China’s Hidden Gem – the Hallelujah Floating Mountains
By Agness and Cez, eTramping.com
There is a place in China where you can discover one of the most stunning mountains in the world. This place is called Zhangjiajie and it’s located in Hunan Province, nearby famous Chinese town Fenghuang.
You may be already familiar with these mountains as Zhangjiajie is the place where the famous “Avatar” movie was filmed. Yes, that’s the same place, the same mountains and yes, they are real and no, it’s not magic!
Reaching the Mountains
Getting here may not be easy neither cheap, but trust me – seeing this place is worth spending any money and travelling all day and night long. How can you reach the mountains? There are daily flights from such big cities as Shanghai, Beijing or Guangzhou, so you can get to Zhangjiajie in less than two hours. If you can’t afford it, you can choose to go there by train. It takes approximately 20 hours and costs less than $35.
The Beauty of Zhangjiajie’s Mountains
The Zhangjiajie’s Mountains are called by locals The Floating Mountains because when it gets foggy, they look like they were floating in the air. This view is incredible and it certainly leaves many tourists speechless. For this reason, the Zhangjiajie Park is listed as UNESCO World Heritage site.
Once you decide to hike here, you will have this amazing opportunity to walk across the glass bridge, take pictures of natural scenery and climb up the stairs to heaven.
Trekking in Zhangjiajie National Park
The Zhangjiajie National Park is one of the most exciting and beautiful places to explore in Hunan province. It offers a lot to hike lovers – from the longest cable cars in the world to challenging trek paths full of extremely narrow vertical cliffs.
Staying in Zhangjiajie National Park
Staying here up to 3 days, which costs approximately $40, will certainly be one of the highlights of your China journey. If you’re adventurous, you should pack some food, bottled water and a tent where you can sleep for 2 nights. If not, you can stay at one of budget hostels in the park – the prices start from $10 a night.
Adding Zhangjiajie to your bucket list
When in China, you should definitely head to Hunan province to see what Zhangjiajie has a lot to offer to its visitors. You will be blown away by the beauty of the mountains and nicely surprised with Chinese cuisine which is considered to be one of the spiciest in the whole country.
Have you visited Zhangjiajie? What did you think?
About the Guest Bloggers
Meet eTramping crew – Agness and Cez – best friends and travel companions from Poland. These two are sharing their budget travel tips on how to travel the world with $25 in your pocket. Since 2011, they have been travelling the world while teaching English in different Asian countries such as China, Thailand or Cambodia. They are both photography passionate obsessed with Chinese cuisine and culture.
This is such a magical place! I would love to travel here someday. The views are breathtaking in photographs, I can hardly imagine what it would look like in person!
This place is truly breath-taking and I wish everyone could experience its landscape, local hospitality and delicious food! Thank you Elaine for having me here.
Everything looks like so much fun… except for that glass bridge. Yikes! Biggest thanks for linking up with us to #SundayTraveler.
Yeah, I thought the same thing. I think I may be a little hesitant to walk across. 😉
Super gorgeous! I had a friend visit and when I saw all her photos, I was immensely jealous. The mountains really do look like they’re floating. Thanks for linking up to the #SundayTraveler!
I know, these photos soooo make me want to get there. It looks amazing… Thanks for stopping by.
This looks absolutely stunning! One of the most recognizable and unique places, it’s on the top of my places to see in China!
Beautiful photos…makes me want to go, but I agree, the glass bridge may be a bit challenging for me.
Stunning place! I’m gonna pin it and use this information when we finally get to China at the beginning of next year! Thanks!
That’s great! Enjoy your trip!
Absolutely gorgeous! I really love the little canopies (for lack of a better term!) along the water. The Floating Mountains are really breathtaking!
Yes, they are amazing…They really got some great shots on their trip.
I really hope to make it here one – it looks so beautiful! And I loved Avatar!!
Oh my goodness how gorgeous are those rock formations and misty hills. I don’t think I will ever watch Avatar the same way again, but I guess I should have figured it was somewhere far away where it was filmed. I hope it’s foggy when I am there to see them float!