The Best National Parks In China
China has some of the most varied and spectacular scenery in the world, and we would like to take you on a journey into this breath-taking and often overlooked aspect of this vast and diverse country.
Jiuzhaigou - Huanglong
As the legend goes, a beautiful goddess received a magic mirror from her warlord lover, but a jealous devil caused her to drop it, and it shattered into over 100 glittering turquoise lakes. With its brightly coloured pools, waterfalls and lush green trees, all set against a backdrop of snowy mountains, Jiuzhaigou really is the gem of China’s natural world.
Zhangjiajie/Wulingyuan
While Jiuzhaigou is often described as a fairyland, Zhangjiajie has perhaps the more truly otherworldly landscape. The most famous of the parks in the Wulingyuan Scenic Area, Zhangjiajie is claimed as an inspiration for scenery in the film ‘Avatar’. Towering sandstone crags, lush forests teeming with wildlife, and frequent mists, all create a general atmosphere of mystery.
Shennongjia
Not just famous for its incredible scenery, Shennongjia is also said to be home to the ‘yeren’, China’s version of the yeti. But while you probably won’t encounter Bigfoot, you can rest assured that the scenery will not disappoint, as you explore the virgin forests and the karst landscape of this UNESCO World Heritage Site, possibly even catching a glimpse of a golden monkey.
The biggest glacier park in China, which can be visited at any time of year, this park offers some spectacular sights which are not usually so easily accessible. Here you can view glaciers said to have formed around 16 million years ago, hot springs, virgin forests, ice lakes and the unique Grand Glacier Cascade, formed from millions of tiny ice cubes.
Li Jiang National Park
“Guilin’s scenery is the best under heaven”. So goes a popular Chinese saying. The area around Guilin has inspired countless poems and works of art over the centuries, and it is not hard to see why. Tourism and development have done nothing to dampen the timeless charm of the karst mountains, rice fields, and river scenery of this gorgeous region.
Take a look at our new tour, The Natural Wonders of China, which takes in some of the most celebrated National Parks in China, as well as some more off-the-beaten-track destinations as well.