Day 18: Guilin: Fenghuang - Longshen Rice Terraces (Jinkeng) - Guilin
It's 5:15 in the morning and the alarm sounds. This trip to China for free will kill us and we wake up earlier every day. Although we will not deny that it is always for a good cause and today is that we are going to see the Longshen rice terraces from Guilin or the rice terraces of the Dragon Spine, as they are also known.
The excursion to the rice terraces of Longshen will be done by private car, just as we were yesterday with the Riverside Hostel when we made the transfer from Fenghuang to Guilin.
At 6:30 in the morning we are already having some delicious French toasts watered with a very acceptable coffee, at the Guilin Riverside Hostel, something that seems like a lie after all these days starting the day without coffee.
Breakfast at the Riverside Hostel
At 7 o'clock we are making our way at Longshen rice terraces from Guilin. As we said yesterday we decided to visit the Jinkeng rice terraces, located next to the Ping'an rice terraces, in the Longshen area, which we were told, are much less crowded than the latter.
A good option to visit the rice terraces is to book this guided tour in Spanish.
The day has dawned with a fairly gray sky and temperatures have dropped compared to yesterday, in which that unusual embarrassment only predicted that it would fall throughout the night. As we move forward, surrounded by greener landscapes, we find moments of rain that make us discourage for a few minutes, hoping to recover our good luck over time, and hope that this gives us a truce, at least hours that we are touring the Longshen rice terraces.
Controlling the distances of the Longshen Rice Terraces from Guilin with CityMaps2Go
It took almost 3 hours to arrive at Jinkeng rice terraces and after delivering the tickets (included in the tour that we hired yesterday at the hotel) at the door, we found a surprise that we did not expect: a funicular that leads to the upper area of the rice fields for 70RMB per person one way, or 120RMB round trip.
Funicular on the rice terraces of Jinkeng
The sky is still quite gray, but it seems that it will last a few hours until unloading, so we ignore the funicular option and decide that we will walk up, to enjoy the views offered by the rice paddies and get lost on the roads.
Since the beginning of the walk through the Jinkeng rice terraces We confirm that the month of April is not the best month to visit the Longshen rice terraces and it has not rained enough to see the postcard images that we all have in the head of this area of China.
Walking between the Longshen Rice Terraces
Even so, the terraces leave us spectacular views at every step we take and every staircase we climb between them, which by the way are not few and require good physical effort.
Longshen rice terraces
On the other hand, we see that in parallel to us, people come up with the funicular, saving the effort, although surely with much less scenic views than we have and that we are enjoying a lot despite not being the best time.
Jinkeng rice terraces
Longshen rice terraces
And so, after just over two and a half hours getting lost in different areas and roads, all quite well signposted, we reach the highest area of the Jinkeng rice terraces, from where we have spectacular views of the surroundings and the different villas in which the long-haired women of the Hong ethnic group live. Women who never cut their hair and who had offered us a show if we had come in an organized group.
Something that we discard because we feel more comfortable coming for free to have more time to lose ourselves among the rice paddies and apart from not being especially friends with this type of activity.
Views from the viewpoint of Jinkeng Rice Terraces
In the high area where the funicular arrives and the viewpoints are found, we also find several beach bars where they sell drinks and some dishes to eat, including a rice that they put in bamboo and cooks in the fire that attracts our attention.
Longshen rice terraces from Guilin
More practical information to prepare your trip to China
- 10 essential places to visit in China
- 10 essential tips for traveling to China
Jinkeng rice terraces
After a good time in the upper area, where we see that they are starting to build new buildings (surely as many other places in the country have little left to be a "theme park"), and when we are about to undertake the descent it starts to rain.
After the experience of last night the Guilin, where it rained as if it were going to end the world and not seeing anything clear descend in the rain through the terraces and the quagmire, which slips a lot, we decided to pay 70RMB and go down with the funicular, having this experience and aerial views of the Longshen rice terraces.
Longshen rice terraces from Guilin
Jinkeng Rice Terraces Colorful Dance
It's almost 1:30 p.m. when we get to the lower area where the parking lot is, the excursion through the Longshen rice terraces It has lasted practically 4 hours, and we decided to stop at a restaurant to eat a couple of rice dishes cooked in bamboo that we saw before in the high part, with a beer and water for 40RMB that will tone our stomach until dinner time.
Eating bamboo cooked rice in Jinkeng Rice Terraces
And so, after lunch and when there are a few minutes to 2 in the afternoon, we will return to Guilin from Jinkeng rice terraces.
To honor the truth we have to comment that under our experience in this getaway at Longshen rice terraces it has happened to us "a bit"The same thing happened to us with the Zhanjiajie National Park. It is from these places that we would not know whether to recommend it or not. The reason for this doubt depends entirely on the time when it can come. If it has not rained yet, you have already seen for example the rice paddies of Bali or you have to deviate a lot, this is a visit that can be ignored.
On the other hand, if you have never seen rice terraces, we cannot think of a better place than this so you can meet them and if it is at the end of May, much better, since it is the best time, on a scenic level, to be able to enjoy them.
After another almost three hours on the way we arrived in Guilin at almost 5 in the afternoon and we go straight to take a shower, download the hundreds of photos we have taken and rest for a while before going out to enjoy, we hope that this time without rain, the night market and a dinner that comforts us of the day we have spent enjoying the Jinkeng rice terraces.
Shortly after 8 pm we go back to the streets of Guilin to get lost, this time without rain, by the hundreds of little shops in the night market that give us the best way to say goodbye to Guilin, the city that has welcomed us Last two nights at the Guilin Riverside Hostel.
Guilin Night Market
Day 19: Guilin - Li River Cruise - Yangshuo
