Leshan overview 乐山

About Leshan

Its older name, Jiazhou, survives in the streets and local food culture of the urban centre. A visit works best as more than a hurried photograph of the statue: give the cliff-side monument its own session, then cross back for riverside walking and Leshan snacks. Mount Emei is a separate mountain excursion requiring another transfer and a realistic allowance for ascent.

Leshan's urban center was already the seat of Kaiming, King of Shu, more than 2,000 years ago. The Han dynasty established Nan'an County there, and the Northern Zhou dynasty later created Emei County and Pingqiang County. Under the Sui dynasty, Emei County was renamed Qingyi County in 589 and then Longyou County in 590, before a separate Emei County was set up again in 593. Longyou County was the seat of Jiazhou (嘉州) in the Tang dynasty, was reorganized as Jiading Prefecture (嘉定府) in the Song dynasty, and became Jiading Direct-administered Prefecture in the Ming dynasty. Jiading Prefecture was restored in 1734, when Leshan County (乐山县) was also established.

Leshan sits in central Sichuan province in the hilly southwest of the Sichuan Basin. The city's north lies within the Chengdu Plain, its east is hill country, and its southwest is mountainous, with alluvial flatland along the riverbanks. Leshan borders Meishan to the north, Zigong and Yibin to the east, the Liangshan area to the south, and Ya'an to the west. It is designated a National Historic and Cultural City (国家历史文化名城) and a China Outstanding Tourism City (中国优秀旅游城市).

What to look for

• The Giant Buddha and Lingyun hillside give the river junction its defining landmark.
• The old urban centre offers a contrasting evening of riverside streets and local snacks.

Location & getting there

Getting to Leshan

Arrive at Leshan railway station, then take local transport to the city centre or the separately signed Giant Buddha visitor area. Emeishan station serves the mountain side of a combined trip; the two stations are not interchangeable.