Jiangning, a district of Nanjing City, is located in the central southern part of the city. The terrain is saddle shaped, with high ends and low middle. The terrain is open and the mountains and rivers are beautiful, including mountains, hills, hills, plains, and basins. It enjoys the saying of “six mountains, one water, and three plains”. Jiangning has a long history and profound cultural heritage, with the meaning of “nothing outside the river, peaceful here”. It is historically known as the “most beautiful county in the world and the best place in the country”.
For first-time visitors to Jiangning, Nanjing, how should they choose among the numerous attractions? Here, Beidou highly recommends the top ten must visit attractions in Jiangning, hoping that you will like, collect, and like them.
1、 Niushou Mountain
Spring cow’s head, autumn Qixia.
Niushou Mountain, belonging to the Ningzhen Mountain Range, is surrounded by green pine and cypress trees, and is like spring all year round. It is an ideal place to stay away from the hustle and bustle and cultivate oneself. It is named after its twin peaks protruding from east to west, resembling the double horns of a cow’s head, and is known as the “Number One Mountain in Jiangnan”.
Niushou Mountain has rich cultural landscapes and beautiful natural scenery. The main attractions include Foding Temple, Foding Pagoda, Foding Palace, Yuefei Anti Jin Fortress, Cliff Carvings, Zhenghe Cultural Park, Hongjue Temple, etc. The main peak has an elevation of 243 meters and is the highest point in Nanjing. Climbing to the summit, one can overlook the beautiful scenery of the entire urban area.
The Buddha Peak Palace, located on Niushou Mountain, is a deep pit building and a long-term place for the worship of Buddha Peak bone relics. Its external space is divided into three parts: a large dome, a small dome, and a Buddha Peak Cliff, consisting of three major spaces: the Zen Realm Grand View, the Relic Hall, and the Relic Storage Palace.
2、 Jiangsu Garden Expo Park
Circling around you is like traveling the whole world.
Jiangsu Garden Expo Park is located at the northern foot of Tangshan, with pink walls and black tiles, scattered pavilions, water pavilions, and rockeries. It integrates natural beauty, cultural display, and leisure tourism, and is a traditional Jiangnan garden known as the “Mountain Garden Group”.
The Garden Expo Park relies on the terrain and landforms to create many unique landscapes, with the most eye-catching being the urban gardens of Jiangsu Thirteen Taibao. Jiangsu Thirteen Gardens integrates local history and culture, with different styles and strengths. Among them, Nanjing Garden, Suzhou Garden, Wuxi Garden, and Taizhou Garden are particularly stunning.
In addition to Jiangsu City Park, there are also Sky Garden, Future Garden, Shigu Garden, etc. At the same time, elements such as homestays, hotels, entertainment, and cuisine are also integrated, allowing you to experience the collision of multiple cultures and leisure entertainment, and enjoy a different kind of comfort.
3、 Ginkgo Lake
Jinling is a beautiful land and the capital of ten emperors. Jiangning Ginkgo Lake is currently one of the famous scenic spots.
Ginkgo Lake, also known as Ginkgo Lake Ecological Scenic Area, is centered around Ginkgo Lake. With beautiful mountains, clear waters, bird songs, and fragrant flowers, it is the largest ecological theme amusement park in Jiangsu Province and is known as the “backyard of Nanjing”.
The scenic area has dense vegetation, fresh air, and flowers and plants everywhere, which are refreshing. It is divided into five areas: amusement area, ecological leisure area, water world, business area, and golf course. The main attractions include Mount Jing, Swan Lake, Love Island, Golden Beach, Dream Maze, Bamboo Grove, Ginkgo Forest, etc.
Among them, the amusement area has exciting entertainment projects, including roller coasters, pirate boats, Ferris wheels, etc; The Water World has attractions such as Skyward Whirlpool, Drifting River, Music Fountain, as well as some exciting water activities, making it more suitable for summer vacation and leisure.
4、 Huanglongxian
Once a backward small mountain village, today it is Huanglongxian in Jinling.
Huanglongxian, located at the border of Jiangsu and Anhui provinces, is a small village with Jiangnan characteristics. It is known as the “first village of Jinling tea culture and leisure tourism” and is known as the “heart of the Yangtze River, where Huanglongxian tea is served”. The peaks and valleys are stacked, the springs are gurgling, the tea mountains are undulating, and the bamboo forests surround it.
Huanglongxian belongs to mountainous and hilly areas, with beautiful mountains and clear waters, and pleasant scenery. The main attractions include Huanglongtan, Yunlongting, Fengqing Street, Tea House, Buxianju, Tenglong Square, Millennium Ancient Official Road, etc. There are also tea houses and homestays hidden, presenting a picturesque scene of small bridges flowing water, clear ponds and green willows.
Standing in a thousand acre tea garden, strolling along the bamboo forest boardwalk, the mountains and waters are beautiful, and the bamboo shadows sway. When you’re tired from walking, take a rest at Xianzhu Pavilion, enjoy a cup of clear tea with a fragrant aroma, and enjoy the freshness and tranquility of nature, experiencing the true charm of Jiangnan.
5、 Fangshan
The Qin Emperor once visited here during his eastern tour, and the mountains, rivers, scenery, and scenery were all closely related.
Fangshan, also known as Tianyin Mountain, stands tall and straight with rich vegetation. It is characterized by its grandeur, uniqueness, spirituality, and beauty, and integrates volcanic landforms, natural landscapes, and cultural relics. It is named after its square shape and is known as the “Tianyin Woodcutting Song”.
Fangshan is a volcanic site that erupted millions of years ago, with rich geological relics and numerous famous scenic spots. The main attractions include Dinglin Temple, Dinglin Leaning Pagoda, Tianyin Palace, Bagua Spring, Volcano Mouth, Dongxuan Temple, Ziwu Tea Garden, Wang Sengbian Tomb, Ge Xianwu Zhentai, etc.
The Dinglin Temple Pagoda, located at the northern foot of Fangshan Mountain, was first built in the Southern Song Dynasty. It has seven levels and eight sides, with a wooden like structure, beautiful shape, and exquisite carving. It is the oldest tower style hard pagoda in Nanjing’s history, and its inclination even exceeds that of the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy, known as the “world’s first leaning tower”.
6、 Shitang Bamboo Sea
The stream shadows reveal pine and bamboo trees, and the fragrance of the pond smells of lotus flowers.
The Shitang Bamboo Sea, with its whirling bamboo shadows, undulating forest waves, green mountains and chirping birds, is characterized by beautiful rural scenery, integrating tea mountain, bamboo sea and pine waves, like a vivid landscape painting, known as the “Little Jiuzhaigou Valley Scenic and Historic Interest Area in Nanjing”.
Shitang Bamboo Sea has thousands of acres of bamboo forests, nestled against Jiulong Lake, surrounded by clouds and mist all year round, with bamboo gushing in the wind. It is not only a great place to appreciate natural beauty, but also a check-in point for exploring the bamboo sea, leisurely hiking, and photography.
On the banks of the Bamboo Sea, there is a famous Shitang family, known for its Huizhou style scenery of “blue bricks, small tiles, horsehead walls, and hanging flower patterned windows in the corridors”. The village is surrounded by mountains on all sides, with continuous hills and valleys, pavilions and attic buildings, small bridges and flowing water, achieving a harmonious unity between humans and nature.
7、 Jinling Small Town
A bustling area of the Six Dynasties, with a touch of Jinling blue.
Jinling Small Town is located in the western part of Niushou Mountain, with bamboo and pine trees, lush flowers and trees, rockeries and strange rocks, winding paths leading to secluded places. With “one street, one water, one Zen, one hall, one museum, and two lakes” as its main theme, it integrates leisure sightseeing, travel and vacation, and creative experience, and is known as a “dreamlike paradise on earth”.
Step by step, the small town is full of surprises, gathering the charm of ancient capital, elegant soul, artistic beauty, secluded mountains and forests, and the charm of vicissitudes. The main attractions include Taoxi, Wenxin Hall, Linqu Lane, Lingxiao Terrace, and Lvxiao Garden.
Dreaming back to the most beautiful Jinling, experiencing the unparalleled elegance. The eaves and ridges of Jinling’s small town are all blue, which is eye-catching and touches people’s hearts. Strolling along the secluded path of Taoxi, as the view slowly unfolded, a magnificent building imbued with ancient style and blue tone appeared before my eyes, as if crossing time and space, returning to the prosperous era of Jinling.
8、 She Village
At the foot of Qinglong Mountain, there is a beautiful small mountain village.
Shecun is located in the southeast of Zijin Mountain, facing Qinglong Mountain to the east and Huanglong Mountain to the west. It is surrounded by mountains and water, with deep courtyards. It is famous for its Huizhou style architecture and natural scenery, integrating leisure sightseeing and health vacation, and is known as the “first village of Jinling ancient style”.
Shecun has an elegant natural environment and unique residential buildings, with mottled green bricks, thick walls, quaint eaves, deep alleys, and clear ancient wells. The main attractions include the Pan Clan Ancestral Hall, Pan Family Residence, Shecun Reservoir, Jiulonggeng, and Shili Changshan Ao.
Among them, the Pan family residence is adjacent to the ancestral hall, with two paths and three entrances. The structure is exquisite, and the brick carvings of the gate tower feature patterns such as the Bright Eight Immortals, the Dark Eight Immortals, the Lion Rolling Embroidered Ball, and the “Heavenly Gift Pure Pagoda”. It has a typical Jiangnan regional style and is known as “ninety-nine and a half rooms”.
9、 Yangshan Stele Material
Yangshan, formerly known as Yanmen Mountain, is the main peak of the Kongshan Mountains. It has a limestone structure, with hard and glossy stone.
Yangshan Stele Material, located at the foot of Yangshan Mountain, was excavated in the third year of the Yongle reign of the Ming Dynasty. It is a stone quarry site excavated by Emperor Chengzu Zhu Di to commemorate the merits of his father, Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang. It can be regarded as an unparalleled stele material and is known as the “number one stele in the world”.
Yangshan stele materials are divided into three parts: stele base stone, stele body stone, and stele forehead stone. All three stones are detached from the mountain, showcasing the systematic thinking, strategic planning, and scientific cognition of craftsmen in the early Ming Dynasty, and have extremely high historical value.
Yangshan Stele Material is the largest unfinished stone monument in the world, which not only marvels at the wisdom of ancient people, but also leaves an unforgettable memory. Nearby, there are also Jinling Escort Agency, Tangshan Ape Man Cave, etc., which are good places for tourism and vacation.
10、 Southern Tang Dynasty’s Two Tombs
When will the endless cycle of the spring flower and the autumn moon come to an end? How much do you know about the past. Last night, there was another east wind in Xiaolou, so the country cannot look back on the bright moon.
The Two Tombs of Southern Tang, located at the southern foot of Zutang Mountain, are the Qin Tombs of Emperor Li Yang and his wife Song, and the Shun Tombs of Emperor Li Jing and his wife Zhong during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. They are the largest imperial tombs of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period and are known as the “Underground Palace of Jiangnan”.
The Qinling Mausoleum is grand in scale, with three main chambers – front, middle, and back – and ten side chambers. The Shunling Mausoleum is similar to the Qinling Mausoleum, with a slightly smaller scale. It is also divided into three main rooms, front, middle, and back, and eight side rooms, all of which are made of blue bricks and record the epitaphs of feudal emperors.
Both tombs have unearthed a large number of precious cultural relics, especially the Qin Mausoleum. The inscriptions filled with gold and jade “mourning books” unearthed are important historical materials for studying the history and culture of the Southern Tang Dynasty. In addition, the femur of the first empress of the Southern Tang dynasty, Li Yu, was also discovered in Shunling, witnessing this period of vicissitudes in history.
