Liancheng

Guanzhai Mountain's Danxia scenery and Shimen Lake boat rides, the Hakka villages of Peitian and Zhixi, Sibao woodblock printing, and Lantern Festival folk traditions such as the 'walking legends' parade and the giant dragon procession.

Liancheng County lies in western Fujian in the north of Longyan, a mountainous county at the heart of the western Fujian Hakka region; the county seat, Lianfeng Town, sits in a basin ringed by hills. Guanzhai Mountain, on the eastern edge of town, is a national scenic area famous for its Danxia landforms, and its core route takes in boat rides on Shimen Lake, the climb up Guanzhai Mountain, the cliffside walkway at Zhu'anzhai and bamboo rafting on Jiulong Lake. The county is dotted with Hakka villages: Peitian in the southwest preserves many Ming and Qing dwellings, Sibao in the north was one of the four great woodblock printing centres of the Ming and Qing dynasties, and Zhixi, Bizhou and Xinquan in the south can be linked into a route of old villages and hot springs. The best seasons are Mar–May and Sep–Nov; summers are hot with frequent thunderstorms. From Chinese New Year to the Lantern Festival, Hakka folk events take place, including the 'walking legends' parade in Luofang, the giant dragon procession in Gutian and the Zhixi lanterns; they are lively, but book accommodation early. Getting there: Guanzhaishan Station has bullet trains towards Longyan, Sanming and Fuzhou, and Guanzhaishan Airport has a handful of flights; you'll need a hired car or your own vehicle to reach the villages. Allow 2–3 days: one for Guanzhai Mountain, one for Peitian and Sibao, plus an extra day for the southern villages. Local Hakka food includes Liancheng white duck, dried sweet potato, taro dumplings and jiumentou, a hot pot of nine kinds of beef offal.

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