Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. China

Zhangjiajie is the oldest of China's national parks and perhaps the most remarkable. Opened in 1982, ten years later it was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. More than 500 species of animals live in the park, including civets, monkeys, birds and salamanders. Rare plants such as gingko, pigeon tree, mahogany also grow here. In addition, in this area of ​​Hunan Province there is the Tianzishan Geopark, known for its mountains of amazing beauty, and Soxiuy Park, notable primarily for the huge Huanglong Cave, the largest hall of which can accommodate ten thousand people. Since Zhangjiajie is a popular tourist area, excellent hotels and restaurants with excellent cuisine are open here. And as a keepsake, guests can buy products made by the craftsmen of the local Miao, Tujia and Bo peoples, who lived in these lands for many thousands of years and developed original crafts, the secrets of which were passed down from generation to generation.

It also houses the world's tallest free-moving elevator, Bailong. The two-story elevator cabin can accommodate 50 people. It delivers visitors to the observation deck, located at an altitude of 360 m. The complex includes 3 such elevators with a carrying capacity of 3750 kg each. The walls of the elevator are transparent, so strong-willed passengers, along with a small dose of adrenaline, can enjoy contemplating the mountain landscapes that open to them.

Another attraction of the park is a natural 40-meter stone arch. The local slopes of the mountains are riddled with caves. The interiors are decorated with impressive stalactites, and the largest cave reaches an astonishing 142 meters in height. The abundance of bright neon lamps add a wonderful play of light and shadows.

They tried to give each rock a name, for example, this one is a chicken:

Zhangjiajie is located in the northwestern part of the Hunan province of China. Its population is approximately one and a half million people. Near the city is Wulingyuan District, on the territory of which the Zhangjiajie National Park is open with an unusually diverse flora and fauna. The city has its own airport, which receives flights from all major cities in China. In the Zhangjiajie region, in addition to ethnic Chinese (Han), the Miao, Tujia and Bo peoples also live, who have their own original culture.

Main plot: rocks, forest and river,

but it can be taken in different ways.

There are a lot of snakes here, but people love them.

You can get here by bus

go up the cable car

and where it is not, a couple of strong guys are at your service,

You can't build elevators everywhere.

It has its own language, its own songs.

Mountain tea is grown here,

The famous film "Avatar" with stunning special effects made an impression on the whole world. Flying among the high cliffs made me follow the rapid movements of the heroes with bated breath. Most viewers believe that the mountains from the movie "Avatar" are completely computer modeled, they do not exist in nature. It turns out they are real!

Pandora country in China

Strange mountains were not chosen by chance by the creators of the picture. The special effects are just an addition to the unusual view of the Wulingyuan mountain range. The mountains of unearthly Pandora on Chinese soil are real wonders of the nature of our planet.

You can visit the Wulingyuan National Park, which houses the mountains from the famous Avatar movie, at any time. Only 158 yuan - and you can explore the unearthly landscape for 2 whole days. Touch so easy! In China, they now say: "Pandora is far away, and the mountain" Hallelujah, Avatar "is close!" And they are waiting for guests who want to see the high cliffs that inspired the creators of Avatar.

Mountains from the film Avatar in China photo

Zhangjiajie park in China is now famous not only as the most beautiful national forest park, but also as a place where the acclaimed "Avatar" was filmed. It seems to me that being here is a great success. The park makes you fall in love with it from the first glance at its unusual rocks floating in the morning haze and from the first breath of its fresh forest air.

A bit about the history of the park

China's Zhangjiajie National Park was founded in 1982, and shortly thereafter it was deservedly accepted into the UNESCO World Heritage List. In general, these most beautiful places have long been known to mankind, many legends and tales are associated with them. One of them says that a long time ago, during the times of fierce wars, one of the commanders of the Yang clan set up his camp at the foot of the city of Tianzi. Since the war lasted for many years and decades, the sons and grandsons of the commander and his army settled these lands. After that, the area acquired its name, which in Chinese means "land of Yang."

Zhangjiajie has always been popular with tourists, but after the fantastic Avatar was released and the audience heard that this particular park was the prototype of the landscapes depicted in the film, the influx of visitors became even greater.

Important! There are especially many tourists in the park from May 1 to May 3 and from October 1 to October 7 (national Chinese holidays), as well as in July-August during the summer holidays. If you want to explore the park calmly and leisurely, without standing idle half the time in queues and without crowding to take pictures of some beautiful place, I strongly advise you to choose another time for your trip.

Zhangjiajie main attractions

First of all, the park fascinates with natural beauties. Stretching over a huge area, the park combines picturesque mountain landscapes, the peaks of which are lost in the clouds, dense green slopes covered with forests and thin sparkling streams of streams and waterfalls.

Did you know? A characteristic feature of the park are frequent fogs, which, softly enveloping the ground, give the landscapes an even more mysterious look.

The park has the richest flora and fauna, there are many rare animals and plants, including salamanders, civets, rhesus monkeys, ginkgo trees, mahogany and many others.
Thanks to the mild climate and the absence of sudden changes in temperature, walking in the park will be a real pleasure.

Important! You will really have to walk a lot in Zhangjiajie - I advise you to think about comfortable shoes and clothes in advance. If you are not in the best physical shape, or just to save time, I recommend using cable cars to climb the mountain peaks. Although this will require additional financial costs, it will save your energy for sightseeing.

So, what are the main attractions of the park?

Mountains of Avatar. First of all, most tourists tend to see this particular attraction, thanks to which the park has gained a new life.

There are a lot of high lonely mountains, as if floating in a fog, in the park. Their formation is associated with the gradual weathering of rocks.

Did you know? One of these rocks was even renamed "Avatar Aliluyah" after the release of the film.

The zone of the park, in which there are especially many "soaring" mountains, is called Yuanjiajie. Here, by the way, there are many sculptures depicting those very avatars - hardly anyone can resist the opportunity to take a picture with these fairy-tale characters.

yangjiajie park. Some consider it a separate park, others - only the Zhangjiajie zone. Be that as it may, this attraction attracts crowds of tourists.

Mount Tianzi. This attraction is popular not only for its natural beauty, but also for another interesting architectural object - the Imperial Palace.
As for me, this is too big a name for a building of this size, but the building is really beautiful, made in the traditional style.

golden whip stream. This is a very picturesque stream, walking trails along which stretch for 8 km. There are not as many tourists here as in other places, so if you want to enjoy the babbling of a stream and the singing of birds in relative solitude, this is the place for you.

By the way, a big plus of this place is the ease of overcoming the route - the stream is located in a valley at the foot of the mountains, so your walk here will not require steep and long climbs.
There are many more valuable and unusual places in the park, but these are perhaps the most important ones.
On many routes and paths of the park you will meet wild monkeys. These cute creatures make visitors fall in love with them - especially their kids.

Important! But do not lose vigilance - one of the most favorite activities of monkeys is theft. They often snatch packages and bags from the hands of tourists and run away with them high into the trees.

What to see around Zhangjiajie?

• tianmenshan mountain. The most popular among tourists is Mount Tianmenshan. It reaches 1518 m in height and is one of the main attractions of the area.

Did you know? There is a legend associated with the mountain that it warns the locals about upcoming changes. They say that before important historical events, a waterfall begins to flow from the mountain top.

• Another popular attraction is located on Tianmenshan - the picturesque Heaven's Gate Cave. The best way to get to the top of the mountain is by using the cable car. By the way, this cable car is the longest in the world. There is also an interesting route - Faith Path in Zhangjiajie, which is an interesting structure: it is a narrow path with a glazed bottom, laid along a cliff. Not everyone decides to go through it, although in fact it is absolutely safe.
• Yellow Dragon Cave. An equally popular attraction is the huge Yellow Dragon Cave, which reaches a height of 140 m. It is one of the largest karst caves on the planet. Thanks to the most beautiful interior "decoration", consisting of bizarre and unusual shapes and shades, the cave is considered magical. Inside, you can also see numerous underground rivers and pools, as well as waterfalls.
• fenghuang. Although it is small, it is a very ancient and beautiful city that attracts tourists primarily with its architecture. His little wooden houses look really "Chinese" and very picturesque. The atmosphere in the city is indescribable.
• Lake Baofeng. This picturesque reservoir fits so harmoniously into the surrounding landscape that it is hard to believe that it does not have a natural origin.
• Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon. Not far from the National Park, there is another popular attraction - the Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon, where, in addition to beautiful walking trails and a magnificent lake, there is another iconic place: the suspension glass bridge - the longest and narrowest in the world.

Yellow Dragon Cave

Entertainment and attractions of the park

• Undoubtedly, the main entertainment of Zhangjiajie is the walk itself in the park.
• In addition, climbing to its sights with the help of cable cars or Bialong lift can also become an exciting adventure.
• It also has its own small railway. You can comfortably and have fun seeing some of the sights while traveling by mini train.
• Many come to large glass bridge or on the path of faith to "tickle" your nerves.
• The park has many cafes and restaurants where you can have a good time and have a tasty meal.
• In Zhangjiajie, located near the National Forest Park, there are many restaurants and entertainment facilities where you can enjoy your leisure time.

Elevator Bialong

How to get to Zhangjiajie National Park?

Getting to the park is quite easy.

1. First you need to get to the city of Zhangjiajie. Since it has its own airport, the easiest way is to fly here by plane. There are regular flights from Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Xi'an, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and many others.
2. From the airport, you can either get to the city or directly to the park using taxi or bus. If you are thinking about how to get to Zhangjiajie as quickly as possible from Beijing or Shanghai, perhaps air travel would be the best option.
3. Also you can get to Zhangjiajie by train. It will take much longer, but the cost of such a trip is lower.
4. If you are already close to Zhangjiajie, you can use bus services. However, from such cities as Shanghai, Changshi, Wuhan and others, buses also regularly travel here, but this is far from the most convenient way to travel - traveling by train or plane is much more comfortable. I advise you to choose them in order to save energy and nerves for visiting the park.
5. From the city you can get to the national park by bus or order a taxi.

Important! Taxi drivers like to overprice a ride, insist they use a meter or bargain.

Immediately I advise you to choose the sights that you want to see in the first place - the park has three entrances, and you need to get to the entrance that will be closest to the objects you have chosen.

Zhangjiajie Park or Avatar Mountains (video)

Beautiful video about Zhangjiajie park. Happy viewing!

Prices, promotions and opening hours of Zhangjiajie Park

The opening hours of the park differ between summer and winter.

• In summer, the park is open from 6:30 to 19:00, in winter from 7:30 to 17:00.
• Prices for visiting the park also differ at different times of the year. In winter, visiting is much cheaper.
• You can buy two types of tickets: a ticket for 4 days will cost you about $38, a ticket for 7 days will cost about $46.
• For an additional fee, you can also order a porter service.

Important! The ticket price also includes transportation by buses within the park. You will have to pay extra for the use of cable cars, an elevator and a local train.

The park is constantly running a lot of promotions.

• Students under the age of 24 pay half the cost of visiting.
• The same applies to pensioners from 60 to 69 years old. People over 69 pay even less.
• Children up to 120 cm can visit the park completely free of charge, and children from 120 to 150 cm also pay half the price of tickets.

I sincerely invite you to visit the Avatar Mountains in China - my favorite Zhangjiajie National Park.
I hope I have given you all the information you need to plan your trip. If you have any questions or you have already been to Zhangjiajie Park and you have something to add to what has been said, I will be very glad to hear your comments.

Basic moments

The beauty of this part of the Wulingyuan mountain system was also appreciated by European tourists. They are advised to plan their trips for autumn and spring, with the exception of early May and October, when China celebrates national holidays and the park fills with crowds of tourists. In summer, at the peak of the season, it is also very crowded here: if it is still possible to find deserted corners while walking in the park, then cramming into a crowded bus or being left without a place to spend the night due to booking overlays is below average pleasure. In winter, the rocky peaks look extraordinarily impressive, but walking along the snow-covered mountain paths is simply dangerous.

The Zhangjiajie National Park was especially popular with James Cameron's film "Avatar", where he acted as the scenery of the planet Pandora. It was from the unusual rocks of the park, thanks to special effects, that fantastic mountains were created, floating in the air. To attract tourists and as a token of gratitude to Cameron for advertising, the Chinese in 2010 officially renamed the 1080 m high South Pillar of Heaven into Mount Avatar Hallelujah.

History of the name Zhangjiajie

Chinese scientists offer several options for the etymology of the name of the park, but most serious historians are inclined to believe that the name of Zhang Liang is hidden in it. This disgraced aristocrat played a prominent role in the formation of the Han Dynasty, but was forced to hide in the vicinity of the future reserve with his family back in the 2nd century BC. Here he died and was buried - this is reliable information, it is confirmed by numerous written sources. Then legends begin for gullible tourists: guests of the region are still shown several graves of Zhang Liang in different parts of Hunan. The "main" of them is located near the village of Zhangjiajie at the borders of the park.

National park in numbers

Initially, in 1982, the park occupied a modest area of ​​only 4810 hectares. After 10 years, the Wulingyuan Mountains, and with them Zhangjiajie, were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. After receiving international recognition, its size increased to 130 square kilometers. It contains 243 mountains. The average height of the rocks is 800 m, but there are also almost three-kilometer giants. The most popular viewpoint, Huangshi, rises 1,300 meters above sea level with exactly 3,800 steps leading up to it. 19.4 m - the height of the largest stalagmite in the Huanglong cave.

Zhangjiajie rocks - a unique natural monument

At first glance, the rocks resemble easily collapsing limestones, but their nature is completely different. The mountains, resembling giant figured candles, appeared as a result of the weathering of quartz sandstones and the subversive work of plant roots, which are myriad due to high humidity in Zhangjiajie. They use the slightest opportunity to seize new territories: the slightest ledge is enough to immediately occupy it with green growth. The tops of the rocks are covered with thick caps of conifers. When fog comes to the mountains, and in Zhangjiajie this happens with enviable regularity, a complete illusion of giant stone fragments floating in the air is created.

Main tourist routes

There are many hiking trails in Zhangjiajie National Park for every taste, but there are sites that you must visit. First of all, this is the Huangshi observation deck and the Golden Whip spring, stretching for 7.5 km in length, is a real paradise for plants. The sights are connected by a cable car, but there are no bus routes nearby, and all the load during a three-hour walk will fall on the feet of travelers. At the end of the Golden Whip, there is a Bailong observation elevator - roads approach it.

On Mount Tianmen, to the top of which 999 steps rise, the Heavenly Gate was built. For the strong in spirit, roads with a glass floor are laid: the sensation of crossing the abyss that tickles your nerves is difficult to convey in words.

As an alternative for those who are not ready to move a lot, they offer the Yuanzhazhe zone with a spectacular Enchanting Terrace. A little more crossings are waiting for the guests of the park in the central zone. Crowds of tourists enter the territory during the day, in the morning and in the evening it is relatively sparsely populated. Unaccompanied night walks are not recommended for safety reasons as the park is not lit.

The observation deck is not for the faint of heart

Flora and fauna of the reserve

Zhangjiajie is primarily a zoological, botanical and geological reserve, and only then a natural attraction for tourists. Scientists have discovered more than 500 species of animals here, including monkeys and predatory civets, trying to stay away from humans. Travelers will remember the fan-shaped leaves of gingko - a valuable breed that came to us from the Permian period. There are no animals, insects and reptiles dangerous for tourists.

The population of the natural park

Despite the difficult terrain, the first human settlements appeared in Zhangjiajie 100,000 years ago. In the historical era, the neighbors treated the tribes inhabiting this area with some prejudice, calling them "rude people", however, Tujia, Bai and Miao did not seek to imitate the Han and retained many elements of national costumes and some ancient customs to our time. Modern representatives of these peoples successfully earn money by serving tourists: they sell food and souvenirs, work as rickshaws, rent corners in village houses for rent.

Information for tourists

Getting to the natural park is quite difficult even for Chinese from other regions, but the result is worth it. Those who endure the many hours of travel to Zhangjiajie County can consider that they have already almost reached the goal. Buses and trains with transfers run from all sides of China, travelers from Beijing and Shanghai are preferable to use the plane. Upon arrival in the city, the tourist has two options: take a taxi and independently negotiate with the driver about the route, not forgetting that English is not in use here.

The second option is to trust public transport. From the bus station there is a city bus that will take guests to one of the three entrances to the park in about an hour. In terms of cost, it is 5-10 times cheaper than a taxi - 11-12 yuan. The easiest way to navigate the stations and entrances and exits to the reserve is with a map, which is sold at the tourist office at the railway station. For Russian-speaking tourists, a map with English names is suitable. Most of the signs in the park and on the approaches to it are written in Chinese and English, in other cases: in restaurants and hotels, travelers are encouraged to use gestures.

Where to stay

Seeing the park in a day is an impossible task, so tourists are advised to stay in a village called Zhangjiajie, typical for this area, so as not to travel from the city. Most of the inhabitants of this locality are employed in the tourism business, so here you can find good compact hotels and decent food. Accommodation is also provided in the park itself, however, it is intended for unpretentious guests who do not require special comfort, although there is a shower with hot water in the rooms and the Internet is available. But those who settled for the night in the reserve will not have to stand in the morning in a long line of people who want to get inside Zhangjiajie.

Experienced tourists warn that even on weekdays, when there are not too many people, it takes at least 2 hours to wait for all those who got up early to pass.

The cost of housing in the park is quite affordable: one place in a common room will cost 40 yuan, in a double room - 120 yuan, but guests who know how to bargain discount the price by a third. You can eat in rather expensive restaurants at hotels or buy food in markets near bus stations. There, guests will be offered simple fried potatoes, cakes, and fish.

The cost of walking in the park

Entrance to the territory of Zhangjiajie National Park is paid, there are two types of tickets. The first is designed for a two-day stay and costs 245 yuan, sometimes the conditions change, and for the same amount they offer 3 days. A weekly ticket costs a little more - 298 yuan. Visitors over 70 years old, teenagers and young people under 24 years old with a valid student ID pass at reduced rates of 160 and 193 yuan, respectively. Children up to 120 cm tall will get into the park for free. The ticket entitles you to bus rides inside the park. This advantage is worth taking advantage of, since it is difficult to overcome steep ascents and descents on foot.

Some services are paid extra: travel on a miniature train, as if transferred here from an average amusement park, ascents and descents on the Bailong elevator, built right in the rock. Their cost is up to 80 yuan per action. Buses do not run along the Golden Whip, but smart rickshaws scurry along the paths trodden by numerous visitors. Their services are not cheap: one "run" costs at least 300 yuan.

How to save money while traveling in the park

Inside Zhangjiajie, tickets are not checked very actively, so you can live there with a two-day pass longer than the paid period, if you do not leave the territory of the reserve. Bypassing the ski lifts, alternative hiking trails are always provided. In order to climb and descend them without stress, you need good physical fitness, since the plateau on which the reserve lies rises 300 meters above the surrounding landscape. In addition, hiking will take about the same time as standing in line at the elevator . You can also save money on accommodation: local residents rent out rooms cheaper than in a hostel, but you will also have to negotiate with them with gestures.

How to dress and what to bring

When buying an entrance ticket, you can ask that the luggage be delivered to the selected hostel if the place is booked in advance. It is physically difficult to carry bags around the territory, there are no flat areas in the reserve. Shoes are chosen comfortable, with non-slip soles, since it often rains in Hunan. It doesn't hurt to bring a jacket or raincoat with you. By the way, the constant cloudiness of Zhangjiajie Park does not in the least interfere with photography, on the contrary, it creates a unique visual effect of traveling in the clouds. Drinking water is sold in different parts of the park, but outside it is somewhat cheaper.

243 mountains and over 3,000 jagged karst peaks rise majestically from a misty subtropical forest in the Zhangjiajie region of northwestern Hunan province, China. Their concentration in one area is not found anywhere else in the world.
Some of them resemble dilapidated medieval castles, others resemble the prow of a huge ship, and in others you can see the figures of people or animals. Fluffy pines curved at incredible angles on sheer cliffs complete the picture.
There are about 3,000 species of plants in the reserve, but, of course, we are not going there for them at all. We are going to photograph the mountains made famous by the movie "Avatar" - China's "soaring mountains"!

In a nutshell, Zhangjiajie is a place that definitely needs to be seen with your own eyes. At least once in a lifetime. In my personal it occupies one of the first lines. Not in vain zhangjiajie national park became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992.

Somewhat later, already in the 21st century, Zhangjiajie became truly famous all over the world thanks to James Cameron's film Avatar, which, according to rumors and unverified information, was inspired by the landscapes of this place. Rumors are rumors, but now in the park almost every corner hangs faded posters with blue faces and landscapes of fantastic Pandora, beloved by millions of viewers. By the way, now Zhangjiajie is one of the most visited national parks of china, and, unlike the vast majority of other parks, here you can sometimes even meet European faces.

Of course, in reality, the mountains in Zhangjiajie don't steam. But damn it, when a thick fog slowly rises from the lowlands in the morning, hiding the foothills of these unusual karst peaks, you are almost ready to believe it! A spectacle, indeed, as if not from this planet. In a word, you need to go, pack your bags!

The following information will be very useful to you if you plan to visit Zhangjiajie on your own. And you can see the recommended programs for visiting the park with photos of each place.

When is the best time to go to Zhangjiajie?

When planning a trip to Zhangjiajie, be sure to consider the following points:

1. Weather. She is unpredictable here. That is, one day (or maybe not one) you may not see anything AT ALL due to continuous fog. I remember when I took the Bailong elevator on the first day of my arrival: everything was relatively good below, and after a couple of minutes the elevator just floated into the cloud! And spent the rest of the day in it. .
2. Chinese tourists. It has been proven that a group of 3 Chinese tourists makes about as much noise as a group of 30 Europeans. And there are hundreds of these groups. Especially during peak season and weekends. Accordingly, it is advisable to visit the reserve from Monday to Friday, avoiding July, August (and preferably the whole summer) and the first weeks of May and October (national holidays in China).

How to navigate and what to see in Zhangjiajie

First you need to get there, which is not as easy as it might seem at first glance. As I described in detail in a separate article, I hope it will be useful to you, but now about orientation in the park itself.

Here is one of the more basic maps of the park, slightly edited by me for clarity. There are more detailed maps, but drawing something else on them means completely overloading it. I tried to make it so zhangjiajie map was as simple and clear as possible.

Zhangjiajie National Park can be divided into 2 main levels: the upper (I will call it a plateau) and the lower. On the map, the top level is filled with light green. Roads used by inter-park buses are drawn in black, and pedestrian routes are in orange. The names on the map do not match those that are today, so I marked all the most important places with numbers (there is no guarantee that the names will not change again in a year - this is China).

The main tourist areas are marked with red numbers, the main points in them are marked with blue.

From the lower level to the plateau, you can climb in several ways:

1. cable car in Huangshi area. This is the tourist area number 1, marked on the map. This mountain can be combined with the Golden Whip stream, for example, going up the cable car, and going down on foot. The main inconvenience of this tourist zone is the lack of a road connecting it with other zones on the plateau. Therefore, I do not include it in the program of my tours and do not describe it here.
2. Bailong elevator (number 9 on the map). Very conveniently located in the center of the park, at the end of the Golden Whip route. After passing this route, you can climb it on a plateau to the Yuanzhazhe tourist zone (No. 2), and then move on by bus with pedestrian crossings.
3. cable car to Tianji mountain. It can be climbed from the western entrance to the park. Leads to the tourist zone No. 3 (Tianji).
4. a staircase of 3,800 steps to Huanshi Mountain is an alternative to the cable car in zone No. 1.
5. several stairs of different lengths approximately in the middle of the Golden Whip route, each in the region of 3000 steps.
6. 2 different stairs (one of them passes through the Southern Heaven Gate, the other through the "10-mile gallery") - alternative routes to the tourist zone No. 3 (to the top of Tianji).

The main long stairs are marked with red steps I drew.

Key tourist areas in the park are marked on the map as 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 in red font). I have already given the concept of the first three, zone No. 4 is the route along the Golden Whip stream on the lower level of the park, zone No. 5 is the central one.

Turzone No. 4 (Golden Whip)

This beautiful route is the main one that all tourists follow who got into the park through the southern entrance. The route follows the lower level from the south entrance to the Bailong elevator. On the map, this is the orange line from zone 1 to the elevator (9). Takes 2-3 hours. Staircase 11 takes 2-3 hours straight to the Yuanzhazhe Hostel (quite a beautiful track), staircase 10 is faster (1.5 - 2 hours), but steeper and not at all so beautiful, climbs to the Enchanting Terrace. Along the route of the Golden Whip there are signs leading to the stairs.

Tourist Zone No. 2 (Yuanzhazhe)

The Yuanzhazhe area has the largest number of beautiful views of Zhangjiajie Park in a relatively small area. All terraces of the area are required for inspection.

The bus from the Bailong elevator (number 9) stops near the Enchanting terrace (yes, all the names here are very pretentious). From there you can go to the First Bridge on Earth, past the formidable bastions of the absolutely incredible rocks of Zhangjiajie, as if violating the laws of physics. It will take 1-2 hours to inspect the entire terrace. On the map, the terrace is indicated by point 5.

Alternatively, staircase 10 leads directly to the terrace, starting approximately from the middle of the Golden Whip, and numbering about 3000 steps. With heavy bags and especially suitcases, do not even think about it.

IMPORTANT! The roads on the lower and upper levels, which are so close on the map, do not really touch. The bus on the lower level takes you to the lower station of the elevator, ANOTHER bus at the top picks up from a stop 5 minutes walk from the upper station.

After exiting the terrace, you are directly at the bus stop of a long route that runs all over the plateau from Yuanzhazhe to Tianjishan. The next fixed bus stop is Wolong village (number 6 on the map). From the village begins the road / stairs to the Tianbo Palace (Tianbo mansion) and One step to heaven (One step to heaven). Both places are worth visiting (but not the best). The whole way there and back will take 1-2 hours. A cable car is being built in this place, perhaps, when you read this, it is already functioning.

Turzone No. 5 (central)

After returning to Wolong village, you take a bus and drive for 20 minutes to the central area (zone 5). There you will find a staircase about 600 steps down (and then, of course, up) to the observation points Celestial bridge (left in the picture), Cock pecking, Emperor's throne, One dangerous step (One dangerous step). All the points are good - on a solid four, located 10-15 minutes walk from each other, so it's very possible to visit. The only strain is the stairs.

Tourist Zone No. 3 (Tianjishan)

N.B. The noisiest of all tourist zones. It has the highest concentration of Chinese tourists. Music and cries of guides amplified by horns can be heard at a distance of several kilometers.

After exploring the central area, you get back on the bus and drive another 20 minutes to the next stop - the Shentang gulf platform (14). Of course, there is no bay there, but this is one of the best places to watch the sunset. Half an hour to an hour for inspection.

You don't have to wait until the next bus stop - it's a 10-minute walk there. It's called the Arranging battles platform, 15. It's beautiful too. On inspection 20-30 minutes.

Then you can take a bus to the final station - Helong Park (16). You can also walk - 20 minutes on foot along the road. Behind the park, another bus can take you to the upper station of cable car 13, which goes to the western entrance. 12 is its lower station, from where the bus runs along the lower level.

Alternatively, you can go down on foot in two ways. More precisely, at first there is only one path, and it passes by the temple, and then after a while it forks. To the right (or, more accurately, straight ahead) is the 10-mile gallery. To the left - descent through the Southern heavenly gates (Southern heavenly gate). Both descents are good. The 10-mile gallery objectively contains more open views, but, accordingly, almost all Chinese tourists walk along it, and a tourist train passes at its lower part. Descent through the gates of heaven - fewer views, but there is actually a gate of heaven (I don’t know about you, but I really wanted to go through it) and there are almost no tourists at all.

The 10-mile gallery is marked on the map with the number 7, the path through the gate is 8.

As you can see, there is another long climb to the central area, but I did not climb it. I had enough lifts without him.

I hope you did not have an apoplexy from information overload and you managed to more or less understand the map.

Of course, such a large park is almost impossible to see in one day. Therefore, tickets to Zhangjiajie are sold immediately for 3 days, at least at the time of this writing (the Chinese tend to change everything quite often). I wrote a separate article on how to best plan your . By the way, the ticket is damn expensive - 245 yuan! But this is the trouble that one has to face in all the sights of China, and the more famous the attraction, the more expensive the entrance to it. Zhangjiajie is No. 2 in the Chinese top, and No. 1 is.

The ticket price includes an unlimited pass for trips inside the park on buses. But the cable car and the Bailong elevator cost some money, and again a lot: 60-80 yuan.