Golden Summit of Mount Emei
金顶
The summit of Mount Emei, at 3,077 meters, where a 48-meter Samantabhadra statue and the Golden and Silver Halls shine above the clouds. Sunrise, the sea of clouds, Buddha's Light and the Sacred Lights are the four wonders that draw countless climbers.
The Golden Summit is the heart of Mount Emei, at 3,077 meters above sea level. On the summit platform stands the bronze statue of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, completed in 2006. It is 48 meters tall, weighs 660 tons, faces all ten directions, and has a gilded body. Beside it are the Golden Hall, Silver Hall and Copper Hall of Huazang Temple. The Golden Hall gleams in the sunlight, and on clear days you can see Mount Gongga and Wawu Mountain in the distance.
The four wonders:
① Sunrise, when the sun rises beyond the eastern sea of clouds.
② The sea of clouds, seen at dawn and dusk after rain. Standing at Sheshen Cliff, you look down on the clouds surging like an ocean.
③ Buddha's Light, a colored halo that appears among the clouds when the afternoon sun shines from behind you through the mist. Your own shadow appears at its center.
④ The Sacred Lights, phosphorescent glows that appear in the valley at night.
How to visit: most people take a sightseeing bus from the foot of the mountain to Leidong Ping, about 2 hours away. Then they walk 1.5 km to Jieyin Hall and take the Golden Summit cable car (about 5 minutes) to the top. You can also hike from Jieyin Hall to the summit in about 1.5 hours. Walking around the summit platform takes about 1 to 1.5 hours. The main sights are the Samantabhadra statue, Huazang Temple, the Sheshen Cliff viewing platform and Woyun Hermitage. Above, Wanfo Summit (3,099 meters) has a small train, which runs in peak season. Admission is included in the Mount Emei entrance ticket, which costs 160 yuan in peak season. The Golden Summit cable car costs 65 yuan up and 55 yuan down in peak season. It runs from 20 minutes before sunrise until 18:00.
To see the sunrise, stay at the Golden Summit (such as the Golden Summit Grand Hotel, which is expensive) or at a hotel in Leidong Ping, and take the first cable car in the morning.
Note: the summit is 10 to 15°C colder than the foot of the mountain and is windy, so bring a jacket even in summer. In winter, the steps can ice over, so rent crampons. Altitude sickness is uncommon at 3,000 meters, but walk slowly. In peak season (May Day, National Day and snow-season weekends), the cable car queue can reach 2 hours. Fog often blocks the sunrise and the sea of clouds, so leave some flexibility in your schedule. There are few monkeys at the Golden Summit; the monkey area is at Zhongshan.
Opening hours
Scenic area May–October 06:00–18:30, October–April 07:00–17:30; Golden Summit cable car from 20 minutes before sunrise to 18:00
Nearby sights
- Leidongping
- Xianfeng Temple & Jiulao Cave
- Xixiang Pool (Elephant Bathing Pool)
- Huayan Peak
- Hongchunping
- Emei Ecological Monkey Zone
- Qingyin Pavilion & Yixiantian Gorge
- Wannian Temple