[2025 Kaiping Attraction] Travel Guide for Ma-Xianglong Towers Group (Updated Mar)

Even a quick walk through the Majianglong village brought forth quite a different experience from the previous two sites that I visited, the Zili Village and Liyuan Garden. Majianglong Village became a designated diaolou viewing spot more recently than the Zili Village. As a result of becoming a designated tour site, Majianglong Village met a turnaround of its circumstances: a bridge was built to connect the village to the highway network in Kaiping. Majianglong Village was established in the late 19th to early 20th century. Five villages make up the hamlet. The villagers are of the Huang and Guan clans. In this village about 13 diaolou’s are located along a shady path that meanders through other shorter, century-old village homes. It is in this wholesome setting that one embarks on a heritage walk full of pleasant surprises. It was near-poetic to walk through Majianglong Village and its diaolou cluster. It was a world in itself with an environ that fuses nature seamlessly with human footprints. The Tianlu Lou is namely the most famous of all the diaolou’s in Majianglong Village. As a zhonglou, it came into existence by the villagers’ pooling of funds intended for a communal residence with defensive features. 29 villagers of the Huang’s contributed to the construction of Tianlu Lou in 1925. It is believed that Tianlu Lou costed 12,000 silver coins to build. The nature of a zhonglou is seen in how the villagers used this building. In this part of Kaiping at those times, the bandits menaced the villagers. The bandits eyed the enormous wealth of the overseas Chinese and abducted young children for ransom. Tianlu Lou was for the male members of those families that contributed funds to this building to rest at night. #diaolou #kaiping #guangdong #jiangmen #overseaschinese #majianglong #历史古迹 #architecture

Life advice: You must visit the Kaiping Diaolou Transportation: I drove here with my friends. It took about 1.5 hours from Guangzhou. I recommend driving because the diaolou clusters are far apart. If you don't drive, you can take a high-speed train from Guangzhou, which takes about 1 hour. Tour route: It was already noon when we drove from Guangzhou to Kaiping, so we found a restaurant in Chikan Ancient Town. The food was unexpectedly delicious. After lunch, we went straight to the famous Zili Village. There are many small diaolou on the way from Chikan Ancient Town to Zili Village, which you can visit for free. After arriving at Zili Village, we bought tickets for CNY 78 per person. Zili Village is the village with the most concentrated diaolou. The ticket includes access to 3 diaolou, including Yeshengluju, Lanshengluju, and Mingshilou. Mingshilou is the most magnificent both inside and out. It was a filming location for Let the Bullets Fly! The rooftop is a great place to take photos, so don't miss it! After visiting Zili Village for 3 hours, we went to the neighboring Zuzhai Village and visited the legendary internet-famous toilet, as shown in picture 18. It is called the Zuzhai Village AAA Tourist Toilet. Next to it is the World Heritage Corridor Bridge. In addition, Zuzhai Village also has many diaolou. You can visit the Guanyin Hall, Foxiaolou, and other buildings in Diao Zhuang for CNY 30. It's definitely worth a visit! Due to time constraints, we didn't have time to visit Liyuan Garden and the Majianlong Diaolou Cluster. If you want to explore in depth, it's a bit rushed to visit 3 places in one day with a combo ticket, so I recommend visiting over 2 days. So I'll save these two places for next time! Kaiping is definitely a place I'll visit again. I highly recommend it! You'll definitely feel the deep love of overseas Chinese for their homeland and marvel at the brilliance of folk architecture. The Kaiping Diaolou is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, so history and architecture lovers shouldn't miss it!

Friends! Kaiping has an unmissable attraction - Diaolou, a perfect combination of Chinese and Western architectural styles. It is a good choice for the elderly. Come and feel the charm of the world cultural heritage! . Recommended attractions: Chikan · Guangdong Overseas Chinese International Tourism Resort ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Address: No. 18, Guzhen Avenue, Chikan Town, Kaiping City Opening hours: 09:00-22:00 Duration: 3-4 hours More than 600 arcades show the beauty of Chinese and Western architecture. Chikan Ancient Town is a good place to experience Lingnan and overseas Chinese culture. Zili Village Diaolou Cluster ⭐⭐⭐ Address: Kaiping Diaolou, Kaiping City, Jiangmen City Opening hours: 09:10-17:50 Duration: 2 hours Zili Village Diaolou Cluster is a perfect blend of Chinese and Western architectural culture, allowing you to appreciate the unique architectural art and profound historical culture. Li Garden Diaolou Cluster ⭐⭐⭐ Address: Genghua Village, Tangkou Town, Kaiping City, Jiangmen City, Guangdong Province Opening hours: 09:00-17:55 Duration: 2-3 hours Li Garden is a perfect blend of classical and modern styles, with gardens within gardens and scenery outside scenery. It is a good place to relax, with profound culture and exquisite decoration. Jiangmen San Shisan Xu Street ⭐⭐⭐ Address: Xingning Road, Pengjiang District, Jiangmen City, Guangdong Province Opening hours: All day Duration: 2-3 hours The ancient arcade street is a good place to stroll and feel the ancient charm of Jiangmen, as if you were traveling back in time. Majianglong Diaolou Cluster ⭐⭐ Address: Majianglong Village, Baihe Town, Kaiping City, Jiangmen City Opening hours: 09:20-17:45 Duration: 2-3 hours Majianglong Village has beautiful ecology and well-preserved Diaolou. The integration of Chinese and Western architectural culture allows you to travel through history and nature. . Essentials: 🧳 👕 Clothing: Kaiping is a little cold in January, so bring a thick coat, long pants, thermal underwear, and comfortable sneakers. 🎒 Accessories and others: Power bank, charger, umbrella, sunscreen, and portable camera to record the beautiful scenery. 📘 Documents and cash: ID card, cash, and some change for emergencies. . Come to Kaiping and feel the wonderful integration of history and nature. You will be reluctant to leave and will not regret it! 🌄

The construction of the Majianglong Diaolou Cluster was entirely due to the specific social background and regional environment at that time, characterized by rampant banditry and frequent floods. Built in the 1920s and 1930s, these buildings typically range from 2 to 7 stories and harmoniously integrate local traditional living environments with advanced Western architectural techniques and cultural connotations. The styles include the Chinese hard mountain top, English and German castle styles, and European and American villa styles; the wall structures consist of mud-wood, brick-wood, and reinforced concrete structures; the doors and windows are made of thick steel plates, very sturdy. There are private towers and collective towers, with the private ones being funded by overseas Chinese, compatriots from Hong Kong and Macau, or by local villagers, while the collective towers were built with pooled funds. The Majianglong Diaolou played an active role in protecting the lives and property of the local villagers.

Zili Village Diaolou Group, located in Kaiping, Jiangmen City, Guangdong Province Also known as the Chinese Western-style Houses, they were built by overseas Chinese about 100 years ago and were registered as a World Heritage Site in 2007. I was also stationed in Malaysia and was interested in overseas Chinese history, so this was a place I really wanted to visit. The Western-style houses standing in the idyllic rural scenery give you an indescribable nostalgic feeling. It's about a two-hour drive from Guangzhou, so it's possible to do a day trip. If you're going there for the sole purpose of visiting, a day trip would be fine, but there aren't any other interesting places nearby, so it might be better to visit while you're out somewhere else.