One-day/Half-day Guilin Downtown Landscape & Culture Hike

Solitary Beauty Peak, also known as Purple Hill, is located in the Jingjiang Princes City with reputation of “Southern Heaven Pillar”. At the foot of Solitary Beauty Peak, there is a Longevity Palace first built in Tang Dynasty, while a Solitary Beauty Pavilion is standing at the top. You can have a bird’s view of beautiful Guilin when you climb up 396 stone steps to the top. Dushu Rock, Taiping Rock and Crescent-shape Pond are at the foot of Solitary Beauty Peak while many ancient inscriptions are on the eastern side of the peak, for example “East or west, Guilin scenery is the best”. Other famous attractions include Snow Cave and Zhongshan Monument. 

Jingjiang Prices City, praised as a “city in a city”, was built in Ming Dynasty with a history of more than 630 years. During the 257 years from its completion to the collapse of Ming Dynasty, 14 seigniors had lived here. Jingjiang Princes City became the Examination Compound in the Qing Dynasty. Covering an area of 19.78 hectares, Jingjiang Princes City composes of Chengyun Gate, Chengyun Palace, Palace Harem and Imperial Garden with other 40 rooms, pavilions and chambers. Listed as “the key cultural relics of national level”, Jingjiang Princes City is an irreplaceable scenic spot in Guilin. 

If you want to enjoy picturesque mountains and crystal clear waters, Solitary Beauty Peak, famous royal treasure hill is your best choice. If you want to read the history of Guilin, Jingjiang Princes City will meet your need.

Tips:
1. Opening Hours: 9:30am—5:30pm
2. How to Get Here: No.1, 10, 11, 14, 100 Buses.

Folded Brocade Hill, with an elevation of 73m, locates to the northeast of Guilin, facing beautiful Li River. As a beautiful and well-known hill, Folded Brocade Hill consists of Mingyue Peak, Crane Peak, Siwang Hill and Yuyue Hill, covering an area of 2km². Many amazing attractions such as Folded Brocade Pavilion, Yuyue Pavilion, Wind Cave and Wangjiang Pavilion etc. are on the hill. Besides, inscriptions on precipices carved by celebrities of all the precious dynasties are the essence of all relics.

Folded Brocade Pavilion, with a height of 5m, length of 7.5m and width of 8.5m, is architecture with single story, 4 angles, flat rooftop, red pillars and green tiles. With Yuyue Hill to the east, Siwang Hill to the west and Bright Moon Peak to the north, Folded Brocade Pavilion is harmonious with the surroundings. Stone benches standing from east to west, the northern side is the best place to appreciate the fantastic “folded brocade” and is an ideal place for rest. To the west of the pavilion, an inscription by Yu Qing of Ming Dynasty is also worth of visiting.

Wangjiang Pavilion is halfway up the hill and built during the reign of Emperor Zhengde (1506-1521) of the Ming Dynasty. Rebuilt in the years of 1954 and 1990, Wangjiang Pavilion is a pavilion with ancient style, 6m in height and dihedral angles. On the wall, a cliff inscription was carved as “a place for seeking adventures”.

Water System in Guilin, also known as “Two Rivers and Four Lakes”, consists of Li River, Peach Blossom River, Ronghu Lake (Banyan Lake), Shanhu Lake (Fir Lake), Guihu Lake (Osmanthus Lake) and Mulong Lake (Wooden Dragon Lake). This round-the-city waterway is 7.33km in length with an total water surface area of 385.9 thousand km².

According to historical records, this circular water system was first existed in Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). At that time, Ronghu Lake, Shanhu Lake and Guihu Lake were linked together and numerous visitors had cruised on it. However, some ponds and waterways had been blocked because of the urbanization process. After over 1,000 days and nights’ hard work, this new Water System was open to navigation on June 2nd, 2002.

There are two kinds of ways to enjoy this splendid water system—cruising on sight-seeing ship and walking on foot either at daytime or in the evening. Water system includes three main scenic areas: Ronghu Lake & Shanhu Lake Scenic Area—perfectly displaying an artistic conception of “the city of Guilin is surrounding by picturesque scenery while the scenery can be seen everywhere in the city”; Guihu Lake Scenic Area—traditional and exotic pavilions standing harmonious with numerous colorful trees and flowers; Mulong Lake Scenic Area—highlighting the features of the natural landscape combing with historical cultures and architectures.

Water System in Guilin, a passionate and imaginative project, can be compared with the waterways of Venice, the Seine of Paris and the Amsterdam Canal. At present, it is one of the hottest attractions with high reputation in Guilin and attracts tens of thousands of visitors every year.

Tips:
1. How to get the docks
    Zhiyintai Dock: No.2 and No.23 Buses, get off at Elephant Hill Stop.
    Wenchang Bridge Dock: No.2, No.16 and No.23 Buses, get off at Wenchang Bridge Stop.
    Six Horse Dock: No.10, No.11, No.14, No.18 and No.31 Buses

2. Duration of Visit
    Daytime: 9:30am-6pm
    Night: 7:30pm-9:30pm