What Fun Places Are There in Zhangjiakou? Which Spots Are Most Worth Visiting?

Nestled on Honghua Ridge in Chongli District, Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province, Wanlong Ski Resort is China’s first open ski resort. It covers over 30 square kilometers, with its highest point sitting at an altitude of 2,110.3 meters and a vertical drop of 550 meters. It is 249 kilometers away from Beijing and 50 kilometers from downtown Zhangjiakou.

In 2003, Wanlong successfully hosted the 3rd China Chongli International Ski Festival, and the resort was again designated as the venue for the 4th festival in 2004. Meanwhile, the Japanese and South Korean national ski teams, as well as China Salomon National Youth Ski Team, selected Wanlong as their official training base. For this reason, Zhangjiakou Wanlong Sports & Tourism Company increased investment comprehensively this year to fully upgrade all facilities of the ski resort. Ski enthusiasts are warmly welcome to come and show their skills.

Located within Xiahuayuan District, Zhangjiakou City, Jiming Mountain spans 17.5 square kilometers and stands at an altitude of 1,128.9 meters. It is the tallest isolated mountain beyond the Great Wall and nicknamed the "Flying Peak". Hao Jing, a poet of the Yuan Dynasty, depicted its towering grandeur in the line: A single exquisite peak pierces the clouds.

Boasting magnificent and elegant scenery, the mountain rises tall and straight like a giant reaching for the sky, or a natural protective screen. Every summer and autumn, white clouds wrap around its mid-slopes, creating a breathtaking view resembling rolling ocean waves that leaves visitors marveling in admiration.

Anjiagou lies 2.6 kilometers northwest outside Dajingmen in Qiaoxi District, Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province. Its watershed covers roughly 4.25 square kilometers, and the main gully stretches 4,625 meters from west to northeast, branching off into 12 side gullies. It earns the reputation of "Little Guilin". Gao Jinhao, former Deputy Secretary of Zhangjiakou Municipal Party Committee, Mayor and Secretary of the Municipal Government Party Leadership Group, inscribed a plaque for the scenic zone.

This national 3A-level ecological tourism zone sits north of Shijiangyao Village, Dongyaozi Town, Qiaoxi District, connected to the Northern Silk Road and the Zhangjiakou-Kulun Ancient Road. It is 20 kilometers from the Beijing-Shijiazhuang Expressway, 5 kilometers from National Highway 207 and only 3 kilometers from the city center, enjoying extremely convenient transportation. The admission ticket costs 10 RMB. The entire gully runs west to east with a total length of 4,625 meters and an area of 4.25 square kilometers, featuring 12 gullies of varying sizes. The deep valleys are lined with jagged rock formations, abundant natural resources and a sound ecological foundation.

Frontier Manor stands on the west bank of Shandian River in Guyuan on the Bashang Grassland, 6 kilometers from the county seat. Founded in 2001, it covers more than 1,000 mu with a construction area of over 350 mu. Now a national 4A-level tourist attraction, it can accommodate 1,000 visitors for dining and lodging each day. Centered on grassland culture, it integrates sightseeing, summer getaways, leisure entertainment and conference training.

The manor’s restaurant draws culinary essence from major Chinese cuisines, crafting signature dishes featuring local wild mushrooms, freshwater fish, mountain wild vegetables, organic greens, premium beef and mutton, eggs, poultry and dairy products. Its staple foods are made from local naked oats, potatoes and flaxseed oil. Visitors can feast in an 1,800-square-meter music dining hall and a 1,100-square-meter self-service cafeteria, each capable of seating a thousand guests. While enjoying delicious food, you may experience elegant, culturally rich dining rituals exclusive to the manor: its original Mongolian whole roasted lamb ceremony, plus vivid local Errentai opera and ethnic song and dance performances.

Tucked in the Yan Mountain Range within Huailai County, Hebei Province, Huanglong Mountain Villa borders Beijing to the east and Shanxi and Inner Mongolia to the west. As an unspoiled natural scenic spot, it is the only national 4A-level tourist attraction in Huailai County. The villa boasts magnificent mountain ridges, lush forests, clear mountain springs and fragrant blossoms. It presents a natural scroll of dancing butterflies and singing pheasants, alongside beautiful folk legends of divine blessings and rewards for hard work.

The villa’s signature highlight is Cloud Grassland, named for the swirling mist that envelops it. A vast alpine meadow spread like a huge silk carpet, it offers soft mountain breezes dotted with wildflowers. Standing on the grassland, visitors can admire authentic Mongolian yurts, gaze out at the mirror-like Guanting Lake, and take in surrounding rolling mountains. The green farmland stretches endlessly before your eyes, granting a peaceful, free-spirited mood as you overlook the vast landscape.

Gushui Fuyuan Resort sits in the northeastern part of the northern frontier grassland, 5 kilometers east of Guyuan County Seat, Zhangjiakou City, adjacent to the vast Inner Mongolia grassland. This area was once famed in the reign of Emperor Kangxi as the "800-li Golden Lotus River blooming with hundreds of flowers".

Winding rugged Tanshan Mountains stretch alongside boundless primitive grasslands dotted with flocks of horses, cattle and sheep, while camel bells echo in the distance. These unique natural landscapes draw crowds of tourists seeking summer escapes, hunting and sightseeing.

Yellow Emperor City is located 2 kilometers west of Fanshan Town, Zhuolu County. The ruins form an irregular square measuring 500 meters on each side, enclosed by rammed-earth city walls. The remaining walls stand 3 to 5 meters high; the southern, western and northern ramparts are intact, while the eastern wall is submerged in Xuanyuan Lake.

Massive pottery shards scatter across the ruins. Apart from a small amount of coarse sandy red pottery, most relics are grey and black clay pottery. Fragments of vessels, tripod legs, milk-shaped li stove feet and thick-stemmed dou food vessels can be found everywhere. Visitors may even stumble upon intact stone pestles, axes, chisels, spinning wheels and stone rings.

Swan Lake Tourist Resort lies at the northernmost tip of Hebei Province, on the lakeshore of Hulun Nao 2 kilometers north of Guyuan County Seat. Nestled in the heart of the Inner Mongolia Grassland, it features a natural freshwater lake ringed by green mountains with rippling blue waters. The pristine ecological environment attracts tens of thousands of swans, grey cranes, wild ducks and various waterfowl to inhabit here, hence the resort’s name.

An important section of the Inner Mongolian Plateau, Zhongdu Primitive Grassland lies at latitude 41°8′ North and longitude 114° East. It is the lowest-latitude, closest-to-Beijing and best-preserved primitive grassland in North China. The Anguli River, North China’s largest inland river, flows west to east across the grassland. Its clear waters have nourished the steppe for millennia, sustaining lush vegetation generation after generation.

This national 4A-level scenic area is built deep within the grassland, covering 30,000 mu and known as the "No.1 Grassland West of Beijing". In midsummer, grass grows waist-high, with over 30 varieties of premium forage including sheep grass, alkali grass and ice grass thriving side by side. From summer through autumn, wild geese fly in formation, wild herons rest by the water, cattle and sheep graze in herds, and hundreds of birds sing. Dwarf jerboas, marmots and sand foxes frolic among the grass, creating a lively scene worthy of ancient verses: Flat sand stretches far beneath endless grass; White grasses sway beneath boundless skies.

Backed by Taiding Mountain to the north and bordering the Yanghe River to the south, Xuanhua Ancient City is a glittering pearl embedded in the mountain basin of the eastern Yin Mountain Range. Designated a Historical and Cultural City by the Hebei Provincial People’s Government in 1992, it bears the honorable title of "The No.1 Prefecture West of Beijing".