Huangyao Ancient Town in Zhaoping County, Hezhou

Huangyao Ancient Town in Zhaoping County, Hezhou

Located in the northeast of Zhaoping County, 200 km away from Guilin, Huangyao Ancient Town has a history of over 1000 years and is featured by mountains with caves, unique folk houses, exquisite pavilions and temples, tables, ancestor halls, tremendous old trees and stone roads. At each corner of the town, you can see the typical scene of Chinese old town.
English Name: Huangyao Ancient Town
Chinese Name: 黄姚古镇
Opening Hours: 07:30-18:00.
Ticket Price: 100 yuan for entrance ticket; 60 yuan for tour guide service; 5 yuan for small cars parking; 10 yuan for big cars parking.
Best Time: The last ten days of September to the first ten days of November, during which fresh fruits are available.
Recommended Visiting Hours: 1 or 3 hours
Address: On the northeast part of Zhaoping County, Hezhou city, Guangxi Province.

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Huangyao Ancient Town

Huangyao Ancient Town (黄姚古镇) is one of China’s Top 10 most beautiful ancient Towns. Most of the local residents in the town have the surnames of “Huang” and “Yao”, hence Huangyao Town. The old town of Huangyao (黄姚古镇) has a history of around a thousand years, and many of its buildings date from the Qing dynasty.

Why is Huangyao Ancient Town So Special

Reputed as the ‘dreamland for families’, Huangyao Ancient Town is surrounded by karst hills, mountains and paddy fields. Huangyao Ancient Town has been listed as one of the 50 most worthy places to visit for tourists in China. With a history of about a thousand years, it has long been known as the “Dream Homestead.” Many cultural objects are well-preserved, including the calligraphy of Han Yu, who was a great calligraphist of the Song Dynasty.

Introduction of Huangyao Ancient Town

Layout

Old bridges and flowing rivers integrate with each other perfectly there. Several peculiar peaks stand erect from the flat ground in the town, forming spectacular and charming valleys. The well-preserved pagodas, pavilions, and age-old trees add to the town’s beauty and historical value.

Main Attractions 

  • Famous sights are Wenming Pavilion, Xingning Temple, Shizi Temple, Ancient Performance Platform, Wu family ancestral hall, Zuolong Temple, Dailong Bridge, etc. Wenming pavilion and Zhou’s Family Reservoir top all the sights. 
  • Built on the mountain, Wenming Pavilion is a worship place for locals to pray for the best climate and weahter for a good cultivation and harvest througout a year. There a platform offers visitor a broad view of leisure countryside scene. 
  • Zhou’s Family Reservoir lends beautiful scenery of rurality on the sides along the road from Huangyao Town toward Zhaoping county, A tender picture of special yellow soil, brick wall, zigzag field will full of your eyes on you way here.

Dailong Bridge (带龙桥)

The bridge, made from bluestones and made up of two arches, is the largest hierarchical stone arch bridge in Huangyao ancient town. Spanning the Xiaozhujiang River, the bridge is 22.7 metres long, 2.97 metres wide. Actually, it is more than ornamentation.

Wenming Ge (文明阁)

First built in the Wanli Period of Ming Dynasty, this small temple on the mountain was renovated four times in the past. A lot of stone tablets can be found here.

Sima Di (司马第)

Located on the Longpan Street (龙畔街), Sima Di, an ancient architecture of Qing Dynasty style, is the representative of dwellings of the Huang’s and the Yao’s. 

Jumping Stone Bridge (石跳桥)

Built in the Jiajing Period of Qing Dynasty, the bridge has witnessed more than 200 years’ history. There are 31 stone blocks arranged in order. 

Local Tofu

Huangyao is associated with fermented soybeans and dried plum. Fermented soybeans were recognized as articles of tribute to the imperial court in the Qing Dynasty. Additionally, in the early 20th century they were exported to Southeast Asian countries.
There are some restaurants in Huangyao Ancient Town that showcase local flavors. Tofu and stuffed tofu are highly recommended.

Where is Huangyao Ancient Town Location

Huangyao Ancient Town is located in the northeast of Zhaoping County (昭平县) of Hezhou City (贺州) in Guangxi Province Huangyao Ancient Town has a history of over 1000 years and is featured by mountains with caves, unique folk houses, exquisite pavilions and temples, tables, ancestor halls, tremendous old trees and stone roads.

  • 190km to the southeast of Guilin (桂林)
  • 129 km to the southeast of Yangshuo (阳朔)
  • 60km to the west of Hezhou (贺州).

How to Get There

  • You may take the high-speed train to Hezhou from Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Guilin and Guiyang. At Hezhou, you switch to the local buses heading to Huangyao Ancient Town.
  • You also can take the long-distance buses directly to Huangyao from  Guilin ( 3 hours ) and Yangshuo ( one an half hours ) and Guangzhou (over 7 hours ).
  • From Guilin, you take the bus from Guilin Passenger Bus General Station (桂林汽车总站). There are two daily buses from Guilin to Huangyao Ancient Town: 8:30 am and and 1:30 pm. The return bus starts at 2:00 pm from Huangyao Ancient Town. 

Useful Travel tips

  1. Hours: Buy ticket from 7:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. and can stay there all day long 
  2. Admission: 100 yuan
  3. Getting there: 4 hours’ drive from Guilin; 
  4. Take buses from Guilin to Hezhou, 2 buses daily; 
  5. take a train No. K9336 / K 9337 from Nanning to Hezhou and then transfer bus from Hezhou to Huangyao Twon.

Main Attractions in Guangxi Province

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Edited by  Lynette Fu/付云锐