Central China

Central China includes Henan, Hubei and Hunan, bringing together the ancient capitals of the Central Plains such as Luoyang and Kaifeng, Wudang and Shennongjia, the Three Gorges of the Yangtze, and western Hunan's Zhangjiajie peaks and Fenghuang Ancient Town.

Central China, following China's seven-region geographic division, includes the three provinces of Henan, Hubei and Hunan. Located along the middle Yangtze and the middle and lower Yellow River, it is the heartland of Central Plains culture, Jingchu culture and Huxiang culture. The highlights fall into three groups. Henan excels in history and culture: the Longmen Grottoes and White Horse Temple in Luoyang, the Shaolin Temple and Mount Song in Dengfeng, Kaifeng's Qingming Riverside Garden, the Yin Ruins in Anyang and the Red Flag Canal in Linzhou, plus mountain scenic areas such as Yuntai Mountain in Jiaozuo and Laojun Mountain in Luanchuan. Hubei has Wuhan's Yellow Crane Tower and East Lake, the Three Gorges Dam and the Yangtze Three Gorges near Yichang, the Wudang Mountain Taoist temple complex, the Shennongjia primeval forest and Enshi Grand Canyon, and the ancient city of Jingzhou. Hunan has the sandstone peak forests of Wulingyuan in Zhangjiajie and Tianmen Mountain, Fenghuang Ancient Town and western Hunan's Tujia and Miao villages, Changsha's Orange Isle and Yuelu Academy, Yueyang Tower and Dongting Lake, Hengshan in Nanyue, Shaoshan, and Dongjiang Lake in Chenzhou and the Danxia landforms of Langshan. Classic itineraries: the western Hunan route of "Changsha–Zhangjiajie–Fenghuang" in six to seven days; western Hubei's "Wuhan–Yichang–Enshi" or "Wuhan–Shennongjia–Wudang Mountain" route in five to seven days; the Central Plains ancient-capitals route of "Zhengzhou–Shaolin Temple–Luoyang–Kaifeng" in four to five days. Getting there: Wuhan Tianhe, Changsha Huanghua and Zhengzhou Xinzheng are the main hubs, and Zhangjiajie, Yichang, Enshi, Luoyang and Shennongjia all have airports; the Beijing–Guangzhou high-speed railway runs through all three provinces, with lines such as Shanghai–Chongqing–Chengdu and Zhengzhou–Xi'an linking east and west, and mountain sights are best visited by chartered car or self-drive. Notes: July and August often bring high heat across the three provinces, so plan to escape it in the mountains; Zhangjiajie, Fenghuang and similar places are crowded on holidays, trails can be slippery in the rain, and transport within the scenic areas takes time, so don't pack your itinerary too tightly.

Destinations

Itineraries