Liyang No. 1 Road
A loop road in Liyang, Jiangsu, linking Tianmu Lake, the Nanshan Bamboo Sea, Caoshan and many villages. It covers about 365 km and is known for its red, yellow and blue painted lines.
Liyang No. 1 Road is a county-wide tourism loop in Liyang, Changzhou, Jiangsu, completed around 2017. It covers about 365 km. Its name, meaning “365 days of scenery in a year,” refers to its length in kilometers. Red, yellow and blue lines are painted along the center of the road, earning it the nickname “Rainbow Road.” It serves as both a traffic road and a scenic route linking scenic spots, villages and guesthouses.
The loop roughly divides into southern mountains, central hills and northern lakes and marshes. The southern route passes Tianmu Lake, the Nanshan Bamboo Sea and tea gardens and bamboo groves in places such as Shenxi’ai. It is the most classic cycling and self-drive section. The northwestern route passes through the countryside around Caoshan Slow City and Bieqiao. The northeastern route runs near Changdang Lake. Along the way there are many rest stops, viewpoints and popular guesthouses. It suits weekend drives, cycling or day trips in sections.
It takes 1.5–3 hours to reach from Nanjing, Shanghai or Hangzhou. Plan 1–3 days, and simply choose one stretch of the southern route to enjoy at a leisurely pace. Rural sections are narrow, with farm vehicles and cyclists, so slow down and give way. On public holidays, the area around Tianmu Lake gets congested. It can be combined with the tea gardens and bamboo seas of Yixing and Changxing as a southwestern Lake Tai self-drive loop.