Best 2-Day Itinerary for a Trip Around Nanjing

The second half of the year is approaching, and the short holidays are coming soon. For friends in Nanjing, have you figured out where to go? There are many great places around Nanjing suitable for a short self-driving trip. Here is a recommended 2-day itinerary for a trip around Nanjing.

Day1: Mausoleum of the Three Emperors > Tiansheng Bridge > Wu Xiang Temple > Gaochun Old Street

First Stop: Jiangsu’s Most Beautiful Highway > Mausoleum of the Three Emperors

Known as Jiangsu’s most beautiful highway, the Yangtze River Highway (Changhe Highway) starts from Hefei, passes through Chaohu, Ma’anshan, Lishui, Jintan, Changzhou, Jiangyin, Zhangjiagang, and ends in Changshu. The Jiangsu section has beautiful scenery along the way, including Lake Taohu and the Mausoleum of the Three Emperors scenic area.

After getting off the highway at the Mausoleum of the Three Emperors service area, you enter a long winding ramp in the woods. After driving two or three miles, you still haven’t seen the service area, but you see signs for the toll booth. You initially wonder if you’ve taken a wrong turn. After driving nearly two kilometers, you finally see the four-story building with parking signs – it’s the service area. The Mausoleum of the Three Emperors service area is unique, hidden in the mountains, free from the noise and pollution of other service areas. The air is fresh and the scenery is beautiful, making it a pity that only a few people can visit it.

Outside the restaurant of the service area, there are a few sections of steps that are like viewing platforms, overlooking a vast lake that stretches for tens of kilometers. This is actually a reservoir – the Maodong Reservoir in Jintan. The mountains on the opposite side are the famous Mausoleum of the Three Emperors, with the Nine-Sky Wanfu Palace on the highest peak faintly visible. Walking along the lake, the environment is pleasant, like being in a scenic area. There are also some small attractions, the most notable being a group of sculptures, “Lao Zi Shi Yi”, and an inscription, “Lao Zi Dao De Jing”, which are in keeping with the theme of the Mausoleum of the Three Emperors as a Taoist holy land.

Second Stop: Lishui Yan Zhi River · Tiansheng Bridge

Lishui is located in the south of Nanjing and is an important subsidiary city of Nanjing. It is the source of the Baili Qinhuai River and is known for its water town charm, pastoral scenery, mountainous terrain, and cultural relics, making it a great place for vacations and sightseeing.

Exiting the Mausoleum of the Three Emperors service area, the first stop on this short trip is Lishui.

The Tiansheng Bridge in Lishui is man-made. Speaking of the Tiansheng Bridge in Lishui, one must mention the Yan Zhi River. The Yan Zhi River was excavated during the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty. It runs north to the mouth of the Qinhuai River and south to Honglan Port, entering Lake Shijiu. It is 7.5 kilometers long. The excavation of this river connected the waterways between Nanjing and the two Zhejiang regions. The arduousness of the Yan Zhi River project and the enormous expenditure were unprecedented in water conservancy construction at that time. When excavating the Yan Zhi River, the artisans chose a place with hard rock and high terrain as a passage to the west of the county seat. After the river was completed, a huge stone below was chiseled open, allowing boats to pass through. This is the famous Tiansheng Bridge.

Now this has become a major scenic spot. Taking a boat into the Yan Zhi River, you can see strange rocks hanging on both sides, cliffs, and a huge stone spanning the two banks, very spectacular.

Third Stop: Lishui · Wu Xiang Temple

“Tracing the ancients, the moon’s shadow lingers, inviting friends to travel, feelings take shape. Time flows backward in the heart, love is like water, thoughts make sound.” Located 7 kilometers south of the city of Lishui, the Wu Xiang Temple Forest Park is a unique leisure and vacation area. Legend has it that the Wu Xiang Temple was built during the Six Dynasties period, but was destroyed in the flames of war at the end of the Qing Dynasty. Only the ruins and a simple Buddhist hall remain. I have always wanted to go to the Wu Xiang Temple purely because I was attracted by its name. Why is it called “Wu Xiang”? It wasn’t until I climbed to the top of the temple and found a couplet that I realized the meaning – “The name of the mountain is empty color, empty color is empty, the name of the temple is without thought, not non-thought”.

The scenic area is still under development, but it retains a rare pristine state. There are not many tourists, so you can stroll leisurely. Some people online have said that the nearby Tianchi Lake is worth a visit, so I went there with great interest. It is actually a small pond located on top of the mountain, but walking along the top of the lake, stepping on thick pine needles, listening to the creaking sound, feels truly good.

TIPS: The Wu Xiang Temple Forest Park is still under construction. If you prefer to visit mature attractions, you may want to avoid it. In addition, although Wu Xiang Mountain is only over 200 meters high, the mountain road is rugged. Self-driving tourists are advised to drive cautiously.

Fourth Stop: Gaochun, Eat Lamb Chops, Gucheng Lake Crab

Gaochun District is located in the southernmost part of Nanjing and is the backyard and southern gate of Nanjing. It has been awarded the title of “International Slow City” by the World Slow Cities Alliance. This is the “sacred land of Jiangnan”, known as the “Jiangnan land of fish and rice, where gold is harvested at sunrise and silver at sunset”. It has natural mountain and lake resources.

Gaochun Old Street, also known as Chunxi Old Street, is the commercial center of Gaochun and the best preserved group of ancient buildings in Jiangsu Province. It is known as the “Second Confucius Temple in Jinling”. The street market was officially established in the Song Dynasty and has been around for over 900 years. It is over 800 meters long and is shaped like a “one” character, hence the name “One-Character Street”.

Day2: Pagoda Park > Qiqiao Ancient Village > Wenfeng Tower on Chunxi Ancient Town

If you haven’t had enough of the night tour of the old street, you can go back and visit it again during the day~

Compared to the night, the old street is already lively in the morning. Experience the taste of Gaochun with a local breakfast.

At the most famous soup dumpling shop on the old street, you can order crab roe soup dumplings, rice cakes, and hand-rolled noodles for breakfast. After breakfast, you can stroll through the old street and buy local specialties like dried goods, cloth shoes, and hairy crabs.

Pagoda Park > Qiqiao Ancient Village > Longdun Reservoir

Leaving the old street, drive along the Gucheng Lake for a while, then head to Pagoda Park. A trip is not complete without climbing high, so you always look forward to being able to climb high and look far to experience the regional characteristics.

The first stop of the Slow City is the Qiqiao Ancient Village, located in the northeast of Gaochun. It is surrounded by water on all sides, isolated and serene, detached from the world. Around it are gathered 30,000 descendants of Confucius. The ancient village has a street alley that is 500 meters long and has a history of nearly 2,000 years. Han dynasty ancient bridges, Song dynasty ancient wells, and Ming and Qing dynasty buildings are all visible. The oldest houses were built during the Yuan Dynasty. Everything on the old street is old: old bamboo craftsmen, old tofu workshops, old people wearing double-breasted clothes, old handmade woodcarving artists, all exuding a sense of ancient elegance.

The Qiqiao Bridge, which the Qiqiao Ancient Village is named after, is naturally the most famous attraction in the area. According to the local “Kong Family Genealogy” and the “Gaochun County Chronicles of the Republic of China”, Qiqiao was previously known as “Nanling” during the Han Dynasty. During the late Western Han Dynasty… a wooden bridge was built over the Nanling Creek to facilitate passage. To prevent rot, it was painted red, and the locals called it “Qiqiao”. This bridge has been a major transportation route connecting southern Jiangsu and southern Anhui since the Han Dynasty.

There used to be guard towers built at the south and north ends of the bridge. The bridge and the guard towers were a necessary passage on the ancient Ningyi Road. The Qiqiao Bridge is 28.6 meters long and 6.6 meters wide. It has been repaired several times over the past thousand years. In 1953, it was rebuilt into a three-arch stone bridge. In fact, there are three bridges over the river today. The old stone arch bridge Qiqiao is located in the middle. There is a newly built wooden bridge next to it, also called Qiqiao. It was probably built to recreate the appearance of the Qiqiao Bridge at the time.

Wenfeng Tower

Wenfeng Tower is located near Dashan Temple. Its origin is said to be related to the Square Pagoda in the Gaochun county seat. It is said that because Chunxi had a Square Pagoda, but the mountain area did not, the scholars of the mountain area were afraid that the literary spirit would decline, so they asked the local gentry to raise funds to build a tower on the mountainside. It was later destroyed and rebuilt on the mountaintop.

Standing on the Wenfeng Tower, one can see the mountains below, but there was a little smog. However, when I looked out at the villages of the Slow City scattered among the mountains, water, and fields, I was still moved. It was a feeling of not having come in vain.

After descending from the Wenfeng Tower, I arrived at the Dashan Temple. Inside, there are ten kings of Hell, and there are various tortures after going to hell, warning people to do good deeds and accumulate virtue.