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Tips on How to Appreciate Jiuzhaigou Valley's Beauty
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My wife and I went to Jiuzhaigou Valley in August. Before going there, we were told that it’s not the best time to appreciate stunning landscape in Jiuzhaigou Valley. Yes, we knew the best time to go there was between mid October and mid November. But we had no choice. We just had time in August.
Frankly, we did a lot of preparatory work on Jiuzhaigou Valley and we believed that we knew everything about this valley. When we got there, we just found that our preparatory work was not done enough. Generally, our trip to Jiuzhaigou was ok but not as successful as we estimated.
In this travelogue, I didn’t want to describe the beauty of the Jiuzhaigou Valley because its beauty couldn’t be described in words. You have to go there explore and appreciate its beauty. Instead, I will share some tips with you, for example, where is the best location in the sight-seeing bus to appreciate the beautiful landscape.
The natural landscape in the Jiuzhai Valley is mainly scattered in Shuzheng Valley, Zechawa Valley and Rize Valley. The three valleys converge at a point where is Nuorilang Tourist Service Center. Among the three valleys, which one has the best scenery? I tell you it is Rize Valley.
Check this link to see the detailed map of Jiuzhaigou Valley:
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/images/map/sichuan/jiuzhaigou.gif
According to other travelers’ travelogues, tourists can take sight-seeing bus to Nuorilang Tourist Service Center and then go to the highlighted Rize Valley directly. Why? At that moment, there are not many tourists in the Rize Valley. Originally, we decided to take this route. But the sight-seeing bus stopped at Shuzheng Valley and the driver asked all passengers to get down. Thus, we had to change our plan. In fact, we didn’t know much about Shuzheng Valley because our plan was to visit the highlighted Rize Valley first.
Jiuzhaigou is famed for its lakes. In Shuzheng Valley, we didn’t see many lakes or waterfalls. What did we see? Trees!
Tip 1 Choose a seat on the left when you board the sight-seeing bus. Then you can enjoy the beauty of Bonsai Lake, Reed Sea, Double-Dragon Sea, Spark Lake, Crouching Dragon Lake, Shuzheng Lakes, Shuzheng Waterfall, Tiger Sea and Rhinoceros Lake through the window. If you sit on the right side, the only thing you can do is to listen to the tour guide’s introduction.
Please be noted that the seats on the left side here means the seats behind the driver. In China, the driver’s seat is on the left side.
After getting off the sight-seeing bus at Shuzheng Village, we walked along the plank road for a second and turned into another direction. We missed an opportunity to take a panoramic picture of Shuzheng Waterfall. But there were fewer people. We took a rest for a minute and then continued to visit Tiger Sea. Then we got on the sight-seeing bus at Rhinoceros Sea.
Tip 2 If you want to take a panoramic picture of Shuzheng Waterfall, please walk along the plank road near the highway until you get to the viewing platform.
Tip 3 Do not spend more time in Shuzheng Valley. Otherwise, you won’t have enough time to appreciate the Rize Valley.
Tip 4 The reflection in the Rhinoceros Sea is amazing. If you arrive at the lake, stay for a minute and appreciate the reflection of blue sky, white clouds, green trees and mountains in the sea.
Tip 5 The sight-seeing bus that stops at Rhinoceros Sea do not go to Rize Valley. Instead, it goes to Zechawa Valley. This time, take a seat on the right and you will appreciate the Nuorilang Waterfall.
We regretted that we didn’t ask the driver where he drove to. He directly brought us to Zechawa Valley.
Tip 6: In the Zechawa Valley, the main attractions are Lower, middle and Upper Seasonal Lakes, Long Sea Scenic Area, Five-Color Lake and Goddess Lake.
The Lower Seasonal Lake looks like a blue stone and is far from the Upper Seasonal Lake. The volume of water in the Upper Seasonal Lake changes according to season changes. In autumn, it is full. In winter and spring, the water surface is low. In early summer, it is dried.
Tip 7: The sight-seeing bus stops at Upper Seasonal Lake, Five-Color Lake and Long Sea.
We visited the Upper Seasonal Lake, Five-Color Lake and then reached Long Sea. Aftwards, we finally got on the sight-seeing bus and got to Rize Valley.
Tip 8: Long Sea looks beautiful in sunshine. There are always swarms of tourists. You have to go deep through if you want to appreciate the Long Sea without being disturbed. By the way, you can choose to rent Tibetan clothes and take a picture here.
Tip 9: Choose a window seat on the right because you can see Mirror Lake, Multi-Colored Lake (Peacock Sea), Swan Lake and Grass Lake through the window. Besides, pay attention when the sight-seeing bus passes by Multi-Colored Lake because you can have a panoramic view of it.
Tip 10: We do not suggest you take a up-bound trip in Rize Valley. You can get off at Arrow Bamboo Lake or Virgin Forest and then take a down-bound trip. Located between Arrow Bamboo Lake and Virgin Forest, the Swan Lake and the Grass Lake are not worth a visit. We suggest you get off at Virgin Forest and stay for a while and then take sight-seeing bus from there to Arrow Bamboo Lake directly.
Tip 11: You will find that there are many tourists at the Arrow Bamboo Sea when you get there. Most of them walk along the plank road beside the highway to appreciate the beauty of the lake. Don’t worry! Just walk around 200 meters in the opposite direction when you get off the sight-seeing bus at the Arrow Bamboo Lake and you will find another plank road. There you can appreciate the lake alone.
Then keep walking on the plank road for a while and you will see Arrow Bamboo Lake Waterfall. It is not as famous as those Four Great Waterfalls (Shuzheng Waterfall, Nuorilang Waterfall, Pearl Beach Waterfall and Panda Lake Waterfall) in the Jiuzhaigou Valley. But it looks awesome.
Tip 12: Panda Lake is not far from the Arrow Bamboo Lake. I suggest you do not take the sight-seeing bus. Just walk on the plank road to Panda Lake from Arrow Bamboo Lake. At the beginning, you may encounter a steep road. Beside the road is Panda Lake Waterfall and you can appreciate it closely. Then you can walk to Multi-Colored Lake. It gives a totally different feeling compared with sight-seeing bus.
Tip 13: If you choose to walk from Panda Lake to Multi-Colored Lake, you will encounter two plank roads. Both can lead you to the Multi-Colored Lake. Please take the plank road on your right. The left plank road is smooth but you can not have a panoramic view of the Multi-Colored Lake. The right plank road is steep but it can lead you to the Tiger Stone, the best location to see the Multi-Colored Lake.
Here you can understand why Multi-Colored Lake is also called Peacock Lake. The lake resembles like a peacock and you can see this beautiful peacock from the Tiger Stone.
Tip 14: Walk to the bus stop to take sight-seeing bus to Pearl Beach after appreciating the panoramic Multi-Colored Lake. Pearl Beach is 200 meters in width and its highest drop is about 40 meters. It looks magnificent.
Stay there for a while and then take sight-seeing bus to Mirror Lake if you have time. In fact, Mirror Lake looks most beautiful in the morning. It also features the reflection in the lake.
Congratulations to you If you visit the Mirror Lake. You visit almost every attraction in the Rize Valley. In all, it takes about 4 to 5 hours. Then you can take the sight-seeing bus from here to the entrance of Jiuzhaigou Valley. You can get off at Nuorilang Waterfall to see its beauty if you miss it at the beginning. Then get back to the bus stop to take sight-seeing bus to Shuzheng Village if you still want to have a visit. If you are tired, choose a window seat on the right and then you can see them on the sight-seeing bus.
Tip 15: When you arrive at the entrance of the Jiuzhaigou Valley, you can spend some time taking a picture here. I believe you won’t encounter too many visitors.
Frankly, we did a lot of preparatory work on Jiuzhaigou Valley and we believed that we knew everything about this valley. When we got there, we just found that our preparatory work was not done enough. Generally, our trip to Jiuzhaigou was ok but not as successful as we estimated.
In this travelogue, I didn’t want to describe the beauty of the Jiuzhaigou Valley because its beauty couldn’t be described in words. You have to go there explore and appreciate its beauty. Instead, I will share some tips with you, for example, where is the best location in the sight-seeing bus to appreciate the beautiful landscape.
The natural landscape in the Jiuzhai Valley is mainly scattered in Shuzheng Valley, Zechawa Valley and Rize Valley. The three valleys converge at a point where is Nuorilang Tourist Service Center. Among the three valleys, which one has the best scenery? I tell you it is Rize Valley.
Check this link to see the detailed map of Jiuzhaigou Valley:
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/images/map/sichuan/jiuzhaigou.gif
According to other travelers’ travelogues, tourists can take sight-seeing bus to Nuorilang Tourist Service Center and then go to the highlighted Rize Valley directly. Why? At that moment, there are not many tourists in the Rize Valley. Originally, we decided to take this route. But the sight-seeing bus stopped at Shuzheng Valley and the driver asked all passengers to get down. Thus, we had to change our plan. In fact, we didn’t know much about Shuzheng Valley because our plan was to visit the highlighted Rize Valley first.
Jiuzhaigou is famed for its lakes. In Shuzheng Valley, we didn’t see many lakes or waterfalls. What did we see? Trees!
Tip 1 Choose a seat on the left when you board the sight-seeing bus. Then you can enjoy the beauty of Bonsai Lake, Reed Sea, Double-Dragon Sea, Spark Lake, Crouching Dragon Lake, Shuzheng Lakes, Shuzheng Waterfall, Tiger Sea and Rhinoceros Lake through the window. If you sit on the right side, the only thing you can do is to listen to the tour guide’s introduction.
Please be noted that the seats on the left side here means the seats behind the driver. In China, the driver’s seat is on the left side.
After getting off the sight-seeing bus at Shuzheng Village, we walked along the plank road for a second and turned into another direction. We missed an opportunity to take a panoramic picture of Shuzheng Waterfall. But there were fewer people. We took a rest for a minute and then continued to visit Tiger Sea. Then we got on the sight-seeing bus at Rhinoceros Sea.
Tip 2 If you want to take a panoramic picture of Shuzheng Waterfall, please walk along the plank road near the highway until you get to the viewing platform.
Tip 3 Do not spend more time in Shuzheng Valley. Otherwise, you won’t have enough time to appreciate the Rize Valley.
Tip 4 The reflection in the Rhinoceros Sea is amazing. If you arrive at the lake, stay for a minute and appreciate the reflection of blue sky, white clouds, green trees and mountains in the sea.
 |
| Rhinoceros Sea |
Tip 5 The sight-seeing bus that stops at Rhinoceros Sea do not go to Rize Valley. Instead, it goes to Zechawa Valley. This time, take a seat on the right and you will appreciate the Nuorilang Waterfall.
We regretted that we didn’t ask the driver where he drove to. He directly brought us to Zechawa Valley.
Tip 6: In the Zechawa Valley, the main attractions are Lower, middle and Upper Seasonal Lakes, Long Sea Scenic Area, Five-Color Lake and Goddess Lake.
The Lower Seasonal Lake looks like a blue stone and is far from the Upper Seasonal Lake. The volume of water in the Upper Seasonal Lake changes according to season changes. In autumn, it is full. In winter and spring, the water surface is low. In early summer, it is dried.
 |
| Upper Seasonal Lake |
Tip 7: The sight-seeing bus stops at Upper Seasonal Lake, Five-Color Lake and Long Sea.
We visited the Upper Seasonal Lake, Five-Color Lake and then reached Long Sea. Aftwards, we finally got on the sight-seeing bus and got to Rize Valley.
 |
| Five-Color Lake |
Tip 8: Long Sea looks beautiful in sunshine. There are always swarms of tourists. You have to go deep through if you want to appreciate the Long Sea without being disturbed. By the way, you can choose to rent Tibetan clothes and take a picture here.
 |
| Long Lake |
Tip 9: Choose a window seat on the right because you can see Mirror Lake, Multi-Colored Lake (Peacock Sea), Swan Lake and Grass Lake through the window. Besides, pay attention when the sight-seeing bus passes by Multi-Colored Lake because you can have a panoramic view of it.
Tip 10: We do not suggest you take a up-bound trip in Rize Valley. You can get off at Arrow Bamboo Lake or Virgin Forest and then take a down-bound trip. Located between Arrow Bamboo Lake and Virgin Forest, the Swan Lake and the Grass Lake are not worth a visit. We suggest you get off at Virgin Forest and stay for a while and then take sight-seeing bus from there to Arrow Bamboo Lake directly.
 |
| Virgin Forest |
Tip 11: You will find that there are many tourists at the Arrow Bamboo Sea when you get there. Most of them walk along the plank road beside the highway to appreciate the beauty of the lake. Don’t worry! Just walk around 200 meters in the opposite direction when you get off the sight-seeing bus at the Arrow Bamboo Lake and you will find another plank road. There you can appreciate the lake alone.
 |
| Arrow Bamboo Lake |
 |
| Arrow Bamboo Lake 2 |
Then keep walking on the plank road for a while and you will see Arrow Bamboo Lake Waterfall. It is not as famous as those Four Great Waterfalls (Shuzheng Waterfall, Nuorilang Waterfall, Pearl Beach Waterfall and Panda Lake Waterfall) in the Jiuzhaigou Valley. But it looks awesome.
 |
| Arrow Bamboo Lake Waterfall |
Tip 12: Panda Lake is not far from the Arrow Bamboo Lake. I suggest you do not take the sight-seeing bus. Just walk on the plank road to Panda Lake from Arrow Bamboo Lake. At the beginning, you may encounter a steep road. Beside the road is Panda Lake Waterfall and you can appreciate it closely. Then you can walk to Multi-Colored Lake. It gives a totally different feeling compared with sight-seeing bus.
 |
| Panda Lake |
 |
| Panda Lake Waterfall |
Tip 13: If you choose to walk from Panda Lake to Multi-Colored Lake, you will encounter two plank roads. Both can lead you to the Multi-Colored Lake. Please take the plank road on your right. The left plank road is smooth but you can not have a panoramic view of the Multi-Colored Lake. The right plank road is steep but it can lead you to the Tiger Stone, the best location to see the Multi-Colored Lake.
Here you can understand why Multi-Colored Lake is also called Peacock Lake. The lake resembles like a peacock and you can see this beautiful peacock from the Tiger Stone.
 |
| Multi-Colored Lake (Peacock Lake) |
Tip 14: Walk to the bus stop to take sight-seeing bus to Pearl Beach after appreciating the panoramic Multi-Colored Lake. Pearl Beach is 200 meters in width and its highest drop is about 40 meters. It looks magnificent.
 |
| Pearl Beach Waterfall |
Stay there for a while and then take sight-seeing bus to Mirror Lake if you have time. In fact, Mirror Lake looks most beautiful in the morning. It also features the reflection in the lake.
Congratulations to you If you visit the Mirror Lake. You visit almost every attraction in the Rize Valley. In all, it takes about 4 to 5 hours. Then you can take the sight-seeing bus from here to the entrance of Jiuzhaigou Valley. You can get off at Nuorilang Waterfall to see its beauty if you miss it at the beginning. Then get back to the bus stop to take sight-seeing bus to Shuzheng Village if you still want to have a visit. If you are tired, choose a window seat on the right and then you can see them on the sight-seeing bus.
Tip 15: When you arrive at the entrance of the Jiuzhaigou Valley, you can spend some time taking a picture here. I believe you won’t encounter too many visitors.
3. A journey to Chengdu, Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong Natural Reserve---Part II LONELYJOURNEY from China Sep 2, 2011 03:53
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1.
Mar 27, 2015 15:11 Reply
Mr.LUCY from USA said:
These tips will definitely helps me for my upcoming trip to Jiuzhai! Very detailed. Thanks!