Aba 阿坝Ābà

About Aba

Aba, Ngawa in Tibetan, climbs from the deep valleys of the upper Min River onto the grasslands of the Tibetan Plateau, home to Tibetan herders, Gyalrong Tibetan villages and Qiang communities known for their stone watchtowers. The lakes of Jiuzhaigou Valley and the travertine pools of the Huanglong Scenic Area are both UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Mount Siguniang lifts four snow peaks above alpine valleys, and in the north the Yellow River loops across the Zoige grassland.

Featured places in Aba

• 

  Jiuzhaigou Valley 九寨沟

  Lakes so clear you can count the fallen trees lying on their beds

  Best time: Late Sep–Oct; also May–Jun · Time needed: 1–2 days · 5A scenic area · UNESCO World Heritage

• 

  Huanglong Scenic Area 黄龙

  Thousands of terraced travertine pools spill down a mountain valley like a golden dragon

  Best time: Jun–Oct · Time needed: Half a day to 1 day · 5A scenic area · UNESCO World Heritage

• 

  Mount Siguniang 四姑娘山

  Four 'sister' snow peaks above three alpine valleys of forest, meadow and lakes

  Best time: May–Jun, Sep–Oct · Time needed: 2 days · 5A scenic area · UNESCO World Heritage

• 

  Zoige Grassland & First Bend of the Yellow River 若尔盖草原与黄河九曲第一湾

  Highland marsh, grazing yaks and the Yellow River looping across the plain at sunset

  Best time: Jun–Sep · Time needed: 1–2 days · 4A scenic area

• 

  Songpan Ancient Town 松潘古城

  A walled market town of the old tea-and-horse trade, and a base for horse treks

  Best time: May–Oct · Time needed: Half a day · National heritage site

• 

  Taoping Qiang Village 桃坪羌寨

  A lived-in Qiang stone village of watchtowers, rooftop paths and hidden water channels

  Best time: Apr–May, Sep–Oct · Time needed: Half a day to 1 day · 4A scenic area · National heritage site

Listed sites in Aba

30 sites in Aba are on the official lists. Those with a page of their own link to it; the rest open as cards on the map.

• Wenchuan Earthquake Memorial Area, Yingxiu 汶川特别旅游区 5A scenic area
  Yingxiu, in Wenchuan County, lay at the epicentre of the magnitude-8.0 earthquake of 12 May 2008, and this 5A-rated zone brings together the places that commemorate it.
• Ancient Qiang City and Pingtou Village, Maoxian 中国古羌城·坪头羌寨 4A scenic area · on the map
  A large complex on the edge of Mao County town, built after the 2008 earthquake to present the culture of the Qiang people.
• Bipenggou 毕棚沟 4A scenic area · on the map
  A high valley in Li County, within the Miyaluo nature area, climbing from about 2,400 to 4,500 metres past forest, streams and waterfalls towards snow peaks.
• Cuo'erji (Chöje) Monastery and Rangbala 措尔机寺·壤巴拉 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
  Zamtang is a leading centre of the Jonang school of Tibetan Buddhism, and Cuo'erji (Chöje) Monastery at Zhongrangtang, whose national listing dates its buildings from the Yuan to the Qing, is one of its historic monasteries.
• Dagu Glacier 达古冰川 4A scenic area · on the map
  A group of mountain glaciers in Heishui County, spread between about 3,800 and 5,100 metres within a protected scenic area of high peaks and forest.
• Diexi Lake and Songpinggou 叠溪·松坪沟 4A scenic area · on the map
  In 1933 an earthquake destroyed the old town of Diexi on the upper Min River and dammed the river, creating a lake that now covers the site of the old town.
• Emutang Flower Meadows, Hongyuan 俄木塘花海 4A scenic area · on the map
  Natural grassland in southern Hongyuan County where more than 30,000 mu (about 20 km²) of meadow turns into a sheet of wildflowers from early June to early August.
• Flower Lake, Zoige 若尔盖花湖 4A scenic area · on the map
  A shallow lake in the Zoige marshes beside the G213, seen from wooden boardwalks that were rebuilt outside the reserve's buffer zone to protect the wetland.
• Guanyinqiao, Jinchuan 观音桥 4A scenic area · on the map
  Guanyinqiao, in north-western Jinchuan County, is a Tibetan Buddhist pilgrimage centre built around its Guanyin (Avalokiteshvara) temple.
• Jiawuhai Lake and Panda Park 甲勿海·熊猫园 4A scenic area · on the map
  A mountain lake near Wujiao in Jiuzhaigou County, set among forest and snow peaks in an area of Baima Tibetan villages.
• Kepan Tianjie and Zhibo Watchtowers 柯盘天街·直波碉楼 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
  Kepan Tianjie ('sky street') is a ridge-top Jiarong Tibetan village above the Suomo River at Songgang, with the ruins of the Songgang chieftains' residence, two stone towers and some three dozen traditional houses, now restored with guesthouses and shops.
• Lianbao Yeze (Stone Mountain) 莲宝叶则 4A scenic area · on the map
  A granite massif on the border between Aba County and Qinghai, a southern spur of the Bayan Har range whose highest peak reaches 5,369 metres.
• Lianghekou Meeting Site 两河口会议会址 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
  At Lianghekou in Xiaojin County the Communist Party Politburo met on 26 June 1935, after the Red Army's First and Fourth Front Armies had joined forces at Dawei earlier that month.
• Long March Memorial Monument, Songpan 红军长征纪念总碑 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
  A memorial park on Yuanbao Hill above Chuanzhusi, completed in 1990 to commemorate the Red Army's Long March across the Songpan grasslands in 1935.
• Moon Bay, Hongyuan 月亮湾 4A scenic area · on the map
  A crescent-shaped meander of a grassland river just outside Hongyuan town, part of the upper Yellow River wetlands.
• Riganqiao Marsh 日干乔 4A scenic area · on the map
  A large highland marsh near Waqie on the Hongyuan grasslands, part of the wider Zoige wetlands, where streams and pools spread across the peatland of the upper Yellow River basin.
• Sanao Snow Mountain 三奥雪山 4A scenic area · on the map
  Three snow peaks, Aotaiji, Aotaimei and Aotaina, rising above Luhua, the county town of Heishui.
• Shenzuo Village 神座 4A scenic area · on the map
  A Tibetan village in Chali township in eastern Aba County, with high pastures behind it and old forest facing it across the river.
• Shiwai Liyuan Pear Orchards, Jinchuan 世外梨园 4A scenic area · on the map
  A 14.4 km² stretch of the Dajin River valley in Jinchuan County where Gyalrong Tibetan villages sit among snow-pear orchards; the county grows more than 40,000 mu (about 2,700 hectares) of the pears, and over a million trees line the valley.
• Yu the Great Cultural Area, Wenchuan 汶川大禹文化旅游区 4A scenic area · on the map
  Mianchi, on the Min River south of Wenchuan county town, is traditionally held to be the birthplace of Yu the Great, the legendary tamer of China's floods.
• Zhegu Mountain Nature Park 鹧鸪山自然公园 4A scenic area · on the map
  A nature park on Zhegu Mountain, the high pass on the G317 between Miyaluo and Barkam, with conifer forest, alpine meadows and wide mountain views.
• Zhuokeji Chieftain's Residence 卓克基土司官寨 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
  The fortified residence of the Zhuokeji chieftains, rulers of one of the eighteen Jiarong Tibetan chiefdoms of western Sichuan until 1955, faces the old stone village of Xisuo across the Xisuo River.
• Bangtuo Monastery 棒托寺 National heritage site · on the map
  A Nyingma monastery in northern Zamtang County, founded in the Yuan period and known for its 39 stupas built between the Ming dynasty and the Republic.
• Choubian Tower, Xuecheng 筹边楼 National heritage site · on the map
  A Qing-dynasty tower in the old street of Xuecheng, a small town on the Zagunao River in Li County.
• Dazha Monastery 达扎寺 National heritage site · on the map
  A Gelug monastery founded in 1663 by the first Dazha Living Buddha, which gives its name to Dazhasi, the county town of Zoige.
• Dhe-Tsang Monastery 大藏寺 National heritage site · on the map
  Founded in 1414, Dhe-Tsang (Dazang) Monastery is the head monastery of the Gelug school in northern Sichuan, set in a remote valley of Dazang township north of Barkam.
• Jiangweicheng Site, Weizhou 姜维城遗址 National heritage site
  On a ridge above the Min River at Weizhou, Wenchuan's county town, are the remains of a walled hilltop fortress traditionally linked to the Three Kingdoms general Jiang Wei, though historians doubt he built it.
• Risimanba Tower House 日斯满巴碉房 National heritage site · on the map
  A stone tower house (diaofang) in Zongke township, southern Zamtang County, dated by its national heritage listing to the Yuan and Ming periods.
• Wori Chieftain's Residence 沃日土司官寨 National heritage site · on the map
  Built around 1750, after the family sided with the Qing court, this was the seat of the Wori chieftains, a Jiarong Tibetan line of 23 generations.
• Zengda Watchtower 曾达关碉 National heritage site · on the map
  A Qing-dynasty stone watchtower at Zengda in southern Jinchuan County, guarding the Dajin River valley.

Getting to Aba

Train, flight and driving times from the cities most visitors come from, with stations, fares and how many run a day; each opens the full comparison.

• Dujiangyan 都江堰 to Songpan · train 3 h 34 min with a change at Chengdu
• Chengdu 成都 to Songpan · high-speed train 1 h 33 min, 26 a day, from ¥135; a nonstop route is listed
• Hanzhong 汉中 to Songpan · train 4 h 36 min with a change at Chengdu
• Leshan 乐山 to Songpan · high-speed train 2 h 46 min, 2 a day, from ¥197
• Chongqing 重庆 to Songpan · train 3 h 23 min with a change at Chengdu

All routes

On the map

Open Aba on the illustrated map to see its outline, its places and listed sites together, and to add them to a trip.

Learn more

• Wikipedia
• Official website
• Wikipedia (Chinese)