Plan at a glance
Take the shuttle uphill and use Jiuhua Street as your base
Jiuhua Mountain Scenic Area is in Jiuhuashan Town, Qingyang County, Chizhou, Anhui Province. Most visitors start at the Jiuhua Mountain Visitor Service Center at the foot of the mountain, take a scenic-area shuttle bus uphill, and then explore the temples and viewpoints around Jiuhua Street on foot or by the local mountain shuttle. Jiuhua Street sits in a mountain basin more than 600 meters above sea level, with temples, homes, restaurants, and small shops spread through its lanes; the visit covers the street, temple compounds, and mountain viewpoints.
The main temple route works well as a one-day visit: Qiyuan Temple, Huacheng Temple, Roushen Baodian, and Baisui Palace can be linked into one cultural route. Adding Tiantai or Huatai brings substantially more steps, mountain walking, and cableway connections. If you want to combine temples, hiking, and a stay on the mountain, plan for two days and keep the routes with different levels of exertion separate.
Tickets, reservations, and opening hours
The Jiuhua Mountain admission ticket, the scenic-area shuttle bus from the foot of the mountain, the Baisui Palace cable car, and the other cableways are charged separately. As a rough budget, allow about CNY 160 for the high-season admission ticket, CNY 140 in the low season, and about CNY 50 for the scenic-area bus, which can be used within three days. The Baisui Palace cable car costs about CNY 100 round trip, while the Tiantai or Huatai cableways cost about CNY 160 round trip. Prices, ticket types, and validity periods may change, so confirm them for your travel date before buying.
The main temple areas usually open around 08:00–17:00, while the cableways generally operate around 07:00–17:00; Baisui Palace usually opens around 07:00–16:30. Real-name reservations through the official “Jiuhuashan” WeChat account or a travel app are recommended, especially for weekends, public holidays, and itineraries that use a cableway.
Tickets and visit details
View visit options for this attraction and confirm the visit date and current arrangements before you go.
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Jiuhua Street and Qiyuan Temple: start the temple route smoothly
Jiuhua Street is the main base after you arrive uphill. Its flagstone lanes connect temples, homes, and restaurants, making it easy to walk between the main temples or pass through the smaller lanes for views around Dongya Temple. Qiyuan Temple is near the beginning of the temple route after entering the mountain and is a good first stop for a Jiuhua Street visit.
Huacheng Temple: the founding temple, Yanyue Pond, and the history museum
Huacheng Temple stands in the center of Jiuhua Street and is regarded as the founding temple of Jiuhua Mountain. The main visit includes the square in front of the temple, the crescent-shaped Yanyue Pond, the halls arranged along the central axis, and the history museum in the Sutra Repository; the individual exhibits and display status may vary with the on-site arrangement.
For architecture and history, spend time at the square and Yanyue Pond, then enter the Lingguan Hall, Hall of the Heavenly Kings, and Mahavira Hall before visiting the history museum. The museum costs about CNY 10 separately and usually prohibits flash photography; opening status, price, and photography rules follow the signs on the day.
Roushen Baodian: see the pagoda inside the hall and choose an entrance first
Roushen Baodian stands on Shenguange Ridge. Its main architectural feature is the relationship between the wooden pagoda in the center of the hall, the stone pagoda inside it, and the surrounding hall structure. The square in front of the hall looks over Jiuhua Street and the surrounding mountains. Indoor visits, circumambulating the pagoda, and photography must follow the temple’s rules.
This stop suits visitors interested in temple architecture, Jiuhua Mountain’s history, and religious spaces. The south, north, and west gates lead to different approaches to the hall, with clear differences in the number and steepness of the steps; the choice depends directly on your group’s stamina and available time.
Baisui Palace: high views, the Sleeping Buddha, and two ways up
Baisui Palace is located high around Chixiao Peak. From Jiuhua Street, you can take the cable car or climb the steps along Baisui Road. The viewpoint in front of Baisui Palace looks toward Jiuhua Street and the outline of a natural Sleeping Buddha formed by the opposite mountains; visibility, cloud, and the time of day all affect the view.
The Five Hundred Arhats Hall and the meditation cave of Master Wuxia can be visited according to the day’s opening arrangements. Visitors who enjoy climbing can walk up and take the cable car down. If time is tight or you want to avoid a long flight of steps, consider a round trip by cable car, although holiday queues can be long.
What kind of itinerary suits you?
Jiuhua Mountain suits visitors interested in temple architecture, local history, religious culture, and mountain walking. The central Jiuhua Street temple route concentrates most of its effort in short walks and individual flights of steps; adding Tiantai or Huatai requires more climbing, cableway connections, and weather judgment.
If you want to learn about Ksitigarbha culture before going uphill, visit the Dayuan Cultural Park at the foot of the mountain either before your ascent or before your return journey. It has its own reservation, sightseeing-bus, and opening arrangements, so it works better as a separate part of the itinerary.
Build your day
One-day central temple route: from Qiyuan Temple to Baisui Palace
Take the scenic-area shuttle bus from the Visitor Service Center to Jiuhua Street. Start at Qiyuan Temple, then walk along the street to Huacheng Temple. At Huacheng Temple, see the square and Yanyue Pond first, then enter the halls and history museum according to the day’s opening arrangements. Continue to Roushen Baodian, and finish at Baisui Palace for higher views.
At Roushen Baodian, choose an entrance according to your stamina:
At Baisui Palace, there are two options. The cable car itself takes very little time, but holiday queues can add significantly to the overall visit; allow about 1.5–3 hours for the full cable-car arrangement. You can also walk uphill from near Yingxian Bridge along Baisui Road, which takes about one hour at a normal sightseeing pace, then take the cable car down; the full outing takes about 2.5 hours.
- South entrance in, north entrance out: climb about 81 steps from the side of the main Jiuhua Street, then descend about 99 steps from the north gate after the visit. This is the most complete route and passes near Dizang Temple.
- West entrance in: if a scenic-area shuttle to the west gate is running that day, get off near the “Roushen Baodian Stop (West Gate) (肉身宝殿站（西大门）).” This approach has fewer steps and a shorter distance, making it suitable when time is limited or someone in the group should avoid continuous stair climbing.
- North entrance in: climb about 99 steps from the Shenguange Square side. The slope is more noticeable, but you get a view looking down over Jiuhua Street; confirm the downhill exit and shuttle arrangement from the on-site directions that day.
Two-day itinerary: separate the temple route from the more demanding mountain trails
If you stay near Jiuhua Street, complete Qiyuan Temple, Huacheng Temple, Roushen Baodian, and Baisui Palace on the first day. On the second day, choose Tiantai or Huatai according to the weather and your stamina. Both involve more steps or cableway connections and deserve their own time. Huatai has a separate route from the Visitor Service Center to its cableway station, so it is better treated as a half-day or full-day outing than squeezed into the Jiuhua Street temple route.
Dayuan Cultural Park at the foot of the mountain can go before the uphill visit or before the return journey. The route from the entrance to the foot of the 99-meter Ksitigarbha statue is about 1.5 km, and the sightseeing bus may require a transfer. If you visit the park and go uphill on the same day, pay particular attention to the final admission time and the end time of activities such as “Embracing the Buddha’s Feet,” so they do not affect your later uphill transport.
Get there
High-speed rail, the Visitor Service Center, and mountain shuttles
You can arrive by high-speed rail at Chizhou Station or Jiuhuashan Station, then take local scenic-area transport to the Jiuhua Mountain Visitor Service Center. From either station, first check whether a direct scenic-area bus or tourist shuttle is running that day. If no suitable service is available, use local coach services or a taxi to reach the Visitor Service Center.
At the Visitor Service Center, you will usually arrange the admission ticket and scenic-area bus before transferring uphill. Private cars may be restricted from going uphill on weekends and public holidays, so drivers should be prepared to park at the Visitor Service Center and continue by scenic-area bus. The center has a large parking area; parking charges follow the on-site arrangement for the day. Once you reach Jiuhua Street, walk between temples or use the mountain shuttle according to the day’s route.
Temporary transfers and navigation
Mountain buses and transfer points toward Tiantai may change because of construction or visitor volumes. After arriving at Jiuhua Street, check the day’s stop signs and transport directions.
Drivers should navigate first to “Jiuhua Mountain Visitor Service Center (九华山游客服务中心).” After going uphill, walk or transfer according to the specific temple and bus stop you are visiting.
Know before you go
Costs, opening arrangements, and temple rules
The mountain admission ticket, uphill bus, Baisui Palace cable car, Tiantai or Huatai cableways, Huacheng Temple history museum, and meals are charged separately. The mountain temples usually provide eco-friendly incense. If someone approaches you offering to buy incense for you or sell an additional service, check the price and exactly what is included first.
The Huacheng Temple history museum usually prohibits flash photography. Photography may be restricted inside Roushen Baodian, and restoration work in the hall can affect indoor visits. Dress modestly when entering the temples and follow each temple’s rules for walking routes and photography. Exhibits, open areas, cableway operations, and temple access controls may change at short notice.
Steps, weather, and queues
The central Jiuhua Street route is mainly walked, but Roushen Baodian and Baisui Palace both have continuous steps, while the climbs at Tiantai and Huatai are more concentrated. Rain and mist can make stone steps and mountain paths slippery, so wear shoes with good grip. If heavy fog, rain, or a cableway suspension occurs, shorten the mountain route instead of continuing into slippery sections just to complete the original plan.
The cable cars toward Baisui Palace and Tiantai can have long queues on weekends and public holidays. If you need a cable car, go uphill early and note the last return service in advance; if the on-site queue is long, combine walking with a cable car.
Food and the return journey
There are restaurants around Jiuhua Street, the Visitor Service Center, and Kecun. Jiuhua Street has vegetarian restaurants, while the foot of the mountain also has Huizhou-style and farmhouse dishes. Check the menu and prices before ordering. Local dishes such as huangjing, stir-fried stone ear fungus with egg, and braised pork with dried bamboo shoots are a matter of personal taste.
Before returning, check the final service times for the mountain shuttle, downhill bus, and cableways. If you plan Tiantai, Huatai, or Baisui Palace in the afternoon, confirm the way down before deciding whether to continue higher. Night mountain paths, fog, rain, and temporary transport changes can all make the return journey more difficult.