Wulong Karst
Located at the southeast of Chongqing, 139km from the city center, Wulong County is featured in south China karst landscape. The county reach 82.7km from east to west, and 75km from south to north, covering an area of 2901.5 km2. Wulong is known by most domestic tourists for Curse of the Golden Flower, a well-known movie directed by famous Chinese director Zhang Yimou. After that, in 2014, the Transformers: Age of Extinction had been drawn to this little county for its marvelous natural scenery, and more and more people are attracted by Wulong's gorgeous karst scenery.
Wulong's attractions are mainly natural scenery, and many of them had been listed at World Natural Heritages. There are four hottest attractions: Three Natural Bridges of world wonder, magical Furong Cave, Fairy Mountain with vast grassland and the magnificent Longshuixia Gap. Wulong is just the kind of place where you'll be amazed by the uncanny workmanship of nature.
Best Wulong Tours:
Three Natural Bridges
Located at the southeast of Wulong County, 20km from it, Three Natural Bridges are the largest natural bridge groups in Asia. Featured in a classic karst landform, the magnificent scenery is full of life. Trees grow directly from stone and spring water flows even at the top of the bridges, spilling by drops and shining like pearls. Three Natural Bridges is composed of Tianlong Bridge, Qinglong Bridge, and Heilong Bridge, which are all natural bridges lying from north to south, crossing over the Yangshuihe Gorge and connecting the mountains on the two sides. There are naturally formed pits under the bridges, so the Three Natural Bridges are also called Tiankeng Three Bridges.
Tianlong Bridge is the first bridge which is 235m high, with a thickness of 150m. It's also called the No.1 Tiankeng Bridge. The most unique part of Tianlong Bridge is its bridge pier, which has maze-like caves. The main cave is 400m long and there are all kinds of large and small passages to various peculiar caves.
Qinglong Bridge is the second bridge and it's also called No.2 Tiankeng Bridge. Qinglong Bridge is the most precipitous one among the three. It's 281m high, with a bridge thickness of 168m. When the sun shines again after rain, you can see the colorful light through the bridge opening.
Heilong Bridge is the last bridge, thus it's also called No.3 Tiankeng Bridge. Heilong Bridge is wider than other two bridges, with a width of 193m, and it's 223 in height and 107m in thickness. The bridge opening is long and high, and light seems luxury in here. Before it's open to the public, the local villagers will stop passing through here after 4 pm, for it's very dark since then. Besides that, Heilong Bridge is considered as the most beautiful one among the three. It's hard to believe that on the top of the bridge, there are huge tracts of farmland, and the four delicate springs in Heilong Bridge are formed due to these farmland.
Ticket
March 1st to October 31st: ¥125/person (including ¥40 for travel bus, running among Xiannv Town Tourist Center, Longshuixia Gap entrance and Three Natural Bridges entrance).
November 1st ~ February 28th: ¥95/person (including ¥40 for travel bus).
Opening Hours
09:00 ~ 16:00
Distance from Other Wulong Attractions
0.7km from Longshuixia Gap
6.9km from Fairy Mountain
3.1km from Wulong Tourist Center
Shooting from Tianfu Official Station
Three Natural Bridges
How to Get to Three Natural Bridges
From Chongqing, tourists can take train from Chongqing North Railway station to Wulong County (about 2 hours), then trans taking minibus from Wulong Bus Station to the Tourists Center on Xiannv Town (about 30 ~ 50 minutes). After purchasing the entrance ticket, take the travel bus to Three Natural Bridges (and bus fee is included in the ticket). Tourists can also take bus to Wulong first (about 2.5 ~ 3 hours), then transfer to Xiannv Town and finally to Three Natural Bridges. If you are going to take private car, you can take highway from Chongqing to Three Natural Bridges, and the drive is about 4 hours.
How to Get around Three Natural Bridges
After arriving at the entrance of Three Natural Bridges, walk for a little while and you'll see a 88m-high sightseeing elevator. There are only two buttons on the elevator: "1" is the place to get on the elevator, take "2" you can get to the three bridges.
After you get out of the scenic area, you are still about 1km upslope road to get to the parking lot, for those who tired, you can take sightseeing car, and it will charge ¥15/person. In the parking lot, there is travel bus to Longshuixia Gap, or you can just go back to the Tourists Center.
Warm Tip: There are two entrances of Three Natural Bridges. Through the No.1 entrance, you can take the sightseeing elevator. If you take the No.2 entrance, you will need to walk a long distance to visit, and you will also miss a lot of scenery on the road, for you will arrive at the bottom of the three bridges directly and miss the panoramic view of the bridges.
Longshuixia Gap
Longshuixia Gap is located in Xiannv Town and is 15km from the township. The gap was formed due to the orogeny tens of millions of years ago. Longshuixia is actually a gap-style gorge and it's the important part of Wulong karst landform. The whole gorge is 5km long and the tour part is about 2km. The gorge is magnificent and the depth of it is from 200m to 500m. Nature has spent thousands of years forming these wonderful landscapes. With primitive forests, waterfalls, springs, and gorges, here you can actually feel the Earth is older than a city and more powerful than a rocket.
Ticket
March 1st ~ October 31st: ¥105/person; November 1st ~ February 28th: ¥85/person. The ticket includes ¥35 for the travel bus, which runs among the Xiannv Town Tourist Center, Longshuixia Gap entrance, and Three Natural Bridges entrance)
Opening Hours
09:00 ~ 17:00 (it will stop selling tickets after 16:00)
Distance from Other Wulong Attractions
0.7km from Three Natural Bridges
6.5km from Fairy Mountain
3.4km from Wulong Tourist Center
Longshuixia Gap
How to Get to Longshuixia Gap
Tourists can take bus from Wulong Bust Station to the Wulong Tourist Center, and then transfer to travel bus to the scenic area. From Three Natural Bridges, tourists can take travel bus at the parking lot of Three Natural Bridges and then transfer to Longshuixia Gap, and the drive is only about 10 minutes
Warm Tip: The stone steps in Longshuixia Gap are rather steep and slippery, it's suggested to wear antiskid shoes. Besides, tourists need to walk a lot of narrow plank roads and this may be tough for seniors, so senior people can decide whether to visit the gap according to their actual physical conditions
Fairy Mountain
Fairy Mountain is located at Xiannv Town of Wulong County (Xiannv means Fairy in Chinese, so Fairy Mountain can also be called as Xiannv Mountain). Fairy Mountain is a national forest park and covers an area of 8910 hectares, with an average altitude of 1900m, and the highest peak can reach to 2033m. Fairy Mountain is popular due to its unique alpine steppe scenery. Forest sea, marvelous peaks, alpine meadow, and snowfield are the four wonders of Fairy Mountain. In spring, the mountain is covered by fresh greens, and it's a great time to experience the fun of grass skating; in summer, the average temperature is 15℃ lower than Chongqing's, and it's a great place to escape from the "Stove" (Chongqing"); in autumn, herds of cows and sheep scattered among the mottled leaves which are blown by the autumn breeze, what a beautiful scenic picture.; Fairy Mountain is all white by covering thick snow, and ski on the mountain is definitely quite an experience.
Ticket
¥50/person; ticket for "Small Train" is 25¥/person (transfer between trains is free); horse riding is ¥60/person/hour.
Opening Hours
08:30 ~ 17:00
Accommodation
Accommodation in Fairy Mountain is rather good, with full facility and good service. There are two kinds of accommodations in general. Hotels or resorts and home inns. Basically, all accommodations can supply dinning service and parking service.
How to Get to Fairy Mountain
From Chongqing: tourists can take coach from all bus stations in Chongqing to Fairy Mountain, and the driving is about 2 hours.
From Wulong County: take mini bus from Wulong Bus Station to Fairy Mountain, and the driving is about 1 ~ 1.5 hours. If you are going to the Outdoor Sports Center, you can get off at "Huolongkou", then walk to sports center, where you can experience grass skating, snow skiing and kart racing. If you are going to the giant prairie, then you can get off at the terminal stop – Mutizi, at here, you can take "Small Train" – a train-like sightseeing car – to the main scenic area; or you can just walk to there, the distance is about 10km and it will take 1 hour to get there. The scenery along the road is very beautiful, so if you have time and energy, you can choose to walk rather than taking the "Small Train".
Warm Tips of Fairy Mountain Travel
1) In the camping area, there are divided into free camping area and paid camping area. The free camping area is located near around Changsong Hotel. In summer, the tent for rental is tight, so it's better to rent it in advance. The rental fee is changing from season to season. Generally, single tent is from ¥60 ~ ¥100; two-man tent is from ¥80 ~ ¥150.
2) The temperature in Fairy Mountain is much lower than the downtown, and temperature difference is getting bigger when it rains. Check the weather in Fairy Mountain before you go and make sure you take enough warm clothes with you.
Furong Cave
Furong Cave is a large-scale limestone cave and located next to Furong River in Jiangkou Town of Wulong County, which is about 190km from Chongqing City center. Formed about 1.2 million years ago, and discovered in 1993, the main cave of Furong Cave is about 2700m long, and covers an area of 37,000m2. There are over 70 kinds of karst sediments in the Furong Cave, and it's reputed as a splendid underground art palace and science museum for caves. The most magnificent part of Furong Cave is the "Splendid Hall", which covers an area of 11,000m2. Besides that, there are 15m wide and 21m high rock waterfall, smooth palm-shape stalagmite, numerous helictite and stone flowers, etc. and the red coral and fang-shape calcite crystal in the cave is very precious and stunning. The various shapes and kinds of the stalactites in the cave have recorded the evolution process of history.
Distance to Other Attractions
25.9km to Three Natural Bridges
32.5km to Fairy Mountain
26.5km to Longshuixia Gap
Ticket
March 1st ~ October 31st: ¥80/person; November 1st ~ February 28th：¥65
Opening Hours
08:30 ~ 17:00
Furong Cave
How to Get to Furong Cave
From Wulong County, tourists can take bus to Jiangkou Town from Wulong Bus Station. You need to tell the driver you will go to Furong Cave in advance, if the bus can't go to Furong Cave, then you need to transfer to minibus at Jiangkou Town to Furong Cave, and it will take about 1.5 hours from Wulong to Furong Cave.
Another way is chartering a car or take a private car (if you book tours with us, we will provide private driver with private car for you). This is more convenient, and you can drive directly to the entrance of the scenic area.
Impression Wulong – Large-scale Live-action Show Performed at the World Heritage Site
Besides the splendid natural scenery in Wulong, this beautiful world also offers a large-scale Live-action Show for tourists. The 70-minute show is trying to show every audience the unique local customs and life of this area, with wonderful natural canyon, trees, mountains in this World Heritage Site as backdrop.
The show is directed by the famous director Yimou Zhang, who is the chief director of the opening and closing ceremony of 28th Beijing Olympic Games in 2008. Yimou Zhang has created 7 Impression Shows, and the Impression Wulong Show is the 5th one. If you haven’t enjoyed any other Impressive Masterpieces before, do take the chance when visiting Wulong.
- Time: 20:30; 22:30
- Duration: about 70 minutes
- Tickets: ￥238 / ￥338 / ￥688 / ￥888
- Venue: Taoyuan Grand Canyon, Xiannvshan Town, Wulong County, Chongqing
- How to Get There: Catch a tourist bus at Wulong Tourist Center to Taoyuan Grand Canyon directly, which takes about 20 minutes and charges about CNY 10.
- Tip: Take a coat with you even during the hot summer days, because it may be a little bit cold in the mountainous area, especially after the night falls.
How to Get to Wulong
Wulong has no airport and it has only railway station and bus station. For tourists by flight, you need to first arrive Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport, then transfer to Wulong. Most tourists will start the journey from Chongqing. Train, bus and private car are optional.
Travel with China Discovery: As driving from Chongqing to the scenic area only takes about 3 hours and self-driving is also the best way to get around the scenic area, we highly suggested you to book a private car service, and thus you can travel from your hotel/train station/airport to Wulong and the Wulong Karst in ease and convenience. If you are interested, please feel free to contact us for help!
By Train: Wulong has bullet trains connecting with Chongqing (less than 2 hours), Zhangjiajie (3 hours around), etc. Besides, there are normal trains to Wulong from Chongqing (2~2.5 hours), etc. Both the bullet trains and normal trains depart from Chongqing North Railway Station, and arrival at Wulong Railway Station. Upon arriving at Wulong Station, you are required to find a private car to get to the scenic area for travel. Check more about Chongqing to Wulong Train >>
By Bus: tourists can take bus from Chongqing Nanping Sigongli Bus Station to Wulong Bus Station, and the driving is about 2 ~ 3 hours. Wulong Bus Station has bus lines to all tourist attractions in Wulong.
Know more of How to Get to Wulong from Chongqing by Train & Bus >>
Private Car Service by China Discovery
Click to Enlarge Chongqing to Wulong Map
How to Plan a Chongqing Tour Include Wulong Karst Landscape
A Chongqing & Wulong Karst tour needs at least 3 days, including one day to discover the “Mountain City” Chongqing and 2 days to explore amazing natural scenery of Wulong Karst National Geological Park.
During your One-day Chongqing tour, you are suggested to Three Gorges Museum to explore the history and culture of Chongqing City and Three Gorges of Yangtze River. After that, it’s your time to marvel at amazing house-crossing metro trains at Liziba Station on Line 2. Before the night falls on that day, you can travel up to E‘ling Park to have a panorama view of Chongqing city. And the rest hours of the day are for you to discover the splendid Chongqing Night View at Hongya Cave and have authentic hot pot meals there.
And for the 2 days Wulong tour, you can have an in-depth of all the 4 popular tourist areas of Wulong, including Three Natural Bridges, Longshuixia, Fairy Mountain and Furong Cave.
Warm tip: Most visitors travel Chongqing & Wulong before boarding their downstream Yangtze River cruise ship at night (18:00-21:00). If you are going to have such a tour too, remember to leave yourself enough time to catch your ship at Chaotianmen Dock. And please notice that dinner on the embarkation night is not included in your Yangtze River cruise tour. Treat yourself something you like to eat before boarding your ship.
If you're keen on venturing into the mesmerizing realm of Pandora and have an additional 2 days to spare, consider Zhangjiajie as your next travel milestone. A convenient train journey of under five hours will bring you to the gateway of this fantastical landscape. The majestic Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, the ethereal Tianmen Mountain, and the thrilling Zhangjiajie Glass Bridge are all poised to be conquered by your adventurous spirit.
Click to Enlarge Wulong Attraction Map
Yangtze River cruises
Tianzi Mountain, Zhangjiajie National Forest Park
Wulong Tour Tips
1. Accommodation
There are many accommodation choices in Wulong County. Many family inns are located near Wulong Bus Station, and they are very cheap (¥50 ~ ¥70 for one night) with rather good service. It's very convenient to transfer to all attractions in Wulong by accommodating near the bus station, however, it's a little far to each attraction, so this is more suitable for tourists who need to take bus. If you are prefer a more quiet environment, then hotels near the bus station is not a good choice.
2. Best Time to Go
Spring, autumn and winter are the best time to visit Wulong. The weather in spring and autumn is fair and the color in the scenic area is very beautiful. In winter, tourists can appreciate the stunning snow scenery in Fairy Mountain.
Read More Chongqing & Yangtze Attractions
- Things to Do in Chongqing
- Chongqing Attractions
- Yangtze Attractions
- Fengdu Attractions
- Yangtze River Cruise
- Three Gorges
- Lesser Three Gorges
- Dazu Rock Carvings
- Three Gorges Museum
- Ciqikou Ancient Town
- Chongqing Zoo
- Raffles City Chongqing
- Liziba Station
- Shibaozhai Pagoda
- White Emperor City
- Jinfo Mountain
Keep Readings of Chongqing Transportation
- Airport to City Center
- Airport to Chaotianmen Dock
- Train Stations to Chaontianmen Dock
- Chongqing Train Stations
- Chongqing to Wulong
- Chongqing to Dazu
- Chongqing to Beijing
- Chengdu to Chongqing
- Chongqing High Speed Train
- Chaotianmen Dock
- Chongqing Transportation Guide
Useful Chongqing & Yangtze River Travel Articles
Recommended Chongqing Tours
Top 3 Chongqing tours chosen by most customers to explore Chongqing in the best way. Check the detailed itinerary, or tailor your own trip now with us.
4 Days Chongqing Essence Tour with Yangtze River Cruise
Chongqing / Yangtze Cruise / Yichang
6 Days Chongqing Zhangjiajie Surreal Adventure with Wulong Karst
Chongqing / Wulong / Zhangjiajie
Start planning your tailor-made holiday to China by contacting one of our specialists. Once inquired, you’ll get a response within 0.5~23.5 hours.
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Questions & Discussions
Following are latest questions and answers from our webusers and customers. You can learn many useful information from the discussion and cases. You can also join in the discussions or ask your own question. Our experts will help you ASAP.
If fairy mountain snow, will three bridges snow too?
Thank you for the good question. The Natural Three Bridges Scenic Area will be closed if it rains moderately or heavily. Because of the much higher altitude of Fairy Mountain, it usually snows during December to the next February there, but there are much fewer snow days at the Natural Three Bridges and Longshuixia Gap areas.
You can check more weather guide and tips on our page: https://www.chinadiscovery.com/chongqing-tours/weather.html
Besides, it is recommended to check the latest weather forecast of Wulong Karst Geopark and Fairy Mountain on Google or other apps before going. If you need a private tour package with helpful trip planning service to save more time and effort, please let us know!
Have a great day!
Carrie at China Discovery
I want to know where you can buy tickets in november. Everywhere I read "intil end of oktober".
Thanks jou!
Geerlings,
Hilda from Holland
Greetings from China! Wulong Karst Landscape is opened to the public around the whole year, and it usually operates from 09:00-16:30 in November. If you are interested in visiting this amazing place, you can buy tickets in site at the tourist center. Also, if you like, you can directly choose our local private tour to enjoy worry-free visit, convenient and comfortable vehicle and interesting tour guide and great quotation including the tickets and other items. Please feel free to tell us if you are interested.
Enjoy your wonderful day!
I need your help again regarding the distance between Wulong Karst and Fairy Mountain and if I will visit Wulong by bus, is it possible to travel both of them in one day trip? Is the time will be fine?
Thank you.
Thanks for your question.
Furong Caves, Three Natural Bridgesand Longshuixia Gap all show karst landscape. Fairy Mountain is located about 60km (1.5 hours’ driving) from Furong Cave, about 15km (25 minutes’ driving) from Three Natural Bridges, and about 22 km (40 minutes’ driving) from Longshuixia Gap. I’m sorry to tell you that one single day is not enough if you want to enjoy all the attractions. You are advised to spend at least two days there. There are two routes for your reference.
Route 1: On day 1, get to Furong Cave to enjoy underground artistic palace. Later, visit Natural Three Bridges which is a geological wonder. After the tour, get back to Wulong County for accommodation. On day 2, visit Fairy Mountain to have a full day to explore the wonderful natural scenery as well as join the outdoor activities.
Route 2: On day 1, travel to Furong cave in the morning and then go to Xiannv Town for accommodation after the sightseeing. On day 2, visit Fairy Mountain, Three Natural Bridges and Longshuixia Gap. The time is rather limited and you’d better take a cable car in Fairy Mountain.
Route 1 has a more relaxed itinerary and route 2 covers all attractions. Generally, route 1 is more recommended. If you need a private tour, feel free to contact us.
Wish you have a nice journey!
Can you please advise if I will go to Wulong Karst by taxi, how much for round trip cost?
And I will visit on this New Year period, so how about the weather there during that time, is it possible to see the snow?
Thank you
Warm greetings from China Discovery. The distance betweem Chongqing and Wulong is about 170 kilometers which needs 2.5 hours’ for driving. If you take a taxi to get there, it will be need at least 500RMB per way and the round trip will be 1000 RMB or above.
To cut down the cost, we recommend you to take long distance bus from Chongqing Longtousi Tourist Bus Station which is less than 100RMB to get to Wulong Bus Station. If you like, you can also travel by train which starts at 08:00, 08:20, 13:20, 14:20, 15:55 and 20:56. The ticket is cheap – 24.5RMB for hard seat, 78.5RMB for hard sleeper and 114.5 for soft sleeper. OR, if you want a worry-free vacation, you can take a private tour from China Discovery which includes the private vehicle, personal English-speaking guide and other service.
According to the previous year’s weather condition, it will be snow at the end of December at Fairy Mountain and the chance to see snow at Wulong Natural Bridges might be less. The temperature be around 9/5℃. The weather would be change and if it is lucky you can enjoy beautiful snow scenery there.
For more questions or tour booking information, please just let us know and we’re here glad to help! Have a great day!
We are glad to get your message. The waterfalls of Longshuixia Cave have water in winter including December and the water is not plenty during this period. But the best time to travel Wulong is Autumn and you can catch the tail of beautiful autumn season to see the nice view.
If you need more help, please feel free let us know. We are here to serve you!
Best Regards,
2.How to go there?
3. Please kindly advise show time/date
Thanks for your message. Impression Wulong is held in Yinxiang Wulong Theater, Taoyuan Valley (桃园大峡谷), about 8 kilometers from Xiannv Town (仙女镇).
1. You can buy ticket online or at Yinxiang Wulong Theater, Xiannv Tourist Center (please book in advance). If you book a Wulong tour with us, we can arrange the ticket for you with no worry.
2. Buses are available between Xiannv Tourist Center and Yinxiang Wulong Theater. If you go from Wulong County, you can reach Xiannv Town first (buses are available during 08:00~16:30 everyday) and then transfer to Yinxiang Wulong Theater.
3. The show usually begins at 20:30, lasts for 70 minutes and ends at 21:40. Please arrive and check your tickets 30 minutes before the show begins. BUT, from Oct.6 to Dec.31, the show time adjusts to 19:30. It is available all year round and it may be cancelled in extremely bad weather, like rainstorm, heavy snow, etc.
If you need any more help, please feel free to let us know.
Best Regards,
Are the tickets plentiful in the end month of October?
Tickets are available in the end month of October, but we recommend you plan and book in advance for situation may change quickly.
To help you enjoy a worry-free trip, we can offer you private car from Chongqing to Furong Cave directly. If you need any help, please feel free to contact us. ^_^
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