Wuzhishan

Introduction

Wuzhishan is a county-level city in the highlands of Hainan Island, China. Despite the name, "Wuzhishan" refers to a large land area that was once a county rather than a single built-up place. Within that area sits the main city seat, located beside Wuzhi Mountain and also called Wuzhishan City.

As a highland destination, Wuzhishan offers a different side of Hainan from the coast, with the city seat serving as your base for exploring the surrounding area beside the mountain.

Getting there

Wuzhishan is reached by road, and the bus is the standard way in. The city's bus station sits on Haiyu North Road in Tongza, more or less in the centre of town, so you arrive within easy reach of the rest of the city.

Services run from Sanya, Haikou and almost every other city on the island except Dongfang. Buses from Sanya leave from the main bus station roughly every 30 minutes to an hour and take about two hours to reach Wuzhishan. Tickets can be bought through the Hainan Bus Company website, which is in Chinese only.

Getting around

Wuzhishan has no airport and no railway station, so buses are the only direct public transport link to the outside world. The bus station sits more or less in the city centre, which makes it a convenient base for exploring on foot once you arrive. Within the main urban area, a public bus service runs on most routes for ¥1; buses 5 and 6 are the exception, charging a variable rate that depends on distance, so keep a little extra change ready. Bus 1 runs out towards the northern outskirts and passes stops convenient for Taiping Falls and the Jadeite Valley Eco Resort, and bus 5 is one of the options for reaching Red Canyon. Buses 1, 2, 5 and 6 all pass near the Jiefang Road and Shanlan Road intersection in Tongza Town.

• Auto taxis wait around by the bus station; most do not have meters, so agree the fare before setting off.
• Motorcycle taxis have become much less common than they used to be, but if you find one it will take you most places in the city, and they are practical for short hops such as the final stretch from a bus stop to a trailhead. For a one-way trip to a remote spot, get the driver's mobile number so you can arrange a pickup later.
• For towns outside the main urban area such as Maoyang and Shuiman, take a long-distance bus from the stop outside Wuzhishan Bus Station. Buses to Maoyang depart from the same side of the road as the bus station; for Shuiman you need to cross the road. Services towards Shuimanxiang are also the ones to take for Wuzhi Mountain and, if you ask the driver to stop, for Red Canyon.
• Return buses from Shuimanxiang run to a fixed afternoon and early-evening schedule, so check the times when you arrive rather than assuming a frequent service back.
• Walking is genuinely recommended, both around town and in the surrounding area, and the market section is particularly worth wandering. Head back to the main road before dark on the road past Wuzhishan Shanguan, where small footpaths branch off into the jungle.
• Some attractions involve a walk from the nearest bus stop: the Shuiman River Tropical Rainforest Scenic Area is about 2.5 km from the Shuiman bus stop, reachable on foot or by motorised pedicab, and Taiping Falls involves roughly a 3 km walk after getting off bus 1.

Where to stay

Wuzhishan’s accommodation splits between the town itself and Shuiman Township, the gateway to the Wuzhishan National Nature Reserve. In town, Jadeite Valley Eco Resort on Gangong Road offers standard Chinese rooms and a swimming pool that is green in colour rather than eco; breakfast runs to cold noodles, boiled eggs and hot dogs, and there is a castle building with rooms you cannot stay in. Zhujiang Crystal Hotel on Hebei West Road sits about 50 metres from the bus station and has comfortable rooms and a good swimming pool. To reach Jadeite Valley, take bus no. 1 from outside the bus station and get off at the Hainan Agricultural and Forestry Technical School, from where the hotel is roughly 600 metres away; a taxi or motorised pedicab is the other option.

• Jadeite Valley Eco Resort — Gangong Road, standard rooms, pool, castle building
• Zhujiang Crystal Hotel — Hebei West Road, close to the bus station, pool

In Shuiman Township, at the foot of Wuzhi Mountain near the nature reserve’s main entrance, Wuzhishan Yatai Rainforest Hotel is the only place inside the reserve open to foreigners. Yujing Hotel lies a short distance west of the Shuiman Township Government building. There are also hotels in Shuiman, some within walking distance of the bus station.

• Wuzhishan Yatai Rainforest Hotel — inside the nature reserve, open to foreigners
• Yujing Hotel — Shuiman Township, west of the government building

Food & drink

Wuzhishan is full of ridiculously cheap noodle and dumpling shops, so you can eat well without spending much. Even the more upscale dining at the hotels is quite inexpensive.

• Do Like (多喜爱时尚餐厅) is a clean and spacious restaurant on Level 2 of the Zhongsheng Building on Jiefang Road in Tongza Town, at the intersection of Jiefang Road and Shanlan Road. It serves both Asian and Western food, is popular with family groups and can get a little noisy, and has a children's playground at the back.
• Woye Coffee (沃野咖啡) is a clean and well-decorated cafe on Sanyuesan Avenue in Tongza Town, near the Wuzhishan Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Run by a husband and wife team, it serves tea, coffee and fruit juice.

What to see and do

Wuzhishan rewards those who simply wander: walk around the town and its surroundings to take in the scenery, and browse the market section, which resembles those in many other small Chinese towns. Head past the Wuzhishan Shanguan on foot or by motorbike and you quickly reach rustic quarters; from there you can leave the road for one of the small footpaths leading into the jungle, though it is easy to get lost, so aim to be back on the main road before dark. In the city centre, opposite Sanyuesan Square, stands the Former Site of the Office of the People's Government of the Hainan Li Miao Autonomous Prefecture, one of the few historical sites in the city; the building is not open to the public but is worth seeing for its blend of traditional Chinese and Western neoclassical architecture. The Hainan Nationalities Museum, devoted to the island's ethnic minorities, has plenty of information in English. About 18km from Shuiman, Chubao Village is one of the very few Li minority villages on Hainan where you can still see the boat-shaped thatched cottages traditionally associated with the Li people. Further afield, Taiping Falls drops through a forested area on the city's northern outskirts, and Yahu Terraced Fields, north of Maoyang, are widely considered the most beautiful on the island, with scenery that changes with the seasons. The Wuzhishan Revolutionary Base Memorial Park, west of Maoyang, marks a former PLA army base and features a tall monument, the graves of two Communist martyrs and a museum, though information there is in Chinese only.

For something more active, Red Canyon is a popular spot for whitewater rafting, with walking, hiking, climbing, paddle boating and 'real life Counter Strike' also on offer, plus camping and barbeque facilities and a restaurant. The Shuiman River Tropical Rainforest Scenic Area has fairly easy walking trails compared with those at the Wuzhi Mountain National Nature Reserve, and a tour bus if you are short on time. The adventuresome and fit can attempt the climb to the peak of Wuzhi Mountain itself: the hike is gruelling, extremely steep, and involves clambering up ladders and roots, so take plenty of food and water and attempt it only if you are in good shape with some hiking experience. Staff discourage the tropical trail on the grounds that you may get lost, which is true, as it branches in many directions and does not conform to the map; on the plus side it is almost completely free of visitors and garbage. Near the start of the tropical trail, by the bridge, there is a very small outdoor restaurant.

Three days in Wuzhishan

Day one: Start in Wuzhishan City, the small town also known as Tongza, and get your bearings along Haiyu North Road and Jiefang Road, where you can sort out transport and supplies. Buses from Sanya, Haikou and Dongfang arrive at Wuzhishan Bus Station, so you can reach town from any of these cities on Hainan Island. Spend the afternoon walking the streets of Tongza Town and along Shanlan Road, then head to Wuzhishan Shanguan for views toward Wuzhi Mountain.

• Arrive at Wuzhishan Bus Station and settle into Tongza Town
• Walk Haiyu North Road, Jiefang Road and Shanlan Road
• Visit Wuzhishan Shanguan for a view of Wuzhi Mountain

Day two: Head out of town toward the Shuiman area, where the Shuiman River Tropical Rainforest and Taiping Falls sit within reach of Wuzhishan. Arrange an auto or motorcycle for the day, as services thin out beyond the city. Walk into the rainforest and follow the trails to the falls, then return to Shuimanxiang for the night.

• Take an auto or motorcycle toward Shuiman
• Walk the Shuiman River Tropical Rainforest
• See Taiping Falls and overnight in Shuimanxiang

Day three: Use your last day for the western side of the mountain area, visiting Red Canyon and the Jadeite Valley Eco Resort before looping back through Maoyang. Return to Wuzhishan City in the afternoon to catch a bus onward to Sanya, Haikou or Dongfang; tickets are available through the Hainan Bus Company at Wuzhishan Bus Station.

• Visit Red Canyon and Jadeite Valley Eco Resort
• Pass through Maoyang on the way back
• Return to Wuzhishan Bus Station for onward travel