Location: |
North of Zhangjiajie, Hunan Province
(29.333353, 110.426213) |
Open: |
no restrictions. Huangshi Village: All year daily 7-18. Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon: All year daily 8-17. [2021] |
Fee: |
free. Huangshi Village: Adults CNY 228. Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon: Adults CNY 138. [2021] |
Classification: | Gorge |
Light: | n/a |
Dimension: | |
Guided tours: | |
Photography: | allowed |
Accessibility: | no |
Bibliography: | |
Address: |
Zhangjiajie National Forest Park.
Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon, Zhangjiajie, Sanguan Sixiang |
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info. |
湖南张家界国家森林公园 (Hunan Zhangjiajie National Forest Park) is located north of the city Zhangjiajie and covers a vast area of mountains, rock formations and gorges. The sites are quite photogenic and you have definitely ist before: this is the region where the flying mountains of Pandora for the movie Avatar where filmed. Vertical walls, narrow ledges with lush vegetation, vast abysses. In reality the mountains do not levitate, that was CGI. And there are normally no flying purple dragons.
The main rock formations are located around Huangshi Village (Yellow Stone Village). There is a saying. Who has not seen Huangshi Village has not seen Zhangjiajie. The outlook Huangshizhai (A=1,080 m asl) is the biggest highlight of Zhangjiajie Forest Park. The best days to see this place is after the rain, and the best day of time is the sunset. Not only is the light great in the early morning, the number of visitors is also quite low. Another great outlook nearby is called Star Picking Stand (A=1,092 m asl).
The Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon is a canyon like part of the area. There are numerous developments, like elevated trails and bridges made of concrete, steel or wood. There is also a glass bridge which costs an entrance fee. It is the largest glass bridge of the world [2021] and was so popular when it was opened that there was the danger of collapse. As a result the bridge was closed for some time while barriers to restrict the number of visitors where installed.
It seems to be quite difficult for foreigners to visit this site because of the enormous number of spots and people. It's hard to pick the most interesting outlooks and avoid the crowds. We recommend booking an organized trip with an English speaking guide.