Get to know Lu'an
Photo adjustments
Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.
- Administrative area
- Prefecture-level city · 地级市
- Part of
- Anhui
- Chinese name
- 六安市
- Local areas
- 7 local areas
Area & population
- Area in the source
- 15,436.00 km²
- Population · 2020 census
- 4,393,699
- Administrative seat
- Jin'an District
Source: cited geographic source, as of the dates shown.
Setting and landscape
The land steps down from the Dabie Mountains in the southwest through hills and ridges to plain in the northeast, and the Jianghuai watershed sends its rivers either to the Huai or to the Yangtze. Six large reservoirs lie within the prefecture: Foziling (佛子岭), Mozitan (磨子潭), Bailianya (白莲崖), Xianghongdian (响洪甸), Meishan (梅山) and Longhekou (龙河口). Tiantangzhai (天堂寨), on the border with Luotian County (罗田县) in Hubei, is a 5A scenic area and national nature reserve that the provincial government bills as the last primeval forest in East China, and the city names Baimajian (白马尖) as the main peak of the Dabie range.
History
The city government traces its story to more than 4,000 years ago, when Yu the Great (禹) enfeoffed descendants of Gao Yao (皋陶) at Ying (英) and Liu (六), which is why Lu'an is also called Gaocheng (皋城). In 206 BC Xiang Yu (项羽) made Ying Bu (英布), a native of Liu, King of Jiujiang with his capital there, and in 121 BC Emperor Wu of Han created the state of Lu'an, the first use of the name. The city counts the Three Kingdoms general Zhou Yu (周瑜) and the Song painter Li Gonglin (李公麟) among its famous people. Lu'an was also the core of the Hubei–Henan–Anhui revolutionary base, where the Red 25th Army and eleven other main Red Army units were formed.
What to see
Jinzhai (金寨), known as the 'county of generals', has the Jinzhai Revolutionary Martyrs Cemetery (金寨县革命烈士陵园) at Meishan town, combining a memorial tower, the Jinzhai Revolutionary Museum and a Red Army graveyard. The city's tourism routes also take in Wanfo Lake (万佛湖) and Wanfo Mountain (万佛山), the Foziling Reservoir, the Yanzihe Grand Canyon (燕子河大峡谷) and the tomb of Gao Yao on the edge of the city.
Food and local products
Lu'an Guapian (六安瓜片), which the city lists among China's ten historic famous teas, is made from single melon-seed-shaped leaves without buds or stems, picked in the ten days either side of the Grain Rain solar term (谷雨) and fired repeatedly until a white bloom appears. Huoshan Huangya (霍山黄芽), grown above 600 metres in Huoshan (霍山), was a tribute tea from the Tang to the Qing. Yingjia Gongjiu (迎驾贡酒) liquor comes from Foziling in Huoshan, and Huoshan dendrobium (霍山石斛) is a prized medicinal herb.
Sources for this guide
概述篇_六安市人民政府 · Lu'an Municipal People's Government
历史篇_六安市人民政府 · Lu'an Municipal People's Government (text from the Lu'an Party History and Local Chronicles Office)
地理篇_六安市人民政府 · Lu'an Municipal People's Government (text from the Lu'an Party History and Local Chronicles Office)
旅游篇_六安市人民政府 · Lu'an Municipal People's Government (text from the Lu'an Culture and Tourism Bureau)
风物篇_六安市人民政府 · Lu'an Municipal People's Government (text from the Lu'an Party History and Local Chronicles Office)
险奇幽深——天堂寨_安徽省人民政府 · Anhui Provincial People's Government
金寨县革命烈士陵园_安徽省人民政府 · Anhui Provincial People's Government
Original English written from the listed sources and checked sentence by sentence against quoted extracts by a separate reviewer. Updated 2026-09-30.
Explore Lu'an
Core places to explore, with English and Chinese names.
Tiantangzhai 天堂寨
Wanfo Lake 万佛湖
Wanfo Mountain 万佛山
Dushan Revolutionary Sites 独山革命旧址群
Yanzihe Grand Canyon 燕子河大峡谷
Jinzhai County Revolutionary Museum 金寨县革命博物馆
Baimajian Peak 白马尖
Foziling Reservoir 佛子岭水库
Tongluozhai Scenic Area 铜锣寨
Jin'an District 金安区
Yu'an District 裕安区
Yeji District 叶集区
Huoqiu County 霍邱县
Shucheng County 舒城县
Jinzhai County 金寨县
Huoshan County 霍山县
Places to explore around Lu'an
Cable cars ascending the forested peaks of Tiantangzhai · 天堂寨索道与群峰景观 Source-recorded photograph date: 2012-08-06.Tiantangzhai天堂寨
Tiantangzhai straddles the Dabie Mountains’ divide between the Huai and Yangtze drainage systems. On the Anhui side, waterfalls and forested valleys provide a clear focus: Jiuying Waterfall is one named stop in the cascade area…
Read the place guide →
Wanfo Lake · 万佛湖Wanfo Lake万佛湖
Wanfo Lake in Shucheng is the visitor landscape around Longhekou Reservoir, with islands, wooded shores and dam-related history.
Read the place guide →
AI illustration · AI 示意图（仅供参考，非该地点实拍）Wanfo Mountain万佛山
Wanfo Mountain in southwestern Shucheng belongs to an outer range of the Dabie Mountains, rising to the 1,539-metre summit of Laofoding.
Read the place guide →
Dushan Revolutionary Sites · 独山革命旧址群Dushan Revolutionary Sites独山革命旧址群
Dushan's revolutionary historic sites in Yu'an District bring together former Soviet county institutions and later memorials to the 1929 uprising.
Read the place guide →
AI illustration · AI 示意图（仅供参考，非该地点实拍）Yanzihe Grand Canyon燕子河大峡谷
Yanzihe Grand Canyon in Jinzhai County combines the Lvzhu River's rock-cut valley with the cliffs and waterfalls around Tiankeng.
Read the place guide →
Jinzhai County Revolutionary Museum · 金寨县革命博物馆Jinzhai County Revolutionary Museum金寨县革命博物馆
Jinzhai County Revolutionary Museum in Meishan presents the county's revolutionary history through historical displays and the lives of people from the area.
Read the place guide →
Baimajian Peak · 白马尖Baimajian Peak白马尖
Baimajian in Huoshan County is the highest peak of the Dabie Mountains, rising to 1,777 metres.
Read the place guide →
Foziling Reservoir · 佛子岭水库Foziling Reservoir佛子岭水库
Reservoir in Huoshan County's Dabie Mountains, behind the 1954 multiple-arch dam officially called 'the first dam in New China', now a national protected site.
Read the place guide →
Tongluozhai Scenic Area · 铜锣寨Tongluozhai Scenic Area铜锣寨
Tongluozhai in Huoshan County combines a 1,096-metre peak, pines growing among rocks and the cliffs and waterfalls of Tongluo Grand Canyon.
Read the place guide →Local life & food
Lu'an local specialties
六安市特色美食 · 9 specialties to discover
Lu'an Guapian Tea-Scented Chicken 六安瓜片茶香鸡AI illustration · AI 示意图（仅供参考，非实拍）
Lu'an Guapian Tea-Scented Chicken (六安瓜片茶香鸡) is listed among the local specialties of Lu'an, Anhui. The name includes 鸡 (chicken). The term 茶 points to tea or a locally named drink.
Read the dish guide →
Huoshan Air-Dried Mutton 霍山风干羊
Huoshan Air-Dried Mutton (霍山风干羊) is listed among the local specialties of Anhui. The name includes 羊 (sheep).
Source ↗Read the dish guide →Photo adjustments
EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.
Jinzhai hanging-pot stew 金寨吊锅AI illustration · AI 示意图
Long cooking makes the ingredients tender and the broth richly savory, while firmer vegetables or dried foods retain some bite.
Source ↗Read the dish guide →
Tiantangzhai Hanging-Pot Stew 天堂寨吊锅AI illustration · AI 示意图（仅供参考，非实拍）
Tiantangzhai Hanging-Pot Stew (天堂寨吊锅) is the one-pot meal of the Tiantangzhai (天堂寨) area in the Dabie Mountains (大别山) of Jinzhai (金寨), Lu'an (六安): an iron pot hung from a roof beam over a fire pit, filled with cooked meats and vegetables and shared by everyone sitting round it.
Read the dish guide →
Shucheng Xiaolanhua Tea-Scented Shrimp 舒城小兰花茶香虾AI illustration · AI 示意图（仅供参考，非实拍）
Shucheng Xiaolanhua Tea-Scented Shrimp (舒城小兰花茶香虾) is listed among the local specialties of Lu'an, Anhui. The name includes 虾 (shrimp or prawns). The term 茶 points to tea or a locally named drink.
Read the dish guide →
Yeji Mutton 叶集羊肉AI illustration · AI 示意图（仅供参考，非实拍）
Yeji Mutton (叶集羊肉) is the mutton cooking of Yeji District (叶集区) in Lu'an (六安), Anhui, which the district put forward as the first of its three signature foods, beside hollow dried noodles and Shazhui tribute fish (沙锥贡鱼).
Read the dish guide →
Huoqiu Braised Goose Pieces 霍邱鹅块AI illustration · AI 示意图（仅供参考，非实拍）
Huoqiu Braised Goose Pieces (霍邱鹅块) is listed among the local specialties of Lu'an, Anhui. The name includes 鹅 (goose).
Read the dish guide →
Jinzhai Red Cured Tofu 金寨红豆腐Reference photo of a similar dish · 同类菜品参考照片
Jinzhai Red Cured Tofu (金寨红豆腐) is not a plain bean curd but a winter preserve from Tiantangzhai (天堂寨) in Jinzhai County (金寨县), Anhui: tofu kneaded with pig's blood and diced pork, shaped into round cakes and cured in the sun or over smoke.
Read the dish guide →
Photo adjustments
Full frame retained; EXIF orientation normalized, proportionally resized to at most 800 pixels and converted to WebP. No generated pixels or subject changes. Cards may crop the display.
All dish names · 全部菜名 (9)
More dishes from across Anhui are in the Anhui food guide.
Counties & districts in Lu'an
7 areas belong directly to Lu'an.
7 areas
Jin'an District金安区
Jin'an District (simplified Chinese: 金安区; traditional Chinese: 金安區; pinyin: Jīn'ān Qū) is a district of the city of Lu'an, Anhui Province, People's Republic of China.
Explore the area →DistrictYu'an District裕安区
Yu'an District (simplified Chinese: 裕安区; traditional Chinese: 裕安區; pinyin: Yù'ān Qū) is a district of the city of Lu'an, Anhui Province, People's Republic of China.
Explore the area →DistrictYeji District叶集区
Yeji District (simplified Chinese: 叶集区; traditional Chinese: 葉集區; pinyin: Yèjí Qū) is a district of the city of Lu'an, Anhui Province, People's Republic of China, bordering Henan province to the west.
Explore the area →CountyHuoqiu County霍邱县
Huoqiu County (simplified Chinese: 霍邱县; traditional Chinese: 霍邱縣; pinyin: Huòqiū Xiàn) is a county in the west of Anhui Province, People's Republic of China, under the jurisdiction of Lu'an City and bordering…
Explore the area →Show fewer areas
Shucheng County舒城县
Shucheng County (simplified Chinese: 舒城县; traditional Chinese: 舒城縣; pinyin: Shūchéng Xiàn) is a county in the west-central part of Anhui Province, People's Republic of China.
Explore the area →CountyJinzhai County金寨县
Jinzhai County (simplified Chinese: 金寨县; traditional Chinese: 金寨縣; pinyin: Jīnzhài Xiàn), previously Lihuang County (simplified Chinese: 立煌县; traditional Chinese: 立煌縣, named after Wei Lihuang), is a county in…
Explore the area →CountyHuoshan County霍山县
Huoshan is a county of western Anhui province, People's Republic of China, and is under the jurisdiction of Lu'an City. It has a population of 370,000 and an area of 2,042 square kilometres (788 sq mi).
Explore the area →No areas match this name.
Plan your visit
Getting there
Search for 六安市 in a map app to find stations and your accommodation.
Where to stay →Build your route
Tiantangzhai and Wanfo Lake are both listed here. The linked place guides have entrance and visit details.
Continue with Anhui →More in Anhui
Sources & geographic information
Administrative names and parent areas: Official geographic directory · Reference date 2026-09-06.
Photo: Tiantangzhai · Jasonfang86 · CC BY-SA 4.0. Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.
Photo: Wanfo Lake · Source photographer · License not provided. EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.
Photo: Dushan Revolutionary Sites · Source photographer · License not provided. EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.
Photo: Jinzhai County Revolutionary Museum · Source photographer · License not provided. EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.
Photo: Baimajian Peak · Source photographer · License not provided. EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.
Photo: Foziling Reservoir · The original uploader was Lastman at Chinese Wikipedia . · CC BY-SA 3.0. EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.
Photo: Tongluozhai Scenic Area · Source photographer · License not provided. EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Pins mark approximate centres, not entrances or boundaries.