Name in Chinese: 张家界 Zhāng Jiā Jiè [dzæŋ dʒa: dʒe]
Location: Northwestern Hunan, China, GMT+8
Population: 1.70 million as a prefecture, about 700,000 living in the city proper
Telephone Code: +86744
Keywords: Wulingyuan, Tianmen Mountain, World Natural Heritage, World Geo-park
Zhangjiajie is a prefecture in Northwestern Hunan Province. It is one of the most popular holiday destinations in China. The prefecture is rich in sightseeing resources. Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area was added to the list of world natural heritage sites by UNESCO in the year of 1992. The heritage site consists of three parts, namely Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, Suoxiyu Nature Reserve and Tianzi Mountain Scenic Area. In 2004, Wulingyuan was designated as a world geological park. Besides the world geo-park, the prefecture is also famed for some other attractions, such as Tianmen Mountain and Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon. People often confuse Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon with Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. In fact, the word Zhangjiajie does not only refer to prefecture, but also the city, the forest park and the canyon. Zhangjiajie is mainly inhabited by the Tujia people. Some other native peoples are the Han, the Miao and the Bai.
Attractions
Zhangjiajie National Forest Park
Zhangjiajie National Forest Park is the main component of the world natural heritage site, Wulingyuan. The national forest park comprises of three scenic areas, namely, Yuanjiajie Scenic Area, the Yellow-Stone Village Scenic Area and Yangjiajie Scenic Area. The highlight of the forest park is Yuanjiajie Scenic Area which measures 12 square kilometers(4.6 sq.mi). In the year of 2009, the movie Avatar was shot partly on location in Yuanjiajie Scenic Area. One of the stone pinnacles was renamed as Montas Volans. The No.1 Natural Bridge under Heaven is a huge rock which straddles two cliffs. The bridge is 2 meters(6.6 feet) in width with a span of 20 meters(66 feet) and a sheer drop of 350 meters(1,148 feet). Bailong Elevator carries people down from the mountaintop to the bottom of the gorge. It is 335 meters(1,099 feet) in height, is known as the highest elevator in the world.
Tianzi Mountain
Known as the King of Stone Pinnacle Forests, Tianzi Mountain is one of the four scenic areas in the World Geo-park, Wulingyuan. It is the place where a large number of quartz sandstone pinnacles rise in clusters. The pinnacle forest covers an area of 54 square kilometers(21 sq.mi). Its altitude ranges from 534 meters(1,752 feet) to 1,266 meters(4,154 feet) above sea level. Tianzi Mountain is notable for the four natural phenomena, namely, the sea of cloud, the moonlit night, the snows, the rosy glow cast by the rising/setting sun.
Suoxiyu Nature Reserve
There are two attractions in Suoxiyu Nature Reserve, namely Baofeng Lake and the Yellow-Dragon Cave.
Baofeng Lake is situated in Suoxiyu Nature Reserve. It is 72 meters(236 feet) in depth and measures 30 hectares(74 acres). The lake is surrounded by cliffs. It looks like a mirror with emerald rim. Waterfalls cascade down the cliffs into the lake. Hills are covered by dense forest in which birds are singing. Some local singers stand on their fishing boats singing too. Baofeng Lake is a wonderland that can not be found elsewhere in the world.
The Yellow-Dragon Cave is located in Suoxiyu Nature Reserve. It is a key component of the world geo-park, Wulingyuan. The cave is 7.5 kilometers(4.6 miles) long and measures 10 hectares(25 acres). The roof is 140 meters(459) feet high above the bottom of the cave. The Yellow-Dragon Cave has topped the list of China’s Most Beautiful Karst Caves.
Tianmen Mountain
Tianmen Mountain Scenic Area lies in the south of Zhangjiajie, 6 kilometers(3.7 miles) from the downtown. It is a national five-star scenic area, is a national forest park. Sculpted by natural weathering and erosion, Tianmen Cave is a huge hole on a cliff. It is the main attraction of the scenic area. As the largest one of its kind in the world, the hole measures 131.5 meters(413 feet) in height, 57 meters(187 feet) in width, and 60 meters(197 feet) in depth. Visitors are usually transferred to the cave by cable car from the foot of the mountain, and then carried to the mountaintop by escalator. Some of the cliff paths are made of glass. Only a few people dare to walk along the glass path. The cable-way between the mountaintop and the foot of mountain is the longest one in the world. It is 7,455 meters(24,459 feet) long with a sheer drop of 1,279 meters(4,196 feet).
Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon
Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon combines mountain scenery and water view. It lies about 28 kilometers(17 miles) to the east of Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. The canyon is well-known for its glass bridge which is the longest and highest in the world. The glass bridge straddles the canyon with a span of 370 meters(1,214 feet) and a sheer drop of 400 meters(1,312 feet). It has been inscribed in the Guinness Book of Records.
Climate
The City of Zhangjiajie is at an elevation of 183 meters(600 feet) above sea level. The average altitude of Wulingyuan Geological Park is about 1,000 meters(3,281 feet). The whole prefecture has a humid semi-tropical climate with distinct four seasons. The average temperature in Zhangjiajie Prefecture ranges from 6℃(42.8°F) to 14℃(57.2°F) in spring, 19℃(66.2°F) to 28℃(82.4°F) in summer, 24℃(75.2°F) to 33℃(91.4°F) in autumn and 10℃(50°F) to 18℃(64.4°F) in winter. The best time to travel to Zhangjiajie is between April and October.
How to Get to Zhangjiajie
Zhangjiajie Hehua International Airport operates flights to over 20 domestic cities within Mainland China, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Xi’an and Guangzhou. It is the second largest airport in Hunan Province. Some of the tourists also travel to Zhangjiajie by car from the Three-Gorge Dam which is located in Yichang, Hubei Province.
Author: Tina Luo
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