[2024 Yixing Attraction] Travel Guide for Dingshan Little Great Wall (Updated Nov)
Modern Architecture
Address:
Near Fuyuan Temple, 104 National Road, Yixing, Wuxi, Jiangsu
Opening times:
Open today at 07:00-17:00Opening Soon
Recommended sightseeing time:
1-2 hours
Phone:
13901534485
Traveling to Yixing is not only beautiful but also affordable.
Budget Travel in Wuxi and Yixing: Discover the Charm of Jiangnan Water Towns
The meaning of travel may lie in those unexpected discoveries and moments that make your heart skip a beat and stop in your tracks. This time, we embarked on a journey from Hangzhou to Yixing, and along the way, we were filled with joy and touched by the experiences we encountered.
On the first day, we took a high-speed train from Ningbo to Hangzhou. The hustle and bustle of the city seemed to pause here, replaced by the rare tranquility along the river. Our group arrived at the city terrace, and it felt as if the whole world slowed down. The gentle river breeze blew away the fatigue of the journey and brought a sense of peace to our hearts. The sunset reflected on the river, shimmering with light, and at that moment, we felt as if we had become part of this beautiful scenery, a part of the painting.
On the second day, we drove to Yixing, embarking on a brand-new journey. Our first stop was Taoer Factory, which not only boasts unique architectural styles but also rich cultural connotations. The teapot exhibition inside the factory opened our eyes to the world of teapots, with their diverse shapes and exquisite designs, perfectly combining art and everyday life. We eagerly picked up our cameras to capture these rare moments.
Leaving Taoer Factory, we arrived at Gunan Street. This narrow and long street is lined with small workshops where artisans are busy making Zisha teapots. The houses here are closely connected, as if telling the ancient stories of Jiangnan water towns. Strolling along Gunan Street, we felt as if we had traveled back in time, experiencing the ancient and simple charm.
Finally, we reached Dachao Mountain's Little Great Wall. Although only three kilometers long, this Little Great Wall offered us a unique experience. The uphill sections were a bit challenging, but when we reached the top and looked back at the path we had taken, a sense of accomplishment welled up within us. The vegetarian meal inside the Little Great Wall also surprised us with its simplicity and deliciousness, leaving a lasting impression.
During this trip, we not only admired the beautiful scenery but also felt the profound cultural heritage of Jiangnan water towns. Every place has its unique story, and every journey is a spiritual cleansing. We look forward to our next departure, anticipating more beauty and touching moments.
Anderson_5*Ethan
I declare! Yixing is the most underrated hidden gem I've visited this year!
I officially declare! Yixing, this underrated hidden gem, is my most amazing discovery this year!
Want to avoid the crowds at popular attractions during the holidays? Then follow my footsteps and explore Yixing, a great short self-drive destination in the Yangtze River Delta! Not only is it Su Dongpo's second hometown, but it's also a small town with beautiful scenery and surprises!
✅ Check out these niche attractions!
1️⃣ Dachao Mountain Great Wall
Can't visit the Great Wall of Badaling in Beijing? No worries, Yixing's Great Wall will also let you experience the majesty and grandeur of the Great Wall! From a distance, it looks like a winding dragon, a marvel of nature.
2️⃣ Chashan Shiye
Want to relax? Then come to this cafe with a tea mountain viewing platform! Enjoy a cup of coffee while admiring the tea terraces in the distance, and feel the long-lost sense of relaxation.
3️⃣ Dajue Temple
Known as the "Little Potala Palace of Jiangnan," Dajue Temple has a history of over 700 years and is the ancestral home of Master Hsing Yun. The layered architecture is breathtaking, as if traveling back in time.
4️⃣ Longchi Mountain Bicycle Park
A paradise for cycling enthusiasts! Also one of the filming locations for "The Oath of Love." Tea gardens, mountains, bamboo forests, and reservoirs make for great photo spots.
5️⃣ Youche Reservoir
This niche attraction is little known, but the scenery is charming. The viewing platform on the reservoir offers a wide view, with mountains in the distance seemingly suspended in mid-air. No commercial atmosphere, just pure and tranquil nature.
6️⃣ Yixiantian Scenic Area
Compared to Yixing Bamboo Sea, it's less crowded and less commercialized. The air is fresh and pleasant, with streams along the way. The most special is the Yixiantian attraction, perfect for photos!
7️⃣ Jiangzuo Phoenix Homestay
We chose Jiangzuo Phoenix Homestay for our overnight stay. Surrounded by bamboo forests, you can see the starry sky. There's a viewing platform leading into the bamboo forest, perfect for tea and scenery. The homestay's design is also great!
Not sure where to go for the weekend? Afraid of crowds? Come to Yixing and explore this small town! You won't regret it!
Olivia Foster Olivia^83
The Qingming Festival is a great time for a family trip to Yixing
Leaving Yangzhou the day before Qingming Festival, it took 2 hours and 20 minutes to drive to Yixing's Yangxian Dongpo Pavilion. The night view was quite nice, and the place was relatively secluded with few people around. Not far away is Yangxian Town, where many shops were closed that day, making it rather quiet.
The next morning, we went to Yixing National Forest Park. The online ticket price was 39.5 yuan, including a free bamboo shoot digging experience. The same price applies for anyone over 1.5 meters tall. Yixing National Forest Park is located at the junction of Jiangsu, Anhui, and Zhejiang provinces, with a forest coverage rate of 92%, fresh air, and not many people around at 8:30 in the morning. The kids played real-life CS, 38 yuan per person for half an hour, and the two brothers had the field to themselves, having a blast! Then we went to dig bamboo shoots, and there were so many! We dug up four. Three yuan per jin. Walking further in, we saw cute squirrels, beautiful cherry blossom woods, and a non-powered amusement park. A park worth visiting!
We went back to the homestay for a rest and lunch, then visited the China Yixing Purple Clay Museum, which costs 5 yuan for adults, 2.5 yuan for children over 1.4 meters (half price), and free for those under 1.4 meters. There were ancient pottery galleries, modern purple clay galleries, and various exquisite ceramic products from home and abroad, which were lifelike and beautiful. There was also an exhibition hall for Gu Jingzhou, a master of purple clay. Quite interesting, and we spent an hour and a half there.
At four o'clock, we went to the Ding Mountain Mini Great Wall (free). There were many cars and people, and we were stuck for twenty minutes. We slowly drove up the mountain, which was a bit difficult due to the winding mountain road, not recommended for novice drivers. We climbed up from the left side of the temple, and it took half an hour to come down from the city wall without any rest in between! It was quite tiring!
We stayed in the city that night, and the next morning we had Zhou Zhen wontons, which were really popular and indeed delicious. The soup was made from bone broth, without any fishy taste, savory! Twenty wontons for ten yuan, two bowls were just right for three people, and we also bought ten potstickers for twenty yuan, which were not as tasty as the wontons.
The last stop was Dongpo Academy (free). It introduced Su Dongpo's life in Yixing during his later years, and the main hall houses the largest purple clay statue of Su Dongpo in the country.
We ended our trip and returned to Yangzhou!
This was my third visit to Yixing, and I really like this city. No wonder Su Dongpo said, 'I will grow old in Yangxian, for I have always been fond of its streams and mountains.' With its mountains and waters, tea gardens and bamboo forests, the natural scenery is beautiful, and the exquisite pottery and porcelain are not inferior to those of Jingdezhen. It's not overcrowded, making it a great place to relax!
On the day we returned home, we peeled the bamboo shoots and made braised pork, which was so delicious I couldn't stop eating. The shoots were tender and even a bit sweet! If I had known, I would have dug more, haha😄!
RenewedGetaways
Yixing is not only famous for its purple clay teapots during a 2-day and 1-night trip, but also has a little-known secret spot!
Yixing is not only famous for its purple clay teapots during a 2-day and 1-night trip, but also has 7️⃣ little-known secret spots!|||
What charm does the city of Yixing have that made Mr. Su Dongpo stop by? After spending two days and one night, I explored this small city known for its purple clay teapots!
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🔶Tour route:
Dongpo Academy—Shushan Nangu Street—Tao Factory No. 2—Dachao Mountain Mini Great Wall—Dongpo Pavilion—Yangxian Lake—Twenty-three Bays
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🅿️1⃣️: Navigate to "Dongpo Academy"
Originally named "Dongpo Thatched Cottage" and built during the Song Dynasty, it has been reconstructed through the dynasties and now serves as a local primary school. Of course, its landscape and architecture also attract many tourists!
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🅿️2⃣️-3⃣️: Navigate to "Dingshan Mini Great Wall/Fuyuan Zen Temple"
Who would have thought that a mini Great Wall is hidden in a small city in Jiangsu, and it's a free attraction where you can enjoy a panoramic view of Tai Lake from the heights!
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🅿️4⃣️: Navigate to "Tao Factory No. 2"
A newly established cultural and creative park in Yixing, which is not yet fully constructed, but inside it hides a building designed by the master architect Kengo Kuma!
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🅿️5⃣️: Navigate to "Dongpo Pavilion"
An imitation ancient building constructed on Yangxian Creek Mountain in the future to commemorate Mr. Dongpo, it is also considered one of the landmarks of Yixing!
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🅿️6️⃣: Navigate to "Shushan Nangu Street"
Just a few hundred meters away from Dongpo Academy, there is a century-old street in Yixing famous for its purple clay teapots, with an ancient and artistic atmosphere, very literary and photogenic!
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🅿️7️⃣: Navigate to "Yangxian Lake"
There is a small town by Yangxian Lake, where the gardens and buildings are like a small town in the south of the Yangtze River!
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🅿️8️⃣: Navigate to "Yixing Lake Father Twenty-three Bays"
A lesser-known hiking trail in Yixing, named Twenty-three Bays because there are twenty-three turns on the way up the mountain.
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🏠About·Accommodation
For accommodation, I chose to stay at Twenty-three Bays, next to the Tingjian·Twenty-three Bays Rock Wall Private Bath Design Homestay. The entire homestay is like a cave secret spot, built along the mountain wall, very mysterious and photogenic! Moreover, the homestay comes with a private bath♨️, and the area feels like it's deep inside a cave!!!
In addition to the private bath♨️, the public area of the homestay is equipped with an open-air cinema, tea room, underground bar, billiard room, and a coffee shop with its own reading space, fully satisfying guests' leisure and entertainment experience!
BenjaminPrice$54
Okay, I admit that I can't afford to go to Badaling, but the small Great Wall is also pretty good
Address🏠: Dachao Private
Tickets🎫: Free
Parking P: Free
The scenic area was bustling with people and filled with small stalls. Since we had already eaten before going, we weren't very interested.
The whole climbing process took about an hour, but since we were with an elderly person, we wandered around for about two hours.
At two-thirty in the afternoon, we were ready to go down the mountain and head home, but unexpectedly, we got stuck halfway down because there were too many cars, and the road on the right was filled with parked cars. Actually, it was possible to drive up, as the parking lot above was slowly emptying out.
If you plan to climb the small Great Wall in the next two days, I suggest going there after lunch when the traffic is not bad and there are not many people. Also, you can drive directly to the foot of the mountain.
By the way, there's no need to bring too much food, after all, it's not a picnic. Climbing with heavy items is tiring, so it's recommended to just bring a bottle of water and some snacks.
Playtime: The whole journey takes about 2 hours. We arrived at 3 pm, just in time to watch the sunset.
Hiking route:
From the parking lot, walk to the fire prevention center building, and the entrance to the mountain is right behind it.
The path up the mountain is all stairs, which are relatively easy to walk on. You just keep going up, and after about 10 minutes, you'll reach the first platform where you can rest.
Continue walking forward, and you'll pass several beacon towers, which you can't climb, but you can look at from below. It takes about 30 minutes to reach the summit.
There's a pavilion at the top where you can rest, enjoy the view, and take photos. It's suggested to come in the evening to see the beautiful sunset.
Going down the mountain is a bit harder than going up, as it's all stairs and quite steep, so be careful! It takes about 40 minutes to go down.
Warm tips:
There are no restrooms on the mountain, so it's advised to take care of that beforehand.
The wind is quite strong at the summit, and the weather is cold now, so remember to bring a coat.
Be sure to wear comfortable sports shoes, otherwise, your feet will be very uncomfortable when going down the mountain.
You can bring some snacks and water to replenish energy.
ANNIE LEE
Scenery always matches well | Yixing Mini Great Wall | Recommended niche attractions
"Water Rhyme Jiangsu • It will be more beautiful with you"
Who would have thought that without leaving Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai, you can still climb the Great Wall
Wuxi Yixing actually hides such a paradise with few people and beautiful scenery! Tired from work, make a plan to escape the city on the weekend!
⛰️Dingshan Mini Great Wall
📍Navigation: Dachao Mountain Mini Great Wall or Fuyuan Zen Temple
🅿️Parking: There are parking spaces at the door
🎫Ticket: 0 yuan
🗺️The whole journey is only 3 kilometers, starting from Fuyuan Zen Temple
✅Take photos📷It takes less than two hours to walk, the slope is not high, very suitable for short hiking＋walk the baby
✅Climb high and look into the distance, the continuous mountains, the feeling is really great!
The Mini Great Wall and Fuyuan Zen Temple are together, so you can also burn incense, there are drinks, snacks, and wontons, stinky tofu at the entrance
There is no water for sale on the Great Wall, so be prepared in advance!
❤️The whole hiking time is not long, so you can avoid meal times~ Just follow the signs for the route, no need to go back, the scenery in the first half is really beautiful, be sure to appreciate it more😉
❤️There are many bends on the mountain, be sure to pay attention to safety when driving!