Things to do in Shangrao
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Shangrao
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Rapeseed bloom peaks in Wuyuan from mid March to early April, with the year highest Wuyuan prices and Qingming crowds.
Green, pleasant and quieter after bloom, with tea season and filling waterfalls, except the May Day holiday week.
Hot and wet rafting season with full waterfalls and long night town evenings, plus rain, stoppages and school holiday crowds.
The balanced window as heat breaks and shaiqiu begins, except National Day Golden Week on 1 to 7 October.
Shaiqiu at full colour, Shicheng maples from about 10 November, and the first Poyang cranes from November.
Poyang birdwatching at its height and the lowest hotel prices, with cold damp mountains and the Spring Festival travel spike.
What's on
- Wuyuan Rapeseed Flower Season mid March to early April
County wide bloom centred on Huangling terraces and Jiangling viewpoints.
- Huangling Shaiqiu Season September to December, peak October to November
Autumn crops dried in bamboo trays on roofs and racks across Huangling village.
- Shicheng Red Maple Season mid November to early December
Red maples, dawn mist and cooking smoke over Chengcun and Daicun villages.
- Wunvzhou Fireworks and Iron Flower Nights Friday and Saturday nights, year round with expanded summer editions
Iron flower, fire pot and fireworks over the resort lake, fullest on weekend and festival nights.
- Poyang Lake Birdwatching Season November to March
Wintering Siberian cranes and vast waterbird flocks on the drawn down Poyang wetlands.
Best things to do in Shangrao
Sanqingshan Mount Scenic Area
UNESCO granite pillars, cliff plank walks and cloud seas, with thousands of steps even using the cable cars.
Wuyuan Huangling
A hillside Huizhou village famous for rapeseed terraces in March and autumn crop drying from September.
Jiangling
Viewing platforms over terraced rapeseed fields and Huizhou villages, at its best in March bloom.
Likeng Scenic Area
The classic Wuyuan water village of small bridges, streamside houses and riverside teahouses.
Wangxian Valley
A built cliff town that is artificial and spectacular, best arrived at late afternoon for the lit night scene.
Wunvzhou Resort
A built Huizhou resort whose iron flower show, fire performances and weekend fireworks own the Wuyuan night.
Ge's Fairy Village
A Taoist themed resort village with lantern lanes, a lake and night shows, calmer than Wangxian Valley.
Sixi Yan Village
Two quiet Huizhou merchant villages famed for brick, stone and wood carvings on Ming and Qing houses.
Where to stay in Shangrao
Ziyang Town, Wuyuan
default Wuyuan base and budget stays
By Wuyuan Station with the county deepest eating and hotels, and the eastern line within 30 to 60 minutes.
Inside Huangling and Wunvzhou
beating crowds and night shows
Evening and early morning access with tickets often bundled, in village rooms at Huangling or resort rooms at Wunvzhou.
Sanqingshan foot, Jinsha and Waishuangxi
a Sanqingshan mountain day
Sleep at the cableway the night before instead of losing the clear morning to a 1 to 2 hour transfer.
Shangrao city, Xinzhou and Wanda
one night logistics, trains and Wangxian
Best city eating around Wanda Plaza and easy station transfers, but not a base for a whole regional trip.
Inside Wangxian Valley
one theatrical splurge night
Cliff rooms above the lit valley after day crowds leave, reached by stairs and slopes.
Think twice about
- Yushan county town
Still 1 to 2 hours from the Sanqingshan cableways, so a cheaper hotel taxes your one mountain morning. Sleep at Jinsha or Waishuangxi.
- Shangrao Station perimeter
A transport apron with touting drivers and nothing to walk to at night. Pass through it, do not base a multi night stay in it.
- Lower Xiaoqi and Likeng entrance strip
Daytime commercial lanes become your front door in peak season. Quieter rooms cost the same in Upper Xiaoqi, Sixiyan or Ziyang Town.
Best restaurants in Shangrao
Sanqingxuan
Cantonese and local dishes with private rooms, the closest thing to a luxury dinner in the prefecture.
Tianjie Ancient Street
Huizhou farmhouse kitchens on Huangling old lane serving red carp, tofu pudding and steamed pork.
Likeng Farmhouse Restaurants
Family kitchens along Likeng stream serving fish, bamboo shoots, greens and cured pork by the water.
Huishi Street
The resort food street reviewers praise, eaten between iron flower and fireworks shows without leaving the park.
Old North Station Night Market
A local night market famed for Shangrao chicken legs and sour hot Yanshan noodles at street prices.
Dijing Rice Noodles
An early opening rice noodle shop for a Jiangxi breakfast, open from 05:30 at snack prices.
Yanpu Old Street
Old street snacks inside Wangxian, from pounded rice cakes and dengzhan guo to clear chicken soup.
Ziyang Town Night Market
County town evening eating with Qingming rice cakes and steamed cakes from street vendors in spring.
Outdoor things to do in Shangrao
Lingshan Scenic Area
The city own granite mountain with a cable car, long outdoor escalators, glass platforms and plank roads.
Guifeng Scenic Area
Danxia red sandstone peaks shaped like turtles around a lake, with boat rides and family hiking routes.
Dazhangshan Wolong Valley
A forested waterfall canyon in northern Wuyuan, best in or just after the wet season.
Wulongyuan Drift
Wuyuan established summer rafting run through mountain gorges, a proper get wet half day.
Wangxian Valley Canyon Rafting
A 2.8 km summer rafting descent below the cliff town, paired with staying for the night scene.
Poyang Lake National Nature Reserve
Winter Siberian cranes and vast waterbird flocks, done properly with a private car and local birding guide.
Wuyuan Eastern Line Cycling Route
Ride valley roads from Moon Bay through Likeng and Wangkou to Xiaoqi, through rapeseed fields in March.
Moon Bay
A free crescent river bend best at dawn, with mist on the water and short bamboo raft rides in season.
Best hotels in Shangrao
Hilton Sanqingshan Resort
The international resort at Sanqingshan foot, with a pool and spa a few minutes from Waishuangxi cableway.
Huangling Shaiqiu Meisu
Sleep inside Huangling village and reach the drying platforms and terraces before day visitors arrive.
Xiansu
Cliffside rooms inside Wangxian Valley with the lit valley below your window after day crowds leave.
Grand House Shangrao
A highly rated modern city hotel for the Shangrao night, handy for Wanda area eating and station transfers.
Wanda Realm Shangrao
A full service chain hotel in the city best eating district, built for an easy one night city stay.
Sanqingshan Junlan Resort Hotel
A resort stay beside the east Jinsha cableway, for the core sights entrance at opening time.
Wunvzhou Dreamless Lake Resort Hotel
Lake facing rooms inside Wunvzhou resort, with entry bundled and night shows on your doorstep.
Moshang Qingju Hotel
A Song styled small hotel near Wuyuan Station with a teahouse feel at budget prices.
Is Shangrao expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | CN¥400 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | CN¥750 a person |
| Splurge | CN¥1,600 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Sanqingshan Mount Scenic Area: a few days ahead
- Wuyuan Huangling: a few days ahead
- Wangxian Valley: a few days ahead
- Wunvzhou Resort: a few days ahead
- Wulongyuan Drift: a few days ahead
- Poyang Lake National Nature Reserve: weeks ahead
- Hilton Sanqingshan Resort: a few days ahead
- Huangling Shaiqiu Meisu: weeks ahead
- Book Sanqingshan entrance and cableway in advance on any Chinese public holiday and expect a numbered queue.
- Book Huangling in village rooms and Wangxian cliff rooms weeks ahead for peak flower, autumn and holiday weekends.
- The Wuyuan pass covers 12 attractions over 5 days but Huangling and Wunvzhou are not included.
- Resort show times vary by season, weekday and weather, so screenshot the day schedule at entry.
Is Shangrao safe?
- Mountain stairs are steep and slippery when wet, so wear real shoes and carry a rain layer on Sanqingshan and Lingshan.
- At Poyang, wear muted clothing, use no flash and stay on viewing corridors to protect the birds.
- Eat where turnover is high and food is cooked to order, and learn to say not spicy before ordering Jiangxi food.
- Emergency numbers are 110 for police and 120 for ambulance, and your hotel desk is your fastest interpreter.
Shangrao travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Basing a whole Sanqingshan plus Wuyuan trip in Shangrao city and spending the trip in cars.
- Visiting all three built night towns, Wangxian, Wunvzhou and Gexian, in one trip when they are variations on one product.
- Likeng at midday in peak season, scenic shop tea at 30 percent over county supermarket prices, and summit food at porter prices.
- Unlicensed taxis and overpriced carpools at stations and scenic gates.
Getting around Shangrao: public transport and more
- Shangrao, Wuyuan and Yushan South are three different high speed stations, and Wuyuan to Shangrao is about 25 to 30 minutes by train.
- A chartered car with driver at 400 to 600 CNY per day is the standard way to tour Wuyuan scattered villages.
- Use Amap or Baidu Maps instead of Google Maps, and save place names in Chinese characters.
- Foreign licences are not valid in China, so international visitors charter a car rather than self drive.
Who Shangrao suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Shangrao your trip
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