Visiting Wulingyuan During Spring Festival: Read This Travel Notice First
Come to Wulingyuan, see Zhangjiajie! Wulingyuan is the birthplace and main base of tourism in Zhangjiajie, praised as "an enlarged bonsai, a miniature wonderland," truly a "masterpiece" of nature. Raised in seclusion unknown to the world, once revealed it astonishes the world—the earthly wonderland, Zhangjiajie Wulingyuan, welcomes you!
This notice was posted on February 2, 2024, and applies to the 2024 Spring Festival holiday. The transport, parking, opening times, ticket prices and other details mentioned here were the arrangements at that time; please read them as historical information.
1. How to Get There and Where to Park
Getting There
- After arriving at Zhangjiajie West High-Speed Railway Station, you can take the scheduled shuttle bus to Wulingyuan District (one departure every 10 minutes, fare 13 yuan) or a taxi (about 30–40 minutes).
- After arriving at Zhangjiajie Hehua Airport, first take a taxi or Bus No. 4 to the downtown Central Bus Station, then take the scheduled shuttle bus to Wulingyuan District.
- After arriving at Zhangjiajie Railway Station, first walk to the downtown Central Bus Station (next to the railway station), then take the scheduled shuttle bus to Wulingyuan District.
- If driving yourself, you can exit the expressway at the Wulingyuan transport hub, Yangjiajie transport hub or Zhangjiajie West transport hub to reach Wulingyuan District. (District transport department inquiry phone: 0744—5616201)
Self-Driving Parking
1. During the Spring Festival holiday (New Year's Eve to the eighth day of the first lunar month), all parking lots of government organs, enterprises and institutions within the Wulingyuan urban area are fully open to the public free of charge (except approved paid parking lots); a green channel is opened for self-driving cars parked in an orderly manner on sidewalks, bicycle lanes and similar places—no wheel locking, no ticketing, no fines.
2. In the Luoguta area, free shuttle buses run directly to the South Gate of the scenic area (Forest Park ticket station) (route section: Yuyuan parking lot—Heyi Hotel parking lot) to ease road traffic pressure; single-side parking points are activated on roads such as Zhangda Road, Xiejia Road, Fuxiyu Road and Shujiao Road, along with usable parking space inside government and institutional units, hotels and reception venues in the area.
3. Charging piles at the Baizhangxia Auto Station (Baizhangxia intersection), Suoxiyu Auto Station (near Zhangjiajie Qianguqing) and Forest Park Auto Station (Luoguta Street) in Wulingyuan urban area keep your green travel powered up. (District urban management department inquiry phone: 0744—5618087; Luoguta Street inquiry phone: 0744—5718001; District Transportation Development Company inquiry phone: 0744-5908555)
Traffic Management
1. Vehicle parking: once parking lots are full, vehicles may park in an orderly manner on one side of main and secondary roads in the urban area without affecting traffic (except Tianzi Road and Jundi First Street), under the "three noes" measures (no wheel locking, no ticketing, no towing).
2. Traffic signals at all intersections in the urban area are switched to flashing yellow (except the T-intersection at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China on Wuling Road). One-way road sections in the urban area: Wuling Road→Liuyin Lane→Weiyang Road; Wuling Road→Bailu Road→Weiyang Road.
3. For out-of-town self-driving cars committing minor traffic violations, no penalty is imposed after the violation is corrected; for minor traffic accidents involving out-of-town self-driving cars, cases are concluded on the spot according to legal procedures; for out-of-town self-driving tourists needing immediate medical care in an emergency, fast hospital transfer service is provided; for self-driving vehicles that break down or otherwise cannot run normally on roads around scenic spots, free towing and other services are provided; for out-of-town tourists needing nearby public security traffic management services, a green channel and extended-hours service are provided. (City Traffic Police Second Brigade inquiry phone: 18907445122)
2. Reserved Entry and Spring Festival Opening Hours
1. Zhangjiajie Wulingyuan Scenic Area (Zhangjiajie National Forest Park) routinely implements timed, per-station reserved entry. Travel agency groups and individual visitors entering for the first time must make a real-name reservation in advance and pass ticket checks strictly according to the reserved time and ticket station. Visitors are encouraged to use the "Zhangjiajie One-Trip" WeChat mini-program for real-name reservation and ticket purchase and real-time rebooking.
2. During the Spring Festival holiday, Zhangjiajie Wulingyuan Scenic Area (Zhangjiajie National Forest Park) opens and closes earlier; from the second to the fifth day of the first lunar month: the 5 ticket stations open at 6:30, the East Gate (Wujiayu ticket station), West Gate (Yangjiajie ticket station), North Gate (Tianzi Mountain ticket station) and Central Gate (Zimugang ticket station) close at 17:30, and the South Gate (Forest Park ticket station) closes at 18:00; on the first day and from the sixth to the eighth day of the first lunar month: the 5 ticket stations open at 7:00 and close at 17:30. (Zhangjiajie National Forest Park Administration Comprehensive Department inquiry phone: 0744—5712330)
For visitors, this means that during the Spring Festival days you must enter according to your reserved time slot and ticket station—arriving early does not necessarily mean entering early; the South Gate closes half an hour later than the other gates, so visitors walking Jinbian Stream can plan their return accordingly.
3. Off-Peak Touring and Spring Festival Activities
Off-Peak Touring
During the Spring Festival holiday (New Year's Eve to the eighth day of the first lunar month), Zhangjiajie Wulingyuan Scenic Area (Zhangjiajie National Forest Park) implements one-way circulation on the high-terrace touring routes of Tianzi Mountain, Yuanjiajie and Yangjiajie. Visitors are reminded not to take same-day round-trip routes via Tianzi Mountain Cableway, Bailong Elevator or Yangjiajie Cableway; meanwhile, the scenic area will publicly release real-time visitor flow, waiting times, traffic guidance and other information for each scenic spot via LED screens at major visitor hubs such as ticket stations, cableways and elevators, scenic spots, eco-bus stations and parking areas, and scenic area management committees. Visitors are kindly asked to plan their routes reasonably and tour off-peak. (District Big Data Center inquiry phone: 0744—5618019)
Exciting Activities
From February 9, 2024 (New Year's Eve) to February 14 (the fifth day of the first lunar month), Wulingyuan District will present the Spring Festival cultural series "Earthly Wonderland Wulingyuan, Joyfully Celebrating the Gan Nian":
(1) Long Dragon Banquet. At 7:00 a.m. on February 9 (New Year's Eve), at the Zhangjiajie Qianguqing commercial street, you can join the Long Dragon Banquet and experience the Tujia "Gan Nian" celebration.
(2) Landmark Gate Cultural Performances (February 10–14, the first to fifth days of the first lunar month).
1. Intangible Cultural Heritage Display. You can view the results of the "intangible cultural heritage" survey and the cultural relics survey, and join activities such as cultural heritage street parades and cultural heritage protection knowledge promotion. These include Wulingyuan Wenfeng dragon lantern, Cili dragon lantern, Sangzhi staff drum dance, flower lantern, lion lantern, intangible heritage opera clam-shell dance, Yang opera, Wei drum, Tujia brocade, pyrography, Junsheng sand-stone painting, finger painting and more.
2. Folk Market. You can buy flavorful traditional foods, rural specialties, green fruits and vegetables and other Tujia specialty snacks. These include specialty barbecue, Wulingyuansheng, Wulingyuantou, Yuquan tribute rice, salamander banquet, Suoxi Shanzhai, and fried oil rice cakes, pounded glutinous rice cakes, eucommia tea, berry tea and more.
4. Inquiry Services, Residents Giving Way and Safe, Civilized Travel
Inquiry Services: Volunteer service desks set up at major traffic intersections in the urban area and Party member inquiry service desks at major visitor hubs in the scenic area will provide you free of charge with tourism brochures, voluntary consultation and other services (District Youth League Committee inquiry phone: 0744—5618085; Zhangjiajie National Forest Park Administration Comprehensive Department inquiry phone: 0744—5712330).
Giving Up Space: According to the Municipal People's Government's regulations on core scenic area ticket management, during the Spring Festival holiday (the second to fifth days of the first lunar month) Zhangjiajie residents must purchase tickets as normal to enter the park. Local residents are asked to "give up touring space and travel time" for visitors from afar. (Zhangjiajie National Forest Park Administration Market Operations Department inquiry phone: 0744—5718833)
Safe Travel: To safeguard your life and property, please choose legally operating vehicles for travel and touring, and firmly resist and refuse to ride in illegally operating vehicles. Strictly observe fire prevention rules: do not smoke, barbecue or use open flames in places where combustibles gather or where fire prevention notices are posted. Ticket stations of the scenic area strictly control residents and social passing vehicles, specifically in accordance with the provisions of the September 8, 2023 notice of the Zhangjiajie Municipal People's Government forwarding the "Zhangjiajie Wulingyuan Scenic Area Vehicle Passage Management Measures" of the Wulingyuan District People's Government of Zhangjiajie City (Zhang Zheng Fa [2023] No. 10). (District transport department inquiry phone: 0744—5616201; District traffic police department inquiry phone: 0744—5622969)
Civilized Tourism: Observe public order, cherish public facilities, take personal precautions and tour safely; dine civilly, use serving chopsticks and spoons, eliminate food waste and practice the "clean plate campaign"; protect the ecological environment, promote a civilized, healthy and green tourism trend, and be a civilized visitor.
Reasonable Rights Protection: When joining a tour group, please choose a legal, high-quality and trustworthy travel agency and sign a proper tourism contract; when purchasing tourism products, keep invoices and product service agreements. If disputes arise during a tour, stay calm, avoid extreme behavior and promptly report the problem to the relevant departments. You may call 12345 (mayor's hotline), 12315 (consumer complaint hotline) or 0744—5618331 (hotline of the culture and tourism complaint department for the Wulingyuan jurisdiction).
5. Winter Ticket Prices in Effect at That Time
During the winter period from December 1, 2023 to February 29, 2024 (including the Spring Festival golden week), Zhangjiajie National Forest Park applied off-season ticket prices.
- Scenic area + bus combo ticket: 144 yuan (full-price ticket without insurance), 72 yuan (discount ticket without insurance)
- Scenic area ticket: 84 yuan (full-price ticket without insurance), 42 yuan (discount ticket without insurance)
- Eco-bus ticket: 60 yuan (full-price ticket without insurance), 30 yuan (discount ticket without insurance)
- Special offer ticket: 30 yuan (without insurance)
- Unlimited annual pass: 298 yuan (without insurance)
Notes: (1) The "bus" in the above scenic area + bus combo ticket refers to the eco-buses within the scenic area, which handle transfers between scenic spots. (2) The special offer ticket means that those eligible for free admission need to buy a half-price bus ticket. (3) All prices above do not include the 3 yuan insurance fee; insurance is purchased voluntarily. Ticket policy inquiry phone: 0744—5718833 (Zhangjiajie National Forest Park Administration Market Operations Department).
Wulingyuan is a natural painting, with time as the brush, wind and rain as the ink; one sweep of a delicate hand reveals endless grandeur. Seeing you the first time, astonishment; seeing you again, reluctance to leave. What I look forward to is not the snow, but a winter with you! Finally, we wish all visitors a happy and peaceful Spring Festival holiday in Zhangjiajie Wulingyuan Scenic Area!
Office of the Tourism Work Committee of the CPC Wulingyuan District Committee, Zhangjiajie City, January 31, 2024
Scenic area views: award-winning works from past Wulingyuan photography contests. Image design: Office of the Tourism Work Committee of the CPC Wulingyuan District Committee, Zhangjiajie City. Price illustrations: Zhangjiajie National Forest Park Administration Market Operations Department. First review: Du Ping; Second review: Tian Xiaowen; Third review: Peng Zhenhua.
Practical Tips
- The scenic area implements timed, per-station real-name reservations. First-time visitors must reserve under their real names in advance and pass ticket checks according to the reserved time and ticket station; within the four-day validity period, a time slot and ticket station must be reserved for each entry.
- For first visits or when bringing elderly people and children, the East Gate (Wulingyuan Landmark Gate) is recommended, as it has the most complete facilities; choose the South Gate for hiking Jinbian Stream; choose the North Gate to save effort and reach the summit directly.
- Cableways, elevators and the mini-train inside the park require separate tickets; plan your route as "elevator up, cableway down" where possible to avoid backtracking.
- It is 5–8℃ colder on the mountain than below; bring a jacket and non-slip shoes for Spring Festival travel; cableways and elevators may temporarily stop in strong wind or icing, subject to scenic area announcements.
- Private cars cannot be driven into the scenic area; they must be parked in parking lots outside the ticket stations, and visitors transfer to scenic area eco-buses to enter.
Current Standards in Effect
From January 1, 2025, the Wulingyuan core scenic area abolished the difference between peak and off-season, with a unified ticket price of 165 yuan per person, valid for 4 consecutive days. Scenic area transport (eco-buses etc.) is 71 yuan, and personal accident insurance is 3 yuan, totaling 239 yuan for the three items. This site treats the 3 yuan insurance as complimentary, so visitors actually pay 236 yuan. It should be noted that 165 yuan is only the price of the ticket itself, excluding scenic area transport and insurance, so there is no need to be puzzled by the three figures 165, 236 and 239—they refer to different scopes.