Summer and autumn, here we have a romantic date with Pink Daisy Grass

In winter and spring, the flowing water and peach blossoms here make people drunk

There is also the emerald green Wujiang River

Youyang, a place to escape from the city and forget your troubles. 3 days and 2 nights, suitable for self driving. Experience the idyllic paradise depicted by Tao Yuanming, immerse yourself in the romance of pink "clumps of grass", stroll along the bluestone path of Gongtan Ancient Town, take a breath of the ethereal aura of the misty Wujiang River, and then return to the city full of vitality.

Lao Bei is about to take you on a worry free journey.

Regarding itinerary and transportation

Departure: Yuzhong District, Chongqing - Youyang County
Method: Self driving
Single sided: 380 kilometers (about 5 hours) toll fee of 195 yuan
Ticket: Yuyang Peach Blossom Spring: 100 yuan/person (75 yuan/person for online shopping) Stacked Stone Flower Valley: 99 yuan/person (90 yuan/person for online shopping) Gongtan Ancient Town: 15 yuan/person Tour of Wujiang River boat: 158 yuan/person
Accommodation: Qingaiwen Residence

Day 1: Chongqing - Youyang Night Tour, Youzhou Ancient City, Eating Original Flavored Potato Rice, Staying at Qingaiwen Inn
Day 2: Morning: Green bean powder, Youyang Peach Blossom Spring, Stacked Stone Flower Valley, Eating Ding Can Rice
Day 3: Gongtan Ancient Town Tour, Wujiang River Return

Don't go back the whole way!

Because it is far away, we should try to absorb all the essence of the scenic spot when we go there. I am also someone who has been to Youyang at least 10+times, so here I have compiled this most reliable travelogue for everyone, starting a journey of forgetting worries in Youyang.

Accommodation: The best homestay in the ancient city of Youzhou for sleeping

In fact, as soon as you pass through Youyang, you will directly enter the entrance of the Youyang Peach Blossom Spring scenic area, next to the golden ancient city of Youzhou. I think the ancient city of Youzhou is quite beautiful, especially at night. The mountainous terrain is staggered and the buildings have a rich sense of three dimensionality after being illuminated.

On both sides of the road in the ancient city of Youzhou, there is a dazzling array of restaurants and inns. This uphill road is 1.3 kilometers long and mainly carries the culture of the Tujia and Miao ethnic groups. It integrates Tujia and Miao architecture and folk customs, and is a "museum" that showcases Tujia architecture, history, customs, and culture.

The buildings on both sides are antique, with the first floor being for dining and the second floor and above being mostly guesthouses.

On one side of Youzhou Ancient City is an inn, and on the other side is a resting slope style pavilion corridor. The night lights paired with ancient fans are really beautiful:

I have stayed at many homestays in the ancient city of Youzhou, and the best one is the newly opened Qingaiwen Inn in Youzhou Ancient City in 2019. I always stay here every time I come. It can be said to be the best homestay in the ancient city of Youzhou.

At present, there are a total of five phases of 'Qingaiwen Residence', with Courtyard 1 being the closest. Further up are yards 2, 3, 4, and 5.

Clean and tidy, with a fresh and elegant green and white decoration. I have stayed here once from Phase 1 to Phase 4.

The rooms come in different sizes to meet the needs of family members at different levels.

The most common standard room has a sofa, and some rooms also have a dedicated "living room area".

The lights in the bathroom automatically turn on when a person enters, without the need for any further pressing action. Provide disposable slippers and plastic slippers for showering. All toiletries are complete. We also provide bathrobes.

Xiaodu smart home, whether turning on the lights or pulling the curtains, can be controlled through intelligent voice control. The curtains, lighting, and television are all fully automatic.

Per capita consumption: around 238 yuan per night for a standard room. There will be a deposit of 300 yuan for check-in, which can be paid via mobile phone. The deposit will be refunded immediately upon check-out. There are also invoices (general invoices) that can be issued, and we also provide specialized envelopes for invoices, which are professional.

The room door is also a password lock. After checking in, if you provide your phone number, you will receive a password lock SMS, which is very advanced and safe.

There are two free bottles of mineral water in the small refrigerator, and a charging cable is also provided. There is free Wi Fi available.

The lobby of each phase is different, and the Japanese style "dry mountain stone water" on the first floor of Phase 1 is quite beautiful.

The lobby also has tea sets and a lounge, giving a traditional Chinese cultural feel.

Free parking

Sleeping comfortably is the key to having fun!

Play: Youyang Peach Blossom Spring

The next day, wake up early with a bowl of mung bean flour to start the first day of the trip. When you come to Youyang, be sure to eat their specialty mung bean flour. Almost every small noodle shop can do it. The taste is a relatively "rough" and thick texture, which can be felt with the lips and tongue one by one with the particles and unevenness on the surface of mung bean flour. I quite like this simple taste. I like all kinds of noodles.

The Yuyang Peach Blossom Spring is located next to the ancient city of Youzhou, and there is enough time in the morning for sightseeing.

There are two entrances, be sure to figure out whether you want a half trip or a full trip.

Special attention:

Below the ancient city of Youzhou, there is a transfer point for transportation between two tourist centers in Taohuayuan Scenic Area, called the Sports Center Station. There is a tourist center and entrance to the scenic area here. Tourists can enter the Peach Blossom Spring scenic area from here, but can only play in the "Shangri La" village, and then exit the scenic area through this entrance. This is called a half journey tour.

The tourist center located near the highway intersection outside the city is called Taikoo Cave, which is the entrance to the entire tour. The tour route is similar to the walking route described by Tao Yuanming, entering from Taikoo Cave, passing through a long cave, entering the "Shangri La" village, and exiting the scenic area from the location of the exhibition center (i.e. Sports Center Station).

So, when self driving tourists travel the entire journey, they first park their cars at Taikoo Cave and keep moving forward without turning back. After leaving the scenic area from the exhibition center (sports center station), they have to take a transportation bus back to Taikoo Cave to pick up the car. However, if you did not enter from Taikoo Cave, the ticket can be used again within 2 days to make up for your absence in the tourist area.

Note: During the 2020 National Day holiday, Taikoo dong will temporarily be closed to the public. But I can still introduce the specific situation of Taikoo Cave here:

Taikoo Cave, in simple terms, is a cave known as the "Secret Path of Taoyuan". Inside the cave are various forms of stalactites. It is about 3 kilometers long and has a history of over 300 million years. It is still growing and developing today. This Taigu Cave is said to be the last place for ancient Xianyang Confucian scholars to hide from official raids (formerly known as Fuxi Cave), a typical karst cave in South China Karst. The cave is vast in size and majestic, with winding corridors, steep canyons, and beautiful landscapes. The stalactites inside the cave are tall and straight, with clusters of stalagmites, high hanging stone curtains, and towering stone pillars. The cave is carefully decorated with lights, colorful and dreamlike, and can be called an "underground peach blossom paradise". It takes about an hour to walk through Taikoo Cave. At the exit of Taikoo Cave, there is an inscription by Zhu Xuewen, the father of sinkhole studies, which reads "World Wonder, Underground Stone Forest".

There are two peach blossom gardens in the world, one in your heart and the other in Youyang, Chongqing

I think this sentence is really well written. Seeing the smoke swirling in the scenic area, I think it's really worth it.

After walking for dozens of steps, I suddenly became enlightened. The land was flat and spacious, and the houses were just like trees and bamboo. There were fertile fields, beautiful ponds, mulberry trees, and bamboo trees. The roads were connected, and chickens and dogs could hear each other. Among them, people came and went to plant crops, and men and women dressed like outsiders. Yellow hair was falling, and they were enjoying themselves. "The Yuyang Peach Blossom Spring is a restored way of life in poetry.

After verification by domestic and foreign experts, it is believed that the Youyang Peach Blossom Spring Scenic Area is extremely consistent with the idyllic paradise described in Tao Yuanming's "Peach Blossom Spring Chronicles". The unique thatched cottages in the ancient city can be experienced one by one, including Qin Yuefang for ancient music performance, Guiyuantianju for sipping peach juice, Yuanxi Pavilion for enjoying slow leaves and green mugwort, and Qin Quyuan for experiencing bamboo weaving.

The scenic area showcases the "Qin people, Qin style, Qin appearance, and Qin charm" from 2000 years ago, with the saying "men plowing and women weaving, harmony between man and nature", as if returning to Qin in a dream.

A snap anytime, anywhere is shrouded in clouds and mist, which is also very ethereal.

The Taoyuan Restaurant, where I smell the smoke from the kitchen, has abundant grain resources. I can also see scenes such as planting mulberry trees and raising silkworms, weaving hemp cloth, driving and grinding cows to plow, as well as various Taoyuan snacks, satisfying my Chongqing stomach.

You can experience making rice cakes, weaving hemp cloth, drawing silk, and taste three flavors of crispy food: glutinous rice, mung beans, and black sesame.

You can change clothes in the scenic area and become a true Qin Dynasty person, wear "Qin costumes", play and take photos in Taoyuan Village, and there is also a place to return clothes when leaving the scenic area. Each set costs 20 yuan per person.

Running pheasants live happily and freely in the scenic area.

The most beautiful season is spring, when peach blossoms are in full bloom, the peach color in the garden cannot be hidden.

Play: Stacked Stone Flower Valley

If you want to see pink in autumn, Youyang can also give you a patch of pink clover, right in the Valley of Stacked Stone Flowers. Every autumn, it is the most beautiful season in Youyang Dieshi Flower Valley. September to November are the best time to admire the pink and indigo plants, with pink clouds drifting over the green grass, like a dream.

Youyang Stacked Stone Flower Valley is the only scenic spot in the world that combines stacked stone art theme park and Wu Nuo culture exhibition park.

Nuo "nu ó is composed of the characters" you "and" difficult ", which means that when people encounter" difficult things ", they hope to receive liberation and the protection of the gods. So, our ancestors created imaginary gods and endowed them with supernatural abilities to pray for disaster relief and relief. Later on, Tang King Li Shimin brought back the lively scene of singing opera in the Moon Palace from his dream to reality due to a "sleepwalking in the underworld", and founded the mask "Yang Opera", which has been passed down to this day. The 'mask' naturally became the link between humans and gods.

With the development of human civilization in history, this precious "Nuo culture" has also been preserved and can be seen in the Dieshi Flower Valley in Youyang, Chongqing.

In addition to the sculptures of the twenty-four opera gods, there are also stone formations of the December Moon God Pillars, the Stacked Stone Demon Pit, the Canyon Sliding Rope, the Three Emperor Terrace, and the ruins of the Wunuo Shrine in the Stacked Stone Flower Valley area.

Near the magical latitude of 30 ° N, there are many particularly mysterious and interesting natural phenomena. The Youyang Dieshi Flower Valley Scenic Area is located in this area, with nearly 2 square kilometers of "flowers in stones" within the park. These stone flowers are various floral patterns formed from seaweed fossils in the ocean billions of years ago.

On the rocks, flowers bloom in full bloom. It looks like some porcelain paintings on blue and white porcelain bowls, and the flowers are lifelike like artificial carvings, which is breathtaking. Until now, they are still breathing, and the ubiquitous stone flowers are really beautiful

The stone flowers are hidden in the ubiquitous pink and white grass, pay attention to the scenery under your feet.

It's so beautiful, I love pink and purple grass so much, no matter how hard I try, I can't take enough pictures.

There is a giant stacked stone magic pit in the scenic area, which looks like a big pot from afar. There are four statues above the magic pit, protecting this land like gods and representing 'good weather'. Legend has it that standing at the center of a magic pit and turning clockwise three times, the pit will take away all the troubles and bad luck.

There is a huge natural canyon in the area of Pink Grass, perfectly connected by a zip line bridge and two landscape cable bridges. One of the landscape bridges has a naked eye 3D effect, making photography fun.

The bridge is lined with mushroom like stacked stones on both sides, making it very stable for both the elderly and children to walk on.

General Suoqiao is quite challenging, those who are brave can go. I am the one with great courage.

There is a giant stone pillar made of stacked stones next to the zip line. Mighty and masculine, towering and imposing, this is the totem pole of reproductive worship in the Dieshi Flower Valley Ecological Park. In ancient times, clans and tribes had to expand their population for production and warfare, which was a manifestation of individual obedience to social interests.

Don't think it's over after watching the Pink Grass in the North District. In fact, the Dieshi Flower Valley Scenic Area consists of the Dieshi Flower Valley District and the China Rural Art Park. After visiting the Dieshi Wunuo Cultural District in the north, you can take a sightseeing bus from the scenic area for a few minutes, or walk for more than ten minutes to the south to watch an art feast.

A string of phone numbers piled up with firewood became the first very interesting artwork that caught the eye: who would have thought that phone numbers could also become art? Its material selection is the essential heating material "wood" for rural areas. Splitting wood is an essential rural labor, where nature and labor, light and warmth, form a true and simple pastoral scene. Mobile phones and communication have broken down urban-rural barriers in information exchange.

A group of big trees with bamboo hats: bamboo hats were originally a tool for shade and shelter in rural areas. On every tree, there is a hat that belongs to them. Wearing a hat means wearing their hometown. Trees are rooted in the homeland of their hometown, and because of this hat, the hometown will forever remain in the artist's heart.

Stacked Stone Theater: Combining the relationship between mountains, water, scenery, and people to form a theater with local characteristics. This theater is not suitable for watching performances, but you can see the countryside and nature here. The center of the theater is made of trampoline material, and family outings are also a favorite place for children.

A train made up of thousands of brooms

Each piece combines the skills of local artisans with the characteristics of the countryside.

A tree breathing:

Every artwork is also a photo checkpoint.

This semi enclosed circular structure is built with local soil from Youyang as the material for the wall. Entering from the outside and stepping on the pebbles inside 'Flowing Years', the surrounding ground will shake, and you can hear the natural' otherworldly 'sound from the two speakers on the building.

The Stacked Stone Flower Valley Art Park has a total of 17 art works, each of which is worth appreciating and savoring slowly.

Address: 12 kilometers south of Youyang County, Chongqing
Bus route: You can first take the train from the main city of Chongqing to Youyang, and then take the train to the scenic area
Self driving route: Chongqing Main City - Shiyu Expressway - Yinbai Expressway - Baomao Expressway

Play: Gongtan Ancient Town

Gongtan Ancient Town is approximately a 2-hour drive from Youyang County and is a town with a history of over 1800 years. So, it has become one of the must visit attractions for returning from Youyang.

The entire ancient town has a long history and traces of time can be seen everywhere. There is no modern commercial feeling at all, and it is still the millennium old town of the past.

The Qingshiban Street, which connects the entire town, is as green as jade; Along the street, there are ancient and towering wooden hanging buildings standing tall against the cliffs; The Jinlou, Zhinu Building, and Yuanyang Building, which have been endowed with beautiful legends, are all peaceful in time. The deep and secluded bluestone street, accompanied by wooden stilted houses built along the river, is praised as the "musical note on the cliff".

The mist over the Wujiang River is beginning to disperse, and a small boat is gently swaying on the emerald green river Gongtan Ancient Town is completely inseparable from the greenery of the Wujiang River.

As an important transit station for ancient Sichuan salt, every household in the ancient town still retains the tradition of hanging "salt lanterns".

Coming here, you can truly feel the simplicity and diligence of the quaint small village.

There are also many inns in Gongtan Ancient Town. The prices are around 200 yuan, which is relatively cheap but also simple and rustic.

Almost every inn, when you open the window or step onto the balcony, is filled with the greenery of the Wujiang River and the green mountains, so beautiful

In Gongtan, Ran is a big surname, and the Ran family courtyard has a history of three hundred years.

It is said that there are over 150 wind and fire walls, more than 200 quadrangle courtyards, and over 50 uniquely shaped stilted houses here. It is a well preserved and large-scale Ming and Qing architectural complex in China.

At night, the Xiqin Guild Hall in the ancient town will host local residents' heartfelt performances of folk customs and traditions. The folk blowing, beating, singing, and dancing derived from the labor of the Tujia people all convey the local people's praise for labor and pursuit of a better life.

If you choose to live in Gongtan Ancient Town, it can also be a great way to relax and unwind. You can still watch performances at night.

My favorite is the gap between the stilt houses in Gongtan Ancient Town, where the greenery of the Wujiang River contrasts with the antiquity of the ancient town, creating a collision of contrasting colors.

In Gongtan, you can also eat Tujia delicacies, such as Stuffed tofu, Gongtan mung bean flour, Gongtan braised white, buckwheat baba, livable tea and tartary buckwheat wine.

Or enjoy a cup of coffee and a bowl of sweet sago at a small and beautiful "Sweet Sesame Cafe", and enjoy that peaceful and far-reaching atmosphere.

The mountains of Wujiang are handsome and majestic, the water of Wujiang is gentle and beautiful, and the combination of movement and stillness is the essence of Wujiang Gallery.

Gongtan Ancient Town is located at the confluence of the Wujiang River and the Apeng River, facing Yanhe County in Guizhou across the river. It is the starting point of the "Thousand mile Wujiang River, Hundred mile Gallery" in Youyang and has been a cargo transfer station in the Wujiang River Basin and even the Yangtze River Basin since ancient times. Currently, it is the only millennium ancient town in the world that has been well preserved on the banks of a major river.

This place is known as the "core scenic area and shining pearl of Wujiang Gallery". It is the essence of Wujiang Baili Gallery from Gongtan Ancient Town up the Wujiang River, through Tutuozi Gorge, Baiji Gorge, to Lizhi Gorge, and is famous for "strange mountains, strange rocks, clear water, dangerous beaches, covered bridges, fiber paths, and suspensions".

Pack up and take away a piece of Chongqing dialect called 'Zhahai pepper', allowing the spiciness of this ancient town to linger in all directions.

Arriving at Gongtan Ancient Town, there is no need to deliberately search for scenic spots. Enjoy the solitude space brought by every corner slowly and leisurely

Gongtan Ancient Town is known as the "Qian Gongtan", and this is the famous Chinese painting master Wu Guanzhong's painting "Old Street". The boatman culture, dock culture, salt merchant culture, and religious culture are witnesses to the 1800 year history of Gongtan Ancient Town. The folk customs, opera, song and dance, and handicrafts of the Tujia and Miao ethnic groups have been inherited. Wu Guanzhong praised Gongtan Ancient Town as "Tang Street, Song City, and Grandparents' Home.

The Qing Dynasty poet Mei Ruoweng praised the Wujiang Gallery in Gongtan Ancient Town with a poem: "The water in the mountains of Shu is unique, and this should be ranked first

The performance "Dreamy Peach Blossom Spring" officially opened to the public by Youyang on March 27, 2019, is available only on Friday and Saturday evenings at 20:00. The 2020 National Day holiday is temporarily closed to the public. I will continue to perform in the future, so it is a reference for friends who watch travelogues in the future.

Located in the city of Youyang County, adjacent to the ancient city of Youzhou and the Peach Blossom Spring of Youyang, it is very convenient.

One event can accommodate 2000 people to watch.

This stage alone has been under construction for three years, and the stage area is equipped with fan-shaped water curtains, fire breathing effects, and 360 degree Weiya.

More than 70 minutes in length: "Encountering Peach Blossom Spring", "Rural Percussion Music", "There are many beautiful women in Peach Blossom Spring", "Love in Peach Blossom Spring" and other plays mainly focus on folk customs, songs and dances, showcasing the rich local Miao ethnic customs.

By utilizing holographic projection and 3D projection effects, people can travel back to a paradise on earth.

The Dream Peach Blossom Spring is divided into nine acts, namely: Escape and Discovery of Peach Blossom Spring, Rural Percussion Music; There are many beautiful women and mysterious Tima songs in Peach Blossom Spring; Carnival Maogusi, Love Peach Blossom Spring, Peach Blossom Spring Crying Wedding Song; Interactive game "Entangled Baotou" and Dreamy Peach Blossom Spring.

The performers are all dressed in authentic Tujia costumes, singing and dancing.

The leisurely and carefree life in Taoyuan reproduces the peaceful and pure spiritual world that people pursue. The water features and hanging houses are all real settings, costing billions of dollars, and have a strong sense of scenery.

Eating: Original style potato rice and pot rice

Because I have been to Youyang too many times, I would like to recommend two restaurants that locals love to eat at.

[Original flavor potato rice]
There are two types of potato rice in the county town, both of which are very close to each other. I have tried both of them and they are delicious.

The local people in Youyang love to eat Tujia cuisine. The most distinctive feature is not the cuisine, but the local style of potato rice.

The roasted potato rice is so delicious, and the small bowl of pickled cucumber that was given as a gift is also a specialty of his family. Each table comes with a stack, and if you want to add it, you have to pay extra.

Every dish is very appetizing, and there is a wild vegetable called 'duck feet' that is also super delicious. It's my first time eating this wild vegetable. I also fell deeply in love with chicken offal and mung bean powder, which is sour and spicy.

Every dish is so delicious!

Address 1: 1-22, 1st Floor, Building 3, Tiancheng, Youzhou
Address 2: No. 25 West Zhonglingshan Avenue (opposite the Liskar Hotel by the river, by the Tiancheng River in Youzhou)


[Ding Can Rice]
I only found out when I arrived in Youyang that there is a type of rice called Dingguan rice. The brand of Dingguan rice we chose is Minglan. The locals love to come and eat.

The charm of Dingguan rice lies in its ability to preserve its flavor. And the restaurant has a unique way of eating, like the kang in the north where you don't have to take off your shoes.

Due to Youyang's location at the border of Sichuan, Wuhan, and Hunan, the flavors here actually blend the characteristics of the three regions. In winter, the family gathers around the fire pit in the dining room to keep warm, using firewood or small fires, and places triangular pots on top to cook rice. Some people also hang cauldrons above the stove and cook rice with the bottom close to the flame. Rice cooked with a mixture of rice, corn, sweet potatoes, and potatoes is particularly fragrant. The water required for cooking rice in a pot is mixed in at once, and the rice is mixed and stirred after the water boils. Generally, it is not a granular soup. When the soup is almost finished, cover the pot lid and simmer slowly over low heat.

According to locals, the Ding Can Rice brand we have chosen is currently the most authentic Ding Can restaurant in Youyang, often overcrowded and sometimes requiring advance positioning. This Ding Can restaurant does not have a large hall, and is mainly composed of private rooms with fire shops. The private rooms are equipped with thatched stools and low tables. Afterwards, ordering dishes and rice, the dishes are Tujia specialty dishes, and the rice is firewood Ding Can rice.

The deliciousness of Dingguan rice is incomparable to modern pressure cooker rice and electric rice cooker rice, mainly because Dingguan can particularly preserve the taste. The cauldron is made of cast iron molds, and a new cauldron can be used as soon as it is calcined with fire. After a period of time, its inner wall becomes clean and smooth under the friction of food and iron ladles. The braised rice does not lose its flavor, and the cooked rice does not spoil even during the dog days. The deliciousness of Dingcan rice lies in its different cooking methods. It is grilled with firewood, evenly heated, and with the addition of newly harvested rice from the field, everything is authentic and natural. It cannot be delicious without a taste.

Oil residue vegetable tofu, sour pork, coriander beef foam, and pickled chili pepper are typical Tujia delicacies. I think vegetable tofu is delicious when dipped in chili sauce. Maybe some people can't taste it. I don't think I have any strange or sour taste at all. The red chili sauce is too fragrant.

The waiter would occasionally bring a can of rice to ask if you wanted to add extra food with frequent enthusiasm.

There is also a special stir fried pumpkin. It's the first time I've tasted pumpkin sliced so finely that I couldn't tell it was so crispy. There are also pickled vegetables and stir fried potato chips under the rice balls, which are so delicious. I think I ate that plate all by myself.

Address: Near Longwan International, Taohuayuan Avenue North Road, Taohuayuan Town