Get to know Yuyao City
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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
- County-level city · 县级市
- Part of
- Ningbo
- Chinese name
- 余姚市
- Local areas
- County-level city guide
Area & population
- Area in the source
- 1,500.80 km²
- Population · 2020 census
- 1,254,032
Source: cited geographic source, as of the dates shown.
Rice farming and prehistoric craft
Hemudu culture dates to roughly 7,000–5,000 years ago and takes its name from the site in Yuyao. Excavated material includes pottery, bone and wooden objects, woven remains and carbonised rice. Carved ivory depicting two birds facing a sun and a pottery bowl decorated with a pig demonstrate the community’s artistic work alongside evidence of established rice cultivation.
Lakes in the mountains
Siming Mountain National Forest Park (四明山国家森林公园) lies in the mountain interior, with woodland, rock formations and lakes. Named landscapes include Yangtian Lake (仰天湖), Donggu Lake (东谷湖), Xiakeng Lake (下坑湖) and Bailong Pool (白龙潭), where water is enclosed by rock walls.
Sources for this guide
四明山国家森林公园 · Yuyao City Government
河姆渡文化发现50周年考古成果特展亮相国博 走近七千年前的江南水乡-秦风网 · China Discipline Inspection and Supervision News; Shaanxi Commission
Original English written from the listed sources and checked sentence by sentence against quoted extracts by a separate reviewer. Updated 2026-09-30.
Explore Yuyao City
Core places to explore, with English and Chinese names.
Places to explore around Yuyao City
The exterior of the Hemudu Site Museum in Yuyao, Ningbo · 宁波市余姚市河姆渡遗址博物馆外景 Source-recorded photograph date: 2017-08-12 10:41:48.Hemudu Site Museum河姆渡遗址博物馆
Hemudu Site Museum stands beside the archaeological site in Yuyao, within the wider Ningbo area.
Read the place guide →
Siming Mountain Forest Scenic Area · 四明山森林景区Siming Mountain Forest Scenic Area四明山森林景区
The Siming Mountain forest landscape in Yuyao centres on a highland park of mature woodland, rocky slopes and mountain lakes in Simingshan Town.
Read the place guide →Plan your visit
Getting there
Yuyao City is about 50 km in a straight line from central Ningbo. Search for 余姚市 in a map app to find stations and your accommodation.
Where to stay →Build your route
Hemudu Site Museum and Siming Mountain Forest Scenic Area are both listed here. The linked place guides have entrance and visit details.
Continue with Ningbo →More in Ningbo
Sources & geographic information
Administrative names and parent areas: Official geographic directory · Reference date 2026-09-06.
Photo: Hemudu Site Museum · Siyuwj · 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: Siming Mountain Forest 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.