Zhangjiajie

Zhangjiajie municipality, located at 29N and 110E, is a booming tourist city in the northwest of Hunan Province. Formerly known as Dayong, the city got its new name in 1994 from the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. The park , set up in 1982, is the first of its kind in China and far more popular than Dayong.

The Municipality has 15 million people and on area of 9563 meters, which is divided into Yongding, Wulingyuan districts and Cili, Sangzhi counties. The municipal government is located in Yongding District, some 390 kilometers from the provincial capital Changsha and 300 kilometers from the Three Gorges of Yangtze River.

In the 1950s, the local government established a forestry farm in Zhangjiajie. But only towards the end of 1970s,did the people outside first discover the unique beauty of the forest of steep peaks, which are made of quartzite sandstone.

The national forest park, along with the adjoining two nature reserves of Suoxi Valley and Tianzi Mountain, Makes up Wulingyuan, the central scenic part of Zhangjiajie Municipality. Wulingyuan is in the middle of the Wuling Mountain that runs across Hunan, Hubei, Guizhou and Sichuan provinces in central and southwest China. Wulingyuan was possibly first mentioned by the renowned Tang Dynasty poet Wang Wei(701-761), who in one poem suggested that as early as his days, Wulingyuan was already a paradisiac pastoral retreat.

In 1984 the wonderland of Zhangjiajie, Suoxiyu Valley and Tianzi Mountain, with an area of 369 square kilometers, was formally christened as Wulingyuan by Yaobang, then Party General Secretary. In 1988, Wulingyuan was designated by the State Council as a State-level scenic area of; four years later the World Heritage Committee of the UNESCO inscribled it on the World Heritage List , saying that "as a cultural and natural site of exceptional and universal value, Wulingyuan requires protection for the benefit of all humanity." The exceptional value of Wulingyuan lies in its lofty forests, crystal clear lakes , limpid streams and above all, its unique karst topography---the quarzite sandstone crags and canyons there are simply superb. Awed by its grotesque glamour, landscape connoisseurs from home and abroad all call Zhangjiajie the "Labrinth in Nature " and the "Monument of the Earth".

Besides Wulingyuan, Zhangjiajie also boasts some 300 more scenic spots and places of historical interest. Among them are the Nature Reserve Badagongshan, the largest cave of Asia Jiutiandong, Marshal He Long s homevillage Hongjiaguan, the Taoist mecca Wulei Mountain and the Maoyan River where tourists can drift along downstream.

Zhangjiajie is also home to some minority nationalities, such as Tujia, Bai and Mao. Actually the minority nationalities form the majority of the local population. All of them have exotic costumes and colourful folk festivals that fascinate tourists. Not far from Zhangjiajie Municipality are some of the most popular tourist attractions in China: Taohuayuan(Peach Blossom Stream), Mengdonghe River, the Three Gorges and Guilin.

Though quite often dubbed as a sleeping beauty hidden in the deep mountains and a Shangri-la away from the noisy world outside, Zhangjiajie now is easily accessible, thanks to the comprehensive air, water and land transportation networks. And with the introduction of programmed telephone system, even in the forgotten land, you can dial anywhere else in the world. And you need not worry about the hospitality of the unspoiled local people or your accommodations. Zhangjiajie has more than 40000 beds for tourists and 40 hotels fit for occupation by overseas travellers. To make you stay here more comfortable, some more tourist facilities had been builted, including Suoxiyu Reservoir and its water recreation centre, a shoppiing centre and a folklore village, a tram line in Tianzi Mountain and cable ways in Huangshizhai Stockade and Tianzi Mountain.

On an inspection tour of the Municipality in March, 1995, the Party General Secretary Jiang Zemin said that Zhangjiajie should be developed into a world tourist resort. So the local people are making every effort to turn that aim a reality. As more people from around the world come here to find their dreamland, that dream will surely come true soon.