Xingyi

Xu Xiake wrote, "There are so many mountain peaks under heaven, but only here do the peaks form a forest." Wanfenglin, Maling River Gorge and Wanfeng Lake make up southwest Guizhou's most beautiful karst scenery.

Xingyi is the seat of Qianxinan Buyei and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in Guizhou, in the southwest corner of the province where it borders Yunnan and Guangxi. The city sits at about 1,200 m above sea level with neither scorching summers nor freezing winters, a classic "cool capital" climate. Xingyi is famous for its karst landscapes: Wanfenglin (Ten Thousand Peaks Forest) south of the city is made up of more than 20,000 cone-shaped stone peaks, and the Ming-dynasty traveler Xu Xiake praised it with the words, "There are so many mountain peaks under heaven, but only here do the peaks form a forest"; to the northeast, Maling River Gorge is a deep "scar" in the earth lined with waterfalls on both sides; and in the south, Wanfeng Lake on the Nanpan River, formed by the Tianshengqiao No. 1 hydropower station, is a large plateau lake dotted with islands. Core plan: Wanfenglin 1 day (take the shuttle bus or cycle through the West Peak Forest, and stay at a guesthouse in Nahui Village beneath the peaks); Maling River Gorge half a day; Wanfeng Lake half a day to 1 day; with more time you can visit the Shuangru Peaks in Zhenfeng, Zhaoti in Anlong and the Liu Family Manor in Xingyi. Best seasons: February–March for rapeseed flowers and the Wanfenglin countryside at its most photogenic; June–August for green rice paddies and cool weather; September–October for golden rice; in the rainy season (May–September) the Maling River waterfalls are at full volume. Getting there: Xingyi Wanfenglin Airport has flights to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and other cities; the Nanning–Kunming Railway and the Panzhou–Xingyi high-speed line pass through Xingyi, and you can change at Panzhou for high-speed trains to Guiyang and Kunming (check the latest timetable); it is about 20 minutes from the city to Wanfenglin and about 20 minutes to Maling River Gorge. We suggest 2–3 days. Food: Xingyi mutton rice noodles, chicken glutinous rice dumplings, shuabatou (steamed dumplings), gangzi noodles and Buyei five-color rice. Notes: shuttle buses and admission at Wanfenglin are charged separately, and if you want to cycle you need to bring or rent a bike; the gorge boardwalks are slippery, so take care in the rain; respect local customs in Buyei villages.

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