Shanxi Travel Recommendations for 2024 (Updated in Apr)

Hold on! Recommendations for 7 travel destinations suitable for October-December

Avoiding the National Day, staggered travel from October to December, if you haven't planned yet and don't know where to go, look here, I have compiled 7 super beautiful tourist attractions for you, collect them and go with your family and friends! 1⃣️Guangwushan Starting from October every year, the land of China from north to south will be ignited by this fire-like red, known as the 'longest natural red carpet in Asia'! It is the largest red leaf viewing area in Asia, and the red leaf season lasts for a month~ 🎈 Guangwushan Town, Nanjiang County, Bazhong City, Sichuan Province 2⃣️Changbai Mountain This is a magical world that is not inferior to Kanas, Tianchi, canyons, forests, waterfalls, every scene is incredibly beautiful. In winter, the snow-capped mountains, the frozen Tianchi, plus the sky blue that is unbelievable, it's just too beautiful! 🎈 Southeast of Chibei District, Erdaobaihe Town, Antu County, Jilin Province 3⃣️Tengchong The average annual temperature is 19℃, the climate is comfortable and pleasant, and it has also been rated as 'one of the most suitable places for human habitation'. Here, you can completely fall in love with autumn and take you into the beautiful season of golden yellow fallen leaves in Ginkgo Village and the romantic Wuliang Mountain winter cherry blossoms. 🎈 Western Yunnan Province 4⃣️Shennongjia In October-November of Shennongjia, it is even more 'colorful' that makes people lose their self-confidence - as far as the eye can see, the hills and valleys are all colors splashed by the autumn wind The colorful oil painting-like light and shadow, the pure sky is vast and Deep, a few white cotton-like floating clouds are floating leisurely~ 🎈 Northwestern Hubei Province 5⃣️Shanxi In Taiyuan City, visit Hengshan and Jinci to understand Chinese ancient architecture and religious culture. You can also go to Pingyao Ancient City and stroll in this small town with a history of 4,000 years, feeling the strong historical atmosphere on the stone street 6⃣️Western Sichuan The colorful forests in Western Sichuan are blooming, and the maple leaves are brilliant, attracting tourists from all over the place. If you can encounter such a color feast, it will definitely leave a heavy color in your memory~ 🎈 Western region of Sichuan Basin 7⃣️Yunnan The autumn in Yunnan also contains grandeur, the trees with colorful layers, reflecting on the lake, like the mirror of this autumn color, the distant snow-capped mountains, also willingly become the background. The tenderness of the wind, flowers, snow and moon, the just right coolness, the leisurely half-day leisure, the grandeur of the golden...

Ping Yao Gu Cheng aka Ping Yao Ancient City. This ancient city is located in Ping Yao City, Shanxi province. I guess many people herd about this place, about this very famous city and germ of Shanxi Province (not Shaanxi). This is the one of the most well preserved ancient cities in China. Thriving through the centuries in the ancient time, it has survived twenty's century and appears in its unique and charming style in front of our eyes. I would like to emphasize this is real city, all buildings are really ancient, not the new made after 2000 year. Really, unique place. The city is presented by its ancient streets and everywhere small museum are ready to accept guests. Every building is a museum, ancient hall or rich family yard. There are a lot of special artifacts. Totally, the visiting requires two days to visit every small place. Ticket gives the access to every location. Each place in this city deserved separate introduction. #urbanexplorer#roadtrip#museumquest

ancient city of Pingyao. a nice short breather away from the typical hustle and bustle of China’s bigger cities. all the buildings have been painstakingly preserved and you get to enjoy being lost among its many alleys.

Pingyao is one of the old ancient city in China which is still very original and it is also one of the UNESCO world heritage site. This ancient city is surrounded by its outstanding city walls which were used by the guards to protect the city from enemies in the past. If you come here, try to find hotel inside the ancient town as it is a really nice area. You can also find many traditional restaurants and shops inside :) #HalloTrip

Datong in the Winter.

We stayed in Datong for 1 full day during January 2023. The temperature ranged between-10 and -20 so was pretty chilly and you need lots of layers. There are two main activities/ attractions in Datong, the Yungang Grottoes and The Hanging Temple. the Yungang Grottoes are close to the city about a 20min taxi from the centre and definitely worth a visit. The Hanging Temple is further away and requires a 1hr to 1hr and half taxi. Which our hotel helped organise. but this is definitely worth doing the Temple is just magical.#2023travelwish #datong

Yungang Grottoes

It’s a Buddhist cave-carving complex. All the statues are carved in caves or small grottoes. They are dated 5th and 6th centuries. It’s a UNESCO heritage and it’s amazingly beautiful! Statues really impress. Some of them are big like skyscrapers, some statues are very small, but cover the whole wall in the cave. The complex is big, you can walk around. There is a part with caves, but the other part of mountains is surrounded by beautiful natural landscape. You can walk in the park, or alone the river. You will spend at around 4 hours there, so food 🥢🥡 options are available on the territory. #bucketlistreboot

We visited these caves as well as the Longmen caves. Both are remarkable although Longmen has a greater “wow” factor. Keep in mind if you do go to Datong that it is a coal city and the air is often polluted. #wintergetaway #wintergetaway

Yungang grottoes is located near the city of Datong. It is a very common place for tourists who come to visit Datong, as it is easy to reach. Public bus will take around 40 minutes so it is quite convenient. Inside, you will see really massive statues from the history which are just beautiful. There is also a museum inside. #HalloTrip  

🇨🇳 • 《晋祠公园》(周) This park and its buildings

🇨🇳 • 《晋祠公园》(周) This park and its buildings is the “Museum of Chinese Constructions” throughout history, from 周 to 清. A Sublime place.

Come to Taiyuan, you can't help but come to Jinci. Jinci is located in the southwest of Taiyuan. It is a big park with beautiful scenery, pavilions and towers. The core area of Jinci is the Jinci Museum. There are three national treasures in the garden of this core area: the Madonna, the Temple, and the Cross Bridge. The temple is a combination of pavilions and temples. It is very unique and has been preserved for thousands of years. You will travel there for this purpose. There is also the oldest Zhou Bai, Tang Yan, who seems to tell the story of time. There is also the music of the Yuan Dynasty, which is vivid and vivid, and also provides a reference for studying the music regulation at that time. This time, I was visiting Jinci in the rain, but it has a charm compared to the rainy days.

Jinci

Jinci, located in Jinci Town, Jinyuan District, Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province, was originally named Jinwang Temple, and initially called Tang Shuyu Temple, built to commemorate the founding prince of the Jin state, Tang Shuyu (later posthumously titled King of Jin) and his mother, Queen Yi Jiang. Jinci houses representative Song Dynasty architecture such as the Holy Mother Hall, the uniquely shaped cross-shaped ancient bridge Fish Pond Flying Bridge, and the Jin Dynasty building Xian Hall, which resembles a hall but is suspected to be a pavilion. These have been identified by the National Ministry of Culture as three national treasure buildings; the Zhou Cypress, Nanlao Spring, and Song Dynasty maid statues within the temple are known as the 'Three Wonders of Jinci'; the Duoyue Workshop, Nanlao, and Shuijing Platform are collectively referred to as the 'Three Plaques of Jinci'. Jinci is the earliest existing royal ancestral garden in China, the ancestral temple of the Jin state; it is a concentrated carrier of ancient Chinese architectural art, a unique example in the country with a complete sequence of architectural types and historical periods from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties to the Republic of China, with all its attached colored sculptures, murals, and steles considered national treasures.

A weekend 2-day trip to Taiyuan with kids on high-speed rail, 390 RMB per person

The weather is getting warmer, and we decided on a whim to take the kids to Taiyuan for 2 days this weekend. First, it's close to Shijiazhuang, just 1 hour by high-speed rail; second, one visit to the Shanxi Museum is simply not enough, I want to go again. 🚄High-speed rail: 358 🏨Accommodation: 233 🎫Tickets: 178 (Jinci) 🍚Dining: 320 🚗Taxi: 95 💰Total cost: 1180 RMB (Per person: 390) 💟Accommodation: I've stayed at the Liuxiang branch of G Hotel in Taiyuan before, and this time we stayed near the zoo. It was recommended by a local colleague. It's quieter than Liuxiang and the rooms are bigger with a better experience. The hotel breakfast is quite good, and they have laundry and a gym. My son went to the gym after waking up in the morning, and then we had breakfast before heading out. It's great value for money. Newly renovated, no smell, and their mattresses are very comfortable, which is the main reason I chose them again. Located next to the zoo, if you want quiet, choose this one; if you want lively, choose the Liuxiang branch, you can walk back to the hotel after visiting. 💟Itinerary: Day1: Shijiazhuang▶️Taiyuan South 🚄High-speed rail 8:35-10:05 (1 and a half hours to Taiyuan South Station) 🚗30 minutes (19 km, cost 19 RMB)▶️Shanxi Museum ▪️Shanxi Museum: When visiting a city, I put the museum first to understand the city's past and present. The Shanxi Museum is one of the top museums in the country. Besides viewing the relics, getting stamps is also very satisfying, and their first-floor cultural and creative products are quite distinctive. 🚗15 minutes (6 km, cost 9 RMB)▶️Shanxi Merchants Museum ▪️Shanxi Merchants: Originally the Shanxi Military Governor's Mansion, this place mainly displays bronzes. Now it's the Shanxi Provincial Government office. The architecture is a blend of Chinese and Western styles. My advice is if you've been to the Shanxi Museum, you can skip this and go to the Taiyuan Botanical Garden instead. 🚶9 minutes (600 meters)▶️Liuxiang, Bell Tower Street, Food Street ▪️Bell Tower Street: The three streets are adjacent. After one, comes the next, and the night market is very lively. Intestine stuffing, God's fried chicken, Mouse Den sweet dumplings, beef offal, sea buckthorn ice cream, honey twist... all delicious. Day2: Depart from G Hotel 🚗30 minutes (33 km, cost 35 RMB)▶️Jinci Museum ▪️Jinci: Jinci is a bit far from the city center, so it's recommended to take a taxi. Jinci is divided into two parts, the front is a free park, and the essence starts where you see the words "Jinci", which is the Jinci Museum. The ticket is 80 RMB, covering many ancient buildings from different eras. It's advised to hire a guide, as every hall and plaque has a story. 🚗9 minutes (6 km, cost 10 RMB)▶️Taiyuan Ancient County ▪️Ancient County: Ancient towns are more or less the same, but Taiyuan's ancient county is quite large, and it's full of food vendors. You can try various Shanxi snacks at reasonable prices. It's also suitable for taking photos as "Shanxi Merchant's Young Madam", reminiscent of Pingyao. There are several makeup shops next to the parking lot. 🚗30 minutes (22 km, cost 22 RMB)▶️Taiyuan South Station

Yunqiu Mountain

Yunqiu Mountain Scenic Area A national AAAAA level tourist attraction, a provincial model of civilized tourism, located within the territory of Xiangning County, Linfen City, Shanxi Province. Yunqiu Mountain generally refers to this entry. Yunqiu Mountain (Mount Yun) Scenic Area is a national AAAAA level tourist attraction, boasting abundant natural resources, cultural landscapes, and cultural heritage. It is a rare comprehensive tourist area in southern Shanxi that integrates tourism, sightseeing, leisure and entertainment, health and wellness retreats, folk experience, and cultural exchange. Yunqiu Mountain is lush with greenery, and its scenery is exquisitely beautiful, earning the reputation of 'the most beautiful peak in Gushan' and 'the number one scenic spot in the Fen River area.' It has everything from majestic mountains, perilous peaks, unique rocks, cascading waterfalls, ravines, clear springs, to streams, and it possesses the largest natural ice cave and wind cave group in China, as well as the largest area of natural red foliage scenery. The 'Xiangning County Annals' describe Yunqiu Mountain as follows: verdant trees in spring, lush forests in summer, autumn winds dyeing the leaves red, proud pines in the snow in winter, fragrant mountain flowers in all seasons, and babbling streams all year round. Yunqiu Mountain was anciently known as Kunlun Mountain, a place where emperors Yao, Shun, and Yu gazed upon the mountains. It is a geographical symbol of Chinese local culture, the birthplace of Chinese agricultural civilization and the twenty-four solar terms, and also a heritage site for the culture of moderation. Since the Middle Ages, Yunqiu Mountain has integrated thousands of aspects of Chinese civilization over millennia. The area is prosperous in Taoist culture, with numerous temples and cave sanctuaries, being the ancestral home of the Quanzhen School's Longmen sect, known as 'Yunqiu in the north, Wudang in the south.' The Taoist culture of Yunqiu Mountain and the Yunqiu Academy, the Duobao Lingyan Zen Temple, which represents Confucianism and Buddhism, coexist harmoniously. At the same time, Yunqiu Mountain also preserves 11 ancient villages that are over a thousand years old, a rare cluster of ancient village towns with Jin-style cave dwellings. Since its development in 2003, the scenic area has accumulated an investment of 2.516 billion yuan, focusing on the 'six elements of tourism: food, accommodation, travel, sightseeing, shopping, and entertainment' to implement infrastructure construction. It has developed high-end homestays, specialty restaurants, commercial streets, hot springs, ski resorts, and cultural and creative markets, creating a tourism brand with more cultural and natural features. It continuously drives the economic development of the tourism industry in Shanxi, becoming a new highlight of Shanxi tourism.

The cloud-kissed Yunqiu Mountain is a photographer's dream with every snap a masterpiece

Yunqiu Mountain Scenic Area is a national AAAAA-level tourist attraction, boasting abundant natural resources, cultural landscapes, and heritage. It is a rare comprehensive tourist area in southern Shanxi that combines sightseeing, leisure and entertainment, health and wellness retreats, folk experience, and cultural exchange. Yunqiu Mountain is lush with greenery, offering stunning views and is known as 'the most beautiful peak in Gushan' and 'the premier attraction of the Fen River area.' It features majestic mountains, perilous peaks, unique rocks, cascading waterfalls, deep ravines, clear springs, and streams. It is home to the largest natural ice and wind cave complex in China, as well as the country's most extensive natural red foliage. The 'Xiangning County Annals' describe Yunqiu Mountain as follows: verdant trees in spring, lush forests in summer, autumn leaves dyed with crimson, proud pines in the snow of winter, fragrant mountain flowers in all seasons, and babbling brooks year-round. Yunqiu Mountain, formerly known as Kunlun Mountain, is a geographical symbol of Chinese native culture, the birthplace of Chinese agricultural civilization and the twenty-four solar terms, and a heritage site for the culture of moderation. Since ancient times, Yunqiu Mountain has been a melting pot of Chinese civilization for thousands of years. The area is prosperous in Taoist culture, with numerous temples and cave sanctuaries, being the cradle of the Quanzhen School's Longmen sect, known as 'Yunqiu in the north, Wudang in the south.' The Taoist culture of Yunqiu Mountain coexists harmoniously with the Confucian and Buddhist cultures represented by Yunqiu Academy and the Duobao Lingyan Zen Temple. Additionally, Yunqiu Mountain has preserved 11 ancient villages dating back a thousand years, a rare cluster of ancient cave dwelling villages in southern Shanxi.

Shanxi Citywalk | Yunqiu Mountain

Visiting Yunqiu Mountain in Shanxi is definitely a top 3 recommended must-visit attraction for everyone. Yunqiu Mountain is the core of the tourism of southern Shanxi, and the number one scenic spot of the Fen River. Here you can enjoy the world-class rare ice cave group, visit the thousand-year-old village of Ta'erpo, and stay in a hundred-year-old cave dwelling. The desired Yunqiu Mountain. Here there are rolling mountains, deep canyons on the edge of the cliff, sky ladders surging into the clouds, and simple folk customs. Everything in Yunqiu Mountain can satisfy my expectations for travel... Ninety percent of the entire Yunqiu Mountain staff are former villagers, who still retain the simple folk customs. The prices in the scenic area are very reasonable. I recommend everyone to go to the shadow puppet theater in Ta'erpo ancient village to have a look. The shadow puppets made by the inheritors of shadow puppetry are super affordable and exquisitely made.

I didn't expect to come to Yunqiu Mountain in Shanxi for the second time

As a guest speaker, I share with everyone the Yunqiu Mountain in my heart. Revisiting Yunqiu Mountain, the blue ice cave is still beautiful, the lawn in front of the homestay is still strikingly green, you can participate in camping activities on the lawn, there are also exquisite small gifts, what makes me most happy is that the homestay group in Kangjiaping is still so beautiful, I was attracted by the homestay here last time, walking on the stone road in front of the homestay in the night, I can always feel the calm in my heart, if you come to Yunqiu Mountain, I highly recommend you to stay and experience it

When it comes to Shanxi Datong, many people know that the coal industry is very developed. In fact, this city is also the capital of the Northern Wei Dynasty, and it is also the capital of the Liao and Jin Dynasties. The long history of building a city has left Datong with a lot of cultural and architectural heritage, and Huayan Temple is one of them. Huayan Temple was built in 1038 AD, which is the northern emperor-Liaozhongxi seven years. In the early days, it was the royal ancestral temple of the Liao Kingdom. It was not open to ordinary people. Because you are the royal ancestral temple, the architectural community of Huayan Temple is laid out and constructed according to the specifications of the palace. The temple is from west to east, and more than 30 buildings are arranged on the two main lines of the south and the north. Standing on a high point, the panoramic view of the temple is quite a bit like the Beijing Forbidden City. Because it was a Buddhist temple built during the Liao Dynasty, the Buddha statues in the temple reflect the aesthetics of the time. Compared with the thin winds of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Buddha statues carved in the Liao Dynasty were partial and strong. Huayan Temple is the best-preserved Liaojin temple complex in China. It was destroyed in various periods due to war and other reasons. It has undergone several re-constructions and has its current appearance. Many dynasties in China have changed, and you sing me to the stage, and finally the East-West fusion, East and North culture. Looking at China, there are countless ancient temples, but there are not many historical scales close to Huayan Temple.

On the inner walls of the temple, there is a vivid picture of the story, which is a fairy story of the clouds. They have different expressions and different looks, only indicating the difference in identity between costumes and headwear. The gems in the rhyme of the clouds, the two worlds fly together. Long bowed to the golden body and prayed for a lifetime. No worries, no worries, and the heart is old with Cangshan. Sitting in lotus, accepting the dignified Buddha of worship and prayer. For thousands of years, he sat quietly here, his eyes wide open, and his compassionate tenderness. For thousands of years, he silently listened to the deep desires of his followers, the unsatisfactory realities in the real world, and the secrets of his heart. Then he used his compassionate eyes to penetrate the darkness to bring dawn, and to resolve the troubles and sorrows. .

Listening to Zen Buddhism, Zen tea, this is the bliss of life.

This temple is located in the ancient city of Datong. It was originally built in 1038 AD, which is the seven years of Liaozhongxi. After that, it was unfortunately destroyed in the war. Although the war destroyed the "recorders" of many civilizations, the foundation still exists. In 1140, because of the need to rebuild Buddhism, Huayan Temple was reborn. There are more than 30 buildings in Huayan Temple. The synchronous is distributed on the two main axes of the north and the south. It has a unique layout style and gives visitors a sacred and steady impression. The whole temple has these main tourist attractions: First, the Shanghuayan Temple consists of the Daxiong Hall, the Shanmen, the Temple, the Guanyin Pavilion, the Tibetan Pavilion and the hatchback; second, the Huayan Temple is The Bojiajia Tibetan Temple is the center, and it is composed of the surrounding Liao Dynasty statues, Shijing Building, pavilion-style Tibetan cabinets and Tiangong Pavilion. Third, the Huayan Pagoda is made of 100 tons of pure copper. Because it is a monastery, it must be inseparable from the Buddha. Therefore, the tower contains a statue of Sakyamuni Buddha, Guanyin Bodhisattva, and Jiaozuo Bodhisattva carved with centuries-old incense sandalwood. It is a treasure of Huayan Temple.