Listed sites in Hunan 湖南

327 scenic areas and heritage sites from the official lists, by city. 55 have a page of their own; the rest open as cards on the map.

Listed sites: 327
Rated 5A: 10
Rated 4A: 205
National heritage: 171
Region: Hunan

The A-level rating is the national grading of scenic areas, 5A being the top tier; national heritage sites are the buildings, ruins, tombs and carvings protected by the State Council. Both lists are on the lists page.

5A scenic areas in Hunan

Aizhai Bridge, Shibadong Village and Dehang Gorge 矮寨·十八洞·德夯大峡谷 5A scenic area
A 5A scenic area west of Jishou that joins three places: the Aizhai suspension bridge, opened in 2012, whose 1,176 m main span carries the G65 expressway more than 330 m above the Dehang gorge; the Dehang canyon itself, with cliffs, stone peaks, Miao villages and the 216 m Liusha waterfall; and Shibadong, a Miao village in Huayuan County.
Dongjiang Lake 东江湖 5A scenic area
A reservoir of about 160 km² among the hills of Zixing, held back by a 157 m double-curvature arch dam on the Lei River that was built in stages between 1958 and 1992.
Former Residence of Liu Shaoqi (Huaminglou) 花明楼刘少奇故居 5A scenic area · National heritage site
The birthplace of Liu Shaoqi (1898–1969), president of the People's Republic from 1959 until he was purged in the Cultural Revolution, at Huaminglou in south-eastern Ningxiang.
Former Residence of Mao Zedong, Shaoshan 韶山毛泽东同志故居 5A scenic area · National heritage site
The farmhouse at Shaoshanchong where Mao Zedong was born in 1893 and grew up: an earth-walled, U-shaped house of the central Hunan type, shared with a neighbouring family across the central hall, confiscated by the Nationalist government in 1929 and restored to its original form in 1950, with the family's bedrooms, kitchen and farm tools on show.
Junshan Island 君山岛 5A scenic area
A hilly island of 0.96 km² with 72 small peaks in Dongting Lake, about 9 km west of Yueyang Tower, tied to the legend of Emperor Shun's two consorts Ehuang and Nüying, whose tears are said to have spotted the bamboo that grows around their tomb here.
Mausoleum of the Yan Emperor 炎帝陵 5A scenic area · National heritage site
One of four places in China honoured as the tomb of the Yan Emperor (Shennong), the legendary ancestor credited with farming and herbal medicine, at Luyuanpo in Luyuan town, Yanling County, beside the Mi River.
Mount Heng 南岳衡山 5A scenic area · National heritage site
Mount Heng, the Southern Peak among China's Five Great Mountains, is a granite range counted as 72 peaks, whose highest point, Zhurong Peak, stands at about 1,300 m above Nanyue town.
Mount Langshan 崀山 5A scenic area
A 108 km² area of red Danxia sandstone in Xinning County, with flat-topped mesas, free-standing pillars and walls of rock, sheer red cliffs and narrow slot canyons above the clear Fuyi River.
Taohuayuan (Peach Blossom Land) 桃花源 5A scenic area · National heritage site
Taohuayuan, facing the Yuan River about 15 km south-west of Taoyuan county town, is the place long identified with Tao Yuanming's fable The Peach Blossom Spring, and temples and Daoist halls have stood here since the Tang.
Yuelu Mountain and Orange Isle 岳麓山·橘子洲 5A scenic area · National heritage site
Yuelu Mountain, a wooded ridge about 300 m high on the west bank of the Xiang River facing central Changsha, has the Lushan Temple founded in 268, the Ming-dynasty Daoist Yunlu Palace, the Aiwan (Autumn-Admiring) Pavilion of 1792 and, near the summit, a 1212 rock-cut copy of the Yu Stele with 77 archaic characters, as well as the tombs of the 1911 revolutionaries Huang Xing and Cai E. Orange Isle, a sand island some 5 km long in the river, has gardens at its southern tip with a giant sculpture of the young Mao Zedong (2009) and a stele of his 1925 poem 'Changsha'.

By city

Changde (22) · Changsha (49) · Chenzhou (29) · Hengyang (22) · Huaihua (31) · Loudi (11) · Shaoyang (18) · Xiangtan (11) · Xiangxi (19) · Yiyang (18) · Yongzhou (39) · Yueyang (25) · Zhangjiajie (17) · Zhuzhou (16)

Changde 22 sites

Taohuayuan (Peach Blossom Land) 桃花源 5A scenic area · National heritage site
Taohuayuan, facing the Yuan River about 15 km south-west of Taoyuan county town, is the place long identified with Tao Yuanming's fable The Peach Blossom Spring, and temples and Daoist halls have stood here since the Tang.
Changde Planning Exhibition Hall 常德市规划展示馆 4A scenic area · on the map
The city's urban planning museum, run by the Changde natural resources and planning bureau and open since 2013, presents Changde's history, culture and planned growth in a series of themed sections.
Changde Wildlife World 常德野生动物世界 4A scenic area · on the map
A large zoo and safari-style park of about 2,500 mu (170 ha) in Hanshou County, opened in 2022, which now keeps more than 7,000 animals of over 200 species, among them Asian elephants, Siberian tigers, African lions and pumas.
Chengtoushan Archaeological Site Park 城头山遗址 4A scenic area · National heritage site
Chengtoushan, on the Liyang plain north-west of Li County town, is a round Neolithic town about 325 m across inside a rammed-earth wall and moat that were first built in the Daxi culture more than 6,000 years ago and enlarged several times before the town was abandoned around 4,000 years ago.
Fenglin Flower Sea, Taoyuan 枫林花海 4A scenic area · on the map
A flower-field park of about 2,000 mu (130 ha) in Weihui New Village, in the Fengshu Uyghur and Hui Ethnic Township, with large seasonal flower fields and a vineyard.
Former Residence of Lin Boqu 林伯渠故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The birthplace of Lin Boqu (1886–1960), a member of the Tongmenghui and of the Chinese Communist Party from 1921, who chaired the Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region government, was secretary-general of the Central People's Government and later vice-chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, and is counted among the 'Five Elders' of Yan'an.
Huayanxi National Forest Park 花岩溪 4A scenic area · on the map
A national forest park designated in 1997 at the northern foot of the Jiulong Mountains, an offshoot of the Xuefeng range, where Dingcheng, Taoyuan and Anhua meet, covering about 75 km² of wooded hills and streams.
Jiashan Temple 夹山寺 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A Chan Buddhist monastery in Jiashan National Forest Park, founded in 870 by the monk Shanhui and known from the Song to the Qing as Lingquan Chan Monastery; the Song master Yuanwu Keqin is said to have taught here the koan commentaries collected as the Blue Cliff Record, and the temple is promoted as a cradle of 'tea and Chan' culture.
Kale Planet Theme Park, Changde 常德卡乐星球 4A scenic area · on the map
A theme park on Peach Blossom Island in Liuye Lake, opened in January 2020 and built by the culture-tourism technology arm of the OCT (Overseas Chinese Town) group together with Changde's city investment company.
Lingxi Camellia Oil Estate, Jinshi 灵犀茶油庄园 4A scenic area · on the map
A camellia-oil estate on the shore of Maoli Lake in Jinshi, run by a local camellia-oil producer, that has been developed into a leisure and wellness area; provincial media describe it as Hunan's first eco-wellness estate built around camellia oil.
Liuye Lake Tourist Resort 柳叶湖 4A scenic area · on the map
Liuye Lake, a lake of about 17.6 km² on the north-eastern edge of Changde, is the centre of a tourist resort set up in 1993, rated 4A in 2010 and named a national-level tourist resort in 2020.
Longwang Cave, Shimen 龙王洞 4A scenic area · on the map
A limestone cave in Baiyun town, Shimen County, beside the waters of the Xianyang Lake national wetland park, opened to visitors in 1988 as the county's first tourist site.
Pengshan Scenic Area, Li County 彭山 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested hill area in Linan town, across the Li River from Li County town, rated 4A and listed as a national forest-wellness pilot base.
Duo'an Bridge 多安桥 National heritage site · on the map
An eleven-arch stone bridge 211 m long across the Dan River outside the east gate of old Lizhou, first built in 1786 and rebuilt after flood damage in 1820–1821.
Huawa Temple Pagoda 花瓦寺塔 National heritage site · on the map
A Northern Song brick pagoda in Huawa village in the far north of Li County, octagonal and solid, rising seven storeys and about 22 m from a base about 5.5 m across.
Iron Sutra Pillar, Changde 常德铁幢 National heritage site
A hollow cast-iron Buddhist sutra pillar of the Northern Song, about 4.3 m tall and weighing some 1.5 tonnes, which stood beside Qianming Temple at Deshan until it was moved to Binhu Park in central Changde in 1979.
Lizhou Ancient City Wall 澧州古城墙 National heritage site · on the map
The surviving south-eastern stretch, about 1.9 km long, of the wall of Lizhou, the prefectural city that became Li County town; it was raised in rammed earth in 1372, when the seat moved here, faced with brick in 1404 and repaired many times under the Ming and Qing.
Lizhou Confucian Temple 澧州文庙 National heritage site · on the map
The temple of the former Lizhou prefectural school, founded in 965, moved to this site in the early Ming and rebuilt in 1841–1844, covering about 8,000 m².
Nanchanwan Jin Tombs (Tomb of Liu Hong) 南禅湾晋墓群 National heritage site · on the map
A group of Warring States settlement remains, Jin-to-Tang kilns and tombs in Huangshantou Forest Park, best known for the tomb of Liu Hong, the Western Jin general and governor of Jingzhou, excavated in 1991.
Shimen Confucian Temple 石门文庙 National heritage site · on the map
The county Confucian temple of Shimen, founded in 1052 and moved in 1504 to this site near the north bank of the Li River, with most of its present buildings from Qing rebuilding.
Xingzi Palace 星子宫 National heritage site · on the map
A Daoist temple complex on the summit of Xingzi Mountain in Reshi town, founded in 1370 by the Daoist Zhang Daohui as the Sanyuan Palace, renamed after the mountain and enlarged in the late Ming and early Qing and again in 1784, 1807 and 1829.
Yu Family Memorial Arch 余家牌坊 National heritage site · on the map
A white-marble chastity arch about 15 m high and 8 m wide in Pailou village, completed in 1842 by the official Yu Yuechan in honour of his mother, née Luo, who was widowed at 24.

Changsha 49 sites

Former Residence of Liu Shaoqi (Huaminglou) 花明楼刘少奇故居 5A scenic area · National heritage site
The birthplace of Liu Shaoqi (1898–1969), president of the People's Republic from 1959 until he was purged in the Cultural Revolution, at Huaminglou in south-eastern Ningxiang.
Yuelu Mountain and Orange Isle 岳麓山·橘子洲 5A scenic area · National heritage site
Yuelu Mountain, a wooded ridge about 300 m high on the west bank of the Xiang River facing central Changsha, has the Lushan Temple founded in 268, the Ming-dynasty Daoist Yunlu Palace, the Aiwan (Autumn-Admiring) Pavilion of 1792 and, near the summit, a 1212 rock-cut copy of the Yu Stele with 77 archaic characters, as well as the tombs of the 1911 revolutionaries Huang Xing and Cai E. Orange Isle, a sand island some 5 km long in the river, has gardens at its southern tip with a giant sculpture of the young Mao Zedong (2009) and a stele of his 1925 poem 'Changsha'.
Changsha Ecological Zoo 长沙生态动物园 4A scenic area · on the map
Changsha's main zoo, opened in 2010 when the old city zoo in Martyrs' Park moved to this 100-hectare site at Muyun in the southern suburbs.
Changsha Landscape and Ecology Garden 长沙园林生态园 4A scenic area · on the map
A landscaped garden park beside the Laodao River at Luohanzhuang village in Kaifu District, on the northern outskirts of Changsha, with about 68 hectares open in its first phase out of a planned 200.
Changsha Riverside Culture Park 长沙滨江文化园 4A scenic area
A cultural complex on the Beichen Delta where the Liuyang River joins the Xiang, fully opened in 2015 on the site of a former chemical works, grouping the Changsha Museum, the city planning exhibition hall, the Changsha Library, a concert hall and a viewing tower.
Changsha Underwater World 长沙海底世界 4A scenic area
An aquarium and marine theme park opened in 2000 in north-eastern Changsha, beside Window of the World, with a 76-metre walk-through tunnel and freshwater and marine galleries.
Dawei Mountain National Forest Park 大围山国家森林公园 4A scenic area · on the map
A national forest park of about 47 km² on the Hunan–Jiangxi border in north-eastern Liuyang, rising to 1,607.8 m at Qixing Ridge, the highest point in the Changsha area, and the source of the Liuyang River.
Former Residence of Hu Yaobang 胡耀邦故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site
Hu Yaobang (1915–1989), who headed the Communist Party as chairman and then general secretary from 1981 to 1987, was born in this Qing brick-and-timber farmhouse of 19 rooms beside the Minxi River in Cangfang village, Zhonghe town, and left it at the age of 15.
Guanshan Ancient Town 关山古镇 4A scenic area · on the map
A rural tourism village in Jinzhou town, Ningxiang, built around a Three Kingdoms theme from the local story that Guan Yu camped his troops here during his campaign against Changsha.
Heimi Peak National Forest Park 黑麋峰 4A scenic area
The highest hill in Wangcheng at 590.5 m, on the district's north-eastern border, protected as a national forest park of about 41 km² with forest covering over 80 per cent.
Huayi Brothers Movie Town (Changsha) 华谊兄弟电影小镇 4A scenic area · on the map
A film-themed leisure town carrying the Huayi Brothers name, opened in 2018 in the Dawangshan resort area of south-western Changsha and built around a replica Italian town modelled on Assisi and Venice, with 35 buildings, five squares, a waterfront and 22 bridges, Italian restaurants and craft shops, and film-set experiences.
Hunan Botanical Garden 湖南省植物园 4A scenic area · on the map
A 120-hectare botanical garden in Yuhua District, southern Changsha, founded in 1985 as the Hunan Forest Botanical Garden and renamed in 2021, which combines research and conservation with public gardens.
Jinggang Ancient Town 靖港古镇 4A scenic area
An old river port on the west bank of the Xiang where the Wei River once flowed in, a rice market and salt depot busy enough to be called 'Little Hankou' until the river was diverted in 1957; it was here that Zeng Guofan, beaten by the Taiping in 1854, threw himself into the river and was pulled out by his men.
Lei Feng Memorial Hall 雷锋纪念馆 4A scenic area
A memorial museum in Wangcheng District to Lei Feng (1940–1962), the People's Liberation Army soldier who became the subject of a nationwide campaign from 1963 that held him up as a model of selfless service.
Longping Rice Culture Park 隆平水稻文化园 4A scenic area · on the map
A park in Furong District, eastern Changsha, centred on the Longping Rice Museum, which opened fully in 2019 with three main halls on the history of rice, rice science and Yuan Longping (1930–2021), the agronomist who developed the first hybrid rice varieties in the 1970s.
Miyin Temple 密印寺 4A scenic area
A Chan Buddhist monastery on Mount Wei (Weishan) in western Ningxiang, founded in the early 9th century by the monk Lingyou, whose teaching gave rise to the Weiyang (also romanised Guiyang) school of Chan, and named Miyin by imperial grant in 849.
Qianlong Lake National Wetland Park 千龙湖 4A scenic area · on the map
A national wetland park around the former Getang Reservoir of 1956 in Jinggang town, Wangcheng, whose two lakes, Qianlong and Tuantou, lie among the farmland of the Dazhongyuan polder.
Qingshuitang (Former Site of the CCP Xiang District Committee) 清水塘 4A scenic area · National heritage site
From late 1921 to April 1923 this small southern-style house at 22 Qingshuitang was the secret office of the Communist Party's Xiang (Hunan) District Committee, with Mao Zedong as secretary, and the home of Mao and Yang Kaihui, whose rooms are furnished as they were.
Sanzhen Tiger Park 三珍虎园 4A scenic area · on the map
A captive tiger breeding centre in Jinjing town, northern Changsha County, holding Siberian and Bengal tigers that visitors watch from boardwalks through the woods and from railed viewing points.
Shiyan Lake 石燕湖 4A scenic area · on the map
A reservoir lake ringed by wooded hills at Tiaoma in Yuhua District, where Changsha, Zhuzhou and Xiangtan meet, run as a 10 km² leisure scenic area.
Site of Joining Forces in Wenjiashi of Autumn Harvest Uprising 秋收起义文家市会师旧址 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
Wenjiashi, a market town on the Jiangxi border, is where the units of the Autumn Harvest Uprising led by Mao Zedong regrouped on 19 September 1927, after their attacks on the cities had failed.
Tian Han Culture Park 田汉文化园 4A scenic area · on the map
A culture park in Guoyuan town, Changsha County, built around the birthplace of Tian Han (1898–1968), the playwright and poet who wrote the lyrics of 'March of the Volunteers', now China's national anthem.
Tianxin Pavilion 天心阁 4A scenic area · National heritage site
The three-storey Tianxin Pavilion stands on the only surviving stretch of Changsha's city wall, a brick rampart of Ming origin some 250 m long and 13 m high that escaped the demolition of the walls in 1923–24.
Tongguan Kiln Archaeological Site Park 长沙铜官窑遗址 4A scenic area · National heritage site
The Changsha kilns, strung along the east bank of the Xiang River at Tongguan, made glazed stoneware from the Tang to the Five Dynasties and are seen as the birthplace of underglaze painted decoration, often with poems and proverbs, for markets as far away as Japan, Southeast Asia, West Asia and Africa.
Tongguan Kiln Guofeng Park 铜官窑国风乐园 4A scenic area · on the map
A large theme park and resort opened in 2018 beside the Tongguan kiln site, with streets in Tang-dynasty style, eight small museums including one on Changsha ware, performance venues, guesthouses and three hotels.
Window of the World (Changsha) 长沙世界之窗 4A scenic area · on the map
A 40-hectare theme park opened in 1997 in north-eastern Changsha that combines scaled-down copies of famous buildings from around the world, such as Neuschwanstein Castle and the Pharos of Alexandria, with amusement rides and seasonal festivals.
Xixi Panshi Grand Canyon 西溪磐石大峡谷 4A scenic area · on the map
A boulder-choked ravine on the south-eastern slopes of the Dawei Mountain range at Tianxi village, Zhangfang town, where a stream drops through pools and cascades between great rocks.
Yang Kaihui Former Residence and Memorial Hall 杨开慧故居和纪念馆 4A scenic area · on the map
The birthplace of Yang Kaihui (1901–1930), Mao Zedong's second wife and mother of three of his sons, who was arrested and executed in 1930, in Kaihui town, northern Changsha County.
Yanghu Wetland Park 洋湖湿地公园 4A scenic area
A national wetland park of about 480 hectares at the mouth of the Jin River on the west bank of the Xiang in southern Yuelu District, created on the old Yanghu flood polder from 2010 and opened in stages from 2011.
Yingzhu Mountain 影珠山 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested ridge of about 509 m in Fulin town, northern Changsha County, with more than 70 linked peaks and spurs, terraced fields, pools, bamboo groves and rock outcrops, and sunrise views over the clouds from the top.
Zhouluo Grand Canyon 周洛大峡谷 4A scenic area · on the map
A mountain scenic area around Shizhu Peak (1,359.7 m) in Shegang town, northern Liuyang, at the source of the Laodao River, with a core of about 14 km² of streams, waterfalls, quartz-veined rock and wild osmanthus groves.
Zilongwan Hot Spring Resort, Huitang 紫龙湾温泉 4A scenic area · on the map
A hot-spring resort in Huitang, the spa town of south-western Ningxiang, set on a hillside below Mount Dongwu and looking over the man-made Zilong Lake.
Cheng Qian's Mansion 程潜公馆 National heritage site · on the map
The two-storey house at Baiguoyuan in central Changsha where Cheng Qian, the Nationalist governor of Hunan, lived in 1949, and where talks with Communist representatives are said to have prepared the province's peaceful handover in August that year.
Former Residence of He Shuheng 何叔衡故居 National heritage site
The farmhouse in Shatian township, western Ningxiang, where the Communist revolutionary He Shuheng (1876–1935), who ran the Party's early Hunan committee with Mao Zedong, was born and lived for 26 years; Mao stayed here for three nights in 1917.
Former Residence of Huang Xing 黄兴故居 National heritage site
Huang Xing (1874–1916), the revolutionary leader often named with Sun Yat-sen as a founder of the Republic of China, was born in this Qing farmhouse of the 1860s at Liangtang in Huangxing town, south-east of Changsha, and lived here until 1896.
Former Residence of Tan Sitong 谭嗣同故居 National heritage site
The family home in central Liuyang of Tan Sitong (1865–1898), the reformer and thinker who was executed at 33 with five others when the Hundred Days' Reform failed in 1898.
Former Residence of Xie Juezai 谢觉哉故居 National heritage site
The birthplace of Xie Juezai (1884–1971), the Communist politician and educator who was president of the Supreme People's Court from 1959 to 1965, in Shatian township, western Ningxiang.
Former Residence of Xu Teli 徐特立故居 National heritage site · on the map
The birthplace of Xu Teli (1877–1968), the educator who taught Mao Zedong, Cai Hesen and Tian Han and later sat on the Communist Party's Central Committee, in Teli village, Jiangbei town, south-east of Changsha.
Former Site of Hunan First Normal School 湖南省立第一师范学校旧址 National heritage site
Mao Zedong studied at this teacher-training school from 1913 to 1918 and then worked here, and the old campus is now the Mao Zedong and First Normal School Memorial Museum, with his classroom, dormitory, study room and the school hall laid out as they were.
Former Site of the Xinmin Study Society 新民学会成立会旧址 National heritage site · on the map
This small timber-framed house in Rongwan, below Yuelu Mountain, was the rented home of Cai Hesen's family, and on 14 April 1918 Mao Zedong, Cai Hesen, Xiao Zisheng and ten others founded the Xinmin (New People's) Study Society here, a student society that went on to play a part in the Chinese revolution.
Founding Site of the Red First Front Army, Yonghe 红一方面军成立旧址 National heritage site · on the map
On 23 August 1930 the Red Army's First Army Group under Mao Zedong and Zhu De and Third Army Group under Peng Dehuai and Teng Daiyuan met at the Li family house in Yonghe, northern Liuyang, and merged into the First Front Army, the force also known as the Central Red Army.
Han Changsha Kingdom Royal Tombs 汉代长沙王陵墓群 National heritage site · on the map
The kings and queens of the Western Han vassal kingdom of Changsha were buried in the hills along the west bank of the Xiang, in a belt of some 30 km² from Tianma Hill in the south to Fengpanling in Wangcheng in the north, where more than 20 tombs of kings and members of the royal family have been identified.
Jinshoutang (Former Hunan Provincial Soviet Government) 锦绶堂 National heritage site · on the map
Jinshoutang is a manor-like Qing complex of house and ancestral hall with more than 100 rooms, built from 1897 by a widow of the Tu family in memory of her husband, in Chudong village, Daweishan town, near the Jiangxi border.
Liuyang Confucius Temple 浏阳文庙 National heritage site
A palace-style Confucian temple modelled on the one at Qufu, moved to this site in 1818 and rebuilt in 1843, with its gates, bell and drum pavilions and Dacheng Hall complete.
Mawangdui Han Tombs 马王堆汉墓 National heritage site
The site in eastern Changsha where the tombs of Li Cang, chancellor of the Changsha Kingdom and Marquis of Dai, his wife Xin Zhui and a son were excavated in 1972–74, yielding Xin Zhui's remarkably preserved body, silk paintings, lacquerware and silk manuscripts that include early versions of the Laozi and the Book of Changes.
Tanheli Site 炭河里遗址 National heritage site
A Western Zhou walled town with palace foundations on a terrace where the Duanxi stream meets the Wei River in Huangcai, western Ningxiang, in an area that has yielded hundreds of Shang and Zhou bronzes, among them the Four-Goat Square Zun and the Da He square ding with a human face.
Taoshuwan Liu Family Mansion 桃树湾刘氏大屋 National heritage site · on the map
A vast Qing country mansion in Jingang town, southern Liuyang, built in 1849–1853 by the landowner Liu Yunzhuang: four courtyards deep on three parallel axes, it has around 400 rooms within tamped-earth outer walls and covers some 21,000 m², with a stele recording its construction.
Tomb of Zeng Guofan 曾国藩墓 National heritage site
The tomb of Zeng Guofan (1811–1872), the Qing statesman who raised the Xiang Army against the Taiping Rebellion, and his wife, on Fulong Hill in Pingtang, south-west Changsha, where he was reburied in 1873.
Yuelu Academy 岳麓书院 National heritage site
Founded in 976 under the Northern Song at the eastern foot of Yuelu Mountain, Yuelu Academy was one of China's most renowned Confucian academies, where the Neo-Confucian scholars Zhu Xi and Zhang Shi lectured, and its courtyards of lecture halls, library, shrines and a Confucian temple were restored after damage in the Cultural Revolution.

Chenzhou 29 sites

Dongjiang Lake 东江湖 5A scenic area
A reservoir of about 160 km² among the hills of Zixing, held back by a 157 m double-curvature arch dam on the Lei River that was built in stages between 1958 and 1992.
Banliang Ancient Village 板梁古村 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A Liu-clan farming village in Gaotingsi town, Yongxing County, first built in 1358, whose lanes of grey-brick houses, ancestral halls and gateways survive largely from the Ming and Qing; 29 old buildings make up the national heritage group, among them the Upper Village Ancestral Hall of 1443 and the early-Ming Lower Village hall.
Baoshan National Mine Park 宝山国家矿山公园 4A scenic area · on the map
A mine park on Baoshan hill on the western edge of Guiyang county town, set up by the Baoshan non-ferrous metals company on a hill mined since ancient times.
Feitian Mountain 飞天山 4A scenic area · on the map
A national geopark of red Danxia sandstone north-east of Chenzhou, where a river winds between cliffs and rock towers weathered into shapes likened to people and animals.
Fuquan Hot Spring Resort, Rucheng 福泉山庄 4A scenic area · on the map
A hot-spring resort at Reshui ('hot water') town in eastern Rucheng, near the Jiangxi and Guangdong borders, built over a geothermal field whose springs reach 91–98 °C, among the hottest in southern China.
Gaoyi Ridge 高椅岭 4A scenic area · on the map
A Danxia landscape of red sandstone cliffs and ridges on the border of Suxian District and Zixing, north-east of Chenzhou, covering about 50.5 km².
Huilong Mountain 回龙山 4A scenic area · on the map
A mountain of about 1,413 m north of Dongjiang Lake in Zixing, rated 4A in December 2024 and visited for sunrise, sunset and sea-of-cloud views from the top and for wild azaleas in May.
Jiulongjiang National Forest Park 九龙江国家森林公园 4A scenic area · on the map
A national forest park on the former Daping state forest farm in south-eastern Rucheng County, on the Hunan–Guangdong border, covered mostly in natural broadleaf forest and rising to Fuyin Peak (1,381 m).
Longnü Hot Spring 龙女温泉 4A scenic area · on the map
A hot-spring resort area at Tongkenghu on the north-western edge of Chenzhou, near National Road 106, built around a carbonated spring at about 40 °C used for both bathing and drinking.
Mangshan National Forest Park 莽山 4A scenic area · on the map
A large mountain forest at the southern tip of Yizhang County on the Hunan–Guangdong border, protected as a national nature reserve and national forest park; its subtropical forest has species named after it, such as the Mangshan pit viper.
Shazhou Village (Half a Quilt Story) 沙洲村 4A scenic area · on the map
A Yao village in western Rucheng County known for the 'half a quilt' story: in November 1934, as the Central Red Army crossed the area on the Long March, three women soldiers who lodged with a villager, Xu Jiexiu, cut their only quilt in two and left her half.
Suxian Ridge 苏仙岭 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A wooded hill on the north-eastern edge of central Chenzhou, named after the legend of a local man who became an immortal ('Su the Immortal'); paths climb past the White Deer Cave, the 'Ascension Stone' and other spots tied to the story.
Tiantang Hot Spring 天堂温泉 4A scenic area · on the map
A hot-spring resort at Tiantang village in Xujiadong, on the northern edge of Chenzhou, developed in the 2000s around a spring that comes up at about 52 °C. It has Japanese-style open-air pools in landscaped grounds, with a hotel and villas on site, and suits a relaxed half day or an overnight stay.
Wangxian Ridge 王仙岭 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested hill scenic area on the south-eastern edge of Chenzhou city, with walks among streams and small waterfalls under the trees.
Wanhuayan Cave 万华岩 4A scenic area · on the map
A limestone show cave in the south-western outskirts of Chenzhou, in Beihu District, where lit paths lead past stalactites, stalagmites and flowstone, and the walls carry inscriptions left by visitors from the Song dynasty onwards.
Wanyang Mountain 万洋山 4A scenic area · on the map
A mountain scenic area in Guidong County near the Jiangxi border, part of the Luoxiao range, whose high meadows above 1,500 m, natural tarn and lines of wind turbines are marketed as a 'southern grassland'; azaleas flower on the slopes in spring.
Xiyao Green Valley National Forest Park 西瑶绿谷 4A scenic area · on the map
A national forest park, set up in 2010, in the Xishan Yao Township of south-western Linwu County, where forested mountains fall from 1,720 m to about 300 m into deep valleys with streams, waterfalls and caves.
Yangtianhu Grassland 仰天湖大草原 4A scenic area · on the map
A high grassland of rolling hilltops at around 1,300 m in the mountains south-west of Chenzhou, in Beihu District.
711 Uranium Mine Heritage Site 核工业711功勋铀矿旧址 National heritage site · on the map
The site of China's first large uranium mine to be found and worked, at Xujiadong north of Chenzhou: an airborne survey found the deposit in 1956, production began in 1963 (as Mine 711 from 1964), it supplied uranium for China's first atomic bomb, and mining ended in 1994.
Ancient Ancestral Halls of Rucheng 汝城古祠堂群 National heritage site · on the map
Rucheng County keeps more than 700 clan ancestral halls, the oldest from 1231 and most of them Qing, and nine, from the Ming to the Republic, form this national heritage group.
Former Residence of Deng Zhongxia 邓中夏故居 National heritage site · on the map
The birthplace of Deng Zhongxia (1894–1933), an early member of the Chinese Communist Party and leader of the labour movement, including the Canton–Hong Kong strike of 1925–26, who was captured and executed by the Nationalist government in 1933.
Headquarters of the South Hunan New Year Uprising 湘南年关暴动指挥部旧址 National heritage site · on the map
A Qing courtyard compound at 26 Zhongxia Street in Yizhang county town, built under the Shunzhi emperor as the garrison commander's office and later a girls' vocational school, which Zhu De and Chen Yi used as their headquarters for the 'New Year' rising of January 1928 that opened the Xiangnan (South Hunan) Uprising.
Long March Third Blockade Headquarters Site 中央红军长征突破第三道封锁线指挥部旧址 National heritage site · on the map
The Kuang clan ancestral hall (Qingbai Tang) in Baishidu village, a two-storey brick-and-timber hall with fire-gable walls built in 1861.
Mausoleum of Emperor Yi 义帝陵 National heritage site · on the map
The tomb of Xiong Xin, Emperor Yi of Chu (died 206 BC), the figurehead ruler of the rebels against the Qin, whom Xiang Yu sent away to Chen County (today's Chenzhou) and had murdered; the people of Chen buried him here, in what is now the middle of the city.
Old Kunqu Opera Stages of Guiyang 湘昆古戏台 National heritage site · on the map
Three Qing-dynasty theatre stages built into clan ancestral halls in villages of Guiyang County, linked with Xiang Kun, the local Hunan branch of Kunqu opera: the Luo clan hall stage at Daxi (1653, restored 1854), the Ouyang clan hall stage at Xiayang (1718) and the Wei clan hall stage at Zhaojin (1863).
Shilangtan Cliff Inscriptions 侍郎坦摩崖石刻 National heritage site · on the map
A red-sandstone overhang about 12 m high and 150 m long on the north bank of the Bian River, as the Lei River is called in Yongxing, named 'the Vice-Minister's Overhang' after the Tang writer Han Yu, who moored his boat here.
Site of the Fourth Red Army Front Committee Meeting 红四军前委扩大会议旧址 National heritage site · on the map
The Tang family house (Tangjia Dawu) in Guidong county town, with the adjoining City God Temple, where in 1928 the forces of Mao Zedong and Zhu De held an enlarged meeting of the Fourth Red Army's front committee after the setback known as the 'August Defeat'.
Xiangnan Uprising Memorial Hall and Sites 湘南起义纪念馆 National heritage site · on the map
The Xiangnan (South Hunan) Uprising of January–April 1928, led by Zhu De and Chen Yi, briefly put more than ten counties of southern Hunan under communist control before the troops withdrew to join Mao Zedong at Jinggangshan; the national heritage group covers buildings linked to it in ten counties.
Xiuyi Arch 绣衣坊 National heritage site · on the map
A white stone memorial arch of 1519 at the entrance to the Fan family village of Yidao, on the edge of Rucheng town, raised for the censor Fan Lu ('embroidered robe' was a name for imperial censors), who was jailed after denouncing the Prince of Ning's dealings with eunuchs and cleared when the prince rebelled.

Hengyang 22 sites

Mount Heng 南岳衡山 5A scenic area · National heritage site
Mount Heng, the Southern Peak among China's Five Great Mountains, is a granite range counted as 72 peaks, whose highest point, Zhurong Peak, stands at about 1,300 m above Nanyue town.
Cai Lun Memorial Park 蔡伦纪念园 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A memorial park in central Leiyang, home town of Cai Lun, the Eastern Han court official credited with improving papermaking around AD 105.
Cailun Bamboo Sea 蔡伦竹海 4A scenic area · on the map
A large area of bamboo forest in Huangshi Town in south-eastern Leiyang, the home district of the papermaking pioneer Cai Lun.
China Seal Mountain 中国印山 4A scenic area · on the map
A limestone hillside in Miaoqian Town, Changning, known locally as Yanbeiling, on which thousands of designs of historic Chinese seals have been carved into the rocks since 2003.
Dongzhou Island 东洲岛 4A scenic area
An island about 2 km long in the Xiang River in central Hengyang, whose peach blossom ('Dongzhou peach waves') was one of the city's eight traditional views.
Former Residence of Luo Ronghuan 罗荣桓故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The birthplace of Luo Ronghuan (1902–1963), a Communist commander who led political work in the Red Army and was made a marshal of the People's Liberation Army in 1955, in Nanwan Village, Ronghuan Town, Hengdong County.
Former Residence of Wang Fuzhi (Xiangxi Caotang) 王船山故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
Xiangxi Caotang is the thatched retreat where the Ming loyalist philosopher Wang Fuzhi (Wang Chuanshan, 1619–1692) spent his final years writing, in Qulan Town, Hengyang County.
Former Residence of Xia Minghan 夏明翰故居 4A scenic area · on the map
The ancestral home of Xia Minghan (1900–1928), an early Communist organiser executed in Hankou in 1928 and remembered for the poem he wrote before his death, in Lizi Village, Hongshi Town, Hengyang County.
Former Site of the Xiangnan Student Union 湘南学联旧址 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The former premises of the Xiangnan (Southern Hunan) Student Union, a student federation active in Hengyang from the May Fourth period of 1919, on the east bank of the Xiang River.
Goulou Peak 岣嵝峰 4A scenic area · on the map
Goulou Peak is one of the main summits of the Hengshan range, rising in the north-east of Hengyang County on the border with Hengshan County, inside a national forest park set up in 1995 that covers about 2,070 ha, takes in five of Mount Heng's 72 peaks and rises to 1,143 m.
Hengyang Ornamental Stone Museum 衡阳奇石文化博物馆 4A scenic area · on the map
A private museum of ornamental stones in Zhengxiang District, the first private museum approved by Hunan's cultural relics bureau, run by the collector Liu Xuanling.
Huiyan Peak 回雁峰 4A scenic area
A 97 m hill in Yanfeng District, traditionally counted as the first of Mount Heng's 72 peaks and the source of Hengyang's nickname 'Wild Goose City', from the old belief that geese flying south turned back here.
Nanhu Park 南湖公园 4A scenic area · on the map
A wetland park around a former reservoir on the south-western side of central Hengyang, opened in 2014 and the city's largest urban wetland park.
Qishan Forest Park 岐山 4A scenic area · on the map
Qishan, formerly called Fenghuang Shan and counted among the 72 peaks of Mount Heng, is a hill in the west of Hengnan County rising to 741 m, protected as a provincial forest park since 1998.
Shigu Academy 石鼓书院 4A scenic area · on the map
Shigu Academy stands on Shigu Hill, where the Zheng and Lei rivers join the Xiang in the north of Hengyang city.
Shuikoushan Lead-Zinc Mining Heritage & Labour Movement Memorial 水口山铅锌矿冶遗址 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
Mining in the Shuikoushan area of Changning goes back more than a thousand years, and the Qing government set up a mining bureau here in 1896; the listed industrial site has 19 features above and below ground, including old shafts, smelting halls and workers' housing.
Siming Mountain 四明山 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested mountain on the western edge of Qidong County, said to take its name from the four neighbouring counties it looks out over; it became a provincial forest park in 2004 and a national forest park in 2014.
Zijin Mountain 紫金山 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested hill beside Kaiyun, the county town of Hengshan County, counted in the Mount Heng range as Jinzi Peak.
Grand Temple of Mount Heng 南岳大庙 National heritage site · on the map
The largest temple on Mount Heng, at the northern end of Nanyue old town at the foot of the mountain, dedicated to the god of the Southern Peak.
Nanyue Martyrs' Shrine 南岳忠烈祠 National heritage site
A memorial shrine below Xianglu Peak on the lower slopes of Mount Heng, planned in 1938 and completed in 1943 by the Nationalist government for soldiers killed in the War of Resistance against Japan, and regarded as one of the earliest and largest such memorials in China.
Wang Ancestral Hall, Dayu Village 大渔村王氏宗祠 National heritage site · on the map
An ancestral hall of the Wang clan in Dayu Village, Lijiang Town, in southern Hengnan County, founded under the Northern Song, restored in the Yongle reign of the Ming and repaired several times under the Qing; it has been a national heritage site since 2013.
Zhongtian Village Historic Buildings 中田村古建筑群 National heritage site · on the map
A village of the Li clan in Miaoqian Town, Changning, settled in 1404 by descendants of Ming-dynasty soldier households from the Chaling garrison.

Huaihua 31 sites

Anjiang Agricultural School Hybrid Rice Memorial Park 安江农校杂交水稻纪念园 4A scenic area · on the map
The former campus of the Anjiang Agricultural School in Anjiang town, where the rice scientist Yuan Longping taught and did research from 1953 and where his team developed China's three-line hybrid rice system.
Chuanyan Mountain 穿岩山 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested mountain area in Tongxihe town in the Xuefeng Mountains of Xupu County, rated 4A in 2019, with the hilltop Fengxiang Yao village of guesthouses as its main base.
Eryou Mountain 二酉山 4A scenic area · on the map
A hill at the meeting of the You River and the Youxi stream north-west of Yuanling town, tied by legend to the scholar Fu Sheng, who is said to have hidden banned books in a cave here during the Qin book burning; the place became a byword for learning in Chinese.
Feishan Mountain 飞山 4A scenic area · on the map
A 720 m mountain north-west of Jingzhou town whose summit temple honours Yang Zaisi (860–954), a local leader of the Five Dynasties period who styled himself Lord of Feishan and is revered across the Hunan–Guizhou–Guangxi borderlands.
Gaoyi Ancient Village 高椅古村 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A Dong village in Gaoyi township, Huitong County, ringed by hills on three sides and a river on the fourth, where 104 houses built between 1380 and 1881 survive.
Hongjiang Ancient Commercial Town 洪江古商城 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
An old river port where the Wu River joins the Yuan, which in Ming and Qing times was the main transit point for the produce of south-western Hunan and eastern Guizhou.
Huangdu Dong Culture Village 皇都侗文化村 4A scenic area · on the map
A Dong village in Pingtan township, Tongdao, run as a cultural scenic area, with timber stilt houses, drum towers and covered bridges.
Huangyan Eco-Tourism Area 黄岩生态旅游区 4A scenic area · on the map
A karst upland on the slopes of Liangshan south-east of Huaihua city, at an average altitude of about 850 m, that is a provincial tourist resort and forest park and is promoted as a summer retreat.
Jingping Ancient Village 荆坪古村 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A village of Ming and Qing brick-and-timber houses on the west bank of the Wu River in Zhongfang County, most of whose residents belong to the Pan clan.
Jiufeng Modern Agricultural Expo Park 九丰现代农博园 4A scenic area · on the map
A modern agricultural park in Hecheng District, Huaihua, that opened in June 2018, built around large climate-controlled show glasshouses growing vegetables, fruit and some 360 unusual varieties.
Longxi Ancient Town 龙溪古镇 4A scenic area · on the map
The old riverside quarter of Longxikou in Xinhuang county town, near the Guizhou border, shaped by Ming and Qing trade on the Wu River, with more than 200 old buildings including a group of historic merchant houses.
Longxing Temple 龙兴讲寺 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A Buddhist temple on the southern foot of Huxi Hill in Yuanling town, traditionally founded in 628 by order of the Tang emperor Taizong, whose halls preserve building styles from the Song to the Qing and are described as the oldest surviving group of timber buildings in Hunan.
Qianyang Ancient Town 黔阳古城 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The old walled town of Qiancheng, former seat of Qianyang County, sits where the Wu River meets the Yuan, with water on three sides, and keeps about 0.8 km² of flagstone lanes lined mainly with Ming and Qing buildings.
Simeng Danxia Scenic Area 思蒙碧水丹霞 4A scenic area · on the map
A stretch of the Xu River at Simeng, west of Xupu county town, where red Danxia sandstone cliffs and peaks rise above the water, a landscape locally nicknamed little Guilin.
Su Yu's Hometown 粟裕故里 4A scenic area · on the map
The home village of Su Yu (1907–1984), a leading Communist military commander who later served as Chief of the PLA General Staff and held the rank of Senior General; he was born into a Dong family in Fengmushujiao village, now part of Pingcun town.
Teng Daiyuan Memorial Hall 滕代远纪念馆 4A scenic area · on the map
A memorial hall by the Jin River in Mayang county town to Teng Daiyuan (1904–1974), a Miao native of Mayang who was one of the leaders of the Pingjiang Uprising, a senior Red Army political commissar and later the first Minister of Railways of the People's Republic.
Tongdao Conference Site (Gongcheng Academy) 通道转兵纪念地 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
Gongcheng Academy in Xianxi town was founded in 1105 as the Luomeng Academy and rebuilt by Dong craftsmen in 1792, and is one of the more complete academies surviving in a Dong area.
Wanfo Mountain 万佛山 4A scenic area · on the map
A Danxia landscape of red sandstone peaks, cliffs and forest in Wanfoshan town, Tongdao, whose main summit rises to 635 m; together with nearby Dong villages it became a national scenic area in 2009.
Yutou Dong Village 芋头侗寨 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A Dong village in Shuangjiang town founded in the Hongwu reign of the early Ming and rebuilt after a fire in the Shunzhi reign of the Qing, its seven clusters of houses strung along the Yutou stream.
Zhijiang Surrender Memorial 芷江受降旧址 4A scenic area · National heritage site
The site in Qiliqiao village outside Zhijiang town where, on 21 August 1945, a Japanese delegation led by Major General Takeo Imai received the Chinese terms for the surrender of Japan's forces in China, the first step towards the formal surrender ceremony in Nanjing that September.
Baiyi Temple 白衣观 National heritage site · on the map
A Taoist temple of 1759 in Boyang town, western Tongdao, also called the Qianqiu White Pagoda and described as the only Taoist temple in the Dong region.
Chongshi Academy, Xupu 溆浦崇实书院 National heritage site · on the map
A Qing-dynasty clan academy in the old village of Yanban, Longtan town, founded in 1834 as the Yanling family school of the Wu clan and renamed Chongshi Academy in 1855.
Former Residence of Xiang Jingyu 向警予故居 National heritage site · on the map
An early Qing courtyard house of pine and fir timber in Xupu county town where Xiang Jingyu (1895–1928), an early leader of the Chinese Communist Party and of its women's movement, was born.
Gaomiao Archaeological Site 高庙遗址 National heritage site · on the map
A Neolithic shell-midden site on a terrace of the Yuan River opposite Anjiang town, whose lower layers of about 7,800 to 6,600 years ago define the Gaomiao culture, known for white pottery stamped with phoenix-bird, fanged beast-face and eight-pointed star designs and for large ritual remains.
Matian Drum Tower 马田鼓楼 National heritage site · on the map
A Dong drum tower in Matian village, Pingyang township, in the far south of Tongdao, first built in the Shunzhi reign of the early Qing and restored in 1984.
Pingtan River Covered Bridges 坪坦风雨桥 National heritage site · on the map
Nine Dong covered bridges with long timber galleries span the Pingtan River in Pingtan township and Longcheng town; they were built between 1755 and 1853, and most were repaired in the 20th century.
Site of the Chenzhou Missionary Case 辰州教案发生地 National heritage site · on the map
A group of Western-style church and mission buildings on Malu Lane in Yuanling town, where two British missionaries of the China Inland Mission were killed in August 1902 after rumours during an epidemic accused them of poisoning, an affair known as the Chenzhou Missionary Case.
West Hunan Bandit Suppression Memorial Park 湘西剿匪胜利纪念园 National heritage site · on the map
The national heritage unit for the 1949–1952 campaign in which the PLA's 47th Army fought armed bandit groups across western Hunan has two parts: the 47th Army headquarters building in Yuanling town and the memorial hall in Victory Park on the high ground of old Chenxi town.
Xuefeng Mountain War of Resistance Sites 湘西雪峰山抗战旧址 National heritage site · on the map
A national heritage unit made up of sites from the Battle of West Hunan, fought around the Xuefeng Mountains from April to June 1945 when Japanese forces advanced towards the Zhijiang airfield and were driven back, spread over Xupu and Chenxi counties in Huaihua and Dongkou County in Shaoyang.
Zhijiang Confucian Temple 芷江文庙 National heritage site · on the map
The former Confucian temple of Yuanzhou prefecture on Xiaobei Street in Zhijiang town, moved to its present site in 1859 and built in 1862–63.
Zhijiang Tianhou Temple 芷江天后宫 National heritage site · on the map
A temple to the sea goddess Mazu on Jiangxi Street in Zhijiang town, first built in the Kangxi reign and enlarged in 1748 by Fujian merchants as their guild hall; it is described as the largest surviving Mazu temple in inland China.

Loudi 11 sites

Cai Hesen Memorial Hall 蔡和森纪念馆 4A scenic area · on the map
A memorial museum in Shuangfeng town to Cai Hesen (1895–1931), an early leader of the Chinese Communist Party and friend of Mao Zedong who argued for the Bolshevik approach from France and was executed in 1931, and to his family.
Daxiongshan National Forest Park 大熊山 4A scenic area · on the map
A mountain forest park in northern Xinhua whose peaks include Jiulong Feng (1,622 m), the highest in central Hunan, and Daxiong Feng (1,602 m), with gorges, waterfalls, old forest and more than 40 summits over 1,000 m.
Former Residence of Cai Hesen and Cai Chang 蔡和森、蔡畅故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
Guangjia Hall, a late-Qing brick-and-timber farmhouse in Yangqiu village, Jingzi town, where the family of the early Communist leader Cai Hesen (1895–1931) settled in 1899 and where his sister Cai Chang, later first chair of the All-China Women's Federation, was born in 1900.
Former Residence of Zeng Guofan 曾国藩故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site
The family seat of Zeng Guofan (1811–1872), the Qing statesman whose Xiang Army put down the Taiping Rebellion, at Heye in eastern Shuangfeng.
Longshan National Forest Park 龙山 4A scenic area
A forested range on Lianyuan's southern border, a national forest park since 2007 centred on Yueping Peak (1,513 m), with forest cover of over 90% and seven scenic sections, among them the Feishuiya waterfall valley.
Meijiang Scenic Area 湄江 4A scenic area · on the map
A karst national geopark of about 128 km² along the winding Mei River in north-western Lianyuan, opened to visitors from 1992: sheer limestone walls known as the Ten-li Painted Wall, the Three Rock Gates, natural bridges, two lakes, waterfalls and caves such as Xianren Cave, which stays at about 25°C and has a waterfall inside.
Meishan Longgong Cave 梅山龙宫 4A scenic area · on the map
A karst cave system by the Zi River in Youxi township, formed where the Taoxi stream sinks into the hills, with galleries stacked through some 80 m of height: flowstone and stalactites above, helictites and 'frost' crystals on old river sands, a great rubble pile called the Golden Mountain in the Water and stalagmite forests below.
Sanliandong Scenic Area 三联峒 4A scenic area · on the map
A mountain scenic area of gorges and ridges in Sanliandong village, Weishan township, in Xinhua County.
Ziquejie Rice Terraces 紫鹊界梯田 4A scenic area · on the map
Rice terraces covering tens of thousands of mu on the mountains of Shuiche and Fengjia towns in western Xinhua, farmed for more than 2,000 years and watered entirely by natural seepage and spring flow, with no ponds or dams.
Long March HQ of the Red 2nd Army Corps, Fengjia 红二军团长征司令部旧址 National heritage site · on the map
A house called Zhuyuan in Shangtuan village, Fengjia town, where the Red 2nd Army Corps under He Long, some 9,000 troops, set up its headquarters after reaching Fengjia on 12 December 1935, a few weeks into the Long March that the 2nd and 6th Corps had begun from Sangzhi.
Xinhua North Pagoda 新化北塔 National heritage site · on the map
A seven-storey octagonal pagoda about 42 m tall, begun in 1834 on Huilong Hill on the west bank of the Zi River at Xinhua town.

Shaoyang 18 sites

Mount Langshan 崀山 5A scenic area
A 108 km² area of red Danxia sandstone in Xinning County, with flat-topped mesas, free-standing pillars and walls of rock, sheer red cliffs and narrow slot canyons above the clear Fuyi River.
Baishuidong Scenic Area 白水洞 4A scenic area · on the map
A national scenic area in Yantang Town, Xinshao County, with two main sections: Bailong Cave, known for its towering 'Southern Sky Pillar', a curtain of flowstone and an 'undersea world' chamber, and a walk through the Baishuidong gorge.
Cai E's Former Residence 蔡锷故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The farmhouse in Cai'e Township, Daxiang District, where Cai E, the general who led the 1915–16 National Protection War against Yuan Shikai's attempt to restore the monarchy, was born in 1882.
Huangsang Ecotourism Area 黄桑 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested area in south-western Suining County around the Huangsang National Nature Reserve, where forest covers more than 90% of the land.
Huxingshan Huayao Villages 虎形山花瑶 4A scenic area · on the map
A high mountain township in north-western Longhui, averaging about 1,350 m above sea level, that is home to the Huayao ('Flowery Yao'), a Yao group known for their cross-stitch embroidery and bright costumes.
Tangtian Wartime Lecture Institute 塘田战时讲学院旧址 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A late-Qing country villa built in 1877 for the official Xi Baotian at Tangtianshi in Shaoyang County, where in June 1938 the historian Lü Zhenyu, sent by the Communist educator Xu Teli, opened the Tangtian Wartime Lecture Institute; the Nationalist authorities closed it in April 1939.
Xiangjiao Liquor Culture Park 湘窖生态文化酿酒城 4A scenic area · on the map
The distillery and visitor park of Hunan Xiangjiao Liquor, a baijiu maker that grew out of the Shaoyang wine factory founded in 1957.
Yulong Caves 玉龙洞 4A scenic area · on the map
A group of limestone show caves in Chengbu County made up of five connected caves (Yulong, Baiyun, Hongxi, Yangjiao and Biyun) and a natural shaft called Luosi Well, with varied stalactite formations.
Yunshan National Forest Park 云山国家森林公园 4A scenic area · on the map
A mountain forest park just south of Wugang, an outlier of the Xuefeng range with seventy-one peaks rising to Zixiao Peak at 1,372.5 m, known for drifting cloud and cool summers.
Baoqing Prefecture City Wall 宝庆府古城墙 National heritage site · on the map
The surviving north side of the walls of old Baoqing, today's Shaoyang, with the Qingfeng (north) gate, the Linjin gate and about 1.3 km of wall.
Dankou Miao Script Stone Carvings 丹口苗文石刻群 National heritage site · on the map
Stones carved with an old Miao script, other symbols and pictures, found in 2011 during a national heritage survey scattered over the field banks and hillsides around Douchongtou in Xian'e village, Dankou Town, Chengbu.
Dongkou Ancestral Halls 洞口宗祠建筑群 National heritage site · on the map
A group of ten clan ancestral halls and the Marshal Zhong Temple scattered across Dongkou County, built between the Ming dynasty and the Republican era, among them the halls of the Yang clans of Jintang and Qutang and of the Tan, Wang, Huang, Liao and Xiao families.
Former Command Post of the Seventh Red Army 中国工农红军第七军指挥所旧址 National heritage site
The Long clan ancestral hall in Zhaishi, then the seat of Suining County, which the Seventh Red Army under Deng Xiaoping, Li Mingrui and Zhang Yunyi used as its headquarters after taking the town on 21 December 1930.
Former Site of the Whampoa Military Academy Second Branch 黄埔军校第二分校旧址 National heritage site · on the map
Buildings used by the second branch of the Whampoa Military Academy after it moved to Wugang in autumn 1938, during the war against Japan.
Shaoyang North Pagoda 邵阳北塔 National heritage site · on the map
A seven-storey brick-and-stone pagoda on the north bank where the Zi and Shao rivers meet, built between 1573 and 1582 to improve the city's fengshui.
Wei Yuan's Former Residence 魏源故居 National heritage site · on the map
The birthplace of Wei Yuan (1794–1857), the late-Qing scholar whose Illustrated Treatise on the Maritime Kingdoms (Haiguo Tuzhi) urged China to learn from Western technology after the First Opium War and influenced reformers in Japan.
Wugang City Wall 武冈城墙 National heritage site · on the map
Surviving stretches of the old walls of Wugang, about 1.45 km of an original circuit of nearly 5.9 km, unusual for being built of large stone blocks on both faces rather than earth faced with brick.
Yinjiatang Mansion 荫家堂 National heritage site · on the map
A vast family mansion in Qingshui village, Yangqiao Town, Shaodong, begun in 1823 by the rice-trading Shen brothers and known locally as 'the 108 rooms'.

Xiangtan 11 sites

Former Residence of Mao Zedong, Shaoshan 韶山毛泽东同志故居 5A scenic area · National heritage site
The farmhouse at Shaoshanchong where Mao Zedong was born in 1893 and grew up: an earth-walled, U-shaped house of the central Hunan type, shared with a neighbouring family across the central hall, confiscated by the Nationalist government in 1929 and restored to its original form in 1950, with the family's bedrooms, kitchen and farm tools on show.
Dongshan Academy 东山书院 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A late-Qing academy at the foot of Dongtai Hill in Xiangxiang, founded in 1895 and finished in 1900, which in 1905 became a modern-style higher primary school; the young Mao Zedong was admitted in 1909, and the generals Chen Geng and Tan Zheng also studied here.
Former Residence of Peng Dehuai 彭德怀故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site
The family home of Peng Dehuai (1898–1974), the general who commanded the Chinese People's Volunteers in the Korean War and was defence minister from 1954 until he was purged after clashing with Mao Zedong over the Great Leap Forward at the 1959 Lushan Conference.
Maohu Water Village 茅浒水乡 4A scenic area · on the map
A leisure park on Dongshan Island, a sandbar in the Lian River below Dongtai Hill on the eastern edge of Xiangxiang, built around the theme of Zeng Guofan's Xiang Army, whose river navy, by local legend, trained here.
Mount Zhao 昭山 4A scenic area
A 185 m hill on the east bank of the Xiang River at the Xiangtan–Changsha border, whose misty views after rain were painted by Mi Fu as 'Mountain Market in Clearing Mist', one of the classic Eight Views of Xiaoxiang; legend says King Zhao of Zhou drowned in the pool below.
Panlong Grand View Garden 盘龙大观园 4A scenic area · on the map
A large privately developed flower park in Yuetang District, Xiangtan, in the green belt between Changsha, Zhuzhou and Xiangtan, best known for an azalea garden with about 800 varieties in some 150,000 pots that flowers in March and April.
Shuifumiao Reservoir (Shuifu Scenic Area) 水府庙水库 4A scenic area · on the map
A large irrigation reservoir on the Lian River, built in 1958–63, whose main body lies in western Xiangxiang, with the dam at Xikou in Shuangfeng County; its winding arms and dozens of wooded islands form a national wetland park and the Shuifu scenic area.
Yintian Yinhe Scenic Area 银田银河 4A scenic area · on the map
A riverside scenic area along the Shao River at Yintian town in eastern Shaoshan, rated 4A in 2026 after about ten years of water-environment works turned an irrigation channel and the old river into a green corridor.
Zhaoshan City Seaside Water Park 昭山城市海景水上乐园 4A scenic area · on the map
A summer water park of about 18 ha in the Zhaoshan area between Changsha, Xiangtan and Zhuzhou, themed as a tropical beach, with an artificial sand beach and wave pool, large slides, children's water-play areas and an indoor sun-sheltered hall.
Beiwusheng Guild Hall 北五省会馆 National heritage site · on the map
A guild hall and temple to Guan Yu built around 1665 by merchants from five northern provinces (Shanxi, Shaanxi, Gansu, Henan and Shandong) at the Eleventh Wharf on the Xiang River, when Xiangtan was one of the great trading towns of central China.
Former Residence of Qi Baishi 齐白石故居 National heritage site · on the map
The birthplace and early home of Qi Baishi (1864–1957), the painter known for his playful shrimps, mice and birds, at Xingdou Pond in Baishi town, Xiangtan County, where he lived for 36 years.

Xiangxi 19 sites

Aizhai Bridge, Shibadong Village and Dehang Gorge 矮寨·十八洞·德夯大峡谷 5A scenic area
A 5A scenic area west of Jishou that joins three places: the Aizhai suspension bridge, opened in 2012, whose 1,176 m main span carries the G65 expressway more than 330 m above the Dehang gorge; the Dehang canyon itself, with cliffs, stone peaks, Miao villages and the 216 m Liusha waterfall; and Shibadong, a Miao village in Huayuan County.
Biancheng (Chadong) 边城茶峒 4A scenic area · on the map
A riverside town on the Qingshui River where Hunan, Guizhou and Chongqing meet; formerly called Chadong, it was renamed Biancheng in 2005 after Shen Congwen's novella Border Town (Biancheng), which is set here.
Fenghuang Giant Panda Park 凤凰中华大熊猫苑 4A scenic area · on the map
A giant panda park about 7 km west of Fenghuang old town, opened in July 2020 with eight pandas brought from the Dujiangyan Qingchengshan base of the China Conservation and Research Centre for the Giant Panda in Sichuan.
Furong Ancient Town 芙蓉镇 4A scenic area · National heritage site
A Tujia town in Yongshun County built on cliffs above a waterfall that drops into the You River; formerly called Wangcun, it took its present name in 2007 after the film Hibiscus Town was shot here.
Gumiao River Hundred Waterfalls Gorge 古苗河百瀑大峡谷 4A scenic area · on the map
A 12.8 km gorge on the Gumiao River in Huayuan County, a river the local Miao regard as their mother river, with more than a hundred waterfalls large and small.
Hongshilin Red Stone Forest 红石林 4A scenic area · on the map
A national geopark in Guzhang County where columns of red carbonate rock, laid down on an ancient sea floor some 450 million years ago, form a stone forest with a core area of more than 20 km².
Laosicheng 老司城 4A scenic area · National heritage site
The ruined capital of the Peng clan, the Tujia chieftains (tusi) who ruled the Yongshun area from the 10th century until the Qing ended their rule in the 1720s; the walled city by the Lingxi River was their seat from the Southern Song onwards.
Liye Ancient Town 里耶古城 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A town on the You River in southern Longshan County, where excavations in 2002 uncovered a walled town of the Warring States period and, in one of its wells, more than 36,000 inscribed Qin-dynasty slips.
Pushi Ancient Town 浦市古镇 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A former river port on the Yuan River in Luxi County that thrived in the Ming and Qing dynasties, when it was nicknamed 'Little Nanjing'.
Qianzhou Old Town 乾州古城 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
An old walled town on the Wanrong River in southern Jishou, the prefecture capital, with stone-paved lanes, old gates and a riverside street.
Qiliang Cave 奇梁洞 4A scenic area · on the map
A karst cave at the foot of a cliff in Qiliangqiao village, Tuojiang town, a few kilometres north of Fenghuang old town.
Rebala Tujia Villages 惹巴拉 4A scenic area · on the map
A cluster of Tujia villages along the Laoche River in Miao'ertan Town, Longshan County, with wooden houses, a large covered bridge and the tall Chongtian tower; Rebala and neighbouring Liuhe were among the first villages named Chinese traditional villages in 2012.
Taiping Mountain, Longshan 太平山 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested mountain park about 4 km from Longshan county town, long a Buddhist site with temple halls on its slopes.
Wulong Mountain Grand Canyon 乌龙山大峡谷 4A scenic area · on the map
A karst canyon in Guitang Town, Longshan County, covering about 41 km² of the Wulongshan National Geopark and riddled with caves, of which surveys have counted 212.
Xiangxi Ethnic Culture Park 湘西民族文化园 4A scenic area · on the map
A cultural complex in the Xiangxi high-tech zone of Jishou, planned from 2015 as a showcase of the prefecture's Tujia and Miao heritage.
Yuanshui Painted Cliffs 沅水画壁 4A scenic area · on the map
A riverside scenic area at Baisha, the county town of Luxi, where cliffs known as the 'ten-li painted wall' line the Yuan River, a stretch of river associated with the writing of Shen Congwen.
Bu'ermen 不二门 National heritage site · on the map
A rocky stretch of the Mengdong River just south of Yongshun county town, listed for an archaeological site of the Shang and Zhou periods and now a national forest park.
Former Site of the Hunan–Hubei–Sichuan–Guizhou Revolutionary Base (Tawo) 塔卧湘鄂川黔革命根据地旧址 National heritage site · on the map
Seven old courtyard compounds in Tawo Town, Yongshun, that housed the provincial Communist Party committee, revolutionary committee, military district, party school, a branch of the Red Army school, a radio station and an arsenal of the Hunan–Hubei–Sichuan–Guizhou base area, set up by the Second and Sixth Red Army Groups under He Long and Ren Bishi in 1934–35.
Huangsiqiao Old Fort 黄丝桥古城 National heritage site · on the map
A small garrison town about 24 km west of Fenghuang, enclosed by a complete ring of blue-grey stone walls with battlements and gate towers that can be walked round in about ten minutes.

Yiyang 18 sites

Anhua Tea-Horse Road Scenic Area 安化茶马古道 4A scenic area · on the map
A gorge-and-forest scenic area in Jiangnan town, eastern Anhua, built around stretches of the old mountain trade road on which Anhua's dark tea was carried out by horse caravans; the county presents it as the starting point of the Hunan section of the Ten-Thousand-Li Tea Road.
Baihuazhai Tea Garden 百花寨 4A scenic area · on the map
A tea-and-countryside scenic area around Baihuazhai hill above Taoxi town in Anhua, centred on an organic tea plantation and an eco-farm that also grows rice, fruit and vegetables.
Chaxiang Huahai Flower Park 茶乡花海 4A scenic area · on the map
A flower park in Anhua County laid out beside the large Chaxiang Huahai resettlement community, built for villagers moved out of the mountains under the poverty-relief programme, and opened to visitors in April 2020.
Luowen Graffiti Village 罗文村 4A scenic area · on the map
A farming village in Wuzui township, Nan County, on a spit of land between the waterways of the Dongting Lake plain, whose houses are painted with large colourful graffiti murals and which is ringed by flower fields, best known for rapeseed blossom in early spring.
Meishan Culture Park 梅山文化园 4A scenic area · on the map
A privately built culture park in Xianxi town, eastern Anhua, begun in 2007 to present the history, customs and folk art of the old Meishan region of central Hunan.
Qingxi Village (Zhou Libo's Home Village) 清溪村 4A scenic area · on the map
The village in Xielingang town, Heshan District, on the southern outskirts of Yiyang where the writer Zhou Libo was born in 1908 and later lived while writing about country life, and which is presented as the real-life setting of his 1958 novel Great Changes in a Mountain Village (山乡巨变).
Qingyun Cave (Yunshang Jiuge) 青云洞 4A scenic area · on the map
A natural limestone cave in Maluxi village, Malu town, in western Anhua County, reopened in April 2023 after redevelopment by a private tourism company.
Taohuajiang Bamboo Forest 桃花江竹海 4A scenic area · on the map
A large bamboo forest on the edge of Taojiang county town, which the county presents as one of China's ten great 'bamboo seas', with more than 50,000 mu (about 33 km²) of continuous bamboo.
Tianyi Muguo Wood Art Park 天意木国 4A scenic area · on the map
A wood-art park by Yuxing Lake in the Yuxingshan area of Yiyang's Eastern New District, opened in September 2018 by a Zhuhai company and presented as a 'world wood culture museum'.
Yiyang Olympic Park 益阳奥林匹克公园 4A scenic area
A sports park in Heshan District on the south side of Yiyang, built for the 2002 Hunan Provincial Games, with a 30,000-seat stadium, a 5,000-seat arena, a swimming hall, outdoor pools and public fitness grounds.
Yuntai Mountain, Anhua 云台山 4A scenic area · on the map
A tea-growing mountain in Malu town, western Anhua, whose top is a basin of about 9 km² rising to 998 m and often wrapped in cloud, known locally as 'the plain on the mountain'.
Zhenyan Academy 箴言书院 4A scenic area · on the map
An academy founded by Hu Linyi, a Qing official and leader of the Xiang Army, and completed in the 1860s, which became a school in 1905 and was rebuilt on its original site in Heshan District, opening to the public on 31 December 2023.
Zijinwan Happy Kingdom 紫金湾欢乐王国 4A scenic area · on the map
An amusement park on the east side of the Taohuajiang bamboo forest outside Taojiang county town, with fairground rides and play areas aimed at families with children.
Changjiao Massacre Memorial Hall 厂窖惨案遗址 National heritage site
The memorial site in Changjiao town, Nan County, for the Changjiao massacre of 9–12 May 1943, in which Japanese troops killed some 30,000 Chinese civilians and soldiers trapped between the rivers of the Dongting Lake plain, according to Chinese surveys.
Covered Bridges of Anhua (Yongxi Bridge) 安化风雨桥 National heritage site · on the map
A group of roofed timber 'wind-and-rain' bridges, 29 of them spread over 17 townships of Anhua County, of which eleven were listed together in 2013.
Lutheran Mission Buildings, Yiyang 信义校会建筑群 National heritage site · on the map
Four buildings put up by the Lutheran mission in Yiyang between 1904 and 1924 in a mix of Chinese and Western styles: the teaching building and two teachers' houses of the former Xinyi (Lutheran) University on Taohualun, and a pastor's house at Wumafang across the Zi River.
Meicheng Confucian and Martial Temples 梅城文武庙 National heritage site · on the map
Anhua's old Confucian temple and its neighbouring Martial Temple in Meicheng town, listed together in 2019.
Qujiang Tea Garden 渠江茶园 National heritage site · on the map
A tea garden of more than 500 mu (about 33 ha) in Daan village, Qujiang town, in the hills of western Anhua, one of the historic sources of Anhua dark tea and listed as a national heritage site in 2019.

Yongzhou 39 sites

Chen Shuxiang Red Culture Park 陈树湘红色文化园 4A scenic area · on the map
A memorial park at Guitou village, Meihua town, Dao County, built to commemorate Chen Shuxiang, commander of the Red Army's 34th Division, and the soldiers of his division.
Dongshan Hill & Lingling Confucian and Martial Temples 东山·零陵文武双庙 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The wooded hill inside the old city of Lingling, opened as a park in 2018, which gathers several of Yongzhou's oldest buildings: the Confucian Temple, whose double-eaved great hall with yellow glazed tiles and dragon-carved marble columns dates from 1775, and the neighbouring Martial Temple, whose opera stage is used for performances.
Goulan Yao Village 勾蓝瑶寨 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A walled Yao village in Lanxi township, Jiangyong, founded in the Ming dynasty and spread over about 6 km², defended by stone walls, watch houses and gate towers.
Huaqiangu Flower Valley & Moon Lake, Shuangpai 花千谷·月湖 4A scenic area · on the map
A modern flower-valley and lakeside leisure area at Xiadeng village on the edge of Longbo, Shuangpai's county town, created as part of the county's 'Longbo International Slow City' rural-tourism scheme.
Lianxi, Hometown of Zhou Dunyi 濂溪故里 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
Loutian village in Qingtang town, Dao County, birthplace of the Northern Song philosopher Zhou Dunyi (1017–1073), a founder of Neo-Confucianism whose sobriquet Lianxi is the name of the stream at his home.
Liuzi Temple & Liu Zongyuan Cultural Area 柳子庙·柳宗元文化旅游区 4A scenic area · National heritage site
A riverside quarter on the west bank of the Xiao River in Lingling, the old town of Yongzhou, built around the places where the Tang writer Liu Zongyuan lived for ten years in exile from 805.
Long Family Compound 龙家大院 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A village of the Long clan at Jiantou town in Xintian County, set against hills on three sides, whose Ming-to-Republican houses follow a plan described as 'three halls, nine light wells, 24 lanes and 48 houses'.
Mausoleum of Emperor Shun, Jiuyi Mountain 九嶷山舜帝陵 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The temple-mausoleum of Shun, the legendary sage-king whom the Records of the Grand Historian say died on a tour of the south and was buried at Jiuyi, set below Shunyuan Peak in the Jiuyi Mountains.
Qianjiadong, Yao Ancestral Homeland 千家峒 4A scenic area · on the map
A group of three mountain basins north of Jiangyong county town, covering about 200 km², which Yao communities in southern China, South-East Asia and beyond know from their manuscript histories as the homeland their twelve clans were forced to leave in 1305.
Sangonglei Waterfalls 三公垒瀑布群 4A scenic area · on the map
A chain of waterfalls on a forest stream in the core of Jindong National Forest Park, in the Jindong district that holds Hunan's largest state forest farm.
Shidongyuan: Tao Zhu's Birthplace & Longxi Li Family Compound 石洞源·龙溪李家大院 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A scenic area in Panshi town, eastern Qiyang, centred on Shidongyuan, the village where the senior Communist Party leader Tao Zhu (1908–1969) was born, with his former residence, the Shidongyuan reservoir and the nearby Longxi Li Family Compound.
Shunhuang Mountain 舜皇山 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested range on Dong'an County's western border with Xinning County, protected as a national forest park, whose main peak rises to 1,882 m.
Wuxi Cliff Inscriptions (Wuxi Stele Forest) 浯溪碑林 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
Cliffs on the west bank of the Xiang River where the Wuxi stream flows in, about 2 km west of Qiyang, carved since the Tang dynasty with around 500 poems, records and pieces of calligraphy by figures including Yan Zhenqing, Huang Tingjian and Mi Fu.
Xiaguan Ancient Village 下灌村 4A scenic area · on the map
A large old farming village in Wanjing town, Ningyuan, which clan records say was founded in 499 and which now spans four administrative villages along streams below the Jiuyi Mountains.
Yangmingshan National Forest Park 阳明山 4A scenic area
A mountain forest park in north-eastern Shuangpai County, a national forest park since 1992, rising to about 1,625 m.
Yaoshan Water Town (China Love Town), Shuikou 瑶山水城 4A scenic area · on the map
A tourism district in Shuikou, Jianghua, a new town built from 2016 for about 15,000 people moved from the Cengtianhe reservoir area and from poor mountain villages, which the county promotes as a Yao-themed 'China Love Town'.
Yongzhou Forest Botanical Garden 永州森林植物园 4A scenic area · on the map
Yongzhou's forest botanical garden, laid out since 2013 on the grounds of the city's forestry research institute in Yitang town, on the eastern edge of Lengshuitan district, and covering about 520 ha (7,800 mu) of mostly wooded hills.
Yunbing Mountain 云冰山 4A scenic area · on the map
A mountain scenic area at Nanfeng'ao on the Hunan–Guangdong border south of Lanshan, where a flight of 520 steps climbs to a 1,388 m pass and a viewing platform that straddles the two provinces.
Zhou Family Compound, Ganyantou 周家大院 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A village of Zhou-clan mansions at Ganyantou (also written Jianyantou) in Fujiaqiao town, Lingling, where six well-preserved Ming and Qing courtyard compounds stand together; the largest dates from the Tongzhi reign (1862–1874).
Chaoyang Rock 朝阳岩 National heritage site · on the map
A riverside cliff and cave on the west bank of the Xiao River in Lingling, named 'Facing the Morning Sun' in 765 by the Tang poet-official Yuan Jie, who wrote an inscription and a poem for it, and one of the classic Eight Views of Yongzhou.
Danyan Cave Inscriptions 淡岩石刻 National heritage site · on the map
A cave south of Lingling, also called Danshan Rock, whose walls bear some 200 recorded inscriptions, three-quarters of them from the Song dynasty, by visitors including Zhou Dunyi, Huang Tingjian and Yang Wanli.
Former Residence of Li Da 李达故居 National heritage site · on the map
The family home in Caishi town, Lengshuitan, of Li Da (1890–1966), the Marxist philosopher and educator who was one of the founders of the Chinese Communist Party and later president of Wuhan University.
General's Mansion, Xujiaqiao 许家桥将军府 National heritage site · on the map
An official-style residence in Xujiaqiao village, Shuzipu township, south-west of Lingling, begun around the end of the Yuan and the start of the Ming dynasty.
Guangli Bridge 广利桥 National heritage site · on the map
A Qing covered bridge, also called the Flower Bridge, over the Dongxi River at Zixishi town in Dong'an County, built in 1773 and repaired in 1876.
Guizailing Ritual Site 鬼崽岭遗址 National heritage site · on the map
A low hill in the south of Dao County scattered with thousands of small carved stone figures, mostly between about 30 cm and 1 m tall and including officials, soldiers and pregnant women, at a site usually described as a place of ritual.
Hanlin Ancestral Hall, Dong'antou 东安头翰林祠 National heritage site · on the map
An ancestral hall in Dong'antou village, Wanjing town, begun in 1736 to honour Li Fu, a Ming-dynasty metropolitan graduate, and covering about 6,700 m² with its forecourt.
Hanlin Ancestral Hall, Jiu'anbei 久安背翰林祠 National heritage site · on the map
The ancestral hall of the Li clan in Jiu'anbei, a village at the foot of the Jiuyi Mountains whose families all share the surname, named after the clan's Song-dynasty scholars who reached the Hanlin Academy.
He Family Mansion, Baojing 宝镜何家大院 National heritage site · on the map
A Qing-to-Republican mansion complex in Baojing village, Dayu town, in the south of Jianghua, begun in the early Qing by the He clan ancestor He Yingqi.
Hu Family Mansion, Shanmuqiao 杉木桥胡家大院 National heritage site · on the map
A clan compound in Shanmuqiao village, Youtingxu town, in the east of Lingling, begun in the early Qing.
Huang Ancestral Hall, Huxi Village 虎溪黄氏宗祠 National heritage site · on the map
The Qing-dynasty clan hall of the Huangs at the centre of Huxi, a village of about a thousand people, most of them Huangs who settled here at the end of the Ming beside an old market that straddles the Lanshan–Ningyuan county line.
Huilong Pagoda 廻龙塔 National heritage site · on the map
A brick-and-stone pagoda on a rock outcrop on the east bank of the Xiao River at the northern edge of Lingling's old town, built in 1584 by the local official Lü Huo to protect the city from floods.
Li Ancestral Hall, Shenxia 神下李氏宗祠 National heritage site · on the map
The ancestral hall of the Li clan in Shenxia village, Lengshui town, east of Ningyuan county town, begun in 1753 and finished the following year.
Ningyuan Confucian Temple 宁远文庙 National heritage site · on the map
The county Confucian temple and school of Ningyuan, founded in the Tang and moved to this site in the south-west of the county town in 965, with the present buildings dating from a rebuilding of 1873–1882.
Shanggantang Village 上甘棠村 National heritage site · on the map
A Zhou-clan village in Xiacengpu town, Jiangyong, on the site of the Han-dynasty county seat of Xiemu, where the family has lived since 828 and around 200 Ming and Qing houses survive.
Shude Villa (Former Residence of Tang Shengzhi) 树德山庄 National heritage site · on the map
A country estate at Zhaojiajing village, Luhongshi town, built in 1927 by Tang Shengzhi, the Hunan general who commanded the defence of Nanjing in 1937 and later joined the 1949 Hunan peace uprising.
Suiyuan Lou Complex, Tantian Village 岁圆楼 National heritage site · on the map
A group of Qing-dynasty courtyard houses built in the late 1830s in Tantian, a village whose families are all surnamed He and, by their genealogy, descend from a settlement founded in the early 11th century.
Xianggui Ancient Road, Yongzhou Section 湘桂古道永州段 National heritage site · on the map
Part of the old overland route between the Xiang River basin and Lingnan, also called the Xiao–He road, which leaves Dao County on two branches, through Jianghua and through Jiangyong, to Fuchuan and Hezhou in Guangxi.
Yanghua Rock Inscriptions 阳华岩摩崖 National heritage site · on the map
A south-facing limestone cliff and cave below Huishan hill at Zhuyuanzhai village, just east of Jianghua county town, carved with some 40 inscriptions from the Tang to the Qing, 38 of them still legible.
Yuchanyan 玉蟾岩遗址 National heritage site · on the map
A small limestone cave at Baishizhai in Shouyan town, Dao County, known locally as Toad Cave, where excavations in 1993–1995 and 2004–2005 found pottery dated to about 18,000 years ago, among the oldest known anywhere, and rice grains that Chinese archaeologists regard as some of the earliest cultivated rice.

Yueyang 25 sites

Junshan Island 君山岛 5A scenic area
A hilly island of 0.96 km² with 72 small peaks in Dongting Lake, about 9 km west of Yueyang Tower, tied to the legend of Emperor Shun's two consorts Ehuang and Nüying, whose tears are said to have spotted the bamboo that grows around their tomb here.
6501 Underground Tunnels 6501景区 4A scenic area · on the map
An unfinished man-made tunnel complex in the hills of Zhongfang, south-east of Linxiang, whose purpose has never been officially disclosed: three levels of passages, halls and shafts run for more than 10 km and cover over 80,000 m².
Dayunshan National Forest Park 大云山 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A forested mountain of 911 m on the border of Yueyang County and Linxiang, a national forest park since 1996 and an old Daoist and Buddhist pilgrimage hill whose restored temples draw worshippers from Hunan, Hubei and Jiangxi, above all at the fairs on the third day of the third lunar month and the ninth day of the ninth.
Former Residence of Ren Bishi 任弼时故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The birthplace of Ren Bishi (1904–1950), a senior Communist military and political leader who was political commissar of He Long's Second Front Army on the Long March, in Bishi town in southern Miluo.
Jiangtun Bay (Finless Porpoise Bay) 江豚湾 4A scenic area · on the map
A reach of the Yangtze bank at Qigongling in Junshan District, about 107 ha, where the Hualong sand and gravel wharf was demolished in 2017 and the shore cleared and replanted.
Junshan Wild Lotus World 君山野生荷花世界 4A scenic area · on the map
A lake of wild lotus at Tuanhu in Junshan District, where more than 10,000 mu (about 670 ha) of lotus grows in continuous beds and over 300 cultivated varieties have been added.
Mufu Mountain (Tianyue Mufushan) 幕阜山 4A scenic area
The main peak of the Mufu range, about 1,600 m high, on Hunan's border with Hubei and Jiangxi in northern Pingjiang, a national forest park since 2005 that stays cool even in midsummer.
Pingjiang Uprising Memorial Hall 平江起义纪念馆 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The former Tianyue Academy, founded in 1720 and moved to this site in 1867, a complex of white gable walls and grey tiles now within the grounds of Pingjiang No. 1 Middle School, where Peng Dehuai, Teng Daiyuan and Huang Gonglüe launched the Pingjiang Uprising on 22 July 1928 and formed the Fifth Red Army.
Quzi Cultural Park and Qu Yuan Temple 屈子文化园 4A scenic area · National heritage site
The memorial temple of Qu Yuan, the Warring States poet whose drowning in the Miluo River is remembered at the Dragon Boat Festival, stands at the foot of Yusi Hill by the river: its brick-and-timber halls around three courtyards were moved here in 1754 after floods, the triple gate carries 13 reliefs of his life, and a stele forest of 356 carved inscriptions was added in 1995.
Sheng'an Temple 圣安寺 4A scenic area · on the map
A large Buddhist temple on the northern spur of Lengjia Hill above South Lake, rebuilt from 1997 by monks from Nanyue on the site of a Tang-dynasty monastery whose abbot Wuxing was commemorated in inscriptions by the writer Liu Zongyuan.
Shiniuzhai National Geopark 石牛寨 4A scenic area · on the map
A Danxia sandstone landscape of about 62 km² in north-eastern Pingjiang, a national geopark of long red cliff walls, rock 'waterfalls', natural bridges and narrow slot gorges, named after an old stone stronghold whose walls survive for some 2 km; the main source of the Miluo River rises here.
Wujianshan National Forest Park 五尖山国家森林公园 4A scenic area · on the map
A wooded hill of five peaks, the highest 588 m, rising just south-west of Linxiang city, a national forest park since 2008 that covers about 2,880 ha with forest cover of 98%.
Yangsha Lake Resort 洋沙湖 4A scenic area · on the map
A resort district built around the 4.3 km² Yangsha Lake on the southern edge of Xiangyin town, opened in 2017 and themed on the area's old fishing-village culture.
Zhangguying Village 张谷英村 4A scenic area · National heritage site
A clan village of the Zhang family below Bijia Hill in south-eastern Yueyang County, where connected houses built from the Ming and extended through the Qing form three great blocks, Dangdamen, Wangjiaduan and Shangxinwu, with 1,732 rooms, 206 skylit courtyards and 62 lanes over more than 50,000 m².
Zuo Zongtang Cultural Park and Memorial Temple 左宗棠文化园 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A memorial park of about 18 ha in Xiangyin, the home county of Zuo Zongtang (1812–1885), the Qing general and statesman who fought the Taiping and other rebellions and led the reconquest of Xinjiang, and whose name was borrowed for the dish General Tso's chicken.
Cishi Pagoda 慈氏塔 National heritage site
A solid seven-storey octagonal brick pagoda 39 m tall on Taqian Street near the lakeshore, one of the oldest surviving pagodas in Hunan, with Buddha niches on four sides of each upper storey.
Dajitou Jetty 大矶头 National heritage site · on the map
A man-made jetty of 1879 on the south bank of the Yangtze at Lucheng, built out from a hill and natural reefs as three stepped granite platforms covering some 1,500 m², where boats on the river were towed and navigation markers set up.
Former New Fourth Army Liaison Office, Jiayi 新四军平江通讯处旧址 National heritage site · on the map
A pair of two-storey timber shop-houses on Upper Street in the old market town of Jiayi, once the Tianhe general store and the Yichang pharmacy, which from 1938 housed the New Fourth Army's Pingjiang liaison office together with the Communist special committee for the Hunan–Hubei–Jiangxi border.
Former Pingjiang County CPC Committee (Mao Jianqing's House) 中共平江县委旧址 National heritage site · on the map
The 1919 country house of Mao Jianqing (1891–1932), a graduate of Tokyo Imperial University who became Pingjiang's Communist Party secretary in 1927 and moved the county committee into his family home.
Hunan–Hubei–Jiangxi Soviet Sites, Changshou 湘鄂赣省苏维埃旧址 National heritage site · on the map
Three sites in and near Changshou, an old market town on the upper Miluo River in eastern Pingjiang, added in 2019 to the national listing of the Hunan–Hubei–Jiangxi revolutionary base, whose main sites are at Wanzai in Jiangxi.
Longjiao Mountain Yao Relics 龙窖山 National heritage site · on the map
In the Longjiao Mountains of north-eastern Linxiang, on the Hunan–Hubei border, lie the remains of a highland settlement area that the Yao people regard as Qianjiadong, their ancestral homeland, occupied from the Western Jin to the Northern Song until its people moved away after about 1010.
Xiangyin Confucius Temple 湘阴文庙 National heritage site
Founded in the Northern Song and moved to this site in the early 1100s, Xiangyin's temple of Confucius lost many of its halls to Japanese bombing during the war against Japan, and a road cut through it in 1954 now separates the front court from the main buildings.
Yueyang Confucian Temple 岳阳文庙 National heritage site · on the map
Founded in 1046 by Teng Zijing, the prefect who rebuilt Yueyang Tower, the city's Confucian temple and school keeps its double-eaved Dacheng Hall, 16 m high, whose nanmu columns, lotus-carved column bases and beams are Song-dynasty work beneath a roof rebuilt in 1872.
Yuezhou Customs House 岳州关 National heritage site · on the map
Hunan's first customs house, opened at Chenglingji in 1899 when Yuezhou, where the Yangtze meets Dongting Lake, became the first port the Qing government opened to foreign trade on its own initiative.
Yuezhou Kiln Site Museum 岳州窑遗址博物馆 National heritage site · on the map
Yuezhou ware, the celadon made along the lower Xiang River from the Han to the Tang, was ranked among the six best wares for tea bowls in Lu Yu's 8th-century Classic of Tea, and 26 kiln sites have been found on both banks around Xiangyin.

Zhangjiajie 17 sites

Baofeng Lake 宝峰湖 4A scenic area · on the map
An artificial lake in a gorge at Suoxiyu in the Wulingyuan scenic area, formed when villagers dammed the valley for hydropower in the 1970s and named after Baofeng Mountain behind it.
Former Residence of He Long 贺龙故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The birthplace of He Long (1896–1969), a founder of the Red Army and later a marshal of the People's Liberation Army, at Hongjiaguan in Sangzhi County.
Huanglong Cave 黄龙洞 4A scenic area · on the map
A large karst cave in the Suoxiyu area of Wulingyuan, east of the town, with two dry and two water-filled levels, underground rivers, waterfalls and an underground lake.
Jiangya Hot Spring Resort 江垭温泉 4A scenic area · on the map
A hot-spring resort in Jiangya Town, Cili County, where nine streams, all tributaries of the Lishui, meet.
Jiutian Cave & Fenglian Creek 九天峰恋 4A scenic area · on the map
A large karst cave in Shuidong Village, Lifuta Town, about 10 km from Sangzhi county town, named for the nine skylights that open from its roof to the surface.
Long March Starting Point of the Red Second Front Army 红二方面军长征出发地 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
Liujiaping in Sangzhi County is where the Red Army's Second and Sixth Corps, led by He Long, Ren Bishi and others, set out on their Long March on 19 November 1935, after a military meeting here decided on a strategic withdrawal.
Longwang Cave 龙王洞 4A scenic area · on the map
A large limestone cave in Jiangya Town, Cili County, about 17 km east of the Wulingyuan scenic area, named after the legend of a dragon king living in the deep pool outside it.
Tujia Folk Custom Park (Tusi City) 张家界土家风情园 4A scenic area · on the map
A commercial park of Tujia-style timber buildings on the western side of Zhangjiajie city, including a chieftain's compound known as Tusi City, with displays of Tujia architecture and customs and staged song-and-dance shows.
Wanfu Hot Spring Resort 万福温泉 4A scenic area · on the map
A hot-spring resort on a hillside by the Cili East exit of the Changde–Zhangjiajie expressway, opened in 2016.
Xibu Street 溪布老街 4A scenic area · on the map
A pedestrian street in Wulingyuan town, built in old-street style and lined with shops, snack stalls and restaurants, which the district counts among its cultural-tourism brands.
Zhangjiajie Difeng Gorge 张家界地缝 4A scenic area · on the map
A narrow karst slot gorge in Jinlong Village, Lingxi Town, in eastern Cili County, also called the Chaoyang Difeng ('earth crack').
Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon 张家界大峡谷 4A scenic area
A forested gorge at Sanguansi in Cili County, east of the Wulingyuan scenic area, best known for the glass-bottomed bridge, officially named Yuntiandu, strung across it.
Zhangjiajie Snow World 张家界冰雪世界 4A scenic area · on the map
An indoor ski and ice centre in Yanghe Township, Cili County, opened in December 2019, with a snow-hall building of over 63,000 m² that takes up to 1,000 people at a time for skiing, skating and snow play.
Former Site of the Hunan–Hubei–Sichuan–Guizhou Revolutionary Base (Dayong) 湘鄂川黔革命根据地旧址 National heritage site · on the map
A former Catholic church on Jiefang Road in old Dayong, now central Zhangjiajie, where the Communist provincial committee, revolutionary committee and military district of the Hunan–Hubei–Sichuan–Guizhou base area were set up in November 1934, with Ren Bishi and He Long at their head.
Puguang Temple 普光禅寺 National heritage site
A Buddhist temple on Jiefang Road in central Zhangjiajie, founded in 1413 under the Ming by the military commander Yong Jian and renovated in 1733.
Shiyanping Village 石堰坪村 National heritage site · on the map
A Tujia village in Wangjiaping Town, in the hills of eastern Yongding District, with 182 timber stilt houses, most built in the Qing dynasty; 85 in the core area are well preserved.
Tian Family Compound 田家大院 National heritage site · on the map
A Tujia family compound, also known as the Old Courtyard (Lao Yuanzi), in Pengjia Lane off Yongding Avenue, built in the Yongzheng era of the Qing (1723–35) by Tian Qiyuan.

Zhuzhou 16 sites

Mausoleum of the Yan Emperor 炎帝陵 5A scenic area · National heritage site
One of four places in China honoured as the tomb of the Yan Emperor (Shennong), the legendary ancestor credited with farming and herbal medicine, at Luyuanpo in Luyuan town, Yanling County, beside the Mi River.
Fantawild Adventure Zhuzhou 株洲方特欢乐世界 4A scenic area · on the map
A large theme park of the Chinese Fantawild chain in Shifeng District, northern Zhuzhou, opened in 2011, with themed indoor attractions, outdoor rides and shows.
Former Residence of Li Lisan 李立三故居 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
The childhood home of Li Lisan (1899–1967), a Chinese Communist politician and Politburo member, on the eastern side of Liling, known as Yuyuan ('Taro Garden') from the name over its gate.
Huahu Valley 花湖谷 4A scenic area · on the map
A privately developed rural resort in Yantang town east of Chaling, built by the Hunan Wanzhang Group round flower fields, a lake and a gorge; its crape-myrtle garden opened in 2018.
Jiuxian Lake 酒仙湖 4A scenic area · on the map
A large reservoir in the hills of north-eastern You County, held back by a 50 m earth dam on the You River built in 1958–60 and renamed from Jiubujiang Reservoir in 2004, with about 11 km² of clear water among forested hills.
Lujiang Academy 渌江书院 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
A traditional academy in western Liling, founded in 1175 and moved to its present site in the Qing dynasty, with whose teaching the scholars Zhu Xi, Wang Yangming and Zuo Zongtang are all associated.
Red Army Slogan Museum 红军标语博物馆 4A scenic area · on the map
A museum in Yanling county town devoted to the slogans that Red Army units painted on village walls in this area in the late 1920s and early 1930s, opened in 2011 and described as the only museum of its kind in China.
Shennong City Park 神农城 4A scenic area · on the map
A large modern park in Tianyuan District, central Zhuzhou, themed on the Yan Emperor Shennong and laid out round Yandi Square with its statue of Shennong carrying a herb basket, Shennong Lake, the tall Shennong Tower and the Shennong Grand Theatre.
Shennong Valley National Forest Park 神农谷 4A scenic area · on the map
A national forest park in the mountains of eastern Yanling County, covered in primary forest and threaded by streams and waterfalls such as the Zhulian (Pearl Curtain) Falls.
Site of the Chaling Workers', Peasants' and Soldiers' Government 茶陵县工农兵政府旧址 4A scenic area · on the map
The old prefectural and county yamen of Chaling, an official compound in use from the Southern Song to the Qing, where the Communists set up China's first county-level 'workers', peasants' and soldiers' government' during the Jinggangshan base period.
Yunyang Mountain 云阳山 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested mountain rising straight behind Chaling county town, protected as a national forest park of about 89 km², which local tradition links with the Yan Emperor Shennong and with tea, and which was briefly honoured as the Southern Peak in the early Tang.
Chaling Ancient City Wall 茶陵古城墙 National heritage site · on the map
The Southern Song city wall of Chaling, built of stone in 1231–32 along the Mi River, of which about 1.5 km survives with two gates and their barbicans (Yingxiang and Yingxun), a ramp and more than 700 m of riverside embankment.
Former Qunli Porcelain Factory 醴陵群力瓷厂旧址 National heritage site · on the map
The former Qunli Porcelain Factory in north-western Liling, founded in 1958 as the Liling Art Porcelain Factory with state funds to make fine underglaze-painted porcelain, which produced tableware for national leaders, the Great Hall of the People and the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse and so earned the nickname 'Red Official Kiln'.
Liling Kilns at Weishan 醴陵窑 National heritage site · on the map
The national listing for the Liling kilns, which fired ceramics from the Song to the Republican era, centres on Weishan village in the hills north of Liling, long the heart of the local porcelain industry and known mainly for blue-and-white bowls.
Lujiang Bridge 渌江桥 National heritage site · on the map
A ten-arch stone bridge over the Lu River in central Liling, built in 1925 just upstream of a crossing recorded since the Song and destroyed many times by floods and war.
Shuikou Site of Mao Zedong's First Company Party Branch 水口连队建党旧址 National heritage site · on the map
The Ye family ancestral hall in Shuikou town, southern Yanling County, where on 15 October 1927 Mao Zedong admitted six soldiers of his Autumn Harvest Uprising force to the Communist Party in the upstairs room, founding the first party branch at company level.

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