Lishui Green Valley

Known as "Zhejiang's Green Valley," with sea-of-clouds views over the Yunhe Terraces, the Ancient Weir Painting Village, dozens of old villages in Songyang, and Xiandu's Dinghu Peak, a landscape painting come to life.

Lishui lies in southwestern Zhejiang; more than 90% of it is mountainous, and the Ou River runs through it from west to east, earning it the name "Zhejiang's Green Valley." This destination covers central and northern Lishui: Liandu, Jinyun, Songyang and Yunhe, plus the parts of Suichang and Qingtian closest to the center; Longquan and Qingyuan in the southwest are listed separately as the "Longquan & Qingyuan" destination. There are five main areas to explore. First, Xiandu in Jinyun (Dinghu Peak, Zhutan Hill, Little Red Cliff, Niweng Cave) and the old houses of Heyang, with picture-perfect scenery and secluded villages. Second, Liandu District's Ancient Weir Painting Village (the Tongji Weir and sails on the Ou River), the Dongxiyan danxia landforms, and in the city, Nanming Mountain and Baiyun Mountain Forest Park. Third, Songyang, "the last hidden land south of the Yangtze": traditional villages such as Yangjiatang, Jieshou, Youtian and Chenjiapu, plus Songyang Old Street, the Yanqing Temple Pagoda and cycling through the Damushan tea plantations. Fourth, the Yunhe Terraces and Xiangong Lake, where early-morning seas of cloud and sunrise over the terraces are the signature photos. Fifth, nearby sights such as the Suichang Gold Mine National Mine Park and Shimen Cave in Qingtian. Climate: subtropical monsoon. In Apr–May the flooded terraces shine like mirrors and the tea gardens turn fresh green; Oct–Nov brings ripe rice, autumn colors and frequent seas of cloud. Summers are cool in the mountains but thunderstorms are common, and there's occasional snow in winter. Getting there: Lishui Station is on the Jinhua–Wenzhou and Quzhou–Lishui railways, about 1.5–2 hours from Hangzhou and about 40 minutes from Wenzhou; stations such as Jinyun West, Songyang and Qingtian serve the counties. Sights are spread out, so self-driving or hiring a car with driver is recommended. Suggested 4–5 days: 1 day for Xiandu and Heyang in Jinyun, 1 day for the Ancient Weir Painting Village and the city, 1 day for the Yunhe Terraces (stay at a guesthouse on the terraces for the sunrise), and 1–2 days for Songyang's old villages. Tickets generally run from a few dozen to just over ¥100; check each site's published prices. Local food: Jinyun sesame flatbread, Songyang Dragon Boat Festival herbal tea, Yunhe Solomon's seal (huangjing), and Qingtian paddy-field carp. Note: mountain roads are winding, so watch for falling rocks in the rainy season; the old villages are lived-in communities, so don't walk on the paddy-field ridges or wander into people's homes.

Top sights

• Yunhe Terraces – The largest terraced fields in East China, with more than 700 tiers built over a thousand years, these are a famous spot for photographing…
• Guyan Huaxiang & Tongji Weir – A 1,500-year-old ancient irrigation project, the Tongji Weir, together with ancient camphor trees and sailboats along the Ou River, makes t…
• Songyang Ancient Villages (Yangjiatang) – A representative village of Songyang, known as the ‘last hidden paradise of Jiangnan’, its yellow mud-brick houses stacked up the mountains…
• Xiandu Scenic Area & Dinghu Peak – The Dinghu Peak, a limestone pillar about 170 meters tall, rises from the earth and is reflected in the Lian Stream. Known as the ‘No. 1 Pe…
• Dongxiyan Scenic Area – A Danxia landform scenic area on the outskirts of Lishui, where East and West cliffs face each other across a valley. It has cliff-side anc…
• Zhutan Mountain (Xiandu) – A viewpoint across the Lian Stream from Dinghu Peak, where morning mist, bamboo rafts and stone spire reflections form Xiandu's most classi…
• Xiaochibi (Xiandu) – Ochre-red cliffs along the Lian Stream, with clear shallow water below. Carved cliff inscriptions and the Mother-in-law and Daughter-in-law…
• Niweng Cave – A treasure trove of cliff inscriptions in Xiandu, with carvings from the Tang and Song dynasties preserved inside and outside the cave. The…
• Heyang Ancient Village – An ancient village where the Zhu family has lived for over a thousand years. Its ancestral halls, horse-head gables and cobblestone lanes a…
• Damushan Cycling Tea Garden – Said to be the largest cycling tea garden in China, where riders pedal through more than 2,000 mu of rolling tea rows, with lake water and…
• Songyang Old Street – A Ming and Qing old street still in use, with blacksmith shops, Chinese herbal medicine stores and cotton-carding workshops lined up side b…
• Yanqing Temple Pagoda – A brick-and-wood leaning pagoda built in the Northern Song dynasty that has kept its original form for a thousand years. Dubbed China's Lea…
• Chenjiapu Village – A village of yellow-mud houses built on a cliff edge. The Xianfeng Bookstore's People's Bookstore, converted from a former village hall, ha…
• Jieshou Village – An ancient trading port village on the banks of the Songyin River. Its old street, Liu Clan Ancestral Hall, Yu Wang Palace and chastity arc…
• Youtian Village – A hillside village of yellow-mud walls, where the Ye Clan Ancestral Hall and terraced fields make it a favorite secret spot for photographe…
• Suichang Gold Mine National Mine Park – A mine park converted from a gold mine with over a thousand years of mining history. Visitors can enter the Tang-dynasty gold caves, see Mi…
• Xiangong Lake – A high-gorge flat lake formed by the Jinshuitan Reservoir, with winding bays and scattered islands. Boat tours on the lake make it another…
• Yunhe Wooden Toy Town – A wooden toy-themed town in Yunhe, known as China's Wooden Toy City. Visitors can tour a wooden toy exhibition hall and make wooden toys by…
• Baiyun Mountain Forest Park – A national forest park right beside Lishui's urban area. Reaching the summit gives a view over the whole city and the Ou River, and its for…
• Nanming Mountain – A suburban famous mountain on the south bank of the Ou River, preserving cliff inscriptions from successive dynasties. The three large char…
• Shimen Cave (Qingtian) – A valley on the north bank of the Ou River where two peaks face each other like a gate. A waterfall nearly 100 meters high and relics linke…
• Nanjianyan Scenic Area – A high-mountain scenic area in southwest Suichang, where thousand-year-old terraces, bamboo seas and seas of clouds come together. Its clif…

Itineraries

• Lishui, Xiandu, Songyang & Yunhe Loop – A road trip through Lishui's countryside: morning mist in Xiandu, Guyan, Songyang's ancient villages, Yunhe Rice Terrac…
• Zhejiang Province Grand Loop Road Trip – A grand loop covering Hangzhou, southwestern Zhejiang, Lishui, Wenzhou, Taizhou, and Shaoxing, taking you through the p…