Things to do in Changde
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Changde
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Peach blossom season, with the best viewing from mid March into early April and the year's best walking weather.
Green spring and Shimen tea picking season, mild and fresh, with May Day crowds at Taohuayuan.
Plum rain, heat and flood watch on the Yuan River and Dongting plain, and the start of rafting season.
High summer in the mid 30s with high humidity. Rafting, the lake water park and Huping Mountain are the compensations.
The second best window, with cooler air, golden fields and Shimen citrus from October. Late October is the top pick.
Cold, damp and quiet, with bare groves at Taohuayuan and Reshi hot springs as the season's compensation.
What's on
- Changde Peach Blossom Festival late March
Taohuayuan's groves in full bloom, with folk activities in the scenic area and the year's highest Taoyuan prices.
- Dragon Boat Festival 5th day of the 5th lunar month, usually June
A river festival across Hunan's water country. Confirm the year's Changde programme locally, as schedules publish late.
- Taohuayuan May Day Programme May Day holiday period
Lawn music, heritage performances and traditional costume parades at Taohuayuan, with heavy domestic crowds.
Best things to do in Changde
Taohuayuan Scenic Area
The Peach Blossom Spring landscape from Tao Yuanming's fable, with Qin Stream, Qin Valley and Peach Blossom Mountain.
The Story of Taohuayuan
A night boat performance on Qin Stream, with 18 scenes of the fable played out on both banks as you drift upstream.
Changde Poetry Wall Park
A 3 km Yuan River flood wall carved with poems and calligraphy, best walked in the morning or before sunset.
Liuye Lake Tourist Resort
Changde's lakeside living room, with a promenade, beach park, ferris wheel and Sima Tower, best at sunset and after dark.
Daxiaohe Street
The lantern lit night face of historic He Street, with snack stalls, opera corners and the city's pot restaurants.
Laoximen
The old west gate and its surviving city wall, woven into a red brick lane district of cafes, teahouses and small shops.
Changde Museum
The city's history in one quadrangle museum, from Dongting archaeology to the river trade city and the 1943 battle.
Hunan Changde Wildlife World
A large safari style wildlife park in Hanshou, and by a wide margin the best reviewed full day out for young children.
Where to stay in Changde
Liuye Lake and He Street
leisure base for most visitors
Wake on the water, cycle from the door, and eat on He Street and Daxiaohe Street, a short taxi ride from the centre.
Wuling Downtown and Wanda Plaza
all round base and one night stops
The commercial centre with malls, the widest restaurant choice and the easiest ride hailing at odd hours.
Taoyuan County
blossom and performance night
Sleep here only for the scenic area, the evening boat show or a hot spring night, 38 to 48 km from the city.
Think twice about
- Changde Station perimeter
Noisy and tout prone at the taxi ranks, with the least attractive walk in the city. Pass through it, do not sleep beside it.
- Taohuayuan Ancient Town
A replica commercial street of souvenir and snack units that empties of charm once the day coaches leave. Wander it, do not base in it.
Best restaurants in Changde
Yi De Yi
The first name for Changde beef rice noodles, with rich broth, generous toppings and a fried rice cake on the side.
Yang Yongsheng Rice Noodle Shop
The itinerary classic for a Changde arrival breakfast of beef rice noodles before a walk on the Poetry Wall.
Liu Longzi Rice Noodle Shop
The third name in every local noodle list, with the same beef broth, pickled cowpeas and chilli grammar in a plainer room.
Lao Changde Bozi Caiguan
The He Street home of bobo cai, small earthenware pots bubbling at the table, led by the Shimen fatty intestine pot.
Yunxian Lou
Classic spicy and fragrant Hunan cooking on He Street, and the right room for a Dongting fish and pot banquet.
Laohuang Barbecue Restaurant
Changde's late night skewer hall near Pedestrian Street, for grilled everything, cold beer and unpolite spice levels.
Liuye Lake Fishermen's Song Restaurant
A lakeside fish dinner of braised bighead carp and chopped chilli fish head, timed for sunset over Liuye Lake.
Siqin Tea House
The Taohuayuan tea house for lei cha, pounded tea whisked with sesame and peanuts and served with fried rice and pickles.
Outdoor things to do in Changde
Liuye Lake
A flat lakeside cycling loop past Sima Tower and the Tang poetry wall, and the best value active half day in the city.
Taohuayuan Golf Club
An 18 hole, par 72 championship course by Liuye Lake, designed by Nelson and Haworth, and Changde's one luxury round.
Huping Mountain
A forested national nature reserve of waterfalls and canyons, topped by Hunan's second highest peak at 2098.7 metres.
Reshi Cloud-Top Hot Spring
A large hillside hot spring complex near Taohuayuan, with many pools and a resort hotel for a soak and sleep night.
Wuyunjie Nature Reserve
Taoyuan's green valley rafting country, with commercial summer runs through forested gorges west of Taohuayuan.
Chengtoushan
A 6000 year old walled Neolithic settlement with early rice paddies and fired bricks, walked in the open Dongting plain.
Jiashan Temple
A tea and Zen temple in the Shimen tea hills, paired with spring tea picking and tea meals in the nearby gardens.
Zhangjiajie National Forest Park
China's great sandstone pillar landscape, about 55 minutes by direct fast train, best paired with Changde, not rushed.
Best hotels in Changde
Sheraton Changde Wuling Hotel
Changde's flagship international hotel by Wanda Plaza, with a pool, spa and lake view rooms, for a frictionless stay.
Liuyuan Jinjiang Hotel Changde
A garden style resort hotel inside the Liuye Lake resort area, calmer and greener than the downtown towers.
Wyndham Garden Changde Downtown
A well kept mid range international hotel by Wanda Plaza, praised for efficient service and a strong breakfast.
Taohuadao Hotel
A recently renovated budget hotel near Wanda Plaza with one of the highest guest scores in the city at very low rates.
Puyun Hotel (Liuye Lake Branch)
A small budget hotel by Liuye Lake with lake view rooms, a five minute walk from the pier and the lakeside paths.
Taohuayuan Yunshe Resort
Resort lodging by the Peach Blossom Spring, for an early walk in the groves and the evening boat performance.
Is Changde expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | CN¥180 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | CN¥400 a person |
| Splurge | CN¥900 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Taohuayuan Scenic Area: weeks ahead
- The Story of Taohuayuan: weeks ahead
- Changde Museum: a few days ahead
- Hunan Changde Wildlife World: a few days ahead
- Taohuayuan Golf Club: weeks ahead
- Reshi Cloud-Top Hot Spring: a few days ahead
- Wuyunjie Nature Reserve: a few days ahead
- Zhangjiajie National Forest Park: weeks ahead
- In blossom season, book Taohuayuan performance seats and a Taoyuan bed together, days to weeks ahead.
- Public holidays bring domestic crowds to Taohuayuan, the Wildlife World and the theme park. A weekday is worth two weekend days.
- Changde Museum is free but reservation based, and scenic tickets are bought against ID. Carry the booking passport on the day.
- Confirm rafting water and Reshi pool schedules with your hotel the day before, not months ahead.
Is Changde safe?
- In the June to July flood season, check local conditions before riverfront walks, lake boating and rafting, and obey closures.
- Sightsee early in summer heat, and hike Huping Mountain and cycle Liuye Lake in the morning, not at noon.
- At stalls, choose the busy one and eat what is cooked in front of you. Tap water is not drunk, so use hotel kettles and bottled water.
- Emergency numbers are 110 for police, 119 for fire and 120 for ambulance.
Changde travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Taohuayuan Ancient Town is a purpose built shopping street. Wander it free and buy sauce duck and peach products on He Street instead.
- German Town is a free photo backdrop of replica Hanover. Twenty minutes, a beer and pictures, and do not pay a tour for it.
- Peach blossom timing is a gamble. Keep Taoyuan dates flexible and read current year bloom reports before paying non refundable rates.
- Never walk the Poetry Wall at midday from June to September. It is exposed, long and short on shade.
Getting around Changde: public transport and more
- There is no metro in Changde. Buses cost about 2 yuan and taxis start at about 6 yuan, with DiDi covering the gaps.
- Fast trains link Changde Station with Zhangjiajie West in about 55 minutes and with Changsha in roughly one to two hours.
- Taohuayuan is about 38 km and 40 minutes by road. Drive, charter, or take the tourist shuttle or a train to Taohuayuan Station.
- Link a card to Alipay or WeChat Pay before arrival, carry some cash, and use Apple Maps or Gaode rather than Google Maps.
Who Changde suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Good |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Changde your trip
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