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China is home to countless rivers and lakes. Some offer beautiful vistas for visitors to relax and rejuvenate, while others excite with their turbulent currents or towering gorges.
Looking for tranquility or thrill? These most beautiful rivers and lakes will surely satisfy.
Yangtze River - The Majestic Three Gorges
Stretching 6,387 kilometers, the Yangtze River holds the title as the third-longest river in the world. To the Chinese people, it is a life-nurturing mother river. To China's tourism industry, nearly every popular lake and river scenic area draws water from the Yangtze or its tributaries.
The crown jewel of the Yangtze is the Three Gorges region, composed of the Wu, Qutang, and Xiling gorges. Countless ancient carvings, villages, temples, and the Three Gorges Dam are the main attractions of this segment. Visitors typically traverse the gorges on a cruise ship and explore these ancient relics through shore excursions. If you prefer not to embark on shore tours, you can simply appreciate the mesmerizing scenery of the gorges from the sightseeing deck or your cabin balcony.
cruise
West Lake
The West Lake in Hangzhou has been for popular tourist destinations for over 1000 years. However, almost every ancient dynasty wanted to transform the lake into fields. It almost dried up 100 years ago. After the feudal society was overthrown in 1912, the government began to realize they should keep the lake, so they built a park based on the lake.
Nowadays, the West Lake is popular for both local people and tourists. You can admire the plants and birds while taking a boat ride on the river. If you want to know about Chinese history or religions, the temples around the lake are good options.
West Lake Lotus
Li River – Short Cruise, Incredible Sceneries
Tourists usually enjoy the beauty of the Li River via an 83-kilometer long cruise, during which tourists can see the hills of various shapes. The green trees and colorful flowers on these hills can enhance your cruising experience. In a word, the Li River and its surrounding hills form a huge piece of natural painting.
The cruise starts from and City of Guilin and ends at the County of Yangshuo, where you can also see beautiful hills and rivers. Many tourists also hike along the Li River to admire the sceneries longer.
Li River
Tuo River – More Beautiful Due to the Cultures of Ethnic Minorities
The Tuo River is located in the Ancient Town of Fenghuang, where there are 28 ethnic minorities. Many wood houses are built by the local people on the banks of the river. Tourists can admire the river view in these houses or walk to the middle of the river. There are 66 square stone blocks on the River. Tourists can walk to the middle of the river via these blocks to take photos or just admire the sceneries.
The Ancient Town of Fenghuang is near the City of Zhangjiajie, where features the Avatar Mountain, so many tourists visit both Fenghuang and Zhangjiajie.
Stone blocks on the Tuo River
Lancang River – Precious World Heritage
The Lancang River was named as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2003. Due to the huge altitude drop and low latitude, from the snow-capped mountain to tropical rainforests, almost every kind of scenery can be seen along the Lancang River. And you may feel like moving from winter to summer while traveling from the upstream (high altitude) to downstream (low altitude). Various plants and animals and villages of ethnic minorities are the highlights along the river.
The Lancang River is in Yunnan Province where borders with Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam, so it is convenient to continue your trip to Southeast Asia after vising the Lancang River.
Snow-capped Mountains along the Lancang River
Pearl River – Unique Night View
Although the Pearl River is 2214 kilometers long, only the 96-kilometer long section in the City of Guangzhou is used for tourism. It is a great experience to admire the night view of Guangzhou during a night cruise on the Pearl River. Beside the sceneries, the local desserts on the cruise ferry are also the highlights of the cruise. Many tourists take a cruise to have a quick span of the attractions first, if they find somewhere interesting, they will visit those places later.
Night cruise on the Pearl River
Qiantang River – World’s Largest Tidal Bore
Due to the centrifugal force caused by the rotation of the earth, tourists can admire the tidal bore of the Qintang River between the first day and fifth day, and between the fifteenth day and twentieth day of a Chinese lunar month. If you wish to see the tidal bore, please contact us for the exact dates of Gregorian Calendar.
The largest tidal bore takes place around the fifteenth day of every eighth month of every Chinese lunar year. Thousands of tourists go to Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Shaoxing, or Haining so see the tidal bore every year. Some of them might be hurt while seeing the raging tidal bore, so please make sure you see the spectacle at a safe place.
It can be dangerous to watch the Qintang River Tidal Bore
Songhua River – Beautiful Winter Scenery
Tourists usually only visit the Songhua River to view the rime in winter. Although many other places in China are also very cold, they do not have enough humidity in the air to form rime.
The Songhua River, flowing through the provinces of Jilin and Heilongjiang, is the prime location for viewing rime. The hydropower stations on the Songhua River provide the best views of the rime, as the waters near these stations do not freeze in winter, providing sufficient water vapor in the air, a necessary factor for the formation of rime on trees.
Beautiful rime trees along the Songhua River
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