Xuefengshan Gorge. Tuqiaolong Bus Station has buses leaving for the South China Great Wall, Alaying Town, Huangsi Bridge Old Town and etc.

Bustickets können von der Unterkunft aus gebucht werden!FENGHUANG OLD TOWN:

Grundsätzlich kein Eintritt, aber Sehenswürdigkeiten kosten (CNY 148 inkl. boat ride)Altstadt abspazieren, unbedingt machen: Boat ride on Tuojiang River

Admission Fee

Visitors don't need to pay for admission of the ancient town, but they need to buy a ticket if they want to visit the scenic spots inside.

Combo ticket: CNY 148 (including Former Residence of Shen Congwen, Formal Residence of Xiong XiLing, Yang Family Memorial Temple, East Gate Tower, Boat ride on Tuojiang River, Longevity Palace, Chongde Hall, Fenghuang Ancient City Museum, and Hongqiao Art Museum)

 Note: The combo ticket is valid for two days. A visitor can enter the above-mentioned spots once within the validity of the ticket.

Most of Fenghuang's sites can be visited with a "through ticket" (通票). There are three versions. The first includes the Yang Family Ancestral Hall, East Gate Tower, the upper gallery of the Hong Bridge, and a few other smaller attractions for ¥98. The second ticket includes the first ticket plus the Gucheng Museum and Wanshou temple, costs ¥148, and is valid for 2 days. The third ticket is a Fenghuang regional through ticket that, in addition to the previous two through tickets, includes the Southern Great Wall and Miao Village for ¥168 and is valid for 3 days. There is also plenty of old town outside this central area but this is the main hub. As a tip when looking at the large wooden maps posted about the town, the green suns on the map are the sites included in the through ticket. East Gate Tower (东门城楼). Included in through ticket. edit Yang Family Ancestral Hall (杨家祠堂). Included in through ticket. edit Hong (Rainbow) Bridge (红桥). Free; upper gallery included in through ticket. edit

1. Take a Boat Trip: am besten gleich nach Ankunft, da noch am ruhigstenTaking a boat trip along the Tuo River is a great way to have a better view of the houses. The best time is in the early morning or in the evening. You may see locals using the river water to wash their clothes as well as vegetables. Boats operate regularly upstream, running from the pier near the town’s North Gate to Wanshou Temple.

Boat ride down the river, (North Gate Wharf, or haggle with boat handlers on the river side if you didn't buy a through ticket). A gentle boat ride down the river allowing you to check out the town from the water. If you bought a through ticket the ride takes you from the wharf by North Gate, and drops you by Wenshu temple. Included in through ticket if taken from the wharf at North Gate.

2. Walk Around the Town: kreisförmige Anordnung (circle route) The best way to see the town is by walking around it. You can visit historical wooden buildings, have a close-up experience with the local people, and immerse yourself in its cultural atmosphere. You can enter narrow alleys paved with flagstones and decorated with lanterns, and walk around to grab some souvenirs and snacks from stalls lined along the streets. You can see some local elderly women wearing traditional costumes and selling their handmade souvenirs on the roadside. The nighttime scenery in the town is beautiful, with old buildings nicely illuminated along the river. The town is a hive of activity with all the nightlife. You can find a café beside the Tuo River to enjoy some free time. It is a different place in the morning, being very serene and peaceful.

It takes about 2-3 hours to fully walk around the city while stopping occasionally to take pictures. It’s one big circular loop and you can start from your hotel, walk around in a big circle, and finish back at your hotel. There are lots of different alleyways inside the ancient city to explore, and if you choose to take your time and explore the alleyways and stop for food and souvenir shopping, then it’ll definitely take more than 2-3 hours to do the full loop.

The centre of the town can get super busy with tourists, and the peak times that I observed were from 12pm to 2pm. It then starts getting super busy again from about 5pm onwards when it starts getting dark, because they light up the ancient city and this attracts more tourists. It does feel like there’s constant flocks of busses of Chinese tourists that keep coming in and out of the ancient town, and it just doesn’t stop, so just be prepared for that. The tourist busses start rolling in at about 8am and don’t stop.

Come in the morning 9-13 and you will see absolutely different Fenghuang. Peaceful empty streets, sound of flowing river and locals sitting inside their establishments not even noticing you. You can walk around all the area undisturbed, go to any restaurant without passing through crowds of people and take amazing shots of the river and old buildings. Have peace to trip over the famous stone bridge.

Come in the afternoon 15-18, there will be considerably more people, but since it's hot they will not be so prevalent and the sellers still hiding in their establishments won't bother you at all. Have a good local food in one of the restaurants (Duck blood cake) or the pickled peppers. Then head to the far left end to see the pagoda basking in the setting sun. Take pictures then cross the river and head back on the other bank. - You can use this time to buy bus tickets from one of the ticket merchants at the far end. Good price and fair handling. Saves you the hustle the next day when leaving the town.

Aussichtspunkte: Foto: (muss etwas am Hügel liegen) und von Hong Bridge (siehe Foto)

Photographic tips: You must go to the top of the tallest and biggest bridge at the major end of Phoenix Ancient Town where all the clubs and karaoke bars are (Biancheng Chadong Town area). It has 2 huge archways and cars pass over it. You can’t miss it. The view from up here of Phoenix Ancient Town is spectacular and the photo opportunities are excellent.

Fenghuang Scenic SpotsBoating on Tuo River. Tuo River is the mother-like river in Fenghuang Ancient Town. It breeds the local people for generations. Seating on the boat, visitors can enjoy the work song of the boatman in tranquility and enjoy the Diaojiaolou of Tujia Family on both sides of river in mountains and water. It is another feeling and experience. On the boat, visitor can see Longevity Palace, Wanming Pagoda, Duocui Tower and so on in turn. The south side of the Tuo River is the ancient town wall built with mauve sandstone. It is elegant and gigantic. The town wall has east tower and west tower in two directions.

East-Gate Town Tower. East-gate town tower is located in the east side of town, and it was originally called Shengheng Gate, and one of the four town gates in Fenghuang Ancient Town. It was established in 1715, the lower section of the town gate is made of the mauve sandstone, and the upper section is made of the old bricks. It is 3.5 meters wide and 4 meters high. It looks like an semi-arch.

Local AttractionsThe popular local cuisine include: Fenghuang Ginger Sugar, Bean-curd Boiled with Sour Soup, Sour Fish of Miao-Nationality Family, Vegetable Bean-curd of Farmer Family, Xiangxi Ciba, Xiangxi Preserved Ham and Fenghuang Sour Carrot and so on. The welcomed local products are Xuebaya, Sweet Orange, Brocade of Tujia Nationality, chest-nut and tine-nut, Gefeng or Arrowroot Flour, Gingko, Pangolin, Giant Salamander, Chinese goosebeery and wax-dyeing and so on. Go to market of Miao Nationality is another famous local tradition. Local people call it Ganchang. Go to market with local people together is another unique experience. Visitors not only can get many local products but also feel the local strong custom. 

3. Visit Historical and Cultural Sites These include Huang Si Qiao Castle (黄丝桥古城), the best-preserved stone castle built in the Tang Dynasty in 687, and Xiangxi Border Wall, which was built during the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) and is highly praised as being China's Southern Great Wall. ACHTUNG: beides außerhalb!There are also famous ancient buildings including Longevity Palace (万寿宫), Chaoyang Palace (朝阳宫), Hong Bridge (虹桥), the East Gate Tower (东门城楼), and Wanming Pagoda (万名塔).

4. Join in a Bonfire Party: eher nichtIf you are interested, you can join in a bonfire party beside the river at night. It is a way to experience the traditions and culture of the Miao people. It usually starts from 7:30pm and ends at 9:30pm. cost is 50–80 yuan.

5. Night Scenery along river: vielleicht auch in eine Bar mit Live Musik oder Karaoke

The day time view is beautiful, but they light up the city during the night time, which is equally just as beautiful to see. Both make for excellent pictures. There were some awesome and delicious street food, and these were a great source of sustenance especially with all the walking you can do in this place. During the night time, right in the middle of Phoenix Ancient Town, there are a lot of clubs and karaoke bars that are super loud and are open till very late (like 1am onwards). If you want peace and quiet at night, I would recommend that you find a hotel that is away from the centre.

All the museums were closed by the time we got there so we just walked along the river bank and took endless photos. When all the lights lit up it was just incredibly beautiful!

For the evening you can find a good local food - cold Miao noodles - in the southern part of the town up hill next to the primary school. But that's all I would recommend. Crowds are swarming, people are noisy and although heat is lower now than in the

afternoon it feels like you are suffocating. Some of the visitors can find coffees or small lounge bars being a good retreat from the noise, but be prepared to pay 30RMB for a can of beer.

Souvenirs: Recommend to bargain, cut the price at least 50% before you buy as its a tourist attraction placeALTERNATIVEN / ZUSÄTZLICHE MÖGLICHKEITEN AM NACHMITTAG:

Miao Village: Shanjiang, Tehang (aber eigentlich zu weit weg)If your schedule allows, you can spend half a day visiting a Miao village. A recommended village is Tehang (德夯), where the Miao customs, living style, and festivals are kept intact. In the village, you can see typical buildings, listen to traditional songs, and taste the local food.

Huangsiqiao Castle + Old town: liegt am Weg nach Fenghuang (Stopp mit Taxi?), CNY 20 p.p.Huang Si Qiao Castle: Huang Si Qiao Castle, about 24 kilometers west of Fenghuang, is the best preserved stone castle of China. Its ancient name was Feiyang Castle, built during the year 687 of Tang Dynasty for military use. It was the outpost of governments of past dynasties to prevent Miao ethnic people from rebelling. Miao people were forced to retreat in the deep of mountain area and their population was sharply decreased. Huangsiqiao Ancient Town (黄丝桥古城) Along the Wall: Huangsiqiao Ancient Town is located 28 kilometers west of Fenghuang County and lies in the strongholds of Hunan Province and Guizhou Province; it was built in 686 AD in the Ming Dynasty. Between the Ming Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty, it was the most significant military camp of the Southern Great Wall and was built into a stone town in 1700 AD. The wall of the town has a height of about 5 meters, a width of 3 meters and a circumference of 500 meters, with three gates in the town. There is a tower on every gate. All of these add tothe magnificence and uniqueness of Huangsiqiao Ancient Town.

Southern Great Wall 南方长城Liaojiaqiao liegt zwischen Huangsiqiao und Fenghuang, CNY 45 p.p.Now two sections of the wall are still standing: one is in Liaojiaqiao Town and the other in Jixing Town. The section in Liaojiaqiao Town has been renovated 1,780 meters for visitors to visit.

Location: 15 kilometers away from Fenghuang Ancient Town, Xiangxi Tujia-Miao Autonomous Prefecture in west of Hunan

Province, China Opening Hours: April to November: 7:30a.m.-6:00p.m.

This Southern Great Wall is located close to Huangsiqiao ancient town, about 10Km away from Fenghuang County.

The wall is about 3 meters high and its basement is about 2 meters wide. It revolves around mountains and cuts across water. The most part of it is built on the precipitous ridges. There are more than 800 whistle terraces, gun emplacements, blockhouses, and outposts used for stationing troops and defending. At that time, often there were a troop of 4,000 to 5,000 soldiers. Today, most of the Southern Great Wall has been destroyed, and the ruins are scattered in sparsely populated ridges in the west of Hunan Province. In 2001, 1.78 kilometers of the Southern Great Wall was repaired, funded by local government. And later another 4.5 km Great Wall was rebuilt. The Southern Great Wall you are going to visit now is the repaired parts. When you tour around, it is not recommended to make comparision here with the Great Wall in the north of China. Although it is not as grand and magnificent as that in the north, and nor as large scale as that in the north, it contains the unique southern scenery and customs of ethnic minorities. Southern Great Wall is a symbol to present the politics, economy, military and culture of Ming Dynasty. It is a site for people to study the history about the ethnic groups situation in the past time.

How to get there: You may take a bus from Shiqiaolong Bus Station (土桥垅汽车站), which pass by “阿拉营” but you can ask the driver to stop at Southern Great Wall. It takes about 30 minutes.

Übernachtung: Fenghuang Corner Time 凤凰街角时光客栈, CNY 128, Frühstück CNY 20 p.p. (?Zeit),

Adresse: No.22, Jiangbei New Village, Tuojiang Town, 沱江镇江北新村 22 号（富源小区-木材公司路口）

Kosten Eintritte und Transport: CNY 356 (Fenghuang+Bus+Taxi Old Town)Hotel: CNY 128

TAG 17, 27.04 (FREITAG):

FURONG 芙蓉鎮: sunrise / sunset siehe Fenghuang bzw. Zhangjiajie

1. Self-guided bis Mengdonghe River Railway station 1a. Transfer Fenghuang – Jishua: Bustickets über Hotel möglich, evtl. auch carsharing (vor Ort)Variante A: Bus Fenghuang - Jishou Railway station: Abfahrt 7 oder 7:30 Uhr (siehe oben)Walking for about 200m from railway station, you will find Jiushou North Bus Station. If you do not catch the bus from north station, you could take a taxi to south station to get on a bus to Fenghuang. Variante B: Taxi von Hotel bis Jishou Railway station: CNY 150, ca. 40 MinutenCost is around 150 RMB. Don't take taxi which offers a too high or too low price (something not correct). Taxi would take you 40

minutes to Jishou train station,you can ask the hotel to book one for you according to your departure time

吉首火车站 jishou railway station:

1b. Transfer Jishua - FurongVariante A: Zug 7266 9:14-10:37 (Mengdonghe), CNY 3 (seat), kurzfristig buchbar

Variante B (Notvariante): Taxi/BusZug zu Mengdonghe River Railway Station 猛洞河For travelers who go from Zhangjiajie, one can take a bus at Zhangjiajie Bus Station to reach Furong Ancient Town directly. It takes about 1.5 hours and costs RMB 25. For travelers who go from Jishou, one can take a bus at Jishou Bus Station to get there, which takes about 2 hours. For travelers who go from Fenghuang Ancient Town, one can take a bus at Fenghuang Bus Station and ask the driver to drop you off at Furong Town, which takes about 2.5 to 3 hours. 

If you come from Jishou City, you may take bus at Jishou Xikou Bus Station to reach Wangcun Bus Station(王村汽车站 in Chinese) first. The buses departs every 30 minutes from 8:30am to 6:30pm and takes about 1 hours. Then walk to Red Stone Forest Tourist Center in Furong Town to rent a minibus or motorcycle to take you to the entrance of Red Stone Forest National Geological Park, which takes 20 minutes.

2. Fahrer ab Mengdonghe River Railway station inkl. Zhangjiajie: CHRIS TAN, CNY 2.000 (USD 50 deposit bereits bezahlt, € 43,25) – final itinerary:

ITINERARY: 1900 CNY (car + driver) for one day Furong (pick up from mengdong river train station, then visit red Stone forest, rafting, Furong town), stay one night in Furong, next day visit tianmen mountain and drop to Wulingyuan town. date: 27 + 28 April (10:34am pick up at mengdonghe railway station on 27 April) For booking tickets of tianmen mountain and (maybe) glass bridge, I will get back to you later.KONTAKT CHRIS TAN: tanjunxi@126.com (auch Paypal), zhangjiajietravelservice@hotmail.comKommunikation über WECHAT: Heruntergeladen

Programm Furong:

1 Red Stone Forest National Geopark 红石林国家地质公园: CNY 148 p.p., 8-17 Uhr, 30min ab Bahnhof, 1-2 StundenReally special place to visit in the Hunan region. There are thousands of different shapes red rocks. The colour of rocks changes to red when it is sunny; black when it rains and maroon when it turns to overcast. It covers an area of about 20 square kilometres, geography experts have discovered it's 450 million years old. When we were there, there were only local visitors and not as crowded as other attractions. We could walk around comfortably without having to jostle with others. A restful and picturesque place with a lake and lots of vegetation. A definite must-see and visit before it gets overcrowded as the authorities publicise it!

This unusual area is an out of the way attraction. We took a tour bus along a meandering single lane road through some small villages and fields. The entrance fee is quite steep for the attraction, over ¥200. There is a grotto of red rock ( from the iron content) which are not very tall, and layered in an interesting manner. There are some stairways which go through the rocks and you come across a serene natural lake. The area to walk is restricted to the paths they have made. There are a few signs explaining the area and little else. A washroom is available at the entrance and the exit. There is also a small shop selling food and souvenirs. In the stone forest, there are valleys, stream and springs. There are thick grassland and wistaria flowers growing in the forest, making it like a garden of nature. The tall rocks in various shapes can be seen throughout scenic spot. The stone color is changeable in accordance with the weather, time and season. The stone is red in Sunny days, black in the rain, brown and red on cloudy days. It even presents different colors in the morning and evening in a day.

Explored in: 2005 Tour time: need you around 3hours

2 Mengdonghe River Rafting: CNY 250 p.p., 8-18 UhrThe whole floating distance of Mengdonghe River is about 17 kilometers with the most exciting upper stream floating. The rafting starts from Hani Palace, which is about 40 kilometers away from Furong Town (1 hours’ driving) and ends at Niuluhe(about 30 minutes’ driving to Furong Town). The rafting lasts for 2.5 to 3 hours. While enjoy the exciting rafting, you will go downwards along the river with a small boat, going through waves passing “Triangular Rock”, "Thirteen Waves”, "Chicken House Gate”, "Yanwang Beach”, "Luoshui Pond”, "Earth waterfall”, "Mengsi Valley”, etc, totally several dozens of scenic spots. At both sides of Mengdonghe River, there are cliffs standing superbly, falls suspending high in the air, ancient relics full of the place. While rating, one may feel as if they were jumping to the air from the ground, or dropping to a deep valley from the sky, or galloping on horse backs, or riding clouds and mist. With great admiration, one feels shocked first and then delighted. It is really worth trying. The terminal point of the rafting is sited in Niulu River Bridge, which is also an integrated service area. You can take a shuttle bus to get back to starting place. Or you can have some food and then take a bus to visit Furong Town.

Meng Dong River is located at Furong town, Yongshun county, Xiangxi Autonomous Prefecture. The Rifting part is between Ha Ni Palace and Niu Lu River, about 17Km, With 108 rapid falls and 20 big and small waterfalls. The whole single journey takes 2hours and half. The ship raft can hold 6 to 10 people . Everybody need to put on life jackets. The boat is controlled by helmsman, so it might be scary but safe. Meng Dong River means: Fierce Caves River in Chinese. Meng Dong River is rich with clear water, with big gradient. Along the rifting, thare are many tall cliffs with green forest, wild monkeys, strange caves, flying waterfalls and flowing springs. Great natural views through a deep gorge. Meng Dong River basin is also minority Tujia people inhabit region, has a unique customs and colorful ethnic traditional culture. Tips for rifting:During rifting, because everybody will be involved in “water flight”, so it need to prepare some “weapon” before arrive in the rifting upper pier. Other items to prepare in advance: Some simple, easy drying clothes, but not too thin or too light color in case embarrassing after getting wet. Plastic Slippers; Prepare raincoat in case you feel too cold; wearing glasses with a Rubber band in case drop into water. Do not carry cash and valuables, if the boat capsized or other accidents happen, drift company and the insurance company will not compensate for tourist lost by cash and items; If you want to bring camera to take photos of beautiful natural views, better bring a small one with low value. Camera must be wrapped in plastic bags. Open it and take photos when you are at flat beach. Swimming also should be in the peaceful water area where it is suggested by helmsman. Because the river is not deep, even if there is a problem, also can timely ashore, blew a whistle for help.

Having a water fight with others on the boat is the most exciting on rafting,you need to prepare a very big water syringe to protect yourself. If you don't have one,you will become the target. what's more,you should prepare some trousers and clothes for you will be totally wet on the boat. Mengdong river rafting takes more than 3 hours,it's a very long canyon and the water is very clean,also,a lot of waterfalls blowout from the top of the mountain,it's really amazing just like a picture that I have never seen before.

Mengdonghe River is situated 80km southeast of Zhangjiajie city, nestled among mountains, a remote canyon towering limestone cliffs, a beautiful river that’s ranked among the top ones in china. 2 hours drive from zhangjiajie city, Rafting usually take 3 hours. Wide calm river section take another 3 hours ending at Furong town that’s well preserved old town famous for its old streets and stilted houses, it is worth visit.

You’ll thrill to the excitement of the major rapids of the Mengdonghe River; there are a few of the rapids that get your heart pounding. The rapids are interspersed with calm stretches, which give you a chance to enjoy the breathtaking scenery. Gentle rapids carve a pathway through mountains and provide plenty of chance to swim, spot wildlife, take the fried the river fish, and just relax.

Always Bring:Swimsuit shorts wool sweaters or synthetic fleece wool socks windbreaker jacket and pants, footwear that can get wet (plus a dry pair for after your trip) dry clothes and towel..

3 Furong Town: CNY 120 p.p., Opening Hours: 7:00 - 17:30, 1-2h, ?am Abend ?nächster Morgen

unbedingt machen: „Wasserfallweg“, andere Seite vom Hotel mit bestem Blick (siehe Karte), Tusi Palace (Abend - CHECK location), Five Li long Flat-Rock Street (Abend) Furong town（means: Lotus town）, formerly known as “ King village”. During late 1980s, shooting a movie here named “Lotus town”. That was a movie described The Great Culture Revolution and became pretty famous later. So, it was changed into Furong town now. In history, this town was a imperial palace for short stay away from capital. So, this is a town has more than two thousand years history as well. Furong town located in the north side of Youshui river which upper reach to Sichuan and Guizhou provinces and lower reach to Dongting lake. It was the most important water dock in Xiangxi Autonomous Prefecture. 

Scenic spots:Creek Bronze Column: Creek Bronze Column is a witness of this thousand years historical town. During 940, Two leaders ( Emperor of Chu and governor of Creek state) negotiated peace after many years of fought and engraved all details on Creek Bronze Column. This means a lot for local people because that was the only won resisting the cruel central government rule.Five Li long Flat-Rock Street: Furong town is an ancient town of Tujia people. There is a well-preserved five Li flat-rock flag street, both sides are ancient style shops—Tujia style hanging buildings. Walking alone this way, it will bring you to pier of Youshui river where you can enjoy beautiful views of “King Village Waterfall” and “Flying Water village”.King Village Waterfall: This is one of the highlights in this town and a must thing to see if you are there. The town also called “the town above waterfall” because this waterfall.  Local delicacy: Rice Tofu Mandarin Fish Winkles Meat

Furong Waterfall 芙蓉镇瀑布This waterfall is about 40 meter wide with a drop height of 60 meters, and looks spectacular in rainy season from June to August. Walking behind the hanging water screen of the waterfall is like placing oneself in a crystal palace. Furong town water fall s also the biggest waterfall in west Hunan province, any tourist visits here would see this place and you can hear the crystal sound of the waterfall ten miles away from it.

Tusi Palace 土司行宫: Palast auf Bergspitze, LOCATION (gleich bei Hotel?)The Palace of Tusi (appointing hereditary headmen of national minority in the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties in old China) is another highlight in the town. It is actually a Tujia Diaojiaolou building complex. It was built by a rich chieftain of the Tujia nationality for summer resort. In front of the palace is an ever-flowing stream and on the both sides are cliffs.Building on the cliffs makes the palace easy to defense any invasion.

Wuli Slate Street 五里石板街The Wuli Slate Street of Furong ancient town with many traditional shops and buildings on its both sides, is winding through the whole town and leads you to the pier of Youshui River(酉水). From the pier you can enjoy a different view of Furong

Waterfall and Tusi Palace on your left-hand side. Wuli Slate Street has a history of over 2300 thousand years, it has witnessed the history of Furong ancient town since the time when it was still a transportation hub both on land and via water.

Xizhou Bronze Pillar 溪州铜柱Xizhou bronze pillars were marks of peace between two states in history. In 940, king of Chu state and envoy of Xizhou set an agreement of ceasefire. 2500 kilos copper pillars were the symbolizations for this agreement. The original copper pillar sank and corroded into water long time ago, what you can see today is a duplication version.

Tujia Ancestors' cave Relics 土人穴居遗址At the entrance of Furong Waterfall, there is a rock cave. This is the relic site of the early native Tujia people thousand years ago. According to the local book, a group of people escaping from central war came here to survive. And they did survive and flourish, and run the place together.The caves were big enough to accommodate thousands of people, after thousands years of water erosions, it is not like it was before.

Everywhere in town reflects the honest and ancient folk customs of the Tujia ethnic minority, which let all visitors are full of praise and enjoy themselves so much as to forget to leave. Due to it remote geographical location, village size, inconvenient transport and lack of promotion, Furong Ancient Town is less popular than Fenghuang Ancient Town. But this is also its advantage, as it is more peaceful compared with Fenghuang being stuffed with tourists. If you have enough time, you can stay in Tujia Diaojiaolou building with waterfall view in the town for one night, to experience the tranquil and easeful here. Furong Town is the only road to Mengdonghe River. You can go to enjoy Mengdonghe River rafting from the town (siehe oben). 

Travel TipsIt is suggested to spend 2 to 3 hours to touring around the village.

It was not far, but ticket gates were waiting for me. The ticket is not cheap – 120RMB! This is quite a lot for ancient villages; it is probably even the most expensive village in China. But anyway, I decided to go inside. Through the village is a marked tourist route, which every visitor should take. Tourism is already present, but it is still the harmless kind of development, unlike the one in Phoenix town. There are no cafes, no bars … only locals who sell various specialties. Most tourists usually pass through this town, so there are no big hotels, at least not in the old center. The surroundings have some new buildings already. The path through the old town follows the cliff; first it goes over a waterfall, then it gets down off the cliff, passes underneath the waterfall, up to the top and across the old city to get back to the ticket gate. It takes a normal Chinese tourist about an hour and a half to finish this route.

From ten in the morning until five in the afternoon, tours are flowing through quite often; they use this stop on the way to Fenghuang. Personally, I think it is worth it to come here late during the day and first go around to the surrounding streets that are not within designated tourist routes. These paths are in fact empty. Tourism in this place is very organized. After the entry gates close, you go out and walk around the main paths. Browsing the streets in the late afternoon has a lovely atmosphere. Watch the sunset over the cliff and in the morning go check out the beautiful waterfall. I felt like I was in a movie.

This is an old town, which is not as popular (yet) as Fenghuang or Lijiang. It's smaller and there's not much to do except to tour a tiny area around the waterfall, with preserved old buildings on both sides of the river, an old bridge and an interesting, under the waterfall walkway. Apparently the place was famous in 80s when a few Chinese movies were shot depicting old style. The entrance is 120CNY, which is almost as much as the ticket to Fenghuang. Still, worth a stop for a few hours on your way - pretty place and not as choke full of tourists as other old towns in China

Touring time: around 2 hours

Übernachtung Furong Town: Tuwang Palace Babutang Hotel, (€ 62), CNY 480, Frühstück inklusiveNice location inside the old town have its downside - you need to purchase ticket to get to the hotel. Wie ist das außerhalb der Öffnungszeiten? Wasserfallwanderung normalerweise auch außerhalb der Zeiten möglichLack of english speaking staff - you have to rely on online translator if don't speak Chinese.

Kosten Furong TownEintritte und Transport: CNY 1100 (CNY 1200 mit Taxi ab Fenghuang)Hotel: CNY 480Fahrer/Guide: CNY 1300 (ingesamt CNY 2000) – CNY 325 / USD 50 bereits bezahlt

TAG 18, 28.04 (SAMSTAG):

ZHANGJIAJIE (sunrise 6:00, sunset 19:10)

DAY 1: Tianmen Mountain Tianmenshan 天门山Anreise: privater Fahrer ab Furong Town bzw. für restlichen Tag (siehe auch oben)Tag 2: Private driver, Tianmen Mountain (CNY 266 p.p.), drive to Wulingyuan, CNY 600

Notlösung self-guided: Entweder Zug Mengdonghe - Zhangjiajie 10:36-12:04, US$1 p.p. + Taxi CNY 10 oder Bus: billiger und man könnte auch schon früher fahren, ca. 10-15 Gehminuten vom Bahnhof zum Cable Car. Nach Tianmen: Bus Wulingyuan ca. 40min ab Zhangjiajie Central Bus Terminal, CNY 12 oder CNY 200 für Taxi

1 TIANMEN MOUNTAIN: 8-18 Uhr (letzte Tickets um 16 Uhr), CNY 266, TICKETS CHRIS TAN Line „A“ zwischen 9 und 10 Uhr (s.u.) – tickets booked!

1) Cable Car Tianmen Mountain (Fahrzeit ca. 30 Minuten für 7 Kilometer)2) Cliff-hanging walkway / Glass Skywalk / Plank Road (1,6 km Rundweg – ca. 1 ½ Stunden)3) Wenn Zeit und Lust: Sessellift zum Gipfel (eher nicht), kostet CNY 25 p.p. zusätzlich4) Cliffpath auf anderer Seite retour5) Elevator down to mountain-cave6) Stairway to Heaven (hinauf ca. 30 Minuten)7) Mit Bus retour (99 Serpentinen – ca. 30 Minuten)

Glaswege kosten je CNY 5 p.p. (für Socken)Wenn Zeit und gutes Wetter: Tianmen Mountain Peak (kostet CNY 25 extra)Programm auch in umgekehrter Reihenfolge denkbar bzw. mit Start Shuttle Bus

An evening visit will give you the mountain almost to yourself and give you plenty of time to stroll around and enjoy the view. The glass pathway is a fun addition, but the view right below it is rather poor. An easy trip is to take the cable car up, then the escalator down to cave and the bus back to town from the bottom of the stairway.

Tianmen Mountain Cableway: The World’s Longest CablewayThe cableway in Tianmen Mountain is the world's longest at a length of 24,458 feet (7,455 meters). It begins in the City Garden downtown, and ends on the summit. It hangs like a rainbow, and hints of being a dragon in the clouds. The cableway throughput is 1,000 passengers per hour, and it averages 28 minutes per trip. In high season you have to wait in line for hours.

Tianmen Mountain Cable car will give you an unforgettable memory in your life. It is one of the few cable cars within China with a height gap over 1000 meters. The local gradient from the middle station to the upper station is as high as 38 degrees, which is rare in the world. It is the cableway with the largest local gradient as well as one with most brackets in China.

Heaven-linking Avenue (99 Bends Road): Fahrzeit ca. 30 MinutenHeaven-linking Avenue, also known as 99 Bending Road or Big Gate Road, is a most hazardous road. It was built in 1998 with 99 consecutive turnings, and a total length of 6.7 miles (10.77 kilometres) was the road wonder. You can watch it from the cable car. You can also get to the mountaintop by this road with the shuttle bus of Tianmen Mountain scenic area.

The best place to see and take photos of these bends is from the cable car.

Tianmen Cave: The Portal to the Heaven ('Heaven's Door' 天门 Tiānmén /tyen-mnn/)The principal attraction on Tianmen Mountain, Tianmen Cave is a grand karst cave 431 feet high, 187 feet wide and 197 feet deep spanning under the mountain. Looking from afar, the cave looks like a way up to the heaven,

hence the name, Tianmen, meaning Heavenly Door. The cave is shrouded by the year-round dense mists. Sometimes, cloaks of clouds gather at the cave's opening, with the sun glowing through it. , forming magical scenery. It's the highest hole of its sort in the world. To reach the cave, take a tourist bus (usually a mini-bus) on the 99 Bends (see above). Then there are 999 steep and narrow steps up to the cave — "the Stairway to Heaven". It is a hard and tiresome climb (about 30 minutes).  The views from the cave are quite plain, and it is always crowded, and hard to find a good place for photos. So it's only really worth doing to say you've "climbed the stairway to heaven" and "knocked on Heaven's Door".

Tianmen Mountain Temple: CNY 25 p.p. extraTianmen Mountain Temple, on 5 acres of land, and featured by the overhanging eaves, is the western Hunan regional Buddhism centre. It started building in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and rebuilt in 2002. The temple enshrines one of the five relics of Sakyamuni Buddha in China. From the square in front of the temple, you get a panoramic view of the mountain. Glass SkywalkThe glass skywalk marks the Tianmen Mountain tour climax. It is most fitting for the adventurous. On sunny days, the blue sky and white clouds accompany your walk. You will be both pleased and shocked by the sensation of walking on the clouds and the drop into the void below your feet. On cloudy days, the view of the glass corridor itself is a sensation. Now there are three glass skywalks in the east, west and Panlong Cliff respectively. 

Recommended Touring Routes: LINE A lt. CHRIS TANLINE A: Take the cable car from the downtown City Garden to the summit → enjoy the sky garden on the peak →take the escalator down to the Tianmen Cave → after exploring Tianmen Cave, get down to the entrance gate by sightseeing bus → change to a shuttle bus for downtownLINE B: Take the shuttle bus from City Garden to the entrance gate → reach the Tianmen Cave by sightseeing bus → after sightseeing, take the escalator up to the summit → tour the sky garden on the peak → take the cable car back to the City Garden

The Smartest Travel Route: überlicher Weg (Line A)The itinerary usually goes this way:

Cable car up to a lesser peak (about 30 minutes). Walk around the cliff-hanging walkways (about 1½ hours). Take a chairlift to the summit (about 20 minutes wait and 20 minutes chairlift ride). Explore the summit, climbing to the top of a tower for a photo or bird's-eye view of the mountains. Take an elevator to the cable car station, and take the cable car back to the mid cable car station, where you can take a tourist bus to the cave. Climb to Tianmen Cave for about 25 minutes, and then take the bus back. Take the cable car at the mid cable car station down the mountain.

You can choose from A line, B line or C line. There is no English translation written on the window and they often get frustrated having to get the one book written in English so I’ll explain the difference here:A Line – heading up to the mountain in the cablecar and then returning on the 99 Hair pins in a busB line – heading up to the mountain via the bus and returning in the cablecarC line – you can head up and down the mountain the same way but you’ll have to confirm whether you want to take the bus or the cablecar

How to Get to Tianmen MountainTake bus 1A, 1B, 10A, or 13 and get off at Tianmen Mountain Cable Car Company Station. Then walk 240

yards (220 meters) to take the cable car or shuttle bus to the scenic area. Take bus 4 and get off at Tianmen Mountain Cable Car Station. Then take the cable car or shuttle bus to the

scenic area. Take bus 5, 6, 8 and get off at Flower of the Peace International Hotel Station. Then walk 400 yards

(360 meters) to the downward cableway station.

By TaxiCNY 10 from downtown area to the City Garden cableway station, and CNY 30 when coming from the airport.

Admission Ticket 

CNY 258, including scenic spot ticket CNY 75 + traffic fare within scenic area CNY 183The transport includes single-way cableway, shuttle bus, and the upper escalator between Tiammen Cave and the mountaintop.Note: Free for children measuring below 4.2 feet (1.3 meters) and under 6 years old.CNY 148 for tourists between 6 and 18 years old.

Surcharge inside the Scenic Spot 

Peak forest cableway on the mountaintop: CNY 25 for single-wayLower escalator to Tianmen cave: CNY 32 for single-way

A pair of shoe covers for glass skywalk is CNY 5.Opening Hours 08:00-17:00, Ticketverkauf bis 16:30 bzw. 16 Uhr (off-peak)

The Newest Skywalk Coiled Dragon Cliff: kann man auslassen, nicht extra anstellenThe third glass skywalk in Tianmen Mountain Scenic Area 'Coiled Dragon Cliff Glass Walkway' (盘龙崖玻璃栈道) opened to the public on August 1st, 2016. It offers a new way to enjoy the stunning mountainous landscapes — though you might be too terrified to appreciate the views! Location: above the 99 Bends, about 600m from the top of the cableway Altitude: over 1,400 meters (4,600 feet) Dimensions: 100 meters (328 feet) long, 1.6 meter (5 feet) wide Stand on the crystal clear walkway, you can see all the way down to the bottom of the cliff and Tongtian Avenue (Heaven-Linking Avenue), which is the road up the mountain featuring a staggering 99 turns (see below).

The Famous Original Skywalk — The Walk of Faith: machen!The first glass skywalk on Tianmen Mountain called "the Walk of Faith" opened in November 2011. (A less-known glass skywalk on the east side opened in April, 2015.) Location: part of the cliff-hanging walkway by Ghost-Valley Cave (鬼谷洞), only about 200m from the top of the cableway Altitude: over 1,400 meters (4,600 feet)

Dimensions: 60 meters (197 feet) long, 1.6 meters (5 feet) wide. It gives a thrilling feeling like walking in the sky. It is definitely not suitable for the faint-hearted. It is interesting to see people (scared of the height) leaning against the cliff as they cross it. On foggy days, it is easier to walk across as you can see nothing below, however the thrilling feature of the walkways is lost. If it rains the day before, there is usually heavy fog at the mountain top. You are advised to check the weather forecast before going to get the best experience. Our travel advisors can also give you some useful suggestions. The glass walkways close when they are covered by ice and snow in winter.

Open Chairlift for Two Persons: nur wenn Zeit und gutes Wetter, nicht extra anstellenThe open chairlift is at the end of the hanging bridge. Two persons share a chair. It goes up to the summit of the mountain, where there is a tower. At the top of the tower, travelers can get an eye’s-bird views of the surrounding mountains. The chairlift takes about 20 minutes over densely forested peaks. There is usually another wait for the chairlift. Its cost is not included in the entrance ticket. It is normal to wait another 30 minutes. To the left of the chairlift station, there is a temple.

Ghost Path or Guigu Plank Road: machen!Guigu Plank Road is embedded in the vertical mountain cliff and hangs above the Ghost Cave, hence its name. The length of the path is 1600m (5249 feet) with an average elevation of 1400m (4593 feet). Part of the plank road, there is a 60-meter-long (197 feet), 1.6-meter-wide (5.2 feet) glass skywalk with a glass-bottom viewing platform for the intrepid travelers to try.  The path starts from Yihong Pass and ends at small Tianmen Gate. The path is different with others as it is located neither on the top of the cliff, nor at the side of the cliff, but in the middle of bottomless cliff, giving tourists a feeling of excitement and surprise. Standing on the Ghost Path to overlook the mountains, you will get a bird's-eye view of the Tianmen Mountain. As Tianmen Mountain is a national forest park, it has a variety of plants, adding its typical Karst landform, you will feel as if you are flying across tropical rain forest valley in a helicopter, just like the movie scene. Influenced by the elevation and airflow, birds can’t reach the parallel positions of the path. Hence, standing here, the cliff s away at our feet and we can see borderless green field and playful birds and eagles flying in the valley. Closing you eyes with heart’s beating and opened arms, you will experience a most wonderful and exciting ‘natural SPA’. If it is before or after raining, the path will be full of mist and cloud, just like walking in a fairyland. There is a suspension bridge between two cliffs in the end of the path which has a length of 160 meters. Also, there is a glass platform on the highest point of the path, where if you dare to draw yourself up and stretch your arms, you will be a real warrior. Tianmen Mountain Tunnel Elevator: machen!The first mountain tunnel elevator in the world, Tianmen Mountain Tunnel Elevator was officially opened to the public on April 25, 2015. The total height is 897 meters (2943 feet), with a lifting height of 340 meters (1115 feet). The one-way maximum capacity is 3600 persons per hour. Thanks for the elevator, visitors now can go from the Tianmen Cave to the top of Tianmen Mountain, and have a stunning panoramic view of the mountains. 

Reviews:The glass Sky walk was a great experience much better than the Glass Bridge. You need an early start to take in as much as possible. The sunset is worth seeing from the Mountain.

Taking the long and high cable car up to the top of the mountain, walking on the glass "cliff-hanging" path, riding the crazily fast shuttle on the 99 hair-pin turns road downhill, and the taking the longest escalators made this an amazingly memorable trip up on Tianmen Mountain. It was exciting, beautiful, and eye-opening fun-filled day.

The shuttle bus ride up the long and winding road was thrilling in itself, especially with my front seat vantage point. Careening around corners with sheer cliffs and the only obstacle between the bus and death being some ineffectual concrete blocks, it was a scary drive. The bus eventually stops at the base of the staircase to the hole. I could see the staircase but nothing beyond that. From here it’s escalator time. Not one or two but many, taking you higher and higher and colder and colder. You don’t realise how high you’re going till you exit the internal tunnels. To my surprise, we had actually risen above the clouds. So the sun was out up here with mountain peaks poking above the mist to form the sea of clouds that seem to a big thing here. It was impressive enough – appearing as islands in an ocean of white. There are glass walkways up here. The one I strode along was fairly short and was OK without being amazing – the mist below lessened the effect. There are many walkways up here on the mountain top. From here you can take a cable car all the way back into the town. It’s a long ride and it’s worth the cost.

Talking about the glass path, it was rather disappointing. At least the Glass Bridge at the Grand Canyon was longer and bigger. The first section is paid for and it is extremely short. Like less than 20 steps? All the videos you saw online are fake. There are people pretending to be scared and all, but no one is really scared from what I saw. At least not as extreme as the videos.

The steps towards the Heavenly Cave/ Gate is extremely narrow. You may slip and fall tumbling down on a rainy day if you are not careful. Salute to those who attempted to ascend instead. We took elevator down and stopped at the cave and descended

as we didn't have time. It will probably take us twice or thrice as long to ascend. You can take the escalator up or down full or mid way. The cable car ride has 2 stops

The glass bridges here is much more scenic, authentic and 'the real deal' compared to the Glass Bridge / Great Canyon area one. If you have time, do explore the highest point at this area, it looekd really good!

I think you could skip the 'longest escalator down' ride. Taking the walk down is a way better experience, IMO.

Unfortunately the tickets to go up the cable car (and come back down by bus) were pretty much sold out so we got tickets to go up by bus and come down by cable car (the less popular way around). The tickets are timed and you have to go up within an hour's window of the time that you book. This worked out well and we didn't have to worry about queues, but we did have to walk up the 999 steps to the cave (although you can cheat and pay to take an escalator up instead, we couldn't find it in the fog so just walked up). Unfortunately it was really cloudy and we couldn't see where we were climbing up to until we got there!

There are 3 ticket options: cable car up, bus down; bus up, cable car down or bus both ways. We chose cable car up and I would recommend this if, like us, you travel when the weather is really hot. If you take the bus up, you will also have to walk up the steep ‘stairway to heaven’ steps, instead of descending them at the end like we did.

There are restaurants and toilets on top of the mountain, all well maintained. The paths are kept very clean. You can take a chairlift higher up the mountain which is really nice.

Before get to the glass bridge you will find the the escalator way to Tienmen, but I suggest you to finish the glass bridge before get down to Tienmen so you don't waste your time up and down. Because that is the longest escalator in the world. You will be amassed by the deep of the escalators. The bridge is the must try don't miss out.

You can buy a ticket for the bus (B) or the cable car (A) which isn't different in the end because the walk is clockwise or anti clockwise and you do both. We chose A because we didn't feel like climbing the 999 stairs to heavens door, and only had to walk it down.

CHRIS TAN: WECHAT KONTAKT

Nach Tianmen Mountain: Gepäck am Bahnhof lagern

2 ZHANGJIAJIE NATIONAL FOREST PARK

Wulingyan Entrancewenn Zeit vor Nationalpark: Stadtspaziergang Xibu Street

Xibu Street is about 1.5 km from the bus station, so I suggest that you take a taxi. The street is between Wuling Road and Chaoyang Road. Auch möglich: Xiangxi Charming Theatre

Xibu Street is located in Wulingyuan District of Zhangjiajie and is opposite the District government on Wuling Road. It is north of Wuling Avenue, south of Suoxi River, east of Zhangjiajie Grand Theatre and west of Baofeng Bridge. The project covers an estimated area of 100 acres and the total construction area of about 70,000 square meters. It is the famous Chinese snack street, Xiangxi Folk Shopping Street and creative workshops. 

Kauf Ticket, Shuttle Bus Tianzi Mountain, Cable Car up to Tianzi Mountain (vor 17 Uhr)Check Abholung / Location mit Xiangyuan Inn

Übernachtung: Xiangyuan Inn 天子山湘缘客栈, CNY 268, Abendessen/Frühstück gegen Gebühr +86 133 4964 7978

This Hotel is really very close to one viewing platform, inner buses stop. The shortest way to get this hotel is catch the local bus from Zhangjiajie city bus station to Tianzishan town (11 rmb), enter the park from Tianzi enterance, catch the inner park bus to 3 crossroads, change the bus to the direction of Helong park, but you should go out before Shentang Gulf. There is a photo of busstop in hotel description. Then go down the road about 600 meters and you are in Xiangyuan Inn! This place is really convenient! Really nice pair of linked wooden rooms with shared bathroom. There is good bathroom with hot shower, clean big bed, good tv and air conditioner. And all of these are in heart of the park! If we knew that such hotels exist in the park we could stay all our time inside the park! In the morning we woke up at 5 a.m. and walked about 6 minutes to viewing platform to see sunrise, but no every day you can see it, some days like our sunrise was in mist (haze) and we didn't see anything like the sun. Very cozy place, where you can feel like a home! This place is good for people who don't want to spend a lot of money for cableway, when you walk to Yanjiajie by foot or on inner park's buses you can come back to Tianzishan on external buses from Zhonghu village (near Yanjiajie entrance). Local bus ticket costs 4 rmb from Zhonghu village to Tianzishan town

This is exceptional place to stay! You will live with real Chinese family, wife makes very tasty food for breakfast and supper (and it is cheaper, than in places around bus stations). The first day husband drives us to all nearest points, that are usually missed by travelers, but they are worth to see. Last day he took us to the nearest bus station, that was so good because we had bag packs. Moreover their place has really nice viewing platform with fascinating sunset. Oh, almost forgot - in the morning they took us to watch sunrise for free. I have to say, that this place is the best, if you want to stay on the mountain. Warm water is from tank, and heating is by air-conditioning - but this moments will not affect your joy of breathing mountain air and watching night sky full of stars.

They also showed us the best spots to take pictures and shared local snacks and wild fruits with us in the evening. Absolutely must check out their private viewpoint too!

They even have their own private viewpoint 100m away

TAG 19, 29.04 (SONNTAG):

ZHANGJIAJIE (sunrise 6:00, sunset 19:10)

DAY 2: Zhangjiajie National Forest ParkHotel fast direkt beim Parkeingang (ca. 5 Minuten zu Fuß)

ZHANGJIAJIE NATIONAL FOREST PARK:Eintritt: CNY 248 exkl. cable Cars, 7-18 Uhr, gleich bei Eröffnung dort seinThey take your fingerprint and register with your card. valid for 4 days.

Scenic Area Access and Prices There are three cableways inside Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, an elevator, and an electric cart (also called the mini train). The 248-yuan entry ticket doesn't include these.Yellow Stone Village Cableway: 65 yuan for a single trip, 118 yuan for a round trip, it saves 1½– 2 hours walking for a single trip

Tianzi Mountain Cableway: 67 yuan single trip, 104 yuan round trip, saving 2–3 hours walking one way Bailong Elevator: 72 yuan for a single trip, 112 yuan for a round trip, saving 1½–2 hours one way up to Yuanjiajie: always crowded — avoid if possible.   Yangjiajie Cable Car: 79 yuan for a single trip, quiet, up to Yangjiajie. Ten-Li Gallery Mini Train: 38 yuan for a single trip, 52 yuan for a round trip, we recommend the 1–1½-hour walk at the foot of Tianzi Mountain instead.

The Main Entrances to the Scenic Area Zhangjiajie National Forest Park has three main entrances, from which a 3-day through ticket is available, including all attractions inside. Zhangjiajie National Forest Park Gate: The first gate off the road from Zhangjiajie City to Suoxiyu Town, it is the southwest gate at Gold Whip Stream. Wulingyuan Gate: Most hotels are at Wulingyuan District's main town — Suoxiyu. Enter here for the Bailong Elevator and Tianzi Mountain Cable Way. Tianzi Mountain Gate: Little used.

Allgemeine Infos:Restaurants Food supplied in the national park is limited. You can find a few restaurants offering local flavors, a McDonald's, and a KFC, although there are often long queues. If you can eat at a restaurant close to the attraction you are visiting, you won’t need to waste time in walking. – angeblich aber viel „street food“ am Weg. Local villages sell food like corn, fruit, and cucumber on the mountain, and there are small snack stalls selling water and snacks. Definitely bring some food and fruits with you..Toilets There are maintained squat toilets at every major sight, but you must bring your own toilet paper. Queues are quite common in the peak travel season from April to October.  Free Shuttle Bus There are free shuttle buses serving all the scenic areas except for Lao Wu Chang. It is confusing as the buses don’t have numbers or English signage. Some drivers are helpful, but some may turn a deaf ear when be asked for directions. The fighting for a seat is fierce. Shuttle buses that is on the ground level don't go up to the mountains, and likewise, the shuttle buses ferrying you on top

of the mountains don't go down to the mountains. most of the buses are ferrying you point to point. So, it means, you will have to change buses at certain spots to go to where you want. Queues Queues are normal in the forest park, so please be patient. Bailong Elevator is the worst place (waiting time: 1–2 hours, sometimes even 4 hours!). Avoid lines by hiking 1–1½ hours, or arrive before 7am and descend before 4 pm. Tianzi Mountain Cable Car (waiting time: 1–1½ hours or longer) can be avoided by walking up about 9,000 steps (2–3 hours). Alternatively get to the cableway before 7 am for a shorter queue, and descending before 4 pm you may avoid a line altogether.

How to Get from Downtown Zhangjiajie to Zhangjiajie Scenic Area Zhangjiajie National Forest Park is about 30 km (18 mi) from central Zhangjiajie. The best way to go from the city to Zhangjiajie Scenic Area (Wulingyuan or Zhangjiajie Glass Bridge) is by taking a local bus. There is no direct bus from the airport/train station to Zhangjiajie Scenic Area, so you need to go to Zhangjiajie City Bus Station (张家界市中心汽车站) first. Zhangjiajie Central Bus Station, also known as Zhangjiajie Central Long Distance Bus Station, Zhangjiajie Center Bus Station, Zhangjiajie City Bus Station, locates 200 meters northwest to Zhangjiajie Railway Station, so it's very easy for you to find it if you happen to arrive Zhangjiajie by the train.From Zhangjiajie Train Station: Turn left and walk 150 meters for Zhangjiajie City Bus Station. At Zhangjiajie City Bus Station, buy a ticket to Zhangjiajie Scenic Area. The journey is about 40 min and costs 12 yuan.

SCENIC AREAS:1.Yuanjiajie Scenic Area 袁家界Visiting time: 2½ hours Fitness needed: Moderate Yuanjiajie ('Yuan Family Territory' 袁家界) contains "Avatar Hallelujah Mountain". Named in 2010, it is now the most popular sight in Zhangjiajie. It is usually crowded, especially during peak travel season (July, August, May 1–3, and October 1–7), when you may find it hard to find a place free of people for photos. Yuanjiajie is a butte (steep-sided platform mountain), surrounded by higher peaks, grotesque rock pillars and deep valleys. The highlights of Yuanjiajie include: the First Bridge under Heaven, Avatar Hallelujah Mountain, and 'Lost Souls Platform'. The First Bridge under Heaven （天下第一桥） You can cross this bridge and walk around a circle path to get some fantastic views to the valley. This bridge and the views means there are always crowds in this section, but our guide will select a time of day when people are leaving or moved to other sections; but in summer it is still quite busy. Avatar's "Hallelujah Mountain" / Heavenly PillarHallelujah Mountain, named after the floating outcrops of Pandora, as its middle is often lost in cloud Near to The First Bridge of the world you will soon come to a metal suspension bridge, giving you a view down to Heavenly Pillar, called Avatar Hallelujah Mountain since the movie, and the top section features in some posters. Lost Souls Platform (Mihun Tai) About 800 meters into Yuanjiajie there is a trail zigzagging its way southward up to the top of Wuyanding Platform, which provides panoramic views of 'Lost Souls Platform' (Mihun Tai 迷魂台).  You can see many mesas of various shapes and sizes that may be partly hidden in wispy clouds, especially after rain, just like you are standing in a celestial wonderland. Visitors fascinated by the beautiful and mysterious scenery there are said to have forgotten the way back. That's why it got the name 'Lost Souls Platform'. Hundred Dragon Elevator / Bailong Elevator 白龙天梯Hundred Dragon Elevator (Bailong Elevator) is a non-recommended way to the heights of Yuanjiajie, due to typical 2-hour lines for the 2-minute ride. 335 meters in height, it consists of the machinery inside the mountain and three glass elevator cars clinging to the mountainside. Running side-by-side, they give passengers a view of Spirit Soldiers’ Gathering.

Main attraction spots include: Back Garden, breath taking Mihun Stage, the First Bridge under the Sun and Avatar Hallelujah Mountain (previously called Southern Sky Column). The director and production designers of Avatar were inspired by the photos of Southern Sky Column and then designed Na’vi people’s home Hallelujah Mountain in the film. In January of 2010, the Southern Sky Column was renamed to its current name.

Standing on the observation platform in Yuanjiajie, thousands of peaks can be caught at the same time. Peaks in various postures just look like countless brave men. Rock pillars with green trees just look like handsome generals. They describe a scene of army. Although these peaks are solid, they let people enter into a imaginary world and present a lively picture in the front of our eyes.

Only two ways lead to the Yuanjiajie Scenic Area. One is from the Golden Whip Stream via Luanchuanpo to the Back Garden; the other is the Bailong Elevator. By this super elevator, tourists can ascend on the top of a peak to get a commanding view of its famous scene - Shenbingjuhui (lit. God's Force Rally), the scene is also nicknamed the Fields and Gardens of the Heaven for its beautiful trees, ethnic houses and paddy fields on the high mountains.

【Hanging Waterfall】There is a waterfall flowing from a 200 height. It looks like a white silk that hanging from the sky. During the rainy days, people can see the rainbow across this waterfall. And during the flood season, it looks like a dragon flying in the sky.

【Imperial Garden】Imperial garden refers to the garden belonging to the Chinese emperor. In Yuanjiajie, people will find another imperial garden belonging to the God. When people find a giant rock which may block the way, just turn around it, and there is a marvelous scene behind it. About ten peaks are standing straightly, while green rivers are surrounding them.

【Fairyland Palace】Fairyland Palace is "built" according to the geography of the mountain. Surrounded by mist, this palace is a rocky courtyard.

【Wulong Spring】Wulong Spring is hidden in a cave. When entering the cave, the clean spring is presented to you. The karst stones which look like fish, tortoises, dragons, horses, etc are spreading in the bottle of the spring.

Avatar Hallelujah Floating MountainThe famous Avatar Hallelujah mountain was originally named the South Celestial Pillar or Qiankun Column. It is located on the Huangshi Villiage sightseeing route, inside the Yuanjiajie Scenic Area, north of Zhangjiajie National Forest Park.There are hundreds of quartz-sandstone pillars standing solemnly and beautifully. Going through the South Gate, visitors will find the South Celestial Pillar, a stone peak, soaring from the unfathomable valley, and ‘floating’ on air. It was formed by rock weathering, after being cracked, and eroded. For millions of years, these isolated pillars stand still and are often shrouded in cloud and mist, creating a fairy world. The unknown fairy world attracted Hollywood photographer Hansen who had a four-day location filming in Zhangjiajie. A large number of Zhangjiajie National Park images later became the prototypes of the various elements of ‘Pandora’ in the American sci-fi blockbuster "Avatar". Among them, the image of ‘the South Celestial Pillar’ becomes the prototype of the ‘Hallelujah Mountain’. Since then, it was changed its name to ‘Avatar Hallelujah Mountain’. 

Avatar Hallelujah Floating Mountain

2.Tianzi Mountain Scenic Area 天子山 'Heaven Son Mountain'Time needed: 2 hours Fitness needed: moderate The reason Tianzi Mountain takes the spotlight is this area is its height. At 1,182 meters (3,878 feet), it offers the best chance of photographing the sea of clouds, mainly during the spring and early autumn. There is a cable car up to this area and it is popular with photographers. Tianzi Mountain is sometimes translated as “Emperor Mountain”. Emperors were thought to be descendants of heaven, and the peaks, like floating islands in swirling mists, are the traditional image of heavenly realms.

Nod-to-the-General Platform ‘Nod-to-the-General Platform’ (Dian Jiang Tai 点将台) is in a gorge full of curling clouds, where there are many tall rock pillars of different shapes. The tallest one, sitting in the middle, is called the "emperor".  In front of it is the "herald" who is reading an imperial edict to the "soldiers". The two "prime ministers" are "bending down" and stand on the left and right. It is said that the emperor of Xiang once reviewed his troops there. Yubi Feng By a modern building in the style of a pagoda, this view is what some Western photographers have called “The Emperor’s Pens”. They feature on some of China’s stamps, as they resemble calligraphy pens. Ten-Mile Gallery This is a place with a cute ground level monorail train that winds its way up 5km valley to a stream, with 3 finger like mountains towering over it. Once you arrive (by train or foot) just head up right, and you can hike all the way up to Tianzi Mountain; not recommended in summer! If the river has water flower it could be a lovely photo, but unless that river has water I would recommend skipping this small up and down valley.How to get to Tianzi Mountain Nature ReserveZhangjiajie Central Bus Station (to the northwest of Zhangjiajie Railway Station) has regular tourist buses to Tianzi Mountain and the bus journey takes about 80-90 minutes. Then take battery car inside the scenic area.

Entrance Fee

March to November: CNY 245 for adults and CNY 160 for children between 1.3 - 1.5 meters (4.3 - 4.9 feet)1. With the validity of three consecutive days from March to November and four consecutive days from December to next February, the admission fee includes Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, Tianzi Mountain Nature Reserve, Suoxi Valley Nature Reserve, Yangjiajie Scenic Area and the battery car.2. Tourists can pay CNY 3 to buy the insurance.

Cable Car (Single-trip)

CNY 72;CNY 43 for children between 1.3 - 1.5m;Free for children under 1.3m.

Opening Hours 7:00 - 18:00

Cable Car in Tianzi Mountain Scenic AreaVisitors can take a cable car to see these charming peaks. With 692 meters' (about 2,270 feet) difference in elevation, the aerial tramway is 2,084 meters (about 2,279 yards) in length. The minimum running time is six minutes and twenty-two seconds for a single trip during which visitors can keep the wonderful scenery of the Tianzi Mountain in view.

The cable car ride is well worth it and the walk is up never ending steps and paths and takes around 2.5 hours.

3.Yangjiajie Scenic Area 杨家界Time needed: 3 hours Fitness needed: serious hill-climbing fitness Yangjiajie ('Yang Family Territory' 杨家界) is a newly developed area of the park. It is the least-crowded area, with spectacular scenery, and challenging hiking.

Yangjiajie Scenic Area involves a lot of hard and steep climbing — about 2 hours up. The steepest path is made up of slippery stone steps, going up at 70 degrees, and only allowing people to pass sideways. The toilets in Yangjiajie are very natural — a hole in the ground with squat boards in a small hut. The Natural Great Wall

The highlight of Yangjiajie Scenic Area is its ‘Natural Great Wall’, towering walls of rock snake through the landscape like the Great Wall of China, quite different to the pillars in the rest of the national park. Tianbo House Tianbo House is at the top of the mountain above Oolong Village (乌龙寨). The ten high, parallel, stone walls of General Yang’s family house look magnificent At Yang Jia Jie, there is a part where there are metal railings for you to climb to 'Tianbo Mansion', I think that was a fantastic experience.

Yangjiajie consists of three parts: Xiangzhi stream, Longquan valley and Baihou valley, in which there are altogether over 200 scenic spots. At Xiangzhi stream, one sees undulating peaks extending into the distance and limpid brooks winding along the deep gullies, and hears birds and cicadas singing in the dusk along the ancient roads, it is a land of peace indeed!

And finally after a 30 mins exhausting hike from the cable car station, we arrived at the peak, this little place called Tianbo Mansion 天波村 (Tianbo Fu). The view from up here is spectacular and its definitely worth every efforts to come up here. Personally, this is my favourite part of Zhangjiajie ........

【Five-color Flower in Liucui Stream】Have you ever seen a five-color flower? You can find this kind of plant in Yangjiajie Scenic Area. According to some researches, the five-color flower can be seen in the upper reach of Liucui Strem.【King of Vine in Old Vine Bay】There is a spot called "old vine bay" in Yangjiajie. It is a kingdom of old vines. And there is a king of vine here which is called "the largest vine in China"!【Cliff Pine Tree】It is a strange scene that three pine trees are living in a cliff without soil and water. People would like called this scene as "pine trees bit cliff". 【Dragon Spring Waterfall】Dragon Spring Waterfall looks like a hanging waterfall falling down from the heaven. No matter how hot you are, you will immediately feel cooler when you are standing in front of the waterfall. When you feel a little cold, you can walk into the pool of this waterfall. Since that, you will feel a warm breeze.【White Crane Lawn】White Crane Lawn is a rest place for white cranes, thus it gets the name. If you have a chance to appreciate white cranes here, you will find a life of Shangri-la. The best time to enjoy scene in White Crane Lawn are morning times and evening times. In the morning, white cranes will spread their wings and begin to fly with dulcet tweets. And in the evening, white cranes come back with the dusk scene as the background. They will play with each other for a period, and then, become quiet gradually in the night.

4.Old House Area / Laowu Chang 老屋场

Paddies in the sky / Spirit Soldier’s GatheringTime needed: 1½ hours Fitness needed: low to moderate, for the 30-minute walk on a dirt road ‘Old House Area’ (Laowu Chang 老屋场) is an undeveloped part of Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, between Yuanjiajie and Tianzi Mountain. It is best reached by local hired van from Yuanjiaje, as it is well off the ordinary travel route. The scenery in the area is incredibly beautiful and overwhelming. Sun rise in Laowuchang is considered by photographers to be the must-shoot scene in Zhangjiajie. Paddies in the Sky 'Sky Field Garden' (Kongzhong Tianyuan 空中田园) is a small area of paddy fields, seemingly hanging on an outcrop surrounded by Zhangjiajie’s typical peaks. The paddy fields are farmed by local ethnic people. Spirit Soldiers' Gathering Spirit Soldiers' Gathering Walking down from Kongzhong Tianyuan, you will find 'Spirit Soldiers' Gathering' (Shenbing Juhui 神兵聚会), opposite Bailong Elevator. There are 48 rocky towers like soldiers standing in the formation. It’s a unique sight in the area; and if you’re a photographer it brings a diversity to your Zhangjiajie photos. The walk down to a nearer viewing point offers some nice shots of the valley formations, and in summer there is fairly good tree cover.

There is no tourism bus you can take to arrive Old House Area, you can hire a private car in Dingxiangrong Downtown, the cost is about 100RMB/PAX. Have a short walk to photo 'Spirit Soldiers Meeting' and 'Sky Field Garden'. 'Sky Field Garden' is a rice paddy area, farmed by local people and hanging on an outcrop, surrounded by Zhangjiajie's classic towers. What's more, you will have a panoramic view of Bailong Elevator at 'Spirit Soldiers Meeting' platform.Auch sehr schön: Place of Singing in Antiphonal Style

The Grand Sightseeing Platform(Sunrise)The Grand Sightseeing Platform is near to Dingxiangrong Downtown, which is one of the best places to enjoy the sunrise in the park. There are a lot of hostels in Dingxiangrong Downtown, it only takes you 10 minutes to reach The Grand Sightseeing Platform from this small downtown. The best season to enjoy sunrise is summer.

If you point on the map where you want to go to the driver he will stop for you provided its not out of the way. There are many hostels at bus stop located roughly halfway between Yangjiajie and Tianzi. You cannot see them at first, you’ll need to walk along the road leading off

to the left of the bus route. This road also leads to a much quieter scenic spot called ‘Old House Area’ (Laowu Chang 老屋场) which is absolutely spectacular if you have the chance to go.

On our second day we woke early again as the morning there in May are very cloudy and misty, giving the mountains a very enchanting aroma. We were exploring the area on the hunt for some breakfast and found ourselves on the path to Laowu Chang 老屋场 scenic spot. The walk there took about an hour and a half, though you can rent a taxi to drive you. I would advise you to walk there, as most of it is downhill and you see lots of bewitching scenery en route. If you’re tired after the hike there, then take a taxi back, as its a constant incline!

The landscape here is mesmerising. You are immersed into a meadow of limestone pillars- a true fairy tale land. The lack of other tourists here enhanced the tranquility that nature provides, allowing you to fully appreciate its beauty without being hit on the head by someones selfie stick! After an hour and a half hike back towards our hostel we caught the free shuttle bus to Yuangjiajie, the most prestigious scenic area in the park. Here you can find the Hallelujah mountains that famously inspired the the floating mountains in Pandora in the film Avatar- and boy, are they marketing it on that! You can even pose on the mountain banshees called the Ikran that they fly on in the film! However due to this it ultimately means this area is one of the busiest.

Where to stay: Dingxiangrong Downtown and Tianzi Mountain Village.How to Go:You can go to The Grand Sightseeing Platform to watch sunrise on foot if you stay in Dingxiangrong Downtown, it only takes you 15 minutes; You have to hire a private bus to Laowuchang, 30 minutes bus riding, around 200RMB for the whole trip.

After a simple Chinese lunch, we took a public bus for 20 minutes to Sanchaku station, then rented a car for the 15-minute drive to Laowuchang. We discovered that this area was not officially open to the public, and we were excited that we had found somewhere that was almost “tourist-free”. We walked down 200 steps to the “Soldiers Gathering Stage” and “Terrace Field in the Air” viewpoints, which were completely deserted apart from a few vendors. The scenery here was jaw dropping and we stood in silence for 15 minutes, marvelling over the views.

Two hours later, we drove our private car back to Sanchakou station, took a public bus back to Yangjiajie station and rode the cable car back down the mountain. We then hopped on another public bus for six minutes, walked back down the 500 steps, rode another public bus for three minutes to Dayangba station, walked 15 minutes then finally rode our own private bus for 40 minutes to our hotel in Wilingyuan. The logistics are enough to make anyone’s head spin, but with a knowledgeable guide we felt at ease. I later discovered that we had walked eight miles and scaled 260 flights of stairs that day!

Start by getting to the Grand Sightseeing Platform.You will get there with a bus and then follow the side road with asphalt for 5 minutes.4. THE GRAND SIGHTSEEING PLATFORM AS THE ACCESS DOOR TO OTHER ATTRACTIONSThe platform is a really small 3×3 square meters terrace on a turn on the main road. Here you will have a clear and amazing view of all the pinnacles in the area and it is the access door to other attractions. On the right from the terrace, the road goes down towards a bus deposit. This is for your reference only as you will go left from the terrace, there you will see an area with probably some Chinese vendors and stairs going down. Follow that path until the end of the stairs, you will end up in an area with a pagoda on your left.4A. LEFT FOR 1 DANGEROUS STEP AND COCK PECKINGFrom there you have 2 options: go left towards 1 Dangerous Step and Cock Pecking, 5 minutes walk with amazing sceneries, or go right towards the Emperor’s throne (a longer walk that follows the path also beyond the Emperor’s throne). Avoid the path through the Pagoda as it is a 15 miles path that will lead you towards Xiangdaloukou bus station on the way to the Helong park gate – yeah we walked a good 5 miles there…

5.Golden Whip Stream 金鞭溪Visiting time: 2 hours Fitness needed: low to moderate (easy and relaxing walk) Gold Whip Stream (Jinbian Xi 金鞭溪) is a brook at the foot of the mountain. It is about 7½ km (4½ miles) long, about two hours’ walk. It is an easy and relaxing walk along the stream, even if there are noisy Chinese groups. There is not much to do. It your time is limited, we suggest you skip this. Gold Whip Cliff, a 400-meter-high cliff by Gold Whip Stream, is grand, towering, and angular. It was once the most famous attraction in Wulingyuan Scenic Area.  Patterns are all over the cliff, like the joints on a huge whip. At sunset the cliff looks like a huge golden whip stuck in the earth. "Gold Whip at Sunset" is a famous Zhangjiajie image.

6.Yellow Stone Village / Huangshi Zhai 黄石寨'Yellow Stone Village' (Huangshi Zhai 黄石寨) is 2 km north of Gold Whip Stream. This large mountain village is another essential tourist sight. The main attractions include the Trail in Fir Woods, Imperial Edict and the Precious Box, Needle Peak, the Southern Gate to Heaven, and Five-Finger Peak.

Huangshi Village is one of the top 5 highlight travel itineraries of China. It is said that during the Han Dunasty, Zhang Liang (a politician) quitted from the political field and started his round tour. When he came to this area, he was blocked by officials. And finally, his teacher named Huang Shi Gong helped him to ran away. From then on, this place was called Huangshi Village. Huangshi Fort, named after a hermit Huangshi, is 1080m above sea level. It is higher on the south and elevated by stiff cliffs, covering an area of 16.5 hectors. It provides the largest collection of marvelous spectacles and also provides the larges sightseeing terrace above sea level in Zhangjiajie. The chief scenic spots include Treasure Box of Heavenly Books, the Magic Sea-suppressing Needle, the South Pillar of Heaven, the Golden Tortoise Watching the Sea and so on.

The Yellow Stone Village ( Huangshizhai) lies in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park(Zhangjiajie park).With unique and hight cliffs, It is one of the five classic tour routes for travelers in Zhangjiajie. A popular saying is “It is just waste your time if you do not visit Yellow Stone Village when you are in Zhangjiajie”. Yellow Stone Village is the earliest developed spot in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. It is approximately 800 meters above the ground, and 1109 meters above sea level averagely. The village is characterized by the overhanging cliffs, high staking platforms, jagged rocks and elegant apexes. And it is reputed as the enlarged potted landscape landscape and miniature fairyland.

There are two routes on the top of yellow stone village, the first is the small circle, which only takes 5o mins, it can save you a lot of time and energy.However, 2 hours is needed when you choose the bigger one, what is more ,it is not as crowded as the smaller one.

It is very good for health to hike along the top of Yellow stone stronghold Village. The summits fresh air can not only invigorates your lungs but also rejuvenates your skin. Along the way, numerous fantastic scenes meet the hikers in quick succession: Six Wonders Pavilion, Star Gathering Stage, Five Fingers Peaks, Front Garden, Echo Wall, Heicongnao, Remaining Piers of the Heavenly Bridge, Clouds Drifting Cave, Golden Turtle n the Clouds Sea, to mention just a few.

There are two approaches to tour the place; one is cable way, people take 3 minutes free bus at Laomuwang to Lower Cable Station, then 5 minutes cable to the top of Yellow Stone Stronghold Village. And it will take us 2 hours to take every scenic spot to the top of Zhangjiajie park. The other way is hiking, hiking begins at Laomuwang from the front mountain, 3800 steps lead to the top, it will take 2 hours hiking, and 2 hours tour on the top. You can also take one way cable.There is a buffet restaurant on the top of Yellow Stone Village. 

. The major spots along the stream include:A : Star Gathering Stage--- This name is given by Zhang Jinfu, the former state councilor on November 28,1983. He recited a poem casually:" Hundreds of peaks compete their beauties with each other and thousands of trees are luxuriantly green, all kinds of beauties are in sight, and it is difficult to speak them out one by one. It is not in the heaven, but more beautiful than the other scenic spots in the world, it is worthy of the above words to comment the landscape here." as the ancient poem goes like:" The imposing tower is so high that you can almost gather the stars on the sky. we dare not speak loud, for fear of disturbing the immortals."what a romantic place.

B: Front Garden---It is in this huge wide valley, countless stone peaks and columns gather together, competing with each other for the attention, and present us a massive"peak forest". All of these varied peaks have their own unique appearance: some resemble human beings, some animals, some swords, some spears, some vases, still others look like towers,and on and on it goes.the range winds consistently up and down all the way. And for some parts, many peaks rise from the ground and penetrate to the sky. these jagged rocks and grotesque boulders seem to be holding a magnificent party. Former Premier Zhu Rongji, after his visit here, expressed his wonder and astonishment in a poem:" There must be immortals inhabting the summits of Zhangjiajie." Is there a celestial being in the world? If it was, it must be us.

C: Remaining Piers of the Heavenly Bridge-- "Who can say heaven posseses the best scenery? Natural scenery of this area is even more fascinating" Between huangshi fort and its counter-part, Yuanjiajie, lies a wide canyon. A multitude of strangely

shaped sanstone peaks form a veritable sea. when the gentle breezes blow, we can even taste the flavor of the majestic mountains. Within this sea of peaks, six massive colunms stand in a line, rising about 200 meters high from the base of the canyon, the two in the middle are a little higher than their comrades, and when the sun bathes the landscape after a rain, occasionally a brilliant rainbow will span the sky connecting the peaks like a celestial bridge. such a "heavenly bridge" does not appear often, but the six peaks can always be viewed, so they are aptly named "the Remaining Piers of the Heavenly Bridge".

It provides the largest collection of marvelous spectacles and also provides the larges sightseeing terrace above sea level in Zhangjiajie. The chief scenic spots include Treasure Box of Heavenly Books, the Magic Sea-suppressing Needle, the South Pillar of Heaven, the Golden Tortoise Watching the Sea and so on.

【The Star-Catching Platform】On the eastern peak, there is a platform strengthening from the cliff. Platform Base which is 5 meters (16 feet) high with an area of 20 meters (24 square yards), and the other one is piling up on the base which is 10 meters (33 feet) high with a diameter of 5 meters (5.4 yards) on the top of the rock. 10 people can stand on the platform at the same time. When standing here, people will have a feeling in the sky. Looking around, wind rolls clouds. Looking down, river flows in forest, waterfall pours down to valleys.【Pillar in the South Sky】There is a 200-meter-high solitary peak in the southeastern valley. Bush on the top as the cap for it, bare rocks and stones, while trees cover the bottom. And because it is situated near the foot of South Sky Gate, thus it is called Pillar in the South Sky. This pillar is firmly standing on the ground and highly stretches to the he4ave.【Natural Wall Painting】Near the Peak of Huangshi Village, a natural wall painting can be seen when look back on the road. Washing marks on the cliff in the Yaozi Village form an unbelievable natural wall painting. Typical hanging buildings hide behind green trees. Children with battles walk along the route. Bridges across river, sunlight shines the ancient road. A poetic picture is represented for you.【Fir Trees Forest Route】After hundreds of stone steps from the front mountain in Huangshi Village, a large area of virgin forest with fir trees will be presented to visitors. Along the road, fir trees bring fresh air and breeze for people.【Immortal Turtle in the Mist】In the west part of Huangshi Village, there is an oval rock that is in the shape of a huge turtle, and it is abut 5 meters (5.4 yards) long, 2 meters (2.2 yards) wide and 2 meters (6.6 feet) high crouching on the top of the peak. The head of the turtle is bulging forward with the tail rising slightly and the claws twisting together, which seems to be creeping slowly when the weather is cloudy and misty, and it is very fascinating to watch the scenery in an aesthetic way, so the rock is called the Immortal Turtle in the Mist by the later generation.

What to See in Huangshi VillageTake the hiking trail to the top of the "Huangshi Village" or "Yellowstone Village", it takes about 1.5 hours of steep staircases, but on the way there are multiple viewing platforms where you can enjoy a well deserved pic-nic with view on the amazing avatar mountains and peaks and enjoy the silence and atmosphere of the park. Once you reach the top of the “Huangshi Village” area (which is not a village, it is a plateau), you will walk around the edges of the plateu looking down at the amazing avatar peaks and canyons of the park. Truly exceptional. The tour groups only go to the "Yuanjiajie" area, therefore the Huanghi Village area is very quiet and you can really enjoy the views, and atmosphere. The Yuanjiajie area is exactly opposite to Huangshi Village area, so you will enjoy very similar views without the crowds! After completing the tour of Huangshi plateau, take the cable car (5 minutes - 65 RMB) or walk (1 hour) down back to the Zhangjiajie entrance. From there, there are regular buses (10 RMB) that will take you back to Wulingyuan (last bus at 5pm).

Like Laowuchang, Huangshizhai also has some fantastic scenery and relatively few tourists compared to other areas.

At the top, I was pleasantly surprised to find fewer tourists here and a few flashes of blue sky made a welcomed contrast to yesterday’s overcast weather.   We walked around for a few hours, stopping at viewpoints that were dotted along the way. Nearly half the peaks of Zhangjiajie are visible here and we gazed over China’s subtropical forests before travelling back down by cable car and heading to Zhangjiajie city.

REVIEWS / POSSIBLE ITINERARIES:We started at Wulinyuan entrance and explored Tianzi mountain area first, after that we got on the bus and drove to Yuanjiajie zone. After that we walked downstairs to Golden Whip Stream.

Day 1: Wulingyuan (武陵源) -> Tianzishan (天子山) -> Yangjiajie (杨家界) -> Yuanjiajie (袁家界) -> Wulingyuan

07:10am - Headed to Wulingyuan entrance, purchase entrance ticket (248 RMB, valid 4 days). My thumb print was scanned as I entered the gate. I took the free bus to Tianzishan cableway station. Purchased 1 way ticket (67 RMB), and took the cableway to the mountain top. Next took free bus and alighted immediately at next stop (i.e. Tianzishan stop).

08:10 to 09:30am – Explored Tianzishan. After Tianzishan, my next destination was Yangjiajie (杨家界) via the free bus. Must inform driver for me to get off at Yangjiajie.

10:30am to 1:00pm – Explored Yangjiajie. This area was peaceful as there wasn’t any big tourist groups here. I loved the tranquillity as I explored the many viewpoints and took many photos. If you are generally fit, I recommend to visit Tianbo

Mansion (天波府) and One Step to the Heaven (一步登天). Note that these 2 viewpoints are at different directions, i.e. Tianbo Mansion is towards north while One Step to the Heaven is towards south. Need to walk many steps uphill and downhill. Both viewpoints offered great sceneries. Also very peaceful as only a few tourists ventured that far.

After Yangjiajie, my final destination for the day was Yuanjiajie (袁家界). Again I took the free bus to last stop, First Bridge Under Heaven (天下第一桥).

1:30pm to 4:00pm – Explored Yangjiajie. As this is the most popular tourist attraction, expect crowd madness along this very

scenic cliff-side walk. Here one could find the famous Avatar Hallelujah Mountain (阿凡达-哈利路亚), First Bridge Under

Heaven (天下第一桥) and Enchanting Terrace (迷魂台). Recommend to explore slightly further to Back Garden (后花园), which was peaceful there.

4:30pm to 5:30pm - After Yangjiajie, I took the bus to Bailong Elevator (百龙天梯). Purchased the ticket (72 RMB), took the elevator down to valley and finally took the bus back to Wulingyuan entrance.

Day 2: Wulingyuan (武陵源) -> 10-mile Gallery (十里画廊) -> Golden Whip (金鞭溪) -> Huangshi Village (黄石寨) -> Wulingyuan

07:10am – Headed to Wulingyuan entrance, took the bus to Ten-mile Gallery (1 stop). Again must inform driver for me to get off at Ten-mile Gallery.

07:45am to 09:00am - As this is a touristy place, expects tourist groups to crowd around the entrance. Fortunately some groups took the tram to the other end, hence lessen the human traffic. Though the trail was only 5.8 km (and not 10 miles), the pathway was narrow, only 2 person can walk side by side. Imagine the frustration of having tourist groups in front of you, blocking the path to take selfies, the loud & noisy atmosphere. Only consolation was majority of tour groups would U-turn after the spot Herb Collecting Old Man (采药老人). At the other end of the trail, one had a good view of the famous Three Sisters. Generally, this place is not that interesting. Suggest to skip it and proceed straight to Golden Whip Brook.

09:30am to 12:00pm - After Ten-mile Gallery, I took a bus and alight at next stop Water Winding Four Gates (水绕四门). This is the starting point of the Golden Whip Brook (金鞭溪). Please see separate post on details of my hiking experience in Golden Whip Brook.

12:30 to 4:00pm - At the end of the hike, I proceeded to visit Huangshi Village (see separate post). This place is worth visiting – great views, no crowd.

4:00 to 5:00pm – After visiting Huangshi Village, I took the cableway down, exit at ZhangJiaJie West Entrance. From there, there were mini buses waiting to pick tourists back to Wulingyuan city (fare 10 RMB, journey around 40 mins).

Day 2: (8am – 5.30pm)2.1. Again start from your hotel at 8 am (or earlier), go to the Wulingyuan entrance and catch the free bus by the ticket office, this time to the "Tianzi Mountain" (10 minutes ride), but make sure to ask to stop at the beginning of the hiking trail, because the bus actually goes to the cable-cars otherwise.2.2. The hiking to the top of Tianzi mountain is by far the best experience in the park, there is literally no one on the trail, except few solitary hikers, giving you the feel of proper hiking in the nature! The hike is pretty steep and required about 2-3 hours (zu lang), but on the way you will be rewarded by wonderful silence, amazing views and a feel of nature like no-where else in the park.2.3. Unfortunately the magic ends once you reach the top, here the first tour groups will be awaiting, and you will find even a McDonalds. Nevertheless the views are really unique from here, and are definitely worth it! The best and most solitary viewing platform is the “War Taming Horses”, so quiet and beautiful, the perfect place to rest after the long climb to the top. Similar to the Huangshi Village, on the top of Tianzi Mountain you will walk around a circle going from one viewing platform to another, some being more crowded, some less, but definitely more crowded than Huanghi Village plateau.2.4. Take the bus from the Tianzi mountain bus stop to “Yuanjiajie” area. On the way you can stop at the “upper station of Yuanjiajie” where you can enjoy some nice views of terraced fields with the avatar mountains in the back.2.5. “Yuanjiajie” area: this is the actual place of the famous “hallelujiah mountain” and where allegedly scenes from the movie Avatar were shot. Here you have to set your expectations correctly, this place is not what you think a park atmosphere should be.. it is as crowded, loud and messy as Disney Land or a summer Theme Park (and in China...). The views are amazing, but honestly not worth the stress and the pure madness of the Chinese crowds. Maybe during the week, or in the winter months would be much better.2.7. To escape the Yuanjiajie delirium, walk the trail to the “back-garden”, a series of stunning viewing platforms completely untouched by tourists (about 20 minutes). At the end of the stop the buses on the way to the “Bailong elevator”, and descent to the valley (73 RMB), where you can take the free bus back to Wulingyuan.

Woke up at 6:30 and went out at 7 AM. The hotel was right next to the gate, so it took me only 5 minutes to reach the gate, bought a ticket (248 Yuan) and on my way to the national park.

I took a free bus that was outside the gate to the cable car area (first stop) and bought a one way cable car ticket (64 Yuan) up to Tianzi mountain walked around the area for several hours.

At 12, I took a bus to the hostel I planned to stay overnight on the mountain called Mango international hostel (100 Yuan per night), put all my things and went out to explore the upper area more (One Step to Heaven, Tianbo Mansion, No.1 Natural Bridge etc.)

Day 2: Walk of Zen, Descend the Mountain and explore the lower part. I slept at the hotel for a night, woke up at 9 and start my way down the Golden Whip Stream trail. You can opt out of

the walk and go with the Bailong elevator but I do not recommend this as you will miss a lot of beautiful scenic spots. The walk took me 3 hours, and as I planned to visit the 10 Miles Gallery on the other side of the national park, I realized

that the bus line doesn’t connect with each other. Turns out, If I want to see this I will have to walk back the same trail and go in the other direction to reach this scenic spot. I decided to drop this area and went for the HuangShiZhai mountain instead.

I took the cable car up, walked around the mountain for an hour (The Front Garden scenic spot here was breathtaking!) and headed down.

As I walked out the gate of the national park, I saw a bus stationed at the entrance. I asked the driver by pointing out where I need to go (ZhangJiaJie city where the airport resides), fortunately this bus will take me right where I wanted to go for 12 Yuan, which is way cheaper than taking a taxi.

45 minutes drive, and I arrived at the ZhangJiaJie railway station. I walked around a bit to observe the city and crashed at the hotel called Vide Hotel in front of the cable car station of the Tianmenshan mountain, where I will be heading next.

Day 1: (highlighted in Orange)we decided to take the Golden Whip Stream (金鞭溪). it is 7.5km board walk trail which will take you through rivers streams, fauna, and admiring the mountains FROM BELOW; you will raise your neck and look UP to the mountains. you will see monkeys and please don't feed them. they get aggressive. if you are thinking 7.5km will take you only 2 hours to finish, and what do you do for the rest of the day? fear not. the transportation itself will take you 10-15 mins one way, stopping by for lunch, stopping to admire, being lost. The park is huge huge huge.

Once you tapped your card, you will see lots of visitors. Walk a little more and be prepared to see lots of shuttle buses and not knowing where they go as, the signs are in mandarin. TO GET TO GOLDEN WHIP STREAM, take the bus that goes to (水绕四门). This bus will make 1 stop at the Ten Mile gallery. DO NOT GET OFF. STAY ON THE BUS, and hop off the next one. then you can start walking the trail.

at the end of the trail, it will take another 15-20 mins to walk to ZJJ entrance. THE TRICKY PART STARTS HERE. you will not see any buses... so you will have to continue walking. as you walk, KEEP A KEEN LOOKOUT on your left, a red sign with chinese words, with 2 pricings 10yuan and 12 yuan. it will not be very obvious, so you really need to pay attention. walk in, there will be buses going back to Wulingyuan OR ZJJ. this is the best way to go back home.

Day 2: highlighted in yellow - Recommened to take the cable car. our main purpose for the day was to see Tian Zi mountains, and the Avatar mountains. so we took the yellow path. Take a shuttle bus to the cable car. cable car will bring you to the top of TIAN ZI MOUNTAINS. the ride is MAGNIFICENT. it will ride through the stones, beautiful and suddenly, you feel like you are so small amongst. Once you reached the top, it will also be a shuttle bus ride down to avatar mountains. You will walk around the trails near avatar mountains - it is more like a loop, so which ever direction you choose, you will end up at the same destination - the BACK GARDEN. Back Garden trail will descend you to the bottom of the mountains, but it will take 2-3 hrs depending on your speed. it was nearing 4pm when we arrived, so we took the Bailong Elevator. this is a little disappointing.. it literally is like a shopping centre elevator.. lol. within 30seconds all is over. AFTER the elevator, you will Q to take a bus again.. if its evening time, BEWARE, you will have to queeue like 30 mins.. this bus should take you straight to Wulingyuan entrance..

REVIEW Huangshi Area:Awesome scenery & hikeThere are 2 options to the top:- At the Zhangjiajie entrance, take free bus then take cableway to the top- Walk up, via one end of the Golden Whip Stream (金鞭溪).

I actually came by the Golden Whip Stream. However, I decided to take the cableway up to save time & energy. From the end of Golden Whip Stream, I needed to walk a short distance, took a free bus to the cableway station and then bought a 2 way ticket, 118 RMB (1 way ticket 65 RMB). As I visited in end Sep, low peak season, hence it wasn’t crowded, just a few tourist groups were there. Up at the mountain top, I was glad that all the tourist groups took the bus to the YangJiaJie cableway station. Hence it was peaceful for my entire hike there.

At Huangshizhai, the scenery was awesome as I was actually viewing the Yuanjiajie (袁家界) area – beautiful cliffs, karsts etc. I saw a sign, translated as “If you didn’t visit Huangshizhai, you can’t claim you have come to Zhangjiajie”. I spent more than 3 hours walking a loop along the cliff-side, with lots of viewing platforms. Note that there were monkeys at certain areas, hence be wary as they may be aggressive and snatch your food.

REVIEW Tianzi Mountain:A short walk from the entrance is the Helong Park (贺龙公园). Nothing interesting, just a bronze statue of marshal Helong. Then head to 3 viewpoints which are near one another. Of the 3 viewpoints, Yunqing Rock (云青岩) has the best view of the

scenery, hence crowded. Most tour groups will depart from here. I also visited the nearby Tianzi Pavilion (天子阁), which one

can skip to save time & energy, nothing spectacular. I am glad I started with Tianzi mountain first, as it is the least impressive compared to other regions such as Yangjiajie (杨家界), YuanJiaJie (袁家界) and Huangshi-zhai (黄石寨). I spent slightly over an hour before heading to next destination Yangjiajie.

SEHR GUTER GENERAL REVIEW:This review is for visitors planning to go to ZJJ National Park on their own. The whole park is huge and it’s very important to understand the layout of this place before going.

ZJJ Park consists of two scenic areas: Wulingyuan and Huangshi zhai scenic area. WLY lies in the east and occupied about 80% portion while HSZ is an extension to the west and occupied about 20% portion of the whole park.

1. Wulingyuan Scenic Area.WLY main entrance is easily assessable from most hotels in WLY Town. The landscape of this national park is full of sandstone pillars (karst) of different shape and size and there are basically two ways to view them i.e. from the mountain top looking down and from the valley below looking up. Both offer stunning views and this is how you should plan your trip. All visitors must start from the WLY Shuttle Bus Station.

The first step is to understand the shuttle bus routes. Starting from WLY shuttle bus station, there are two bus lines. One line goes to Tianzi-shan cable car station and the other one runs along the valley floor to Ten-mile Gallery and Bailong Elevator. Check with the staff before boarding the bus. (Tip: Most tour groups will take the BL Elevator bus)

i) Mountain top shuttle bus routeAt the Tianzi-shan cable car station, take the cable car to the top and follow by a 3-min bus ride to TZS scenic point. Taking TZS bus stop as the first stop, the shuttle bus will runs as foll:

Tianzi-shan ---> Dianjiang Tai ---> Shentang Bay ---> Grand Sight Platform ---> Sandao-gou --->Yuanjaijie ---> World No 1 Bridge --- (scenic walk) ---> Enchanting Terrace ---> BL Elevator (upper station)

Total time for bus ride: 45 min (1-way)Note: there is no bus transfer between World No. 1 Bridge and Enchanting Terrace. All visitors must get off at No 1 Bridge bus stop and do the 1-hr very scenic cliff-side walk between these two points. The most popular stops are TZS, YJJ and No 1 Bridge stop, visitor who wish to get off the other stops has to inform the driver, otherwise the bus will not stop. (But remember: it’s easy to get off but almost impossible to get on again as the buses are always packed. Advice is to stick to the three popular stops).

ii) Valley floor bus routeFrom WLY shuttle bus station, the bus will runs as foll:WLY bus station ---> Ten-mile Gallery ---> Bailong Elevator (lower station) ---> Four Stream Crossroad* (*This is an important bus stop for all hikers, keep in mind. Some maps and sign will print this stop as “Water Winding Four Gates”, Chinese “Shui-Rao Si-Men”)

Total time for bus ride: 20 min (1-way)

iii) Complete bus routeIn summary, the two bus lines form complete loop as foll:

WLY bus station ---> TZS cable car station --- (cable car up) ---> TZS scenic point --- (bus runs along the mountain top route, see above) ---> ends at BL Elevator (upper stn) --- (elevator down) ---> BL Elevator (lower stn) ---> Four Stream Crossroad ---> Ten-mile Gallery ---> WLY bus station

Note: Visitors can start either way (elevator up/cable car down), there is no difference.

2. Huangshi-zhai Scenic Area (Yellow Stone Village)This entry point is located in the west and it’s locally called Forest Park Main Entrance. There is a regular 30-min bus service running between WLY Town bus terminal and this entrance (fare 20 rmb, pay to driver).

There are three very scenic walking trails in this area:i) The popular Golden Whip Stream trail that winds through the valley. The trail starts from here (Big Oxygen Square) and ends at Four Stream Crossroad bus stop located in WLY Scenic Area. Total distance 6-7 km.

ii) The off-beaten trail of Yaozi Village. This is a very quiet & scenic 3-hr hike that reaches the top before descending and ends at the three-qtr point of the Golden Whip Stream (Reunited Tree scenic point). From here, another half hour walk to Four Stream Crossroad bus stop.

iii) The beautiful HSZ Village trail. This scenic spot is located on top of a mountain and is easily reached by the cable car. Round distance on the summit is 3.8 km, a 2-hr walk with lots of viewing platforms.

Note: There is another cable car station further down the HSZ main entrance where visitor can go up to Yangjiajie scenic point located at the WLY mountain top. This is used mainly by visitors staying in HZS Town.

3. In summary, the overall layout of this park is as foll:

WLY Scenic Area has two bus lines i.e. one mountain top route and one valley route, plus a cableway at one end and the BL Elevator at the other end to form a complete loop of the area. Huangshi-zhai Scenic Area is an extended area in the west and both scenic areas (East & West) are connected by the Golden Whip Stream that runs along the valley. In addition, there are two

walking trails from the valley that go up to the mountain i.e. Ten-mile Gallery trail that goes up to Tianzi-shan scenic point and at the mid-point of the Golden Whip Stream, there is a trail that goes up to Enchanting Terrace scenic point (Back Garden Trail).

4. Although there are huge crowd coming to this park every day, the actual bottle-neck are at the TZS cable car station and BL Elevator. The queue going up (morning) & down (evening) can stretch up to 2-3 hour long.

Those wishing to avoid these queue can walk up to TZS scenic point via the Ten-mile Gallery trail and walk down to the stream below via the Enchanting Terrace trail. To do this hike, take the BL Elevator shuttle bus and inform the driver that you want to get off at the first stop Ten-mile Gallery. At the end of this Ten-mile Gallery area, there is a trail that goes up to TZS scenic point (2-3 hr walk). Take the shuttle bus from there and get off at No. 1 Bridge stop. Do the 1-hr cliff-side scenic walk to Enchanting Terrace scenic point. Finally from this point, walk down to the Golden Whip stream below (2-hr walk). Complete your hike at Four Stream Crossroad bus stop (another 1-hr walk). This is a great hiking loop. Do this first and you will understand the entire layout of this park.

Take cable car up to visit Tianzi moutain, known as “the Monarch of the peak forest “, the Pine trees, the Yu Bi (imperial brushes) Peaks, Xihai Stone Forest, and other incredible views and scenery await. After that we will take a shuttle bus for 5 minutes (we can walk for 15 minutes if there is a huge line for the bus ) get the Nod-to-the-General Platform’ (Dian Jiang Tai 点将台), wich is in a gorge full of curling clouds, where there are many tall rock pillars of different shapes. The tallest one, sitting in the middle, is called the "emperor". In front of it is the "herald" who is reading an imperial edict to the "soldiers". The two "prime ministers" are "bending down" and stand on the left and right. It is said that the emperor of Xiang once reviewed his troops there.Then take a shuttle bus get to (Laowu Chang 老屋场) is an undeveloped part of Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, between Yuanjiajie and Tianzi Mountain. It is best reached by local hired van from Yuanjiaje, as it is well off the ordinary travel route.The scenery in the area is incredibly beautiful and overwhelming. Sun rise in Laowuchang is considered by photographers to be the must-shoot scene in Zhangjiajie.We can also see the 'Sky Field Garden' (Kongzhong Tianyuan 空中田园) is a small area of paddy fields, seemingly hanging on an outcrop surrounded by Zhangjiajie’s typical peaks. The paddy fields are farmed by local ethnic people. After that we will get to the Bridge viewing platform.Take a ride in a famous elevator to descend the mountain, the back to hotel . Finish your unforgetble trip .

CHRIS: Leave luggage in train station and when back pick up. you will have enough time for yangjiajie, yellow stone village yes, just start earlier and move faster. if go to laowuchang you can find a car there, show drivers you want be there, they will stop at the park where you find local people car to rent.

From national park entrance to train station cost 220 CNY. There is no taxi but have public bus, pretty cheap as 12 CNY per person to train station. available before 6 pm.

Tianzi mountain also very pretty, you can not skip it.

Tianmen mountain tickets, already booked, can use passport to print only. I will let you know where to pick it and more details.

Programm Zhangjiajie:DAY 1: 1.Tianmen Mountain (Tickets Chris gebucht) – siehe oben2. Gepäckabgabe Zhangjiajie Railway station3. Wulingyuan Entrance National Park4. Cable Car Tianzi Mountain5. Exploring Tianzi Mountain area (erster Busstop / Helong Park siehe Karte)6. Nod to the General Platform (Busstop)7. Shentang Gulf (One finger peak, Maze in the World8. Check-Inn Xiangyuann Inn9. Sunset

DAY 2:1. Sunrise Hotel und Frühstück2. Laowuchang: Paddies in the Sky / Fields in the Sky, Soldier’s Gathering, Singing in Antiphonal Style3. Grand Sightseeing Platform + Peak Cocking + One dangerous Step4. Bridge viewing terrace I stayed at Zhongtian International Youth hostel. It is only a 22 minute walk to Yuanjiajie bus station. It is also easy to walk to Yangjiajie bus station from the hostel. The hotel is located at a location called "wang qiao tai" (bridge viewing terrace in English). Tell the bus driver you want to stop there and he can let you off. There is a short walk to a viewing platform from the rear of the hotel. From there you can see "tian xia di yi qiao" (first bridge under heaven). One of many great views in the park.5. Yangjiajie – Tianbo Mansion6. Cable Car Yangjiajie down, transfer to Yellow Stone Cable Car7. Yellow Stone Cable car up, 2 hour circle loop (Front Garden)8a. Wenn Zeit: zu Fuß runter Richtung Golden Whip Stream8b. Wenn keine Zeit: Cable car down9. Back to Zhangjiajie Railway station: Bus oder Transport Chris Tan (offen)Abfahrt spätestens um 17:00 Uhr – CHECK CHRIS TAN

Zug Zhangjiajie – Changsha (Ticket gebucht bis Yingtan): K1374 18:58-23:45 Uhr, bezahlt (€ 54)

Station PlanThe station consists of a two-storey terminal building and a square. Looking from a far distance, the station looks like a white eagle standing among the mountains, grand and beautiful.

 2F: waiting hall, soft seat waiting room, VIP lounge, toilets, hot drinking water, staff offices 1F: waiting room, waiting room for tourist group, waiting room for mothers and babies, ticket office, entrance/

exit, platforms, service desk, toilets, hot drinking water Front Square: bus stops, taxi stands

How to get to the train station from downtown area? Arrival by bus: At Railway Station Bus Stop: 5 / At Station Front Square: 6 / At Dingtai Yijingyuan: 8 / At

Guanliping Roundabout: 4 (inner ring line), 4 (outer ring line)

Passengers arriving by bus will get off at the front square of the station. After, ticket holders can enter the station directly to find the waiting area on the first or second floor. Passengers without tickets should purchase one first. The ticket office is to the west side of the terminal entrance. And then go into the station and find the correct waiting area.

 Arrival by taxi:If arriving by taxi, passengers will be dropped off at the front square.It usually takes 40 minutes and costs about CNY 60 from Wulingyuan Scenic Area.

 Ticket Office: To the west side of the terminal entrance, one can find the ticket office. 14 ticket windows provide services like ticket purchase, ticket change or ticket refund. And the other 2 consult windows are open for passengers to consult about the ticket issues or other problems.

 Waiting Hall: Passengers can find waiting areas on both the first and second floors. Passengers should read tickets carefully to find the correct waiting area. On the west side of the waiting hall on 2F, one can find soft seat waiting rooms which are only open to soft seat ticket holders. Besides, VIP lounges are available on the second floor. Hot drinking water, toilets and LED screens are provided on both floors. Service desk is set up on 1F. Passengers can search information about the train schedule, boarding gate, or ask for direction etc.

 Left luggage service: When exiting from the station, one can find the left luggage office to the east side of the exit. It usually charges CNY10 for a bag per day. 

Übernachtung: Chasha Wanyi Hotel 长沙万怡宜家酒店, CNY 210, gleich beim Bahnhof (s. Karte)

Adresse: No.426 Chezhan Zhong Road 车站中路 426 号, Fu Rong, 410000 Changsha

Kosten Eintritte: CNY 1000 (2 Personen) bei 1x Cable Car und Lift, inklusive Taxi zum Bahnhof Hotel: CNY 210Transport (Zug): € 113 bereits bezahlt