Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces

Chinese name: 龙脊梯田 (Longji Ti Tian)
Location: at Heping Township of Longsheng County (about 27 km from the county seat & 100 km from Guilin), Guilin City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (aka Guangxi Province).
Opening time: all day long
Entrance fee: 50 Yuan / person
Best time for visit:
1. March: sea of yellow rape flowers.
2. Middle of April – June: silver rice terraces (time of irrigation and transplant rice seedlings).
3. July – the first half of September: green rice terraces (growing rice seedlings).
4. The second half of September – the first half of November: golden rice terraces (ripe paddies).
5. The second half of December – the first half of February: silver Jinkeng rice terraces (snow view).
Local products: Longji Four Treasures (Longji tealeaves, Longji peppers, Longji watery wine, Longji glutinous rice), cured meat, dried fish, handmade embroideries (headbands, mobile phone sheaths, knapsacks, haversacks, etc.), batiks (headgears, tippets, tablecloth, etc.), silverwares.

How to get there:
Normally, travelers can go to Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces from Guilin by bus in two ways:
1. Take an ordinary bus (the kind of buses that probably stop on the way for getting on or getting off) from Guilin to Longsheng at the Southern Guilin Bus Station (aka Qintan Bus Station, which can be accessible by buses No.26, 85, 88, 89), buy the ticket to Heping Township of Longsheng (about 19 Yuan / person) and get off at Longji Intersection of Heping. Walk for 200 meters to the Ticket Office of Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces Scenic Area, buy your ticket and wait for the local buses from Longsheng to Dazhai Village or Ping'an Village (Buses to Dazhai depart from Longsheng every 45 minutes from 06:50 to17:00 and buses to Ping'an depart from Longsheng at 07:30, 09:10, 11:00, 13:00, 15:00, 17:00).
2. Take a shuttle bus (non-stop) from Guilin to Longsheng at the Southern Guilin Bus Station (aka Qintan Bus Station, which can be accessible by buses No.26, 85, 88, 89), 29 Yuan / person. Arriving at Longsheng Bus Station, take a local bus to the entrance of Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces Scenic Area (some of the buses depart to Ping'an Village and some others depart to Dazhai).

Introduction of Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces of Longsheng

Known to the world as an essential part of Guilin highlight tours, Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces, or Longji Rice Terraces in Chinese, is also called Longsheng Rice Terraces because of its location in Longsheng County of Guilin. Assarted since Dynasty (1279-1368) and completed at the beginning of Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the terraces scatter at an altitude between 300 and 1100 meters at a maximum gradient of 50 degrees, creating a tremendous scenic area of some 66 square kilometers.

Stretching across the Longji Village, Ping'an Village, Zhongliu Village, Dazhai Village, Tiantou Village, Xiaozhai Village, etc, the Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces demonstrate distinct colorful beauties in four seasons. Considering of the beauty of terraced fields only, the Jinkeng Rice Terraces and the Xiaozhai Rice Terraces in and around the Dazhai Village are commonly seen as the "second to none"; another highlight named "Seven Stars Accompany the Moon" is located at the Ping'an Village.

Main Scenic Spots of Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces

Traditionally, the Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces Scenic Area was mainly made up of the Ping'an Rice Terraces of Ping'an Village, the Jinkeng Rice Terraces of Dazhai Village, and the ancient Longji Village which was officially opened as a tourist site in June of 2011.

The Ping'an Rice Terraces span the Ping'an Village and the Longji Village, with the scenes of "Seven Stars Accompany the Moon" and the "Nine Dragons and Five Tigers" being best-known. The two villages are of vivid characteristics of northern Zhuang ethnic minority, who still well inherit their ancestral styles in costume, adornments, folk songs, bronze-drum dance, custom, food, etc.

The famous Jinkeng Rice Terraces locates in the Dazhai area which is made up of the villages of Dazhai, Tiantou, Zhuangjie, Xinzhai and Xiaozhai. It is Dazhai Village and Tiantou Village that the best places to appreciate the splendid beauty of the Jinkeng Rice Terraces.

Best spots for shooting in Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces

1. The "Seven Stars Accompany the Moon" at Ping'an Village: a popular shooting site for shutterbugs.
2. The "Nine Dragons and Five Tigers" at Ping'an Village: smaller than the terraces of Dazhai Village with its own features.
3. The No.1 Viewing Spot of Dazhai Village: comparatively higher than others, best for watching sunrise and sunset.
4. The No.2 Viewing Spot of Dazhai Village: comparatively closer to the village, best for watching sunrise.
5. The No.3 Viewing Spot of Dazhai Village: the farthest, highest and grandest spot where many beautiful pictures of Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces were shot.

Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces Travel Tips

1. It is usually much cooler in mountain areas, so ensure that your clothes can keep you warm.
2. Wear skid-proof sport shoes, or else it would be more much more difficult for you to climb onto the scenic sites.
3. There are usually many turnoffs between the villages in the scenic area, so it is suggested to find a guide if travelers plan to hike. If you hike without a guide, keep walk along the flagging or turn to the farmers for the right way.
4. There are many locals providing the service of carrying luggage (normally 20-30 Yuan / one-trip). If you do not want to walk too much, you can choose a sedan chair carried by the local (normally 200-400 Yuan / round-trip).
5. Make sure that it is free or not before watching the shows at the local villages.
6. For a normal Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces tour, travelers usually need to stay one night in the scenic area due to the inconvenient traffic, so it is better to book a hotel beforehand especially during the peak season of tourism.
7. Travelers can have a wider choice in food in Ping'an Village than in Dazhai Village. The local chicken is commonly considered to be much tastier than that in cities, normally about 50 Yuan for one.
8. All the hotels inside the scenic area are featured wooden buildings supported by pillars, which were constructed by the local Zhuang and Yao ethnic minorities. There are about 6000 guest beds and room prices range from 60 Yuan to 1000 Yuan (the prices may rise up during festivals and holidays).

Hiking route in Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces

Start from Jinjiang Village at mountain foot – Longji Village (go uphill for 2 hours) – No.2 Viewing Spot of Ping'an Village (walk along flag path for 30 minutes) – No.1 Viewing Spot of Ping'an Village (walk along flag path for another 30 minutes) – Zhongliu (90 minutes) – Tiantou Village (90 minutes) – Dazhai Village – Dahu Mountain – Shuang He Kou (buses are available here)

Distances between Scenic Spots of Longji Terraces Scenic Area