A Solo Trip to Zhangjiajie
Used to Shanghai's bustling crowds and city prosperity, after working for over half a year I finally had time to relax, so I was very happy, haha... I wanted to travel south, and friends said Zhangjiajie and Fenghuang were nice. In my memory western Hunan is very mysterious—perhaps a northerner's habitual thinking. Below are several days' feelings and experiences, for those planning to go.
This article is compiled from the original travel notes on the "Zhangjiajie Tour Guide Network" (33519.com); it is a record of trips from earlier years. Time-sensitive information such as ticket prices, schedules, and accommodation prices is subject to the latest announcements from scenic areas and transportation authorities; the itinerary ideas and attraction introductions still have reference value.
Used to the bustling crowds and city prosperity of Shanghai, after working for more than half a year I finally had time to go out and relax, so I was very happy, hehe... I wanted to go south. I heard from friends that Zhangjiajie and Fenghuang were pretty good. In my memory, Xiangxi was very mysterious—perhaps it's a northerner's habitual way of thinking. Below are some feelings and experiences from the past few days, with some suggestions for those planning to go in the future. For reference only; I bear no legal responsibility, hehe.
I. Itinerary
Day 1: You can take the 7:30 PM flight from Shanghai to Zhangjiajie, arriving around 10 PM. Shake off all the guides and touts who come up to you, head straight to the parking lot and take a taxi to the city. You can stay at the Noble Hotel near the city bus station—it's very close to the bus station, so the next morning you can take a bus to the scenic area. Before coming, I had already found a guide online with a good reputation, Guide Wang. By 10:30 when I arrived at the hotel, Guide Wang was already waiting and had helped me book a room. After settling in, we agreed to get up at 7 the next morning and then went to sleep.
Day 2: Got up at 7 AM, had a simple breakfast, met Guide Wang downstairs at the hotel, walked 5 minutes to the bus station and took a bus to Zhangjiajie National Forest Park (the large scenic area has two main entrances: Forest Park and Wulingyuan). About an hour later we arrived at Forest Park. Itinerary: Forest Park—Golden Whip Stream—Water Around Four Gates—Bailong Elevator—Yuanjiajie—No. 1 Bridge Under Heaven—Shentang Bay. At night we stayed at a Tujia guesthouse on the mountaintop at Yuanjiajie (right near Wulong Village). The guesthouse was fairly clean, with scheduled hot water, private bathroom, and TV. But staying on the mountain at night, there was no entertainment at all, let alone any romantic encounters—unless you go into the deep forest to look for wild boars and venomous snakes. So it's a bit lonely at night alone, hehe.
Day 3: Got up at 7:30 AM, ate breakfast, and right at the guesthouse entrance we could catch the scenic area shuttle bus. Itinerary: Shentang Bay—Immortal Bridge—Tianzi Seat—Wulong Village—Tianbo Mansion—Point General Terrace—return to the guesthouse to rest before sunset.
Day 4: We got up at 7:30 in the morning. In the morning we visited Helong Park and Ten-Mile Gallery (we didn't take the cable car, and it took us over 2 hours to walk down the mountain). At noon we arrived at the Wulingyuan entrance, had lunch, finished our Zhangjiajie scenic area itinerary, and took a bus back to Zhangjiajie city bus station. We caught the afternoon bus to Fenghuang (about 4 hours). We arrived in Fenghuang around 7 pm. Inside the ancient town, we looked for riverside inns along the Tuo River. In the end, because we were too tired, we didn't look around much more and stayed at an inn called Diaoyulou by the Hong Bridge. It was a triple room with hot water for showers, a TV, and a private bathroom, at 30 yuan per bed. After putting down our luggage and resting briefly, we went to Dashi Restaurant for dinner. At night Fenghuang was very lively—night markets, bars, and people releasing flower lanterns on the Tuo River, none of it was missing.
Day 5: At 7 in the morning I was woken by the sound of antiphonal singing on the Tuo River. I got up and enjoyed the singing and the morning light of Fenghuang from the riverside balcony of our room. After washing up, we found an old noodle shop by the Hong Bridge; the taste was good, a bit like Yunnan's crossing-the-bridge rice noodles. In the morning, on the Hong Bridge, an older woman pulled us in to take a boat ride on the Tuo River. On the boat I took, the boatman was especially nice and told me many stories about Fenghuang, and I was the only passenger on the boat, which was very pleasant. Highly recommended. At noon we tasted blood cake duck, fresh fish from the Tuo River, and some unknown wild vegetables. After lunch, we bought some Fenghuang specialty ginger candy and then took a bus back to Zhangjiajie. In the evening we flew from Zhangjiajie back to Shanghai.
II. Key Points
1. Besides the attractions above in Zhangjiajie, personally I think the Menghe Cave rafting is worth a visit. If you have time, you can arrange a day for rafting;
2. The above itinerary for the Zhangjiajie scenic area can be compressed into two days. Helong Park and Ten-Mile Gallery, which we visited on the last day, are not much to see and can be skipped entirely. If you make the second day's schedule tighter, you can go down the mountain and stay in Wulingyuan, so that on the morning of the third day you can directly take the early bus from Wulingyuan to Fenghuang;
3. In Fenghuang you should stay for three days, strolling slowly and enjoying slowly. If you are interested in ethnic customs, you can spend a day at Laodong Miao Village, but it is said to be not that great;
4. Fenghuang is more crowded on weekends, so consider booking a room in advance;
5. If you join a tour group in the Zhangjiajie scenic area, many attractions are skipped, while must-go group tour spots like Huangshizhai are not much to see and are crowded, so it's best not to join a tour group.
III. Transportation
1. Zhangjiajie Bus Station has two buses daily to and from Fenghuang, at 8:30 and 14:30 respectively
2. From Zhangjiajie Bus Station to Jishou, from 8 am to 8 pm, one bus every hour; from Jishou to Fenghuang there is almost one bus every ten minutes, but often they only depart after the bus is full
3. From Zhangjiajie Wulingyuan to Fenghuang there is one bus at 7:50 in the morning
IV. Food and Accommodation
1. In Zhangjiajie city, a 3-star hotel is within 200 yuan in the off-season; farmhouse inns on the mountain are within 40 yuan;
2. Zhangjiajie's local frozen kudzu root powder is very tasty, the Tujia cured meat is also good, and the golden whip fish is very fragrant;
3. In Fenghuang in the off-season there are many riverside inns; if you have plenty of time you can choose slowly one by one. In the off-season it's generally around 30 yuan, but for more famous online inns like Tuo River Inn and Yiyeping, it's best to book in advance;
4. Fenghuang's blood cake duck, as well as the fresh fish from the Tuo River and the beef old noodles, are all very tasty.
V. Shopping
1. Fenghuang's ginger candy is worth buying some of; you can choose between simple packaging and fancy packaging according to personal preference;
2. Personally I think Zhangjiajie's kudzu root powder is good, but making it at home doesn't turn out as well as the local version;
3. Some local Miao dolls in Fenghuang are very cute, and the batik is also good. As for other medicinal herbs and silver jewelry, since there are really too many fakes, buying them is not recommended.