Things to do in Dushan

No. 1 of Best Things to Do in Dushan

Dushan Tiandong Scenic Area

Tiandong Attraction includes Tiandong, Tianta, Tianwang Square, Dendrobium Officinale Theme Sightseeing Garden, Celebrity Botanical Garden, Imperial Garden, Tianyi Lake, Buyi Ethnic Customs Village, Baisui Spring, Qiansui Spring, Wanshou Lake, Tourist Reception Center, Tourist Trail, Gate Tower, etc. The terrain here is flat, with the confusing wonders of karst caves as the guide, the theme of flowers rising from flat ground and hundreds of flowers competing for beauty, the clue of human stories, and the connotation of human health and longevity, creating a characteristic cultural and leisure Attraction with the theme of heavenly culture.

Jiafengyan Scenic Area

Jiafengyan Scenic Area is located in Wengtai Village, Yingshan Town, Dushan County, Qiannan Prefecture, Guizhou Province,leveraging its high-quality natural landscapes and unique canyon wonders to create a tourist destination that integrates canyon sightseeing, leisure, educational study tours, and regional cultural creativity, featuring local Yingshan characteristics.

No. 12 of Family-friendly Attractions in Guizhou

Libo Cool Park

Libo Cool Play Forest is located in the Sancengdong County-level Nature Reserve in Jialiang Town, Libo County, Guizhou Province. In the 6,000-acre primeval forest, there are hundreds of natural caves scattered around. The primeval forest is dense, with a wide variety of rare animals and plants, and the terrain is complex and changeable. There are mainly Qinglong Cave, Jiuzhong Cave, Fairy Cave, Stone Forest, Water Forest, Wild Boar Forest, Cliff Coffee, Mountaintop Swing, Water Mirror Station, Saddle Pastoral Scenic Belt, Meitao Tea Garden and other attractions. Relying on its unique mountain tourism resources, it carries out jungle hiking, cave exploration, zip line, bungee jumping, high-altitude slackline, hand-rowed transparent boat, cave restaurant, camping and other entertainment projects. It is a unique tourist destination in Libo, and Libo has created a demonstration site for the integration of sports and tourism. A 3-kilometer hike into the sparsely populated primeval forest, with primeval jungles, stone forests and a large number of rare plants along the way, is an ideal place for forest health care and outdoor classes. A special wild luxury cave hall! Completely different from all the caves you have been to, you can eat hot pot in the cave, and there are even cave bars and camping. This wonderful experience can go viral on short video platforms and WeChat Moments! With a helmet headlamp, you will be a cool explorer. You can enter the underground cave through the zipline and discover the inner world of the earth, stalactites, fossil walls, lotus ponds, underground rivers, etc., challenge the 21-meter-high bungee jumping machine, and row a transparent glass boat in the underground river. This will be an extraordinary experience you have never had before. A high ratio of professional outdoor coaches, all coaches have passed 60 hours of intensive training and have more than 2 years of outdoor experience to ensure your safety!

2026 Global 50 - Cool Water Escapes

Libo Xiaoqikong Scenic Area

Libo Xiaoqikong Scenic Area is located among the peaks in the southern part of Libo County and is named after a seven-arch stone bridge built during the Daoguang era of the Qing Dynasty over the Xiangshui River. Set against a karst landscape, the scenic area brings together mountains, waters, forests, caves, lakes, and waterfalls, and is known as the "emerald on the Earth's belt." The Xiaoqikong ancient bridge is the attraction's signature view. The seven-arch stone arch bridge, built of bluestone, spans the Xiangshui River. Beneath the bridge, the water of Hanbi Pond is deep blue, and ancient trees tower on both banks, making it a classic photo spot. Following the Xiangshui River downstream, the 68-tier waterfall cascades in overlapping layers, with the river water dropping step by step over the karst rock surface with a roaring sound. Nearby, the Laya Waterfall pours down from the cliff beside the path, and visitors can feel the mist on their faces up close. The water forest is another unique view in the attraction, where trees take root among the streams in the water. Visitors walk along the stone stepping path through the forest, with babbling water beneath their feet and a canopy of green shade overhead. Mandarin Duck Lake is formed by two large lakes, the Male Mandarin Duck Lake and the Female Mandarin Duck Lake, connected with several small lakes. The lake surface is emerald green and serene, and boats can pass through the trees growing in the water. Wolong Pond is the surface outlet of an underground karst river. An arc-shaped stone embankment encloses the underground river water into a deep pond, and the water is as green as jade. Where the water overflows the stone embankment, a rolling-water waterfall forms, creating a striking contrast between the still pond and the moving waterfall. The area around the attraction is home to ethnic minorities such as the Bouyei and Yao, and villages like Yaoshan Ancient Village retain traditional dwellings and ethnic customs, adding cultural richness to the natural scenery. The attractions are distributed along the Xiangshui River; touring from Wolong Pond and Yuanyang Lake all the way down to the Xiaoqikong Ancient Bridge, walking along the stream is relatively effortless.

du shan xian

Zilin Mountain National Forest Park

Dushan Zilinshan National Forest Park is located in the central-northern part of Dushan County, in the southernmost part of Guizhou Province. It is a national 3A-level tourist attraction. The park covers a total area of 3,529 hectares and is currently divided into three independent scenic areas: Cuiquan Scenic Area, Wulongshan Scenic Area, and Zilinshan Scenic Area. The average altitude of the scenic area is 1,050–1,200 m, with a forest coverage rate of 81.72%. It is a demonstration area for forest park vacations in Guizhou Province and one of the 100 key tourist attractions under development in Guizhou Province. It offers sports and leisure activities such as a swimming pool, tennis court, gym, grass skiing field, zipline, outdoor outward bound training, and forest exploration, creating an eco-tourism destination that features sightseeing, leisure, sports, and conferences.

2026 Asia 100 - Best Things to Do

Huangguoshu Scenic Area

The Huangguoshu Scenic Area is located in Anshun, Guizhou, centered around the Huangguoshu Waterfall. Surrounded by deep gorges, dense vegetation, and dotted with limestone caves and stone forests, it is a typical karst landscape area. The waterfall's name originates from the locally abundant "Huangguoshu" (Ficus virens). Ming Dynasty traveler Xu Xiake visited and documented this site, contributing to its fame. The scenic area primarily consists of three main sections: the Great Waterfall, Tianxing Bridge, and Doupotang. Most travelers follow the sequence of Doupotang, Tianxing Bridge, and finally the Great Waterfall, saving the most spectacular view for last. The grand waterfall has a drop of nearly 80 m and a width of over 100 m. The Baishui River plunges from the cliff top into Rhinoceros Pool, creating a vast mist. Multiple viewing platforms around it allow visitors to experience its grandeur, wonder, steepness, and beauty from different angles—above, below, front, back, left, and right. A particularly unique experience lies behind the waterfall: a 100 m long Water Curtain Cave runs horizontally through its midsection, featuring cave windows and halls. Reaching through a window, one can touch the cascading water. The cave served as the filming location for the Water Curtain Cave in the 1986 TV series Journey to the West. Due to the heavy humidity inside, bringing a raincoat in advance is recommended. Tianxing Bridge is renowned for its harmonious blend of rocks, water, trees, and caves—where rocks rise from the water, caves hide within rocks, and trees stand beside caves. The stepping stones along the path are engraved with dates, allowing travelers to find their own "birthday stone." The attraction is divided into upper and lower sections. Many travelers turn back after completing the upper section, missing the Silver Chain Waterfall in the lower part—where water cascades like silver chains into a funnel-shaped pool, the highlight of Tianxing Bridge. The Doupotang waterfall is located approx. 1 km upstream from the grand waterfall. With a width of over 100 m at its crest, the water spreads out smoothly like a beaded curtain. During the high-water season, its deep roar earns it the nickname "roaring waterfall." The scene of the four pilgrims leading their horse across the river in the 1986 TV series Journey to the West was filmed here. In summer and fall, the waterfalls are full and powerful, while in winter and spring, the flow becomes gentler, offering different viewing experiences. Nearby, visitors can also enjoy local snacks like sticky rice, love tofu, and Anshun spring rolls.

2026 Asia 100 - Best Things to Do

Fanjing Mountain

Fanjing Mountain is located in Tongren City in the northeastern part of Guizhou Province. It is the main peak of the Wuling Mountains, spanning the junction of three counties: Jiangkou, Yinjiang, and Songtao. Its highest peak, Fenghuang Mountain, rises over 2,500 meters above sea level; the Old Golden Summit is over 2,400 meters, and the New Golden Summit, also known as the Red Cloud Golden Summit, is over 2,300 meters. The three peaks stand side by side in majestic grandeur. Fanjing Mountain was originally named "Three Valleys Mountain," derived from "Fanjing Pure Land." Buddhism was introduced to this area during the Song Dynasty and flourished in the Ming Dynasty, when temples and monasteries dotted the mountain. Because its towering height rivaled the Five Great Mountains, the ancients honored it as "the patriarch of famous mountains." The Red Cloud Golden Summit is the iconic view of the entire mountain—a solitary peak rising straight from the ground and piercing the sky. The Golden Knife Gorge splits the summit from top to bottom into two halves, with only a narrow canyon where one can climb up along iron chains, and the gorge tops are connected by a flying bridge, making it extremely precipitous. At the summit, the Shakyamuni Hall and the Maitreya Hall face each other, serving as the core symbol of the Maitreya sacred site. The three main peaks connect to form a reclining Maitreya statue stretching over 10,000 m, which locals call "Fanjing Mountain." The Mushroom Stone is another representative view—a sandy slate pillar that is large at the top and small at the bottom, shaped like a mushroom, approx. 10 m tall, appearing on the verge of toppling yet having stood for many years. The surrounding stone forest peak clusters, such as the Ten Thousand Scrolls of Scriptures and Eagle Rock, are geological relics formed over a billion years ago and sculpted by wind and rain erosion. The mountain also preserves a well-intact subtropical primary ecosystem, where the Guizhou golden snout monkey is distributed, and ancient rare plants such as the dove tree also thrive and reproduce here. In fall, the layered forests are dyed in brilliant colors, and the red leaves in the mountains set off the ancient temple; you can take a cable car to overlook the autumn colors across the mountain, or follow the mountain trails to experience them up close.

2026 Asia 100 - Family-friendly Attractions

Zhong Guo Tian Yan Jing Qu

Zhong Guo Tian Yan Jing Qu is nestled among the karst mountains of Pingtang, Guizhou. Built around the 500 m aperture spherical radio telescope FAST, it consists of two parts: the observation deck area in the mountains and the Pingtang Astronomy Town in Kedu Town. This telescope, known as the "China Sky Eye," rests in a natural funnel-shaped depression. More than 4,000 reflector units form a spherical-cap "wok," with a receiving area equivalent to nearly 30 football fields, and its aperture ranks among the world's largest among completed radio telescopes of its kind. From the proposal of the concept in the 1990s to its completion and commissioning in 2016, the project took more than 20 years, with site selection alone lasting over a decade. Astronomer Nan Rendong, who initiated and led the project, is therefore called the "father of China Sky Eye." Climbing to the observation deck to see the "big dish" is the highlight of the whole trip. To leave a quiet electromagnetic environment for the telescope, before entering the mountains you must store all electronic devices such as mobile phones, cameras, and smartwatches at the visitor service center, then transfer to a shuttle bus to reach the foot of the mountain and hike up more than 700 steps. Zodiac constellation patterns are embedded beside the steps, and if your stamina is limited you can also take a sightseeing bus instead. Standing on the observation deck at the summit, the 500 m aperture silver-gray "big dish" spreads out completely among the mountains, and the tiered viewing platforms let you examine its outline from different heights. There is no signal on the mountain, and you cannot take out your phone to take photos; this temporary "isolation from the world" is exactly the quiet that this telescope needs to work properly. The astronomy town at the foot of the mountain is a good place to round out the science popularization portion of the visit: the astronomy experience hall features themed exhibition halls on radio astronomy, galaxy exploration, and solar science popularization paired with sound, light, and electric interactive exhibits, and the on-site astronomical cinema screens astronomy films; electronic devices are allowed here, so you can take photos freely; the Nan Rendong Memorial Hall tells the story of the project from conception to completion in six chapters, and after seeing it, thinking back on that "pot" at the top of the mountain will feel very different; for a more thrilling experience, the motion seats in the dome flight theater can take you on a simulated "flight" over the telescope and the karst mountains. This telescope undertakes scientific tasks such as surveying neutral hydrogen in the universe, searching for pulsars, detecting interstellar molecules, and searching for signals of extraterrestrial civilizations, and it has discovered more than a thousand new pulsars since it began operation. With this background in mind, looking again at that "big wok" quietly "listening" to the universe, it is not just an artificial wonder, but more like a tireless listener to the cosmos.

No. 1 of Best Things to Do in Guilin

Elephant Hill Scenic Area

The Elephant Hill Scenic Area is located in the heart of Guilin, at the confluence of the Li River and the Peach Blossom River. It derives its name from its resemblance to a giant elephant stretching its trunk to drink from the sweet waters of the Li River. In his work "Records of Elephant Hill," Shu Shu, a Qing Dynasty official from the Ministry of Works, wrote: "The marvels of Guangxi lie in its mountains; the marvels of Guangxi's mountains lie in their rocks, and the elephant-shaped hill facing the provincial capital is the most marvelous of all." With its lifelike form, the attraction captivates visitors and stands as a quintessential representation of Guilin's landscape. In 1995, it was designated as the city emblem of Guilin. The main attractions in the scenic area include: Elephant Hill and Water Moon, Puxian Pagoda, Elephant Hill Scenic Area and Guilin Sanhua Liquor, Elephant Hill Scenic Area - Love Island, and Elephant Hill Scenic Area - Yunfeng Temple Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Exhibition Hall. Elephant trunk hill and water moon cave "Elephant trunk hill and water moon" is a spectacular wonder here, as described in the poem by Ji Bei Hermit of the Song Dynasty.Harmony of water, moon and caveThe poem reads: "The moon is beneath the water, the moon floats upon the water. The water flows but the moon stays, the moon departs yet the water still flows." On a moonlit night, visiting the Water Moon Cave at the Elephant Trunk Hill attraction presents a magical scene where the moon in the sky, the cave, and the water reflect each other beautifully. Inside the cave, you can find the "Poem and Preface of the Morning Sun Pavilion" by Zhang Xiaoxiang from the Song Dynasty and works by Fan Chengda.Inscription on the water and moon caveAnd over 50 precious cliff carvings including Lu You's poetry manuscripts. Xiangshan scenic area - Puxian pagoda Winding up along the rocky cliffs, you can see the Puxian pagoda standing tall amidst the greenery from afar. Built during the Ming dynasty, this 13.6m-high solid brick lama-style pagoda has a history of over 400 years. On the northern side of the pagoda, there is a line-engraved bluestone statue of a bodhisattva, with the mantra "Namo Puxian Bodhisattva" inscribed above it, hence the name Puxian pagoda in the Xiangshan attraction. Buddhist scriptures record that Puxian bodhisattva's mount is a six-tusked white elephant, making the pagoda's location atop Xiangshan mountain a perfect embodiment of this scripture. Elephant Hill Scenic Area and Guilin Sanhua liquor This is a natural wine cellar, with two-thirds of the mountain being hollow. It stays warm in winter and cool in summer, maintaining a constant temperature of 19°C and humidity above 90% year-round. Since the Song Dynasty, it has served as an official cellar for storing Sanhua wine. Sanhua wine is colorless and transparent, with a fragrant yet spicy taste. It drawsLi RiverWith the essence of the mountains and the soul of the Li River, it has become a representative of China's rice-aroma liquor. The cellar liquor was designated as a tribute to the imperial court as early as the Northern Song Dynasty and is one of the three treasures of Guilin. To date, nearly a thousand tons of liquor are stored in the caves. Love island Love island is located on the north side of the attraction, adjacent toLi RiverIt is another scenic viewpoint for distant viewing. The island boasts a beautiful environment and lush vegetation, making it a popular dating spot for locals in the 1970s, hence the name "love island". Today, it serves as an outdoor photography base for wedding celebrations against the backdrop of Guilin's landscape, where couples make their vows of love under the witness of the elephant trunk hill and the moon reflected in the water.