4 Days Hunan Tour to Changsha & Zhangjiajie

► This is a guided tour by eco-friendly public transport. If you need a private car, feel free to contact our travel consultants to arrange it for you.
► Route: Changsha (1 day) → Zhangjiajie (3 days)

You are recommended to arrive one day before and stay overnight around the Tianxin Pavilion area, which is a good place to experience the real lifestyle of old Changsha people. In the morning, our guide will meet you at the lobby of your hotel, and accompany you to start today’s Changsha tour from the old Tianxin Pavilion, which was first built during the Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644 AD) and once the tower on the destroyed ancient city wall of Changsha.
► Recommended Time for a Visit: 1 to 2 hours
► Highlights: Follow our guide to tour the Tianxin Park, visiting the Chonglie Pavilion, Chonglie Gate, and Chonglie Tower, ascending the ancient city wall, and climbing up to the Tianxin Pavilion to have a panoramic view.

Our next stop is the Hunan Provincial Museum, which is famous for the unearthed relics from the Mawangdui Han Tombs, bronze ware of Shang and Zhou Dynasties (1600 – 265 BC), and cultural relics of ancient Chu Kingdom.
► How to get there: Our guide will hire a taxi to accompany you on a 20-minute ride to the museum. If you want to experience the city bus, follow the guide to get out of the park from its northeast gate, walk 10 minutes east to take the bus line 150 from Shiziling (Furong Road) to the museum, taking about 35 minutes.
► Recommended Time for a Visit: 2 hours
► Note: If it happens to be a Monday when the museum is closed, we will visit the Changsha Jiandu Museum opposite the Tianxin Pavilion instead.

After visiting the museum, we’ll go to the Taiping Street by taxi in 20 minutes. If you prefer to try the city bus, please follow the guide to take the bus line 3 to get there, taking about 35 minutes.

Let’s take a leisurely stroll along this old street and look at the archways, historic sites, and old dwellings. There are many snack bars where you can choose one you like to have lunch at your own expense. The local snacks like Fried Stinky Tofu and Sticky Rice Cake with Syrup (Tangyou Baba) are well worth trying.

In the afternoon, our guide will accompany you to visit the Yuelu Academy built in 976 AD during the Song Dynasty and climb up the Mt. Yuelu to overlook Changsha City. The campus of Hunan University at the foot of the mountain is also worth a visit if time permits.
► How to get there: From Taiping Street, our guide will escort you on a 20-minute taxi ride to the Mt. Yuelu. Otherwise, you can take the bus Lishan Special Line if time allows. Get off at Hunan University, and then walk to the mountain.
► Recommended Time for a Visit: 2 to 3 hours
► Tip: If you want to save energy, you can also take the mountain sightseeing car or cableway at your own expense.

In the late afternoon, we will go to the Orange Isle in the Xiangjiang River which runs through the Changsha City. Here you can enjoy a relaxed walk and see the huge stone statue of Chairman Mao.
► How to get there: Follow our guide to take the subway line 4 from Hunan University, transfer to line 2 at Yingwanzhen, and reach Juzizhou (Orange Isle) in 20 minutes.
► Recommended Time for a Visit: 1 to 2 hours

Finally, our guide will escort you back to your hotel by taxi.

High speed train is the most convenient way to get from Changsha to Zhangjiajie. In the morning, please manage your own way from your hotel to the Changsha Railway Station, by bus, subway, or taxi. We will book for you the second class seats on a high speed train to Zhangjiajie in advance. The train G5872 departing from Changsha Railway Station at 8:30 and arriving at Zhangjiajie West Railway Station at 10:36 is recommended. For the specific number and departure time of the train booked, please refer to the information given by our guide. Enjoy the fast and smooth ride traversing central Hunan and arriving in Zhangjiajie in 2 hours.

Upon arrival, our Zhangjiajie local guide will greet you at the West Railway Station, which is about 30 km (19 mi) away from the core scenic area of Zhangjiajie (Wulingyuan). You are recommended to book a hotel in Wulingyuan Town near the scenic area. Our guide will escort you on a 30-minute taxi ride to your hotel to drop off your luggage, and then we’ll begin our exploration.

Zhangjiajie (Wulingyuan) Scenic Area is very large, including Forest Park, Suoxi Valley, Tianzi Mountain, and Yangjiajie. Our tour route is reasonably designed for you to spend a day and a half in the scenic area. This afternoon, the guide will accompany you to visit the Tianzi Mountain in the Forest Park first.

★ Entry Priority of Our Guests
In order to save your time, we have booked the tickets for you in advance, so that you will not have to wait in line. Unlike other travel agencies that only offer entrance tickets, we offer you a combo ticket, which covers the entry fee, as well as the shuttle bus fare among different scenic spots inside.

Follow our guide to take the classical route and get amazed by the stunning scenery of Zhangjiajie.
► Route for Your Reference: Wulingyuan Wujiayu Ticket Office (Entry) → shuttle bus (15 minutes) to lower station of Tianzi Mountain Cable Car → uphill cable car → He Long Park (1 hour for sightseeing) → Shentang Bay → Yunqing Rock → Imperial Brush Peaks → Flower Fairy Peaks → Tianzi Pavilion → Wolong Mountain (100-120 minutes to go downhill) → Ten-mile Gallery (30 minutes for sightseeing) → shuttle bus (15 minutes) to Wulingyuan Wujiayu Ticket Office (Exit)

If it is too late when you finish visiting the Tianzi Pavilion, you can take the cable car to go downhill. Before dark, our guide will accompany you back to your hotel by taxi.

In the morning, our guide will pick you up from your hotel for a taxi to the scenic area.

★ Efficient Visit by Round-trip Bailong Elevator
This is a full day exploring the core scenic areas of Yuanjiajie and Yangjiajie. To make your half-day trip more efficient, we have generously arranged a round-trip ride on the Bailong Elevator, the highest outdoor sightseeing elevator in the world.

► Route for Your Reference: Wulingyuan Wujiayu Ticket Office (Entry) → shuttle bus (20 minutes) → Bailong Elevator (30 minutes up including the waiting time) → shuttle bus (10 minutes) → Yuanjiajie (2 hours for the following sights) → Back Garden → Enchanting Platform → Viewing Platform → Hallelujah Mountain → Turtle Asking the Sky → First Bridge under Heaven → Yuanjiajie Tianqiao Station → shuttle bus to Wulong Village Crossroad Station → Jinji Baoxiao → Wulong Village and Tianbo Mansion (1 hour for sightseeing) → shuttle bus back to upper station of Bailong Elevator → Bailong Elevator (30 minutes down including the waiting time) → shuttle bus to Wulingyuan Wujiayu Ticket Office (Exit)

When we get out from the Wulingyuan Wujiayu Ticket Office, follow the guide to take a taxi back to your hotel to pick up your luggage, and then we’ll take a taxi or the bus line 1 or 2 to the Wulingyuan Bus Station, where the guide will accompany you on a bus ride to downtown Zhangjiajie to stay overnight.

► Bus Hours: 6:30-20:30
► Frequency: every 10 to 15 minutes
► Distance: 38 km (24 mi)
► Duration: 50 minutes

Upon arrival, please take a taxi to your own-booked hotel in downtown Zhangjiajie.

In the morning, our guide will meet you at your hotel lobby and accompany you to take a taxi to the lower station of Tianmen Mountain Cable Car, which runs directly to the Air Garden on top of the Tianmen Mountain in 30 minutes.

★ Privilege of Our Guests: Round-trip Cableway Tour
We have generously included a round trip cable car ticket for you to make your visit to the Tianmen Mountain most efficient and labor-saving. In addition to the cable car, you can also take the 7-level downhill escalator, without extra charge.

► Follow our guide to tour along the classical route: Glass Skywalk → Buried Treasure by Yefo → Ghost Path → Small Tianmen → Ghost Cave → Cherry Bay → Tianmen Temple → Tianmen Cave
► Recommended Time for a Visit: 5 to 6 hours

When we finish touring the Tianmen Cave, the guide will lead you to take the shuttle bus back to downtown Zhangjiajie. Here the 4 days Hunan tour is completed.

You can transfer to other cities by flight or train; otherwise if you want to extend your exploration to Western Hunan, please refer to our 5 Days Private Zhangjiajie & Fenghuang Tour.