Prefecture-level city · Henan

Kaifeng 开封市

Kaifeng (开封市) lies in east-central Henan (河南) on the flat plain of the middle and lower Yellow River, with Zhengzhou to the west and the Yellow River along its northern edge. It has long been known as the 'ancient capital of eight dynasties' and the 'water city of the north'.

Location of Henan, the surrounding province-level areaView province guide

Get to know Kaifeng

Songdu Imperial Street in Kaifeng (开封宋都御街), showing its traditional-style shopfronts.
Songdu Imperial Street in Kaifeng (开封宋都御街), showing its traditional-style shopfronts. Photograph date recorded by the source: 2012-08-22. · Shootingstar221 · CC BY-SA 3.0
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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
Henan
Chinese name
开封市
Local areas
9 local areas

Area & population

Area in the source
6,247.00 km²
Population · 2020 census
4,824,016
Administrative seat
Longting District

Source: cited geographic source, as of the dates shown.

Setting and landscape

The land is level, between 68 and 78 metres above sea level. The floodplain north of the Yellow River dyke drains to the Yellow River, while everything south of it belongs to the Huai basin, and five lakes and four rivers ring the city centre.

History

The Xia, the Warring States kingdom of Wei, four of the Five Dynasties, the Northern Song and the Jin all made their capitals here, and the city counts more than 4,100 years as a town and capital. Under the Northern Song, the city government says, it was the largest city in the world. Zhang Zeduan's (张择端) scroll Along the River During the Qingming Festival (清明上河图) was painted here, and the figures of Kaifeng's past include Lord Bao (包公) and Yue Fei (岳飞). Kaifeng was among the first national historic and cultural cities. Kaifeng pangu drumming (开封盘鼓) is on the national intangible heritage list.

What to see

The Iron Pagoda (铁塔), completed in 1049, is a 13-storey octagonal tower about 55.8 metres tall, clad in glazed bricks whose rust-brown colour gave it its name; its patterned bricks carry more than 50 designs, from standing Buddhas to musicians and lions. Daxiangguo Temple (大相国寺), founded in 706, was both a centre of Buddhism and a great market under the Northern Song; a Yellow River flood destroyed it in 1642, and most of its halls are Qing rebuilds. The Song-themed Qingming Shanghe Yuan (清明上河园) is a national 5A scenic area. Longting Hall (龙亭大殿), the city wall, the Shan-Shaan-Gan Guild Hall (山陕甘会馆), the site of the Northern Song capital and the tomb of Jiao Yulu (焦裕禄), held up as a model county Party secretary, are national key cultural relics protection units.

Food and local products

China News Service calls Kaifeng a main birthplace of traditional Henan cuisine (豫菜). Breakfasts include mutton or beef soup, hulatang (胡辣汤) and pan-fried buns; long-established names include Diyilou's soup dumplings (第一楼灌汤包) and Mayuxing's tongzi chicken (马豫兴桶子鸡), and classic dishes include carp with baked noodles (鲤鱼焙面) and the nested 'four treasures' (套四宝). Woodblock New Year prints were already made at Zhuxian (朱仙镇), south of the city, under the Northern Song, printed in colours ground by hand from minerals and plants; they entered the national heritage list in 2006, and Bian embroidery (汴绣) is listed too.

Sources for this guide

开封市_行政区划_河南省人民政府门户网站 · Henan Provincial People's Government portal (text from the Kaifeng Municipal People's Government)

开封市 - 维基百科，自由的百科全书 · Wikipedia (Chinese) · CC BY-SA 4.0

开宝寺琉璃塔 - 维基百科，自由的百科全书 · Wikipedia (Chinese) · CC BY-SA 4.0

大相国寺 - 维基百科，自由的百科全书 · Wikipedia (Chinese) · CC BY-SA 4.0

古都开封：传承豫菜文化 打造“美食之都”-中国侨网 · China News Service (chinanews.com report republished on chinaqw.com)

朱仙镇木版年画 - 中国非物质文化遗产网·中国非物质文化遗产数字博物馆 · China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Original English written from the listed sources and checked sentence by sentence against quoted extracts by a separate reviewer. Updated 2026-09-30.

Explore Kaifeng

Core places to explore, with English and Chinese names.

Places to explore around Kaifeng

A surviving stretch of Kaifeng city wall beside a modern road. Photographed on 31 May 2025.A surviving stretch of Kaifeng city wall beside a modern road. Photographed on 31 May 2025.

Kaifeng开封

Kaifeng’s former capital status is visible through a mixture of surviving monuments and later recreations. The Song-period Iron Pagoda provides an architectural anchor, while Daxiangguo Temple and the raised Dragon Pavilion…

Read the place guide →The Iron Pagoda in Kaifeng, Henan, photographed in September 2013.The Iron Pagoda in Kaifeng, Henan, photographed in September 2013.

Iron Pagoda铁塔

Kaifeng’s Iron Pagoda is built of brick faced with dark glazed decoration, whose colour explains its name. The thirteen-storey octagonal tower dates to the Northern Song and rewards close viewing as much as a distant photograph…

Read the place guide →AI watercolor illustration of a Song-era-themed park experience inspired by Millennium City Park, Kaifeng; not a photograph.AI illustration; an interpretive view, not a photograph. AI 示意图，非景点实拍。

Millennium City Park清明上河园

Qingming Riverside Garden is a modern recreation inspired by Zhang Zeduan’s painting of urban life along a river. The artificial waterway links market streets, bridges and performance areas, with Rainbow Bridge forming a central…

Read the place guide →Ornate multi-tiered temple hall flanked by two stone pagoda towers under a blue skyMain hall and pagoda towers of Daxiangguo Temple, Kaifeng · 大相国寺大殿与经幢，开封市 Source-recorded photograph date: 2025-06-22 15:23:44.

Daxiangguo Temple大相国寺

Daxiangguo Temple’s present buildings largely reflect rebuilding after the floods that devastated Kaifeng. The sequence of halls is distinguished by sculpture, especially the four-sided, many-armed Guanyin in the octagonal…

Read the place guide →Dragon Pavilion and its ceremonial stairway, Kaifeng · 龙亭Dragon Pavilion and its ceremonial stairway, Kaifeng · 龙亭 Photograph date recorded by the source: Taken on 2 December 2009.

Dragon Pavilion龙亭

Dragon Pavilion stands on a high brick platform above the lakes of northern central Kaifeng. The visible hall belongs to the later history of a site occupied by earlier palaces; it should not be read as an intact Northern Song…

Read the place guide →Main entrance of the new Kaifeng Museum · 开封博物馆新馆入口Main entrance of the new Kaifeng Museum · 开封博物馆新馆入口 Photograph date recorded by the source: 25 October 2024, 13:53:13.

Kaifeng Museum开封博物馆

Kaifeng Museum’s collections offer a way to examine the city’s long history through particular objects. A Northern Song bronze bell inscribed Dasheng Yize connects the former capital with court music, while the stone list of…

Read the place guide →Jiao Yulu Memorial Park (焦裕禄纪念园)Jiao Yulu Memorial Park (焦裕禄纪念园), Lankao County. Photograph: "20260129 Memorial Park of Jiao Yulu 03".

Jiao Yulu Memorial Park焦裕禄纪念园

The Jiao Yulu Memorial Park (焦裕禄纪念园) in Lankao County, Kaifeng, Henan, is the burial place of Jiao Yulu, the county party secretary who died in 1964, laid out on the sand of the former Yellow River dyke north of the county town.

Read the place guide →Temple hall with a large incense burner and guardian statues in frontThe main hall of the Yue Fei Temple at Zhuxian Town, Kaifeng · 开封朱仙镇岳飞庙大殿 Source-recorded photograph date: 2010-02-15 13:14:58.

Zhuxian Town Yue Fei Temple朱仙镇岳飞庙

Yue Fei shrine founded in 1478 in Zhuxian, Kaifeng, with iron kneeling traitors, a green-tiled main hall and the Man Jiang Hong stele.

Read the place guide →Qifeng Guyuan Cultural Park (启封故园)Qifeng Guyuan Cultural Park · 启封故园

Qifeng Guyuan Cultural Park启封故园

Qifeng Guyuan (启封故园) is a recently built cultural park at Zhuxian Town in Xiangfu District, Kaifeng, Henan, the scenic area of the Zhuxian Town national cultural and ecological tourism demonstration zone.

Read the place guide →Elaborately carved red and gold archway within the Shan-Shaan-Gan Guild Hall courtyardThe ornate 'Dayi Cantian' archway inside the Shan-Shaan-Gan Guild Hall, Kaifeng · 开封市山陕甘会馆内"大义参天"牌坊 Source-recorded photograph date: 2013-01-04.

Shanxi-Shaanxi-Gansu Guild Hall山陕甘会馆

Kaifeng guild hall of Shanxi, Shaanxi and Gansu merchants from 1776, with carved screen wall, north-facing opera stage, archway and Guan Yu hall.

Read the place guide →Kaifeng Prefectural Government Office (开封府)Kaifeng Prefectural Government Office · 开封府

Kaifeng Prefectural Government Office开封府

Kaifeng Fu (开封府) is a reconstruction of the prefectural government seat of the Northern Song capital, standing on the north shore of the eastern Baogong Lake in Gulou District, Kaifeng, Henan.

Read the place guide →Red-roofed pavilion beside a lake, framed by willow trees, in Iron Pagoda ParkA lakeside pavilion and willow trees in Iron Pagoda Park, Kaifeng · 开封铁塔公园湖畔亭台与柳树 Source-recorded photograph date: Taken on 19 July 2015.

Iron Pagoda Park铁塔公园

Tieta Gongyuan, the Iron Pagoda Park, is a public park in the northeastern corner of old Kaifeng, in Longting District, laid out in 1955 around a Northern Song brick pagoda faced in glazed tile.

Read the place guide →Wansuishan Martial Arts City (万岁山武侠城)Wansuishan Martial Arts City · 万岁山武侠城

Wansuishan Martial Arts City万岁山武侠城

Kaifeng theme park staging a wuxia world: horseback battles, evening iron-flower shows, costumed street actors and the Wang Po matchmaking show.

Read the place guide →Red multi-tiered Dragon Pavilion building atop a stone platformThe Dragon Pavilion in Long Ting Park, Kaifeng · 开封龙亭公园龙亭 Source-recorded photograph date: Taken on 2 December 2009.

Dragon Pavilion Park龙亭公园

Park in central Kaifeng around the Dragon Pavilion, a Qing palace hall on a 72-step brick terrace over the Northern Song palace site.

Read the place guide →

Local life & food

Kaifeng local specialties

开封市特色美食 · 15 specialties to discover

Bianjing roast duck · 汴京烤鸭 · AI dish illustrationBianjing roast duck 汴京烤鸭AI illustration · AI 示意图

Crisp, savory skin contrasts with juicy meat and richer fatty sections. Sauces and wrappers can change the balance of each bite.

Source ↗Read the dish guide →
Kaifeng carp with crisp noodles · 鲤鱼焙面 · AI dish illustrationKaifeng carp with crisp noodles 鲤鱼焙面AI illustration · AI 示意图

Dry strands are initially crisp, then turn pliable as they absorb the tangy sauce. The fish contributes tender flesh beneath the contrasting topping.

Source ↗Read the dish guide →
Kaifeng nested poultry stew · 套四宝 · AI dish illustrationKaifeng nested poultry stew 套四宝AI illustration · AI 示意图

The different meats become tender, with cooking juices sharing their flavor through the layers. It is a rich, portioned banquet dish rather than four separate roasts.

Source ↗Read the dish guide →
Photograph of Kaifeng soup-filled buns (开封灌汤包).Kaifeng soup-filled buns 开封灌汤包

The skin is delicate but resilient, with a savory center and a burst of hot broth. Its texture depends on being eaten soon after steaming.

Source ↗Read the dish guide →
Photo: Gisling · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo adjustments

EXIF orientation applied where present; resized proportionally to at most 640 px on the long edge and encoded as WebP. No crop, retouching, recoloring or subject changes.

Kaifeng sweet-potato paste · 炒红薯泥 · AI dish illustrationKaifeng sweet-potato paste 炒红薯泥AI illustration · AI 示意图

The result is rich, silky and distinctly sweet, with a soft roasted-root aroma rather than the texture of a loose soup.

Source ↗Read the dish guide →
Kaifeng Tongzi chicken · 桶子鸡 · AI dish illustrationKaifeng Tongzi chicken 桶子鸡AI illustration · AI 示意图

Expect a fragrant, savory exterior and meat that is tender but still structured. Skin and bone-in cuts contribute to the eating experience.

Source ↗Read the dish guide →
Kaifeng hot-fried starch jelly · 开封炒凉粉 · AI dish illustrationKaifeng hot-fried starch jelly 开封炒凉粉AI dish illustration / AI 菜品示意图

Expect a slippery, yielding centre with stronger flavour on the outside. The temperature and browned edges distinguish it from a cold liangfen salad. Garlic and fermented seasoning can be more prominent than chilli.

Source ↗Read the dish guide →
A bamboo steamer basket of soup dumplings on a restaurant table.Soup-Filled Steamed Buns 灌汤包

Soup-Filled Steamed Buns (灌汤包) in Kaifeng (开封) combine a thin wheat wrapper with meat and broth.

Read the dish guide →
Photo: Gisling · CC BY-SA 3.0
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.

All dish names · 全部菜名 (15)

More dishes from across Henan are in the Henan food guide.

EXPLORE THE NEXT LEVEL

Counties & districts in Kaifeng

9 areas belong directly to Kaifeng.

9 areas

District

Longting District 龙亭区

Longting District (simplified Chinese: 龙亭区; traditional Chinese: 龍亭區; pinyin: Lóngtíng Qū) is a district and the municipal seat of the city of Kaifeng, Henan province, China.

Explore the area →District

Shunhe Hui District 顺河回族区

Shunhe Hui District (simplified Chinese: 顺河回族区; traditional Chinese: 順河回族區; pinyin: Shùnhé Huízú Qū) is a district of the city of Kaifeng, Henan province, China.

Explore the area →District

Gulou District 鼓楼区

Gulou District (simplified Chinese: 鼓楼区; traditional Chinese: 鼓樓區; pinyin: Gǔlóu Qū; lit. 'drumtower district') is a district of the city of Kaifeng, Henan province, China.

Explore the area →District

Yuwangtai District 禹王台区

Yuwangtai District is a district of the city of Kaifeng, Henan province, China.

Explore the area →
View all 9 areasShow fewer areas

Plan your visit

Build your route

Kaifeng and Iron Pagoda are about 3 km apart in a straight line. The linked place guides have entrance and visit details.

Continue with Henan →

More in Henan

Zhengzhou郑州市 →Luoyang洛阳市 →Pingdingshan平顶山市 →Anyang安阳市 →Hebi鹤壁市 →Xinxiang新乡市 →Jiaozuo焦作市 →Puyang濮阳市 →
Sources & geographic information

Administrative names and parent areas: Official geographic directory · Reference date 2026-09-06.

Some facts checked against 开封市 — Wikipedia contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Some facts checked against 开宝寺琉璃塔 — Wikipedia contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Some facts checked against 大相国寺 — Wikipedia contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Photo: Kaifeng · Yumeto · CC BY-SA 4.0. Proportionally resized and converted to WebP without cropping, retouching or changing the photographed subject.

Photo: Iron Pagoda · Robinlun · CC BY-SA 3.0. Proportionally resized and converted to WebP without cropping, retouching or changing the photographed subject.

Photo: Daxiangguo Temple · Windmemories · 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: Dragon Pavilion · caoyuan · CC BY-SA 3.0. Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.

Photo: Kaifeng Museum · Windmemories · Windmemories — 20241025_Kaifeng_Museum_01.jpg — CC BY-SA 4.0 · 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: Jiao Yulu Memorial Park · Windmemories · CC BY-SA 4.0. 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.

Photo: Zhuxian Town Yue Fei Temple · Windmemories · 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: Qifeng Guyuan Cultural Park · Source photographer · License not provided. EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.

Photo: Shanxi-Shaanxi-Gansu Guild Hall · 偶然好看 · CC BY-SA 3.0. Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.

Photo: Kaifeng Prefectural Government Office · David290 · CC BY-SA 4.0. EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.

Photo: Iron Pagoda Park · 江上清风1961 · CC BY 3.0. Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.

Photo: Wansuishan Martial Arts City · Source photographer · License not provided. EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.

Photo: Dragon Pavilion Park · caoyuan · CC BY-SA 3.0. Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.

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