7 Days Best Guilin Zhangjiajie Landscape Exploration

Day 1 Guilin Arrival - Guilin to Longsheng

Pick up in Guilin and transfer 2.5 hours to Longji Rice Terrace

Welcome to Guilin, the most scenic city in China. Upon your arrival at airport (railway station), our local guide and driver will pick up you and then transfer you to Ping'an Village at Longji Rice Terrace. Check in your hotel. The rest of today is free for you to explore beautiful surroundings.

Important to Know: 1) The driving from Guilin to Ping'an is about 2.5 hours. If your flight or train arrives at Guilin after 5pm, we suggest you spend a night at Guilin, then transfer to Ping'an on the next day; 2) Walking: When arriving at Ping’an Village, you can only be dropped at Ping’an Village Tourist Center parking lot that you need to walk about 900 steps to your hotel. Comfortable shoes are highly recommended; 3) Luggage carrying: For the aged or travelers who are lack of physical strength, you’d better hire a local porter to help carry your heavy luggage to the hotel (pay extra expense on your own).

• The Peaceful Village in Longji Rice Terracse, Taken by Santos from Canada in late August, 2019

Day 2 Longji Rice Terrace - Longsheng to Guilin (B, L)

Longji Rice Terrace Sunrise - Seven Stars with Moon - Nine Dragons and Five Tigers

When you wake up in the fresh air of peaceful morning, you may forget where you are. Try to watch the magnificent sunrise from a great location on the terraces if you don't mind getting up very early. After breakfast, your guide will take you to explore the breathtaking views of Longji Rice Terrace leisurely. The rice terrace is layer upon layer, like the changing ladder created by nature leading to the blue sky, forming a majestic painting between heaven and earth. From Ping’an, you can hike on the cobbled paths built among terraces to catch the best landscape. Climb up to the great lookouts at Seven Stars with Moon and Nine Dragons and Five Tigers from which you can get superlative views of terraces and villages.

Hike half day around, then back to Ping’an. Then transfer back to Guilin City. Check in your hotel. The rest time is free on your own to have fun in Guilin - strolling, hunting food...

Good to Know:1) Best time to visit: Longji Rice Terrace can be visited all year round. Go mid-April to late June for mirror-like irrigated terrace and rice transplanting scene; go July to mid-September for green terraces; go late September to early-November for golden and harvest scene; or go late December to early February for silvery terraces; 2) The Viewing Platform of Seven Stars with Moon is under a reconstruction which means it is closed for travelers at present. The hiking route between Seven Stars with Moon and Nine Dragons and Five Tigers would do some adjustment during the construction. You won’t miss the amazing rice terraces scenery when visiting.

• Sunrise in Longji Rice Terrace
• People Zhuang Ethnic Group at Longji Rice Terrace
• Longji Rice Terrices in late August 2018, Taken by Our Customer Gerhard from Germany

Day 3 Guilin - Li River Cruise - Yangshuo (B, L)

Li River Cruise -Yangshuo Yulong River - West Street

As the declaration in Chinese textbook "Guilin’s landscape is the best under heaven", today you will explore this best landscape starting with a relaxing sightseeing cruise along the Li River from Mopanshan Pier to Yangshuo Town. Along the 84-kilometer cruise, dazzling scenery overwhelms your eyes like a vast endless Chinese painting of winding river, green limestone karst mountains, fascinating countryside views, amazing scene of A Painting of Nine Horses, and notable view printed on the back of the 20 RMB note. (Please note: Lunch is served by the cruise with simple local Chinese cuisine. And you can take some snacks when getting on board.)

After about 4 hours’ cruise, disembark in Yangshuo Town, and check in your hotel. After a short break, start your impressive exploration of the best charming sightseeing and ideal countryside ease at Yulong River. Let all the refreshing scenes please your eyes and souls to the utmost. Just enjoy every moment with the Karst hills dotted around, chatting stream, rippling mountain reflection, swaying floras, patches of vivid crops, comfortable breeze….There are diverse kinds of ways for your enjoyment of the fun and beauty, including biking, hiking, sightseeing bus, bamboo rafting and scooter. You can easily choose and combine your ideal way(s) and part of Yulong River. (Please tell your likes to your travel consultants before booking the tour, as the final prices will differ by activities you choose.).

Biking (some physically demanding & sightseeing by the river) - Ride to enjoy the river view and the real fields (route: Yangshuo - Jima - Shuiedi Dock - Gongnong Bridge - West Street; for 1.5-2 hours).

Bamboo Rafting (relaxing and interesting & sightseeing on the river) - have fun with the classic bamboo rafting (Route A: Shuiedi Dock - Gongnong Bridge for 40-50 minutes; Route B: Jima Dock - Gongnong Bridge for 1.5 hours) to see the more serene view like pieces of traditional Chinese landscape ink paintings.

Sightseeing Bus (most leisurable and comfortable & sightseeing on the road) - sit leisurely on the bus from Jima to Gongnong Bridge to appreciate the lovely countryside view (about 0.5 hour). You can get off and on anywhere on the middle way to explore more about your interested place.

This evening is for you to walk leisurely on the ancient West Street to witness how the western culture and Chinese culture perfectly and peacefully coexist here. Whether you want to enjoy a cup of drink in bar, taste some local food, or just experience the relaxing atmosphere, you get it here.

Note: according to the regulations of Yulong River Tourism, children less than 1 meter high and elders over 70 years old are not allowed to take the bamboo rafting.

Optional evening activity:

Watch the splendid evening performance of Impression Liu Sanjie with the Li River itself as the stage, which was directed by famous director - Zhang Yimou (usually performs for an hour between around 19:45 and 22:20).

• Panorama of Yangshuo Ten-mile Gallery Countryside
• Visit Yangshuo West Street at Night
• Lush Guilin Li River Scenery, Taken by Claire from UK in October 2021
• Chusi's family visited Moon Hill at Yangshuo Ten-mile Gallery in June, 2018

Day 4 Yangshuo to Guilin & Guilin to Zhangjiajie (B, L)

Transfer from Yangshuo to Zhangjiajie by Flight

After breakfast, your guide and driver will escort you from Yangshuo to Guilin Liangjiang Airport for your flight to Zhangjiajie City (about 1 hour usually). After your arrival, your local tour guide will meet you with a sign on which says your name at the arrival hall in the airport or train station. Then our guide and driver will transfer you directly to your hotel in Wulingyuan downtown in Zhangjiajie by our comfortable private car (non-smoking), and the guide will help you check in. The rest of today is on your own to explore this fabulous city in China.

 (Please note: As there is only a few flights from Guilin to Zhangjiajie in a week, if there is no ticket available, you may change your transfer by the direct bullet train from Guilin to Zhangjiajie (about 7.5 hours) according to practical situation. Please know detailed option arrangement from our travel expert when booking the tour!)

Evening Idea: Xibu Street at Wulingyuan downtown is popular for a leisure walk. You can stroll at the Tujia ethnic flavored shopping pedestrian street to taste local snacks, find interesting artifacts and enjoy the beautiful night view with colorful lights.

• Xibu Street Night View
• Zhangjiajie City View

Day 5 Zhangjiajie National Forest Park - Zhangjiajie Glass Bridge (B, L)

Huangshi Village - Golden Whip Stream - Zhangjiajie Glass Bridge

Today, after breakfast, you will be met by our guide and driver and then driven to start your exciting visit to Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. You will first take the cable car up to Huangshi Village to appreciate the wide forest park on its peaks. The village site has an altitude of 1080 meters, which is praised for its similar charm of pillar forest of Colorado in the USA. Enjoying the flat the wide visual environment, it is so far the largest natural viewing deck for visitors for a perfect admiration of its various rising stones and hills. Enjoy your fresh walk to visit the top famous sights including Star Picking Stand, Five Finger Peak, and so on, and find those looking like bridge piers, etc. from a distance. Later, change your angle to explore the famous Golden Whip Stream deep in the valley. This totally 7.5 kilometers long brook is one of the most beautiful places in the whole forest park area. Take an inspiring roam along the whispering pristine water on the paved path to immerse into tranquil wonderland with fresh air, colorful blooming flowers in different seasons, lush vegetation, etc. and be prepared to encounter with some wild monkeys.

After that, take a sightseeing bus to exit the park and be driven to Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon for about 40 minutes. Now, its your bold moment to take the challenge and walk on the transparent Zhangjiajie Glass Bridge to feel like walking on the clouds, which is the world longest and highest glass-bottomed bridge so far in the whole universe, with total length of 430 meters and height of 400 meters above the deep valley.

After the visiting, be driven back to your hotel in Wulingyuan. Have a good sleep!

• Huangshi Village
• Zhangjiajie Grand Cayon Glass Bridge Taken by Our Client Our client Mr. Pasquale from Italy in December, 2018
• Golden Whip Stream Taken by Our Client Keena from USA in September, 2020

Day 6 Yuanjiajie - Tianzi Mountain (B, L)

Bailong Elevator - Avatar Mountain - Yuanjiajie - Tianzi Mountain

On this day, after breakfast, visit Wulingyuan to get more highlights. First take a sightseeing bus to experience Bailong Elevator, the fastest elevator and also the tallest outdoor elevator in the world. Enjoy the 1.5 minutes to be shot from the valley bottom up to the pillar peak. And then, hike amongst the multiple erupting stone columns at Yuanjiajie Scenic Area and open the mysterious “Pandora World”. During the exciting hike, get a good preparation to have an enviable look at the South Sky Pillar of around 150 meters high, the authentic prototype inspiring the “Avatar Hallelujah Mountain”; enjoy the best scenery at Enchanting Platform with tens and hundreds of beautiful stone peaks similar to a lot of nutritious bamboo shoots towering from the ground; also, closely watch the peculiar First Bridge of the World that is naturally made with an only 5-meter long stone platform linking the two peaks together to form the rare world wonder.

Then, take the sightseeing bus to visit Tianzi Mountain. Walk to He Long Park there, which is the best viewing deck to admire very closely the incredible and magnificent view of odd stone peaks standing one after another. Most appealing pictures of the four wonders of Tianzi Mountain are photographed there, including the mists and clouds, moonlight, rays of sunshine and winter snow. Also, step a little further to Tianzi Pavilion nearby to enjoy the marvelous view and terrific sightseeing of the Xihai Peak Forest from another angle of view. After that, take the cool Tianzi Mountain Cable Car down with groups of rockery hills passing by outside your glass window, and then take the sightseeing bus to exit Wulingyuan Park.

After the exciting tour, your guide and driver will escort you to Zhangjiajie downtown area to check in your hotel.

Optional evening Activities: Enjoy your night to watch the popular Tianmen Fox Fairy Show at the foot of Tianmen Mountain, which is an excellent large-scaled musical drama performance with real landscape being the background and stage telling the touching story. Performance time: 20:15-21:50.

• Bailong Elevator
• Avatar Hallelujah Mountain at Yuanjiajie
• Tianzi Mountain Taken by Chona from Philippines in September, 2018

Day 7 Tianmen Mountain National Park & Zhangjiajie Departure (B, L)

Tianmen Cable Car - Tianmen Temple - Glass Skywalk - Ghost Valley Plank Road - Tianmen Cave - Avenue toward Heaven - Flight / Train off Zhangjiajie

After breakfast, your guide and driver will pick you up at your hotel. On this day, you will make a great trip to Tianmen Mountain, another magnificent national forest park in Zhangjiajie City.

First transfer to take the Tianmen Mountain Cable Car and ascend from Zhangjiajie downtown up to the peak of Tianmen Mountain of over 1,400 meters above the sea. Travel by the about 7,455 meters long cableway that is so far the longest one among the whole world and have a shocking look at the wandering Avenue toward Heaven from the glass. Then, take the Forest Sightseeing Cable Car to visit Tianmen Temple originated from Tang Dynasty on the mountain peak, which is one of the only world 5 Buddhist temples preserving the Buddha body relics. Walk around the temple cluster to appreciate the featured Qing Dynasty styled Buddhist structure with verdant forest surrounding by.

And then, hold your breath to take two scary walks on the cliff path circling the mountain body. One is the 60-meters long and 1.6-meters wide Glass Skywalk with transparent glass material 1430 meters above the bottomless valley, which makes you feel walking in the air in sunny days and fairyland in misty and cloudy days, while another must be the 1600-meters long Ghost-Valley Plank Road hanging on the cliff. Just step on and test!

After that, take the escalator from the peak down to Tianmen Cave to see the giant hole on the mountain. Formed by natural pressing and collapsing into 131.5 meters high, 57 meters wide and 60 meters deep, this cave is really a rare wonder of the world. Next, walk downstairs along the super steep 999-steps with the highest inclination up to 45°, which is the only access to Tianmen Cave from the foot of the mountain for a lot of prayers worshipping there.  Moreover, take your final challenge to transfer along the Avenue toward Heaven with 99 very sharp turns of about 180°down to the city area. Experience the quite different roller coaster on the flourishing mountain for about 0.5 hour. (If you do not want to walk the steep 999 Steps, you can also choose to take the escalator down to the parking lot to take the sightseeing bus through Avenue toward Heaven, extra fee of 35RMB/person is needed.)

After the exciting scenic and adventurous visit, our guide and driver will escort you to Zhangjiajie airport or train station to catch your flight/train to your next destination or home. Service ends!

• Our customers Allan's family from Canada took a cable car to Tianmen Mountain in December, 2020
• Zigzag Road in Tianmen Mountain Taken by Our Client Keena from USA in September, 2020
• Tianmen Cave of Tianmen Mountain Taken by Our Client Mona and Thomans from Germany in November, 2021
• Our client Ronit from Israel enjoyed Glass Skywalk in Tianmen Mountain in May, 2019