In China, there is usually a week-long National Day holiday that’s aptly called “黄金周 (Huángjīn Zhōu) Golden Week”. Most people choose to travel during this mini-break so a “travel guide” is necessary if you want to take this opportunity to visit some of the special attractions in China.
黄金周 (Huángjīn Zhōu) Golden Week
Take our word for it, these places should make it on your “must-see” list. From gardens, caves, history and mountains, these places are guaranteed to take your breath away. Make it a learning opportunity and take the quiz at the end as well!
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Travel guide
1. 承德 (Chéngdé)
Chengde is a small town. And it’s a perfect destination for a quick trip. Some famous tourist attractions are located in Chengde. For example:
● 避暑山庄 (Bìshǔ Shānzhuāng): Summer Resort —The largest imperial garden in the world.
Image sources from Mafengwo
Chengde Summer Resort was the summer palace of the Qing Dynasty in China. It’s 180 kilometers from Beijing and consists of imperial palaces, royal gardens, and magnificent temples. It is one of the top three historic buildings in China.
Image sources from Mafengwo
A series of important events have happened here and significant relics reside here as well. This location has become the witness of China’s historical formation to become a multi-ethnic unified country.
● 磬锤峰 (Qìng Chuí Fēng): The Sledgehammer Peak
Image sources from Mafengwo
The Sledgehammer Peak National Forest Park is located on a high mountain, about ten miles away from the Summer Resort. Because it looks like a stick, it is also called “棒槌山 (Bàngchuí Shān) Stick Mountain”.
棒槌山 (Bàngchuí Shān) Stick Mountain
Image sources from Mafengwo
As for the formation of the Sledgehammer Peak, here is a beautiful legend about it. It is said that a long time ago Chengde was a vast ocean and the Sledgehammer Peak was the sea eye. There was a sea monster that often wounded people. A young man defeated the monster but this angered the dragon king as he was tied to the dragon palace. The dragon princess fell in love with this brave man when she saw his bright and beautiful eyes. So she stole “定海神针 (Dìng Hǎi Shén Zhēn) the Key Stand” from her father then left with the young man. The dragon king sent troops to catch them but the dragon princess threw out the key stand to blocked the sea eye and finally they escaped successfully.
定海神针 (Dìng Hǎi Shén Zhēn) the Key Stand
People believed that’s where the Sledgehammer Peak comes from.
2. 张家界 (Zhāngjiājiè)
If you want to visit a gorgeous natural scenery in China, I promise Zhangjiajie won’t let you down.
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● 天门洞 (Tiānmén Dòng): Tianmen Cave
This is a very unique natural landscape in the Tianmen Mountains. There is a huge cave that naturally forms in the stretch of mountains and rivers. You can only see this strange scenery right here.
● 黄龙洞 (Huánglóng Dòng): Huanglong Cave—The most impressive karst caves in the world.
Huanglong Cave is a unique underground karst cave. According to the opinions of more than 70 experts in the geological world of China and foreign countries, Huanglong Cave is the champion of karst caves around the world.
After reading about all of these picture-worthy places, which is the most tempting to visit? Take the quiz below then let us know in the comments which place you would most like to see for yourself.
1. Read the dialogue below and answer the following question.
Xiǎo Měi: Lì Li, Guóqìngjié nǐ dǎsuàn qù gànshénme?
小美：丽丽，国庆节你打算去干什么？
Lì Li: Wǒ xiǎng dài wǒ bàmā chūqù lǚyóu!
丽丽：我想带我爸妈出去旅游！
Xiǎo Měi: Shì ma? Nà nǐ xiǎng hǎo qù nǎ le ma?
小美：是吗？那你想好去哪了吗？
Lì Li: Wǒmen zhǔnbèi qù Zhāngjiājiè, wǒ lǎogōng shuō nàlǐ fēngjǐng hěn měi.
丽丽：我们准备去张家界，我老公说那里风景很美。
Why does Xiao Mei decide to go to Zhangjiajie during the National Day holiday?
A. Because her parents live in Zhangjiajie.
B. Because she wants to climb the mountains here.
C. Because she heard her husband say that Zhangjiajie’s scenery is beautiful.
D. Because her husband asked her to go with him.