The Jiuzhaigou Valley means the ‘Nine Village Valley’ for the fact it has nine villages in it, but only 7 of them are still occupied today. It is classed as a world heritage site by the UNESCO to preserve this beautiful area. It is located on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau and is now a popular destination for people to view because of its beauty.
How to Get There?
Unfortunately, it is quite hard to get to and most people take a long bus ride of several hours from Chengdu via the Min River Canyon. While it is troublesome to get to, the views as you can see are well worth the trip!
We do have some good news though, in recent years (although more expensive) you can fly to Jiuzhai Huanglong Airport on the mountainside and catch a 90-minute bus ride instead. If you can afford it, we recommend this route!
When is the Best Time to Visit?
We would advise never going during rainy season, due the fact that this can extend the journey to and from the area by many hours due to mud slides. We would highly recommend going between June and September as only 20% of the yearly rainfall happens between these months. The temperature can get up to around 17°C in July, so don’t expect the weather to be too hot.
What is there to do there?
This one is for the more adventurous of travellers. You will need to be able to hike quite a bit as you won’t see many of the views otherwise. You will see lots of lakes, mountains, including the Sacred Zha Yi Zha Ga Mountain which is stunning. You may also see some of the local Benbo Buddhists around the area as well.
