Kunming October Chrysanthemum Viewing Guide|Step into the Golden Fairy Tale World of Autumn Exclusives
October in Kunming lacks the bleakness of late autumn; instead, it is enlivened by the pervasive fragrance of flowers. As a native Kunming girl, I have compiled this comprehensive October flower viewing guide. From popular parks to hidden gems, from photography tips to travel advice, saving this article will easily unlock the exclusive beauty of autumn~
🌸 Chrysanthemums—The Absolute Star of Autumn
🌟 Tanhua Temple Park|Thousands of Autumn Chrysanthemums Now in Bloom
📅 Best Time: From now until October 25, currently at peak bloom with full and most beautiful flowers!
📍 Address: No. 535 Tanhua Road, Panlong District, Kunming
🎫 Admission: 10 RMB/person; students and seniors with valid ID enjoy half-price discounts
💐 Highlights: Upon entering the main gate, the 1.5-meter-high cliff chrysanthemum waterfall immediately catches the eye, with golden and pale purple petals cascading like flowing silk. The autumn breeze rustles the flowers, making every shot a cinematic masterpiece. The park’s 3-meter-diameter “Taiji Chrysanthemum Bed” is highly artistic, with alternating yellow and white small chrysanthemums paired with antique-style pavilions, as if stepping into a classical painting. Walking toward Luohan Hall, over 20 special varieties and more than 1,000 shaped chrysanthemums such as “Golden Phoenix Rings the Universe,” “Colorful Dragon Claws,” and “Panlong Spring Dawn” dazzle visitors, each pot a moving work of art crafted by horticulturists.
📷 Photo Tips: Soft light from 9 to 11 a.m. with morning dew on petals provides a natural fresh filter; wearing light-colored hanfu or qipao perfectly matches the ancient temple chrysanthemum scenery for effortless classical-style photos.
🌟 Daguan Park|31st Golden Autumn Chrysanthemum Exhibition
📅 Exhibition Period: October 1 to November 16, long bloom period allows off-peak visits to enjoy the beauty
📍 Address: No. 284 Daguan Road, Xishan District, Kunming
🎫 Admission: 20 RMB/person; includes access to core attractions like Dianchi Lake and Daguan Pavilion
💐 Highlights: This chrysanthemum exhibition is unprecedented in scale, gathering over 300 varieties and more than 10,000 chrysanthemum pots. Besides common single and multi-headed chrysanthemums, there is a giant “Chrysanthemum Waterfall” made of cliff chrysanthemums with layers of petals cascading impressively. Inside the Cuigeng Hall, 12 chrysanthemum bonsai are true “artworks among artworks,” combining large tree stumps and jungle-style bonsai to perfectly blend the elegance of chrysanthemums with the vigor of bonsai.
✨ Special Features: Rare green chrysanthemum varieties like Lvying and Lusha can be viewed up close, their fresh and unique colors standing out in the autumn flower sea; weekends feature chrysanthemum culture sharing sessions and flower art DIY activities, ideal for family interaction or art lovers.
🌟 Kunming Botanical Garden|Hidden Poetic Chrysanthemum Scenes
📅 Best Time: Mid-October to early November
📍 Address: No. 142 Heilongtan Road, Panlong District, Kunming
🎫 Admission: 10 RMB/person
💐 Highlights: Compared to the bustling popular parks, the chrysanthemums here are more tranquil and elegant. The garden’s chrysanthemum area is themed “Natural Wild Charm,” cleverly blending various chrysanthemums with native vegetation. Strolling here feels like entering a pristine chrysanthemum secret realm. Occasionally, horticulture experts provide on-site explanations of chrysanthemum varieties, perfect for visitors wanting to deepen their understanding of chrysanthemum culture.
🌸 Osmanthus—The City Wears Golden Armor
In October, the fragrance of osmanthus permeates every street and alley in Kunming. These treasure spots offer immersive experiences of osmanthus romance:
- Jinbi Scenic Area: Dozens of osmanthus trees surround the century-old bronze hall, with golden petals complementing the ancient bronze architecture, creating a unique “double gold landscape.” Strolling the ancient temple while smelling osmanthus blends Zen and poetic charm.
- Heilongtan Park: The highlight is the century-old osmanthus tree group by the pond, with more than ten golden and silver osmanthus trees blooming competitively. The fragrance mingles with the fresh air from the pond, perfect for morning exercise or leisurely walks.
- Xihua Park: Over 500 osmanthus trees form a dedicated “fragrance zone,” with benches and picnic areas beneath. Invite friends for a picnic accompanied by osmanthus scent for ultimate relaxation.
- Tanhua Temple Park: Osmanthus fragrance perfectly blends with the tranquil atmosphere of the ancient temple, with petals scattered among dark tiles and red walls, making every photo naturally filtered with an ancient style.
🌻 Other Autumn Exclusive Floral Events
🌟 Fubao Village by Dianchi Lake|Golden Sunflower Sea
📅 Best Time: Early to mid-October
📍 Address: Fubao Village, Guandu District, Kunming (near the east shore of Dianchi Lake)
🎫 Admission: Free
💐 Highlights: Thousands of sunflowers bloom facing the sun, forming an endless golden ocean, an excellent backdrop for autumn photos. Next to the flower sea is Dianchi Lake, allowing simultaneous enjoyment of lake and mountain scenery with golden waves of flowers. At dusk, capture the breathtaking “sunset molten gold” scene.
🌟 Taiping Lake, Mile|100,000 Lilies in Full Bloom
📅 Best Time: All of October
📍 Address: Taiping Lake International Ecotourism Resort, Mile City, Honghe Prefecture
🎫 Admission: 60 RMB/person
💐 Highlights: Only 1.5 hours by car from Kunming, 100,000 lilies are at peak bloom, with pink, white, and yellow flowers weaving a magnificent sea of blossoms. Visitors can climb the viewing platform for panoramic views of the flower sea and Taiping Lake’s stunning landscape or take a sightseeing train through the flower fields to immerse in the fragrance and breeze, perfect for a weekend getaway.
📸 Photo Outfit & Travel Tips
Outfit Suggestions
- Clothing: Light-colored long dresses (white, beige, light blue) are most photogenic; also try forest-style workwear or ancient-style clothing for better harmony with flower seas and ancient temples.
- Accessories: Straw hats, canvas bags, pearl earrings, and similar small items enhance refinement; matching scarves in the same color scheme help with morning and evening temperature changes.
Travel Reminders
- Lighting: Prefer shooting before 9 a.m. or after 3 p.m. to avoid overexposure from direct strong light.
- Protection: Autumn UV rays remain strong; remember to apply high-SPF sunscreen. Mosquitoes are common in parks, so bring mosquito repellent or floral water.
- Transportation: Popular parks (Tanhua Temple, Daguan Pavilion) are accessible by subway or bus; off-peak travel is recommended to avoid weekend crowds. For Fubao Village or Taiping Lake, driving or carpooling is more convenient.
Every flower in Kunming in October is a messenger of autumn, and every scent holds exclusive romance. These limited-time beauties only come once a year—grab your friends and head to this golden autumn feast together~
📷 Photo sources: Internet & personal photography
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Black Dragon Pond is located in the north of Kunming City. It is named after the Black Dragon Temple, springs and legends of the Black Dragon in the park. Winter is a good season for plum blossoms. The yellow winter plum blossoms bloom in succession, and the fragrance wafts over. The family can't help but recite a sentence, "The fragrance of plum blossoms comes from the bitter cold" and "The fragrance floats". Even the children ask everyone to play flying flowers with her. There are many squirrels in the park. Because they are often fed by people, the squirrels are not afraid of people. You will come down to eat immediately after you put food! It looks very cute with two little hands holding cough melon seeds, but it also keeps alert at all times. Once someone suddenly approaches, it will immediately retreat to the tree to observe, and also be alert to the attack of wild cats in the distance. It looks like a survival war in the animal world will be staged at any time. The back mountain is not high, you can take your children to climb up slowly, which is also a workout for children who do not exercise much in the city now. In short, there are few people and the air is good. You can take your children to see plants, climb mountains, feed fish, and it is suitable for strolling!
Walking into Heilongtan Park, it feels like stepping into a quiet and mysterious world. Walking along the bluestone path, you will see towering ancient trees and lush greenery. The clear water reflects the surrounding mountains and trees, like a huge mirror. In autumn, the maple leaves of Heilongtan gradually turn red, the ginkgo leaves turn yellow, and the colors are intertwined, which is beautiful. The ancient buildings by the pond are solemn and elegant, adding a strong historical atmosphere. Here, you can hear the crisp chirping of birds and feel the gentle breeze on your face. Tourists stroll and enjoy the scenery, or lean on the railing to meditate, all immersed in this picturesque beauty, forgetting the hustle and bustle of the world.
Kunming's Heilongtan Park is right next to the Kunming Botanical Garden. This spring, I went there to enjoy the plum blossoms without paying a ticket! The white plum blossoms are as tall as trees, and the branches are full of flowers that are as beautiful as snow! 🌹 I also saw little squirrels in the park unexpectedly! This shows that the ecological environment is well protected! 😊👍
Tickets are 20 yuan and online 15 yuan. The park has a large area and not many tourists. It's good to have some leisure. In March, it's the Rhododendron Festival. The Rhododendron Valley is full of mountains and flowers. It's very beautiful. Heilongtan is a famous Taoist resort, which is divided into upper and lower views and evolved from the Black Water Temple in the Han Dynasty. Shangguan was built in the Tang and Song Dynasties, it was called Longquan Guan, and Xiguan was built in the Ming Dynasty, commonly known as the Black Water Palace. There are Longquan Mountain in Heilongtan. There are two pools of water at the foot of the mountain. They are clear and turbid, covering an area of 600 square meters. They are interconnected but muddy and muddy, which is a wonder. Like the Daoist Yin and Yang half of Taijitu . The two springs meet each other, but the fish in the two springs do not cross the pool, forming the wonder of the two waters intersect, and the fish do not come and go. Heilongtan is known as the First Ancient Temple in Central Yunnan. At the same time, it is also famous for Tangmei, Songbai, Yuanshan and Mingcha (planted in Tang Dynasty, Song Dynasty, Yuan Dynasty and Ming Dynasty). Longquan Mountain has a tour around the mountain to the wind tower, which is 13 meters high and is a solid tower with seven stories and octagonal eaves. Dingfeng Pagoda is also known as Wenbi Pagoda. Dingfeng Pagoda was built in the Ming Dynasty, and was rebuilt in the second year of Xianfeng in the Qing Dynasty (1852). The Seven-level pagoda is built of dolomite with fine sculpture, dignified sculpture and carved with the names of four Taoist gods. It is also inscribed with the Records of Restoring the Five Laoshan Dingfeng Pagoda and the Taoist Yuhuang Xin Yinmiao Sutra. According to the inscription of the restored monument, the restored monument is to make Longquan Temple more spectacular, cultivate the wind in the famous mountain meaning the Fengshui Tower of Longquan Temple. In 1993, the wind-fixing tower was rebuilt.
Plum blossom! Young young adults and old adults become goblins and become fairies of all kinds of plum blossoms! The Black Dragon Guan in the ancient red plum and green bamboo trees lay quietly there. Nobody drummed tourists to offer incense and charity. Occasionally, Taoists passed by. It was totally different from the view of other monasteries. They stared at tourists'pockets, full of grabbed light. There is also a vegetarian cafeteria, 13 yuan per person, super good.
A very old park with yellow walls and red gates, suitable for taking photos. In early November, I thought there would be a lot of red leaves🍁, but in fact there were only a few. Ginkgo trees have yellow leaves that look good and are beautiful for taking photos. There are many fat koi in the clear water pond, but the muddy pond is really muddy and you can't see anything. If you are not interested in Taoism, there is no need to come here specifically in November, after all, it is quite far from the city.