Things to do in Enshi City

The Grand Canyon must have been beautiful, but unfortunately, we encountered a very foggy day, so we couldn't see much of the scenery from the mountain. The Yunlong Ground Fissure, which we visited in the afternoon, was unaffected by the fog and was quite spectacular. Even though we bought tickets for the cable car, elevator, and other amenities, we still almost broke our legs from all the walking, which will affect our itinerary for several days. I recommend that if you're not very confident in your hiking skills, you buy a combined ticket that includes the cable car, elevator, and escalator.

Very worth a visit. 1.5 hr shuttle each way from nearby the Enshi train station, but the actual site took me less than 2 hr. As a white person in a rural China community, it probably would have been faster but the domestic tourists kept stopping to take photos with me. This region you will probably need to rely on a translator app because most people did not have any English. The site has self serve luggage lockers that require WeChat to scan but are pretty easy to use.

The rebuilt Tusi City wasn't very interesting for us, as we knew nothing about the history of the Tusi system. The scenic area wasn't large, and I took my child and we finished exploring it in a little over an hour. When visiting these kinds of cultural sites, it's essential to have some understanding of their history; otherwise, you won't know what you're looking for.

This down-to-earth experience recreates traditional Tujia customs such as the daughter's festival, the weeping wedding ceremony, and the hand-waving dance. Performers invite tourists to dance and interact, creating a highly engaging experience. Combined with the nighttime scenery of the stilted houses and the ambiance created by the red lanterns, the performance offers excellent value for money. The activities are lighthearted and lively, suitable for all ages, and perfect for family outings.

This place isn't very famous. It rained today, and there was a lot of fog on the mountain, but once we got down to the valley floor, the fog cleared, and the canyon scenery was beautiful! Although we didn't see the beautiful views of the mountains above because of the fog, the canyon (crevice) itself was absolutely stunning and definitely worth a visit.

The scenery on both sides of the river was beautiful, but the trip was too long, and I started to experience visual fatigue towards the end. However, the steps for boarding and disembarking were too steep and inconvenient for me.

Enshi Grand Canyon is divided into two parts: Qixingzhai and Yunlong Ground Fissure. I have to say, visiting Qixingzhai was already exhausting. My husband and I didn't go to Yunlong Ground Fissure; we let our son go by himself. Qixingzhai alone took four hours, and getting to Yunlong Ground Fissure would have taken another two hours. It was drizzling the day we went, so we couldn't see much of the distant scenery, but the swirling mist had its own unique charm.

Xiaohongshu (a Chinese social media platform) said it wasn't worth going and that we didn't need to go, but our family of three had a pretty good time. The Tujia wedding performance was lively, and although the Tusi City is all man-made, it's great for taking pictures. The Longlin Palace cave was also very interesting; it wasn't tiring to walk through, and the kids had a lot of fun running around.

Enshi Grand Canyon, also known as Mufu Grand Canyon, is located in the Qingjiang River basin within Enshi City, western Hubei Province, adjacent to the Chongqing Tiankeng Difeng (sinkholes and fissures). Stretching approximately 35 kilometers, it boasts extremely complex terrain, showcasing almost every form of karst landform, including cliffs, pillars, sinkholes, fissures, caves, natural bridges, underground rivers, vertical shafts, stone forests, peak clusters, and hanging valleys, forming a rare three-dimensional karst landscape. The canyon's scenery is magnificent, majestic, mysterious, and profound. The Seven Stars (Qixing) scenic area is the highlight of Enshi Grand Canyon, incredibly spectacular and beautiful, especially when walking along the canyon walls.