Tianmen Mountain

    Name in Chinese: 天门山  Tiān Mén Shān  [tiæ men sæ]

    Duration of Tour: Three Hours

    Location: Yongding District, Zhangjiajie Prefecture, Hunan Province

    Highlights: Magnificent Mountain View, Photography and Hiking

    Reputations: a National Forest Park, a Five-star Scenic Area

    Tianmen Mountain is situated in the south of Zhangjiajie. It is a national forest park, is a five-star scenic area. The mountain rises sheer above the valley where the city of Zhangjiajie is located. It is notable for the magnificence of the mountain scenery. The summit of the mountain is at an elevation of 1,518.6 meters(4,982 feet). There is a sheer drop of 1,300 meters(4,265 feet) to the city below. Tianmen Mountain is covered in lush green vegetation. It is also noted as a natural oxygen bar due to a high percentage of forest cover(95%).

    The name of the mountain, Tianmen means the gate to heaven in English. Sculpted by natural weathering and erosion, Tianmen Cave is a huge hole on a cliff. According to historical records, the hole appeared after the cliff crumbled in the year of 263. It is the main attraction of the scenic area. As the largest one of its kind in the world, the hole measures 131.5 meters(413 feet) in height, 57 meters(187 feet) in width, and 60 meters(197 feet) in depth.

    Tianmen Monastery is situated on the summit of Tianmen Mountain. It was originally built in the Tang Dynasty(618-907). The compound was reconstructed in the year of 2002, covering an area of over 2 hectares( 5 acres). It is one of the monasteries in which the holy relics of Prince Siddhartha are deposited.

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    How to Get to Tianmen Mountain

    Tianmen Mountain Scenic Area lies about 6 kilometers(3.7 miles) to the south of downtown Zhangjiajie. Tourists can fly to Zhangjiajie from major cities within Mainland China, such as, Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Xi’an and Guangzhou. Some of the tourists also travel to Zhangjiajie by car from the Three-Gorge Dam which is located in Yichang, Hubei Province.

    How to Visit Tianmen Mountain

    Visitors are usually transferred to the Tianmen Cave by cable car from the foot of the mountain, and then carried to the mountaintop by escalator. Some of the cliff paths are made of glass. Only a few people dare to walk along the glass path. The cable-way between the mountaintop and the foot of mountain is the longest one in the world. It is 7,455 meters(24,459 feet) long with a sheer drop of 1,279 meters(4,196 feet).

    Weather

    Zhangjiajie Prefecture has a humid semi-tropical climate with distinct four seasons. The average temperature in Zhangjiajie ranges from 6℃(42.8°F) to 14℃(57.2°F) in spring, 19℃(66.2°F) to 28℃(82.4°F) in summer, 24℃(75.2°F) to 33℃(91.4°F) in autumn and 10℃(50°F) to 18℃(64.4°F) in winter. The best time to travel to Zhangjiajie is between April and October.

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Author: Tina Luo

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