Bus to Jishou Qianzhou Ancient City, afternoon to Fenghuang Ancient Town
Morning: Take a bus for about 3.5 hours to Jishou Qianzhou -- today's Qianzhou Ancient City, which presents a new look with the new tourism pattern of "one city, one park, one workshop."
"One city" refers to Qianzhou Ancient City. There is a folk saying: "Qianzhou's city, Fenghuang's soldiers." Since ancient times, Qianzhou has been a twin city on the Southern Great Wall, as famous as Fenghuang Ancient Town. It has a ten-li basin, two rivers surrounding the island, and three land areas lying horizontally, shaped like the Qian hexagram. Inside the city, there is a ten-li ancient street, a ten-li river channel in the city, and a ten-li wall outside the city. It was an important commercial port in the Qin and Han dynasties and an important military command center on the Southern Great Wall defense line during the Ming and Qing dynasties. In the ancient city, there is Hu Family Pond, known as "small bridge, flowing water, and households," covering an area of 2,800 square meters. The "Anlan Well" in the pond is the source of water for the pond. The houses around the pond, with Ming and Qing ancient buildings, are well-preserved, with white walls and black tiles, flying eaves and upturned ridges, unique in style. In the ancient city, there is the unparalleled Three-Gate Opening in the history of Chinese ancient architecture, composed of the South Gate, Tongji Gate, and Moon City (also called Ear City). It is a landmark building integrating transportation, defense, water fetching, and fire prevention, and an important military defense facility in the cold weapon era. There are also many precious cultural relic buildings here, such as the North Gate built during the Jiaqing period of the Qing Dynasty; Qianzhou Confucian Temple, built during the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty, one of the best-preserved Confucian temples in Hunan Province, etc.
"One park" refers to the Xiangxi Intangible Cultural Heritage Park. Xiangxi Prefecture is a treasure house of intangible cultural heritage. So far, the prefecture has more than 3,200 intangible cultural heritage projects of various types, of which 24 are included in the national protection list. The Baigong Workshop in Qianzhou Ancient City is a grand garden that centrally displays Xiangxi's intangible cultural heritage. Masters who have settled here include Ye Shuiyun, a Chinese excellent Tujia brocade inheritor, Shi Shunmin, the Chinese Xiangxi Miao Drum King, Zhang Guangming, a national-level Tujia Hand-Waving Dance inheritor, Peng Lin, a Xiangxi paste painting craft artist, and 17 others. Here, we can see the on-site performances of the craft masters.
"One workshop" refers to Xiangxi Workshop, where you can taste the most authentic and characteristic Xiangxi cuisine and buy one or two gifts with the most Xiangxi characteristics. As a Hunan Provincial Ethnic Tourism Commodity Demonstration Site and Hunan Provincial Tourism Shopping Demonstration Site awarded by the Hunan Provincial Tourism Bureau, it gathers various characteristic commodities, local food, and leisure culture of Xiangxi. Among the displayed famous, excellent, and special tourism commodities of Xiangxi, Qianzhou Pressed Duck, Jiugui Liquor, Xiangxi Mushroom Oil, Palm Weaving Craft, Xiangxi Fragrant Vinegar, etc., are all excellent gifts for relatives and friends. Wandering here, what you see, hear, and feel can let you truly experience "Greater Xiangxi."
Afternoon: Take a bus for about 1.5 hours to Fenghuang Ancient Town: enjoy Xiangxi folk customs along the way (Fenghuang Ancient Town, a national historical and cultural city, once praised by the famous New Zealand writer Rewi Alley as China's most beautiful small town). After arriving at the ancient town, enjoy the night view on both sides of the Tuo River. When the lights on both sides of the Tuo River are lit one by one, everywhere is colorful, making you feel as if you are in a splendid scene. Enter the bars of Fenghuang Ancient Town and experience the noisy yet romantic atmosphere. You can also choose a lotus lantern to make your best wish and put them together into the long Tuo River...
Accommodation: Fenghuang
Recommended optional activity: Xiangxi Miao folk performance 180 yuan per person