Wulingyuan 武陵源

About Wulingyuan

It works best as a route-planning region rather than a single stop at one pin. Yuanjiajie and Tianzi Mountain offer high views, while streams and lower valleys reveal the scale of the cliffs from below. The town outside the eastern entrance provides a practical base, but accommodation beside another gate can suit a different route. Tianmen Mountain is a separate attraction and booking.

Before 1984 the name Wulingyuan referred to the legendary Peach Blossom Spring (桃花源) and appeared in classical poetry by Wang Wei, Li Bai and Wang Anshi. After a boundary dispute arose between the neighbouring Zhangjiajie, Suoxiyu and Tianzi Mountain scenic areas, the Hunan provincial government merged them into a single administrative district in 1984, adopting the name Wulingyuan at the suggestion of the painter Huang Yongyu; the calligraphy for the name was written by Communist Party general secretary Hu Yaobang in 1985. The area was listed as a national key scenic area in 1988, following China's first national forest park, Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, established in 1982.

Wulingyuan combines the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park and National Geopark with the Suoxiyu, Tianzi Mountain and Yangjiajie nature reserves, covering a total area of about 391 square kilometres with a core zone of over 250 square kilometres. It is characterised by quartz sandstone pillar-forest landforms, with more than 3,000 irregularly shaped peaks and over 800 streams and ravines, along with karst caves and waterfalls. UNESCO inscribed the site on the World Heritage List as a natural site in December 1992, and it was named among the first group of national 5A tourist attractions (国家5A级旅游景区) in 2007.

What to look for

• The relationship between high sandstone plateaux and the valleys beneath them.
• Distinct forest, Tianzi and Yangjiajie sectors within the wider protected landscape.

Location & getting there

Getting to Wulingyuan

Choose a named Wulingyuan ticket gate and accommodation nearby before leaving Zhangjiajie city. Internal sightseeing transport, ascent options and the final exit should be planned together; a regional map pin is not a visitor entrance.