Zhangjiajie Travel Diary: 6-day Tour of the Avatar Mountains in China
I had a great time traveling from Malaysia to Zhangjiajie this time. Many scenic spots in Zhangjiajie will offer discounted ticket prices in 2025. To develop the tourism industry, Zhangjiajie has issued many preferential policies for foreign tourists. Therefore, it is particularly cost-effective to travel to Zhangjiajie this year! I'd like to share my itinerary. If you read this carefully, you can save 50% on the price!
Click here for a detailed itinerary.
1. Cost Guide
My friend and I are a total of five people. We didn't consider a travel agency and wanted to travel independently. We planned to spend six days. After looking up many travel guides, we found that it would cost 2,650 Malaysian ringgit in total.
My friend recommended the travel planner Kai to help us plan the itinerary. We booked hotels, scenic spot tickets and air tickets at all discounted prices. A total of 500 Malaysian ringgit was saved! Kai is a local tour guide in Zhangjiajie. He was very patient and accompanied us on our trip. "Highly recommended!"
This is Kai's WhatsApp +86 15116386043
Email: zhangjiajiekai@outlook.com
Day 1: Airport → Hotel → Seventy-Two Wonders Tower
· We didn't enter the Seventy-Two Wonders Tower. It was very beautiful at night.
· The best place for taking photos was opposite Impression Salamander. ️
Day 2: Hotel → Tianmen Mountain Cableway Station → Line B → Tianmen Cave → West Line Tour → Asia's Longest Cableway → Tianmen Mountain Cableway Station → Hotel
1. The homestay we stayed at was a 13-minute walk from Tianmen Mountain Cableway Station. We arrived at the cableway station at 6:55 and took the bus up the mountain directly without queuing.
2. The difference between Line A and Line B is that they run in opposite directions. After climbing up the mountain, just follow the signs for Line B.
3. After climbing 999 steps, the route is divided into East Line and West Line. The West Line route is as follows:
West Line Glass Walkway → Ghost Valley Walkway → Suspension Bridge → Cherry Bay Restaurant → Cloud Dream Immortal Peak (take the straight staircase down) → Tunnel → Li Na Villa → Take a number and go down the mountain.
Once you start the tour, you won't need to retrace your steps.
4. I took the E-number segment and queued for two hours. Then, I took Asia's longest cableway (nearly half an hour) directly back to Tianmen Mountain Cableway Station in the city center. We got back to the hotel before 3 o'clock.
Notes for Day 2:
1. For the glass walkway, choose the West Line one. There's no need to go to Panlong Cliff Glass Walkway—it's short, not good-looking, and you can't see anything. The Panlong Cliff one also requires extra fees for shoe covers. The West Line Glass Walkway is the most beautiful, exciting, and photogenic. You don't need to buy shoe covers from the foot of the mountain; shoe covers are free (a 5-yuan service fee is required to walk on the glass walkway).
1. From Cherry Bay Restaurant to Yunmeng Xianding, take the simple cable car. It's free for both adults and children—this is quite worthwhile!
Day 3: Urban Area → East Gate of Wulingyuan → Bailong Sky Ladder → Yuanjiajie → Yangjiajie → Tianzishan → East Gate → Urban Area
· We entered the scenic area at around 8:30 from the urban area. There wasn't much queuing, and the whole journey was by car.
· The scenic spots are quite far apart, so you have to take an eco-friendly bus. (Kai helped us contact a particularly comfortable car, which solved my motion sickness problem!)
Notes for Day 3:
1. There's no need to bring too much food. The East Gate has KFC, Luckin Coffee, etc., and there are also food options inside the scenic area.
2. When taking a bus from Yuanjiajie to Yangjiajie: If you don't plan to visit Tianzishan, walk to the right. Don't go to the Yangjiajie Cableway just because you see it—otherwise, you'll go directly to the South Gate after getting off the cable car (that's the mistake I made and ended up taking the cable car back).
3. When taking a bus from the urban area to the Forest Park: You don't have to go to the bus station. Just wave your hand on the road, and the car will stop. Pay when you get in.
4. The most important note! People who are prone to motion sickness should be cautious about visiting the Forest Park. The eco-friendly bus ride between Yangjiajie and Tianzishan takes only 30 minutes, but it's all mountainous roads and the speed is quite fast. Fortunately, the local tour guide Kai took care of this for us.
Day 4: Urban Area → South Gate of Forest Park → Huangshizhai → Jinbianxi → Ten-Mile Gallery → East Gate → Urban Area
1. At first, I thought the tour at the foot of the mountain would be very easy, so I got up a bit late and arrived at the South Gate after 8 o'clock.
2. The bus to the South Gate is the same as the one to the East Gate—you can wave to stop it at any time. The bus to the East Gate is marked "Wulingyuan", while the one to the South Gate is marked "Forest Park".
3. When going up the mountain, we all took the bus; when going down the mountain, we all walked.
4. The scenic area entered through the South Gate is much cooler, with beautiful views and monkeys.
5. There's no need to take the small train to visit Ten-Mile Gallery—visiting Jinbianxi is a better choice.
Day 5: Zhangjiajie West Railway Station → Fenghuang Ancient Town
Day 6: Fenghuang Ancient Town → Zhangjiajie West Railway Station → Airport
Final Recommendation
I communicated with Kai for half a month—his attitude was very good. After talking a lot, we found that the local tour guide's plan was better than the travel guides we found ourselves! We saved a lot of money and time. Many people who visit Zhangjiajie ask him for help with itinerary planning and bookings—it saves money and effort, and you can have a great time while making friends.
There's no need to spend energy studying travel guides and experiences (many of them are plagiarized). It's recommended to directly ask a familiar local tour guide for a free guide. Every time I travel this way, I save both money and energy.
Personally, I think the cost-performance of this trip was very high, and it was a great deal. We had a very free and enjoyable time. I'm extremely grateful to the tour guide Kai for planning the entire itinerary for us. My friend and I had a great time! So I want to give Kai a little advertisement.
Share kai's whatsApp: +8615116386043
Kai 's email address: zhangjiajiekai@outlook.com
Kai's wechat ID: s1025566476
