Visiting Longsheng Longji Rice Terraces is like driving to the ocean – except the ripples aren’t the gentle ocean waves, rather lush green rice fields, cascading down the mountain, like the scales of a dragon.
Hiking Longsheng Longji Rice Terraces is one of those activities in China that is like no other. The paths wind through the Terraces built onto hills, locals tending to their crops and a view that stretches on oast the Horizon.
If you’ve never experienced rice fields, Longsheng Terraces is one of those sights you cant easily forget. Also called the ‘Dragons Backbone’, those ripples from the ridgeline like scales of a dragon.
While resembling a dragon, with so much trail to explore, you won’t want to be dragon-your-feet at all!
Just before we dive in, it is worth a mention that these rice fields fall under a few names. Longsheng Rice Terraces seem to be the most common, while Longji Rice Terraces is also common. The whole area is also nicknamed “The Dragons Backbone”. So any of these, really mean the same thing – a beautiful scenic area of rippled-rice terraces and unforgettable views.
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What is Longsheng Longji Rice Terraces?
The Longsheng Rice Terraces cover a number of areas inside Longsheng County – Ping’an Terraces and Jinkeng Terraces. Each has its pros and cons to visit. Or, you can spend the full day, or two, and visit both.
Below are is more detail into each of these sections, so you can make an informed choice.
Longji Rice Terraces are still in production, even so, it is a popular tourist attraction, as the views are stunning.
The Longji Rice Terraces were constructed over centuries and different dynasties – with the Yuan Dynasty (1271 to 1368) seeing the beginning of construction and completing in the Qing Dynasty (1644 to 1911).
Depending on when you visit, the view will be completely different from one season to the next.
In June, water is flooded into the hills. By the summer, rice sprouts will have shot up, by fall/autumn the pools will be layered with rice and harvested before the frost hits in the wintertime. It’s an unreal landscape that drastically changes throughout the year.
On top of that, there are plenty of opportunities to immerse yourself in the local culture of the tribes that inhabit the area.
The area is home tow two tribes, mainly the Zhuang, but also Yao nationalities live around The Dragons Backbone Rice Terraces.
Locals have been farming the Longsheng Longji Rice Terraces for over 650 years – pretty incredible when you stop to think about it.
Modern technology uses pumps to flood the paddy pools, in the past, getting water to the hilltop fields must have been a challenge.
Getting to Longji Rice Terraces is pretty easy, considering the major city of Guiling isn’t too far from the fields.
How much does it cost to enter the Longji Rice Terraces?
- Adult – 100 RMB – Chinese Yuan ($14 USD)
- Student, or over 60 years of ages – 60 RMB – Chinese Yuan ($8.50 USD)
This fee is collected at the ticket office and should be played before you go anywhere else.
Where is Longyi Rice Terraces in China?
Longshen Rice Terraces, or the Dragons Backbone, is a rice terrace located in Longsheng County, around 100km from the city of Guilin in the south of China.
The area of The Dragons Backbone covers multiple areas, villages, and tribes. There is definitely more scenic area than others and villages that offer a unique insight into local life that has called these terraces home for centuries.
No matter which city you are visiting from or what section of the rice terraces you plan to visit, you’ll head into the area through the ticket counter along the main road. There are spots for cars to park, food and drinks to buy at the shops here.
So, which to visit? Ping’an or Jinkeng Terraces? What are the pros and cons of each? How easy is it to walk between the two? Walk between Ping’an and Jinkeng Terraces gives the best viewpoints. The majority of stunning viewpoints you see are located between the three sections.if you want the best views of the Longji Rice Terraces, this is the route for you.
Read on below!
Longji Ancient Zhuang Village
This ancient terrace of the Longji area is quite close to the Ping’an Village, and is the closest of the three sections to the main ticket office.
If you decide to begin your adventure at the Longji Ancient Zhuang Village, you will enter through one of two spots:
- Longji Village Gate – your first viewpoint will be “Floating dragons In The River”
- Longpu Village – while there aren’t many famous viewpoints taking this side, it is much easier to access a number of the villages along the way.
If you continue to weave up the rice terrace trails, you will come to two viewpoints. “Slender Ditch” and “The First Rice Terrace”. They are both stunning outlooks over the rice-filled landscape and are connected by a straight trail.
“The First Rice Terrace” viewpoint is close to the trail that leads to the second section, Ping’an Terraces.
Ping’an Village Terraces
You will drive through the Ping’an section, or close to the fields no matter what.
Jinzhu Zhuang Village is your first stop, as the main road will pass through it. From here you can walk the trails towards Longji Zhuang Village and continue on through the terraces, or continue along the road to Huangluo Yao Village (also on the main road).
A little after this village, you will hit a ‘Y’ intersection in the road, left will take you towards Ping’an Village, right will take you towards the Jinkeng Terrace section of the area and the only cable car in the area.
From Ping’an Village, the hike through Longji Rice Terraces begin, and the viewpoints start flooding in. You’ll see plenty of scenic views, but the most popular viewpoints along this trail are:
- Seven Stars Around The Moon
- Nine Dragons And Five Tigers
By continuing on the single trail, you will eventually hit the visage of Zhong Liu. By continuing on this path, you will enter the Jinkeng Terraces section, with a number of other viewpoints and villages to explore.
Jinkeng Red Yao Terraces
Zhong Liu is a town located in the middle of Ping’an and Jingkeng Terraces, and pretty signposted to get to Jinkeng from the single path.
The Jinkeng Red Yao Terraced Fields are much more confusing as there are multiple loops and a number of villages and viewpoints.
Let’s backtrack a little, and begin from the ticket counter – if you follow the main road from Ping’an Village all the way to the right, you will eventually hit the ticket station of Jinkeng Red Yao Rice Terraces.
From this ticket office is where the only gondola in the area begins and makes only one stop at Golden Buddha Peak. This is probably the most popular of the major lookouts, considering the ease of getting to it.
If you decide to explore the winding, crisscrossing trails, you can visit 3 major villages:
- Tiantou Village
- Xinzhai Village
- Dazhai Village
There are multiple viewpoints in the Jinkeng Red Yao Terraces as well:
- Golden Buddha Peak (where the cable car in Longji Rice Fields stop)
- West Hill Music
- Large-scale Thousand Layer Terraces (the closest lookout to Zhong Liu Village)
How to get between Ping’an and Jinkeng Red Yao Terraces
As mentioned above, there are two ways to get between the scenic areas of Ping’an and Jinkeng Red Yao Terraces – you can drive (or be driven)) and walk.
If you decide to walk, which I highly recommend you do (there are some beautiful views on the trail between the two areas of Longji Rice Terraces), there is one main path to take. The village of Zhong Liu is located roughly in the center of this trail.
If you decide to drive (or be driven, like taking a tour through Longji Rice Terraces), you can still visit both sections of the rice terraces near Guilin.
First up, you’ll drive into the Longji Terrace Ticket Office, and you’ll pay the entrance fee here (94RMB, per person, $13 USD) And by continuing along this road, you will pass Ping’an Village on your left and eventually arrive at Jinkeng Red Yao Terraces entrance. This final stop is where the cable car is and the easiest access point to some of the beautiful views Longji Has to offer.
As with most hikes, the reward is in the activity, along with the stunning views and less crowded viewpoints. I highly suggest walking the trail at one stage, it is beautiful.
How do I get to Longshen Longji Rice Terraces?
Being so close, this makes for a perfect day trip to Longsheng Rice Terraces from Guilin. Day tours leave from Yangshuo as well.
If you’re looking to experience a much more local touch, you can stay with a local family and use that as a base to explore the area.
You can also hire a private taxi or car to just do the driving section and then this. This is how I personally visited Longsheng Rice Terraces and it was an amazing day. However, the trails can be difficult to navigate and getting lost is pretty easy – but that can also be part of the adventure, right?
You can also choose the public bus option, this is more challenging and takes a little longer as you need to catch multiple buses.
- Head to Qintan Bus Station (the one out near the train station). From here catch a bus to Longsheng Town. This takes around 2 hours, costing 22-29 RMB
- Once at Longsheng Town, you want to catch another 9-10 RMB local bus to Longji Rice Terraces. There are 2 different buses here, one will take you to Jinkeng Red Yao Terraces and the other to Longji Ancient Zhuang Village. This second bus takes on average another hour.
What is there to see at the Longji Rice Terraces?
There are plenty of mountain scenery to experience. The cascading ripples carved into the mountain side, sometimes blanketed in white snow, sometimes by the lush green stems of flowering rice – it’s both a hikers and photographers dream location – along with the detailed history to be taught from the number of villages and tribes that live in them, there is plenty to see and learn at the Longji Rice Terraces of China.
What else should I know about China’s Longshen Rice Terraces?
- While the trails around are decently maintained, they can be quite narrow and uneven. Make sure you have decent hiking shoes.
- Many of the trails are popular and the Guilin Rice Terraces can get pretty busy, leaving early is the best way to dodge the majority of the crowds – staying overnight at Longji Rice Terraces is a perfect way to have an early start.
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Happy and safe travels,
Ben – Horizon Unknown
