what to do in Zhangjiajie in 3 days

What to do in Zhangjiajie in 3 days is decided inside the park rather than in the town: Wulingyuan is large enough that the choice of zones and of order is what separates a good trip from a succession of queues. This page is the practical version of our Zhangjiajie page: it splits the destination by zone, says what to do in each, how long it takes and what hours it pays to be there.

The zones of Wulingyuan and what to do in each

Yuanjiajie and the Avatar Pillars. This is the plateau with the best-known columns, among them the one that took the film’s name. You reach it by the Bailong lift, more than three hundred metres set into the rock, or by the Tianzi Shan cable car. Go at 07:00, before the groups: after 10:00 the walkway becomes a queue and the photograph stops being possible. Two to three hours. It is the zone everyone wants to see and for that reason the one that most demands punctuality.

Tianzi Shan mountain. A range of pillars seen from above, with viewpoints above 1,200 metres. It is the best place to get a sense of the scale of the whole, and it often has mist between the peaks early in the morning, which is when the photographs come out best. You go up by cable car and come down the same way or by stair, depending on your legs. Two hours.

Golden Brook Valley, the Jinbian Xi. The valley floor, at water level: about seven flat kilometres, with pillars overhead. It is the most pleasant walk in the park and the coolest on hot days. Monkeys in the final stretch, which already know how to open bags — everything gets put away before entering that last section. Two hours out plus two back, without gaining altitude.

Heaven’s Gate, Tianmen Shan. A separate park, around forty minutes from the town: a natural arch opened in the mountain with 999 steps up to it, a road of 99 bends and the longest cable car in the world without intermediate stops, at more than seven kilometres. It asks for a full day and is independent of Wulingyuan, which surprises many people: it is booked separately.

The Glass Bridge and the canyon. A transparent pedestrian bridge at great height, with a separate ticket and access controlled by the hour. It is worth it above all for the geology of the canyon around it, more than for the bridge itself. One to two hours, and it is the zone sacrificed first when time runs short.

How to split the day

In the morning. Yuanjiajie at opening, or Tianzi Shan when the mist is low. This is when the park is empty and when there is room on the walkway.

In the afternoon. The valley floor, which has shade and water, or the Glass Bridge for anyone who wants to do it. The cable cars close relatively early, so the afternoon has a finishing time.

Late afternoon and evening. The town of Zhangjiajie, which is small and has little nightlife, and the light and sound show staged in the region at dusk, with hundreds of performers in a natural setting. Worth an evening.

What lies outside the main park

The Yellow Dragon King Cave. A set of caves with an underground river and interior waterfalls, visited in two hours. It is our number one alternative for days of heavy rain, and also a good choice for the arrival day, when the group does not yet have a ticket for the main park.

The village and the river to the west. Less visited and good for a recovery afternoon after two days of stairs, with a boat trip and room to walk without climbing anything.

How long to give each place

• Yuanjiajie — two to three hours, at opening.
• Tianzi Shan — two hours, in the morning or late morning.
• Jinbian Xi, there and back — four hours, on flat ground.
• Tianmen Shan — a full day, on a separate day.
• Glass Bridge and canyon — one to two hours.
• Yellow Dragon King Cave — two hours, on rainy days.

How to move between zones

Inside Wulingyuan there are park buses between the entrances and the cable car bases, included in the ticket, and waiting times vary a great deal by hour. That is why on our trips the car and the guide manage the schedule: being in the Bailong queue at 07:00 or at 11:00 is the difference between twenty minutes and an hour and a half. Between the town and the park it is around forty minutes by road, and for Tianmen Shan you leave directly from the town.

What order to follow

First day in the region: arrival and settling in, with a trip to the valley floor if there is still light. Second day: Yuanjiajie at opening and Tianzi Shan after, which chain together without backtracking. Third day: all of Tianmen Shan, which is a separate park. Fourth day, for anyone who has it: repeat the dawn at Yuanjiajie or do the Glass Bridge. This order puts both zones that demand an early start on the same day and reserves a full day for the park that shares no ticket with the others.

If you have less time, if it rains, or if you have children

With two days. Yuanjiajie early in the morning and Tianmen Shan on the full day. Tianzi Shan and the valley floor drop out, which is a shame but is the most common cut.

With rain. The Yellow Dragon King Cave and the sheltered areas. In light rain the park keeps working and the mist helps the photography; in heavy rain the walkways turn slippery and the cable cars stop for safety.

With children. The Bailong lift, the cable cars and the flat floor of the Jinbian Xi, which is where you walk without climbing. What you avoid are the stair descents from the viewpoints on wet days.

Mistakes that cost half a day

• Entering Yuanjiajie after 10:00. The walkway becomes a queue and the photograph stops being possible. It is the only zone where the hour decides everything.
• Counting Tianmen Shan as one more zone of Wulingyuan. It is a separate park, with its own ticket, forty minutes from the town. It asks for a full day.
• Keeping food loose in your bag on the Jinbian Xi. The monkeys in the final stretch open bags and take bottles and packets out of your hands.
• Doing both cable cars in the same afternoon. They close relatively early and the afternoon queues are the worst.
• Planning a single dawn. The mist between the pillars lifts around 09:00; two dawns almost always give one good photograph, a single one gives one in three.

How we organise this on the ground

The car and the guide manage the schedule, which is what really counts here: being in the Bailong queue at 07:00 or at 11:00 is the difference between twenty minutes and an hour and a half. We book Tianmen Shan as a separate day, with its own ticket, and chain Yuanjiajie and Tianzi Shan into the same morning, since they connect without backtracking. We always keep a morning in reserve to repeat the viewpoint, because the mist is what makes the photographs and also what ruins them. For groups with reduced mobility, we choose the zones with cable car and lift access and avoid the stair descents from the viewpoints, which is where the park becomes demanding.

How this fits into a trip

Zhangjiajie is the most spectacular nature destination in central China and fits well between Shanghai and the south. On our photography tours it comes with three nights and two guaranteed dawns; on the Panda Route it is the landscape counterpoint to Chengdu. For the full destination listing — where to stay, what to eat — go back to the Zhangjiajie page.