Northwestern Liaoning

Chaoyang, Fuxin and Tieling in northwestern Liaoning: Hongshan culture, bird fossils, and ancient pagodas and temples make for an off-the-beaten-path cultural trip.

Northwestern Liaoning is one of the regions in Liaoning's three-region division and includes three prefecture-level cities: Chaoyang, Fuxin and Tieling. Under this scheme, although Fuxin and Tieling are within the official Shenyang Economic Zone, they are placed uniformly in Northwestern Liaoning here, while coastal cities such as Yingkou belong to Coastal Liaoning. The region is not a hot tourist destination, but it has deep cultural roots. Chaoyang is the core of the Hongshan culture; the goddess figure and jade artifacts unearthed at the Niuheliang site are renowned among scholars, the North Pagoda of Chaoyang was built over several dynasties, Phoenix Mountain is a Buddhist mountain of western Liaoning, and the Bird Fossil National Geopark displays fossils of the Jehol Biota. Fuxin has a larger Mongol population; the Haitang Mountain cliff carvings and Ruiying Temple reflect Tibetan Buddhist culture, and the Chahai site is an even earlier Neolithic settlement. Tieling lies right next to Shenyang and has Longshou Mountain and the Yingang Academy, making it a good half-day extension from Shenyang. We suggest basing yourself in Chaoyang for two to three days to visit the sites and museums, then visiting Fuxin on the way. For transport, Chaoyang has a civil airport, the Beijing–Harbin high-speed railway passes through Chaoyang and Fuxin linking Beijing and Shenyang, and Tieling lies along the Beijing–Harbin railway north of Shenyang; distances between areas are long, so self-driving is more flexible. Summer and autumn are the most suitable seasons; winters are cold, springs are windy and dusty, and some sites and museums have closing days, so check opening hours before setting out.

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