Two Rivers and Four Lakes · Elephant Trunk Hill Scenic Area
A gallery of urban waterways formed by the Li River, Peach Blossom River, and Shan, Rong, Gui, and Mulong Lakes; a night boat cruise threads through lakes and past bridges to take in all of Guilin
Visitor info
- Opening hours
- Elephant Trunk Hill 07:00-19:00 / night cruise sessions 19:00-22:00
- Ticket
- Elephant Trunk Hill CNY 55 / boat cruise approx. CNY 210
Price is indicative — final quote on inquiry.
A gallery of urban waterways formed by the Li River, Peach Blossom River, and Shan, Rong, Gui, and Mulong Lakes; a night boat cruise threads through lakes and past bridges to take in all of Guilin. The Sun and Moon Twin Pagodas stand in Shan Lake—the 41 m copper Sun Pagoda and the glazed Moon Pagoda mirror each other, and the gold-and-silver twin pagodas at night are a Guilin signature. Elephant Trunk Hill, the emblem of Guilin, is shaped like a giant elephant drinking from the river; Water Moon Cave's 'Elephant Drinking the Moon' cliff inscriptions date back to the Tang and Song dynasties, the most vivid footnote to 'Guilin's scenery is the finest under heaven.'
Getting there: To Elephant Trunk Hill by bus or on foot
Photos
More in Guilin
- Solitary Beauty Peak · Jingjiang Princes' Palace Scenic Area
Origin of the line 'Guilin's scenery is the finest under heaven'—Wang Zhenggong's Southern Song inscription stands on the Dushu Rock cliff of Solitary Beauty Peak, where the 600-year-old original stele remains
- Diecai Mountain (Folded Brocade Hill)
Named for rock layers stacked like folds of brocade; from Wangjiang Pavilion on Mingyue Peak in the 'Diecai Qionglou' area you overlook the Li River and the whole city—one of the best viewpoints in town
- Reed Flute Cave
Known as the "Cave of State Guests," visited by heads of state and dignitaries from over 80 countries; opened in 1962 as Guilin's earliest developed show cave
- Seven Star Park (Seven Star Cave)
Guilin's largest comprehensive park, with Seven Star Hill laid out like the Big Dipper; Seven Star Cave (called Qixia Cave in the Sui and Tang dynasties) is a cave along the Li River's ancient channel, with visits traceable back a thousand years
- Yaoshan Mountain
The highest peak in Guilin's urban area (909 m); cable car to the summit for views over Guilin and a great bend of the Li River; "Yaoshan Winter Snow" ranks among Guilin's Eight Ancient Scenic Views
- Impression Liu Sanjie
A Li River landscape live show directed by Zhang Yimou; premiered in 2004 as the world's first landscape live performance, with 600 performers enacting Liu Sanjie's songs and legends on the river through fishing lights, bamboo rafts, and hillside lighting