At the eastern end of Lin'an Road, Chaoyang Gate Tower still stands over the street where the old walled city of Lin'an once ended. Pass through its arch in the late afternoon and you walk straight into the cobbled lanes, stone wells and low grey rooftops of the old town.
Jianshui suits travellers who are already in Yunnan and want a day or two of historic streets, temples and bridges rather than a resort. It rewards slow walking, and a handful of its sights sit close enough together to cover on foot.
This guide covers the sights of the old town and the wider county, plus how to string the best of them into a single day.
Top things to do in Jianshui
1. Chaoyang Gate Tower
The preserved eastern gate tower of the former walled city of Lin'an, built in 1389 during the Ming dynasty, and the only one of the city's four original gate towers to survive substantially intact. The upper floors hold exhibition space and give you views over the old town.
Entry to the tower costs ¥15. Come here first, then walk west along Lin'an Road into the old town, where the Jianshui Examination Hall sits just east of the main gate of the Confucian Temple.
2. Temple of Confucius
Founded in 1285 during the Yuan dynasty, with buildings that date mostly to the late 18th century, this is billed as the largest Confucian temple in Southern China. It includes a large lake known as Xuehai, "The Sea of Learning", with a pavilion on its island called Si Le Ting, the "Joy of Learning Pavilion".
Look for the elephant motifs in the decoration, a local difference from the Confucian temples of Qufu or Hanoi. Entry is ¥60, so decide for yourself whether the temple and its lake are worth the fee.
3. Jianshui Examination Hall
A complex of buildings on Lin'an Road where young Yunnan scholars came during the Ming and Qing dynasties to sit the high-stakes exam that could decide the course of their lives. There are few historical artefacts, but the displays on the imperial examination system are in Chinese and English.
It sits just east of the main gate of the Confucian Temple, so pair the two in one visit. Entry is around ¥30.
4. Jianshui Old City Train
The century-old narrow gauge railway serving Jianshui no longer has regular passenger service, but a tourist train runs twice a day from the restored Lin'an Station to Tuanshan Station, in the village of the same name west of town. On the way it stops at the Double Dragon Bridge.
Lin'an Station is a few blocks north-east of Chaoyang Gate. Tickets run ¥100–120, and the short stop at the bridge is part of the ride rather than a separate outing.
5. Double Dragon Bridge
The 17-span bridge, commonly known as the Seventeen Span Bridge, now stands in the middle of a pond, as most of the waters of the Lin'an River have been diverted elsewhere. It is free to see, and the tourist train makes a short stop nearby.
If you are not taking the train, treat the bridge as an outing in its own right rather than something to squeeze between old-town sights.
6. Tuanshan Residence
An ancient Yi village west of Jianshui Ancient City, and the far terminus of the tourist train from Lin'an Station. It is the natural companion to the Double Dragon Bridge stop on the same ride.
Plan the village around the train timetable, since the service runs only twice a day.
7. Jianshui Purple Pottery Museum
A museum devoted to Jianshui's traditional purple pottery, with exhibition halls, a non-material cultural heritage display, a VR experience area and spaces for hands-on pottery-making. It sits in Jianshui Zitao Town beside Wulong Lake Ecological Park, at 271 Wanyao Village.
It is open Tuesday to Sunday, 09:00–17:30, with last admission at 16:30, and closed on Mondays except public holidays. Free guided tours are usually offered at 10:00 and 15:00, so time your visit around one of those.
8. Swallow Cave
A cave in a mountain gorge in the eastern part of the county, on the road to Mengzi, named after the large white-waisted swallows that nest there. Entry is ¥80.
It lies well outside the old town, so give it a half day rather than treating it as a stop between city sights.
9. Wenbi Tower
An early 19th-century structure on a hill south of town, meant to resemble a writing brush. It is a solid stone structure with no interior space or staircase, so the views are those from the ground at its base.
You cannot drive to the tower, but there is a more or less informal trail people use to approach from the south-west, starting at a roadside sign in Baishuihe Village. It is free.
10. Yongzhen Gate
The northern gate of the former walled city of Lin'an, part of the four-gate layout established when the city walls were rebuilt in brick during the Ming dynasty. The original gate tower no longer survives, but the site remains a recognizable landmark at the northern edge of the old town, beside Yongzhen Cultural Square.
It is free, and works as a marker for the northern end of a walk through the old streets.
11. Fu'an Gate
The southern gate of the former walled city, one of the four historic gates that defined the old city's street layout. It remains a recognizable landmark on the southern side of the old town.
Like Yongzhen Gate, it is free, and it gives you a southern anchor for a walk across the old town.
12. Qingyuan Gate
The western gate of the former walled city of Lin'an, which together with Chaoyang Gate in the east, Fu'an Gate in the south and Yongzhen Gate in the north formed the traditional four-gate layout. The site still marks the western edge of Jianshui's historic street network.
Use it to close a circuit of the old town on foot rather than as a destination in itself.
13. Guanyi Village
A Muslim (Hui) village on Highway S214, a few kilometres south of Qujiang Town, with two ornate mosques. You will pass through it if you are travelling to Jianshui by road from Tonghai.
It is a roadside stop rather than a place to build a day around, so fold it into a journey in or out of the county.
14. Hutongs and old neighbourhoods
The old neighbourhoods of cobbled streets and stone wells are the texture of Jianshui rather than a single sight. Walking them is free, and they connect the gates, the temple and the examination hall.
Give yourself an unhurried hour here between the ticketed sights, and let the lanes set the pace of the day.
If you only have one day
Morning: Start at Chaoyang Gate Tower when it opens, paying the ¥15 to climb the upper floors for views over the old town. Walk west along Lin'an Road to the Jianshui Examination Hall, then continue to the Temple of Confucius and its lake, Xuehai.
Afternoon: Take the tourist train from the restored Lin'an Station, a few blocks north-east of Chaoyang Gate, and ride to Tuanshan Station in Tuanshan Residence, with the short stop at the Double Dragon Bridge on the way. Check the departure times in advance, as the train runs only twice a day.
Evening: Back in the old town, walk the hutongs and old neighbourhoods, using Yongzhen Gate to the north, Fu'an Gate to the south and Qingyuan Gate to the west as markers for a loop through the cobbled streets and past the stone wells.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to enter the main sights?
Chaoyang Gate Tower is ¥15, the Temple of Confucius is ¥60, the Jianshui Examination Hall is around ¥30, Swallow Cave is ¥80, and the tourist train is ¥100–120. The Double Dragon Bridge, Wenbi Tower, Yongzhen Gate and Fu'an Gate are free.
When is the Jianshui Purple Pottery Museum open?
It is open Tuesday to Sunday, 09:00–17:30, with last admission at 16:30, and closed on Mondays except public holidays. Free guided tours are usually offered at 10:00 and 15:00.
Can I visit the Double Dragon Bridge and Tuanshan Residence without a car?
Yes. The tourist train from the restored Lin'an Station to Tuanshan Station stops at the Double Dragon Bridge on the way, so both can be done on the same ride. It runs twice a day.
Where are the four historic gates of Lin'an?
Chaoyang Gate is in the east, Qingyuan Gate in the west, Fu'an Gate in the south and Yongzhen Gate in the north. Only Chaoyang Gate's tower survives substantially intact.
Decide which of the four gates you will start from, check the tourist train times, and you have enough to plan your days in Jianshui.