At five in the morning, Bright Top Summit of Huangshan.
Clouds surge beneath your feet like a white ocean. Distant peaks appear and disappear like islands in the sea. The sun slowly rises from the clouds, golden light spilling across the sea of clouds—in that moment, you’ll understand why they say “After returning from Huangshan, one has no need to see other mountains.”
Anhui is a place that captures your soul.
Province Profile#
- Location: Inland eastern China, between the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers
- Best Travel Season: March-May (spring), September-November (autumn)
- Highlights: Huangshan wonders, Huizhou architecture, ancient villages, Four Treasures of the Study
Must-Visit Attractions#
Huangshan: After the Five Sacred Mountains, Other Mountains Need Not Be Seen#
Huangshan is famous for its “Four Wonders”: peculiar pines, grotesque rocks, sea of clouds, and hot springs.
Guest-Greeting Pine is Huangshan’s symbol, a pine tree extending from a cliff face like a hospitable host reaching out to welcome guests from afar.
West Sea Grand Canyon is Huangshan’s most spectacular attraction, with bottomless canyons, fantastic peaks, and swirling clouds and mist. Walking on the cliff-side plank path, every step is thrilling.
Bright Top Summit is the best place to watch sunrise and sea of clouds. Wake up at four in the morning, wrapped in a military coat, waiting with a crowd for the sun to rise.
Best Experience: Stay overnight on the mountain to see sunset, sunrise, and sea of clouds. If you’re lucky, you might even see the Buddha’s Light.
Hongcun: A Village in a Painting#
Hongcun is the representative of Huizhou ancient villages, with the entire village laid out in the shape of an “ox”—Leigang Mountain is the ox head, ancient trees are the ox horns, Moon Pond is the ox stomach, South Lake is the ox belly, and winding water channels are the ox intestines.
Moon Pond is Hongcun’s soul, a crescent-shaped pond reflecting white walls and black tiles. In the early morning, mist shrouds the scene, elderly people wash vegetables by the water, ducks play in the pond—like an ink painting.
Best Experience: Stay in the village, then go out at five in the morning to see Hongcun without tourists.
Xidi: A Peach Blossom Land for People#
Xidi is quieter than Hongcun, preserving more of its original ecology.
At the village entrance stands a tall memorial archway, built during the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty to honor Hu Wenguang, a prime minister of the Jing region. The village has over 120 Ming and Qing ancient residences, each doorway adorned with exquisite brick, stone, and wood carvings.
Best Experience: Stay overnight in an old house in the village, listening to the owner tell stories of their ancestors.
Special Experiences#
Flavors of Huizhou Cuisine#
Huizhou cuisine is one of China’s eight great cuisines, emphasizing “heavy oil, heavy color, heavy fire power.”
Stinky Mandarin Fish is Huizhou cuisine’s representative—smells stinky, tastes fragrant, with tender flesh. Hairy Tofu is a Huangshan specialty, tofu with a layer of white hair on the surface, pan-fried until crispy outside and tender inside. Huizhou Yipin Pot is a traditional reunion dish, layered and increasingly flavorful as it cooks.
Four Treasures of the Study#
Anhui is the hometown of the Four Treasures of the Study—Xuan paper, Xuan brush, Hui ink, and She inkstone.
Go to Jing County to see Xuan paper being made, each sheet requiring 108 processes; go to She County to see Hui ink being refined, each ink stick requiring tens of thousands of hammer blows.
Tunxi Old Street#
Tunxi Old Street in downtown Huangshan is called “a living Along the River During the Qingming Festival.”
Flagstone paths are lined with Ming and Qing buildings, with time-honored shops everywhere. Buy a piece of Hui ink, a She inkstone, or try a Huizhou sesame cake—all make good souvenirs.
Travel Tips#
- Transportation: Huangshan has an airport and high-speed rail station. It’s about 1 hour by car from Huangshan North Station to Huangshan Scenic Area, and about 1.5 hours to Hongcun.
- Accommodation: In Huangshan, stay on the mountain (Bright Top Summit, Beihai Hotel); in Hongcun, stay in village homestays.
- Note: The temperature difference on Huangshan is large—even in summer, bring a jacket. Climbing requires physical fitness; recommend taking the cable car up and down.
The Ming Dynasty dramatist Tang Xianzu wrote: “A lifetime of obsession, never dreaming of Huizhou.”
Anhui’s beauty doesn’t show off, yet makes people never forget.
White walls and black tiles with horse-head gables, winding flagstone paths, morning sea of clouds, evening cooking smoke… these images will stay in your memory forever.
Come to Anhui and rediscover the slower version of yourself.
Tomorrow, we head to Fujian to see the magic of tulou and the romance of Xiamen.