Yueyang Urban Area

“Dongting is the world’s finest water, Yueyang the world’s finest tower”: Yueyang Tower and Junshan Island, bird-watching and crayfish at Dongting Lake, and a cultural short trip from Changsha.

Yueyang, anciently called Baling, lies in northeastern Hunan, where Dongting Lake meets the Yangtze. Bordering Hubei to the north, it is the northern gateway to Hunan, and the city is built on the eastern shore of East Dongting Lake. It is famous for the saying “Dongting is the world’s finest water, Yueyang the world’s finest tower”: Yueyang Tower is one of the Three Great Towers South of the Yangtze, made a household name by Fan Zhongyan’s “Record of Yueyang Tower”; Dongting Lake is China’s second-largest freshwater lake, and in winter the East Dongting Lake wetlands are the wintering ground of hundreds of thousands of migratory birds. The area divides into three zones. First, the lakeside in the city, around Yueyang Tower – Bianhe Street – Baling Square, which can all be linked on foot and is the core. Second, Junshan Island in the lake, reached by a 20-minute boat ride from the Yueyang Tower pier or by Bus 15, which suits half a day. Third, the outlying counties: Zhang Guying Village in Yueyang County (a Ming-and-Qing dynasty ancient village, about 1.5 hours by car), the Caisang Lake bird-watching area of the East Dongting Lake wetlands in Junshan District (about 1 hour by car), and the Qu Yuan Temple in Miluo. Climate: subtropical monsoon. April–May and September–November are mild and pleasant, the best times to climb the tower and view the lake; summer is hot and rainy, when the lake is fullest; November to March is bird-watching season, with the Dongting Lake International Bird-Watching Festival usually held in December, and in winter, once the water recedes, the lakebed turns into broad expanses of grassy flats. Getting there: Yueyang East Station is on the Beijing–Guangzhou high-speed railway, about 30–40 minutes from Changsha South and about 1.5 hours from Wuhan. The station is about 13 km from Yueyang Tower; take Bus 55 or a taxi, about 30 minutes. Yueyang Station (conventional rail) is closer to Yueyang Tower. We suggest 1–2 days: one day covers Yueyang Tower, Bianhe Street, Junshan Island and sunset at Baling Square; on the second day, go to Zhang Guying Village or bird-watching. Local food includes Yueyang crayfish (in summer), Dongting Lake fish banquets, Changle sweet rice wine and Miluo zongzi. Notes: each day Yueyang Tower admits 200 visitors free if they recite the “Record of Yueyang Tower”; sign up on site and recite it in full within 5 minutes. The last boat from Junshan Island is around 17:30. In winter, bring your own binoculars and follow nature reserve rules. During Dongting Lake’s flood season, some lakeside trails are submerged.

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