Mount Yuelu Park
You can get good exercise and walk for an hour up the hill and see both nature and the city skyline in Changsha's
most popular park. Yuelu Academy, one of the first four "universities" in China is located there. It was built in 976, more than 1000 years ago. A highlight of the park
is a museum about education that teaches people about the historic academy, Hunan University, and China's modern educational
system and goals.
Orange Island
This narrow island and park is in the middle of Changsha in the Xiangjiang River, and it is probably the second
most popular attraction for tourists after Mount Yuelu.There are gardens and thousands of fruit trees, frequent grand firework
displays in the evening, and a big statue of Mao's head.
Hunan Museum
Boasting abundant collections, the museum houses over 180,000 artifacts, which feature the cultural relics
excavated from the world-famous Mawangdui Tombs of Han Dynasty, the bronze wares of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, cultural
relics of Chu State, pottery and porcelain works from various dynasties, calligraphy works and paintings, religious objects,
handicrafts and cultural relics of modern times.
Wulingyuan Scenic Area (also called Zhangjiajie)
Wulingyuan Scenic Area is huge, covering an area of 185 square miles and is UNESCO listed. Within the area are
Huangshi Zhai (peak area), Kongzhong Tianyuan (Heavenly garden) viewing point, Xianren Qiao (Immortals’ Bridge - a narrow stone
bridge over a chasm) and Tianzi Ge another viewing point. The park is especially known for its quartz-sandstone rock formations,
bare stone sculpted by nature and set among green trees and frequent clouds. The high and steep Mt. Hengshan is frequently
snow-capped in the winter, contrasting with the subtropical fields that one sees below it. It is one of the five most famous
mountains in the country. The area was made famous worldwide because the Avatar film was made here.
Fenghuang
Its diverse residents built a breathtaking riverside settlement of winding alleys, temples and rickety stilt
houses, which these days attract tourists by the bucketload. Do try to stay overnight – the town is bursting with accommodation
options, and the sight of an illuminated Fenghuang at night is quite awesome.
Shaoshan
As the birthplace of Mao Zedong, the founder of the People's Republic of China, Shaoshan is an important base
during the Chinese Communist Revolution. It has many cultural landscapes, such as former residence of Mao Zedong, bronze
statue of Mao Zedong, Mao Zedong memorial Hall, Mao Zedong relics Hall, Forest of Mao Ze Dong's poems and tablets, Mao Zedong
Memorial Garden.
