Home to a host of rare species including clouded leopards, giant salamanders and swallowtail butterflies, Wuyi Shan is a UNESCO World Heritage Site listed for both for its amazing biodiversity and its cultural value—Wuyi Shan's rugged 1,000km² are also home to nearly 100 archeological sites where ancient Toaist, Buddhist and Confucian temples and acadamies once thrived.

Finally, Wuyi Shan, located in northwest Fujian province near the Jiangxi border, is the aboriginal home of some of China's most vaunted teas. This is, for example, where Da Hong Bao (Big Red Robe), a legendary red tea that has been auctioned off for millions of RMB per kilo and held in special reserves by the state, was first picked. It's also home to Lapsang Souchong, a delectable smoked black tea, among other famed Wuyi tea varieties.

In sum, the mountains, southeastern China's largest and most diverse bioregion, are a testament to the traditional ideal of a harmonic union of the natural and manmade that defines Chinese culture at its roots; their protected status is all the more important in a modern China that has spent much the past century racing to industrialize.

One of the most important tourist attractions in southeast China, sensitive conservation zones in Wuyi's nearly 1,000 square kilometer area are not open to the public; however, the areas that are open are well worth the trek. 

Among Wuyi Shan's winding river valleys, sandstone towers, cave formations and warm coniferous forests, visitors are presented with opportunities to visit ancient palaces, board rafts and ride down sensational river canyons, and take in astonishing views after hiking through breath-taking terrain. 

Entry into the main park costs RMB 140 for one day, RMB 150 for two days and RMB 160 for three days, and includes access to several attractions within the general admission area. However, the Wuyi Shan grounds also feature many attractions that require an additional entrance fee, ranging in price from the RMB 26 Ancient Xiamei Folk Buildings, to the RMB 100 Tongmu Brook Drift.

History

Humans settled on the slopes of Mount Wuyi as far back 4,000 years ago, but the area became more prominent during the Western Han Dynasy, when its most populous settlement, the fortress city of Chengcun, was capital of the Minyue Kingdom.

Far from imperial palaces and surrounded by nearly-impenetrable forests, Wuyi Shan was considered by Han royalty to be a barbaric area suitable only for exile. Poets and philosophers extolling the area's inpirational beauty would later change those opinions.

Wuyi's mystic landforms would convince emperors of their significance to heaven. In order to treat with the gods, they built sacrificial altars among the chambers of Wuyi Palace, a site tourists can still visit to this day.

The area's beguiling beauty would also come to host great thinkers in the Taoist, Buddhist and Neo-Confucian traditions, a fact evidenced by the remains of 35 ancient academies and over 60 temples and monasteries.

These remains, as well as those of ancient boat-shaped coffins suspended from cliffs can still be seen around Wuyi Mountain, and are part of the reason why Wuyi Shan was officially designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999.

Climate

Don't mistake the frequent fogginess for bad air; air quality monitoring stations confirm that the area is relatively pollution free.

With the mountains blocking the inflow of cold, high-pressure fronts descending from Siberia, the area retains warmth and moisture, producing a high volume of yearly rainfall, but also resulting in pleasant temperatures year round. 

The best times to visit are between March and October, but keep in mind that, like all of Fujian Province and Southeastern Asia, Wuyi Shan experiences typhoons in the summer and early fall.

Hotels in Wuyi Shan start in the midrange, and prices rise and fall according to demand and season. March, April, October and weekdays are the best times for deals and savings.

While most hotels are clustered east of the river, the quieter west side also features a fair selection.

Midrange

The Jinghui Resort has standard rooms starting from RMB 113, while the Century Land Hotel also starts at RMB 113, and offers tennis courts, a gym and sauna. The Wuyi Ramada Hotel offers brand-name reliability for RMB 191.

Luxury

The Wuyishan Scenery Golf Club boasts an impressive 18-hole golf course, scenic creek-side location and a wealth of recreational facilities, including tennis courts, swimming pools and spas, making the RMB 433 price point quite reasonable.

The all-villa

Wuyi Shan's cuisine, known for its use of bamboo shoots, mushrooms and frog, is also well known for its tea eggs: eggs hardboiled in tea.

Wuyi Shan Airport is located 15 km from the Wuyi Shan Scenic Area, and there are regular flights to and from major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Fuzhou and Xiamen. A taxi from the scenic area to the airport will cost around RMB 30.

Railway

There are daily trains to Wuyi Shan from Fuzhou, Xiamen and Quanzhou, and less frequent trains from Beijing, Shanghai and Shenyang. From the railway station, you can take the bus to the scenic area charges for RMB 20.

Bus

There are daily buses to Wuyi Shan from Nanping and Shaowu in Fujian Province and Shangrao in Jiangxi Province.

Fans of the game of Go (Wei Qi in Chinese) can find wooden bowls for holding Go stones for around RMB 50 ($8) in shops downtown; a great bargain compared to identical products that sell in the West for several hundred US dollars. Do be sure your bowl will hold a full set of stones though, some are too small.

If you hear of any interesting souvenirs or goods to buy in Wuyi Shan, please let your fellow travelers by writing about it in our forum or by commenting on the Wuyi Shan destination page.

There is no nightlife scene here, the mountains and rivers in this World Heritage Site are the main attraction.

If you hear of any interesting festivals or events happening in Wuyi Shan, please let your fellow travelers by writing about it in our forum or by commenting on the Wuyi Shan destination page.