Tongren Overview

Tongren lies in the northeast of Guizhou province, adjacent to Chongqing in the north, Hunan in the east. It is an important link between central China and southwest border area, known as "the gateway of east Guizhou".

Basic Information

• Chinese Name: 铜仁市
• Location: Northeast of Guizhou Province
• Government Seat: Bijiang District(碧江区)
• Area: 18003 square kilometers
• Population: An approximate population of 4,406,000
• Minorities: Bijie is home to 29 ethnic groups, including Tujia, Han, Miao, Dong, Gelao and Manchu, etc.
• Language: Southwest Mandarin
• Airport: Tongren Fenghuang Airport(铜仁凤凰机场)
• Important Festivals: "Si Yue Ba(the Eighth of the Fourth Lunar Month Festival)" of Miao, "Guo Gan Nian(过赶年)" of Tujia, "Gan Ao Festival(赶坳节)" of Dong, "Dear Condor Day(敬雀节)" and "Mao Long Festival(毛龙节)" of Gelao, etc.
• Railway Stations: Tongren Railway Station, Tongren South Railway Station and Yuping Railway Station.
• Famous Attractions: Mount Fanjing, Shiqian Hot Spring(石阡温泉), and Nine-dragon Cave Scenic Area, etc.

Geography

Tongren city is a prefecture-level city under the jurisdiction of Guizhou province, China, located in the northeast of Guizhou province, and in Wuling mountain area at the junction of Guizhou, Hunan and Chongqing. It is adjacent to Qiandongnan prefecture in the south, Zunyi city in the west, Chongqing city in the north, and Xiangxi prefecture and Huaihua city in Hunan province in the east.  

Tongren city is located in the sloping area from Yunnan-Guizhou plateau to the hilly area of Xiangxi, high in the northwest and low in the southeast. On the mountain plain far from the river valley, there are many karst, hills and low-lying land, and the ground fluctuation is not too big. Tongren is dominated by mountainous area, accounting for 67.8% of the total area of the region, followed by hills accounting for 28.3%, and flat land and other landforms accounting for 3.9%. Wuling mountain range with Mount Fanjing as its main peak is the watershed of the east and west of Tongren city. The highest elevation in the city is 2572 meters, and the lowest is 205 meters. It is a typical karst landform.

Climate

Tongren city belongs to the subtropical monsoon humid climate, and its climate features are mainly manifested as obvious monsoon climate and significant vertical difference in climate. Annual sunshine duration is 1044.7-1266.2 hours, annual average temperature of 13℃-17.5℃, with accumulated temperature of 5300℃. The day of daily average temperature above 10℃ begins in late march and ends in late November, lasting 250 days. The annual average precipitation is 1110-1410 mm, frost-free period of 275-317 days, with rich heat, suitable sunlight and abundant precipitation. Most areas in Tongren are mild and humid, the climate vertical change in mountains and valleys is obvious. Because of the low altitude and latitude, Tongren is the high temperature center of Guizhou province, and the highest temperature can reach 42.5℃ in summer, a lot higher than other cities in Guizhou province. The highest temperature in Tongren is comparable to those in Nanjing, Wuhan and Chongqing, which are known as "Three Stove Metropolis" in China. 

Best Time to Visit

The dense forest of Mount Fanjing is a good place for escaping the heat. Therefore, except for the cold winter, you can travel to Tongren in spring, summer and autumn.

Administrative Divisions

Tongren City has jurisdiction over 2 district, 4 counties 4 autonomous counties, Dalong Development Zone and Tongren High-tech Industrial Development Zone. The seat of government is located Bijiang District.

• 2 Districts: Bijiang District(碧江区), Wanshan District(万山区).
• 4 Counties: Jiangkou County(江口县), Shiqian County(石阡县), Sinan County(思南县), Dejiang County(德江县).
• 4 Autonomous Counties: Songtao Miao Autonomous County(松桃苗族自治县), Yuping Dong Autonomous County(玉屏侗族自治县), Yinjiang Tujia and Miao Autonomous County(印江土家族苗族自治县), Yanhe Tujia Autonomous County(沿河土家族自治县).

Ethnic Culture

Tongren is such a marvelous place that holds beautiful landscapes, as well as the rich and colorful ethnic minority customs culture. The city covers an area of 18,000 square kilometers, inhabited by 29 ethnic groups like Tujia, Han, Miao, Dong and Gelao. Among them, the Tujia people account for nearly 40% of the total population, and ethnic minorities take up 70.45% of the total population. In addition, there are also many ethnic townships and traditional villages in Tongren waiting for your explore.

Transportation

Tongren owns airport, railway stations and bus stations, so you can get to/away Tongren by air, train or long-distance. When you start your Guizhou tour from Guiyang, it is suggested to take airplane or train from Guiyang to Tongren, since taking long-distance bus takes much more time, but the price is just slightly lower than taking airplane and train.

Things to Do in Tongren

The biggest highlight of Tongren tour is Mount Fanjing, a famous Buddhist mountain, which attracts a lot of Buddhist followers and tourists.

Mount Fanjing(梵净山)

Mount Fanjing, the main peak of Wuling mountain range, is a Buddhist monastery and nature reserve in China, and is one of the five famous Buddhist mountains in China and a national AAAAA level tourist attraction. It is located in central Tongren region, at the junction of Yinjiang, Jiangkou and Songtao, near the county seat of Yinjiang county, in the southeast of Jiangkou County and the southwest of Songtao County.

The total area of Mount Fanjing is 41,900 square kilometers, of which the core area is 25,800 square kilometers, the buffer area is 2,800 square kilometers, and the experimental area is 13,300 square kilometers. The main protection objects are the rare wild animals and plants represented by the Guizhou golden monkey, Davidia involucrate Baill, etc. With a forest coverage rate of 95%, there are more than 2,000 species of plants and 31 species are under state protection, 801 species of animals and 19 species are under state protection, known as "Oasis of Earth", "Gene Pool of Flora and Fauna" and "The Precious Heritage of Mankind".

Shiqian Hot Spring(石阡温泉)

The Shiqian Hot Spring is the first national hot spring group scenic spot and a national AAAA level scenic spot at the foot of Songming mountain in the south of Shiqian county, Guizhou province. Shiqian hot spring, also known as Chengnan hot spring, is one of the oldest hot springs in China. Its facilities were built in the 34th year of Wanli in the Ming dynasty (in 1606) and have a history of more than 400 years. With a unique traditional bathing culture, Shiqian hot spring is the only natural mineral spring that can be used for both bathing and drinking in China. Shiqian hot spring is rich in selenium, strontium, lithium, radon, zinc, iodine, metasilicic acid and other trace elements beneficial to human health care. It has good auxiliary medical effects on diabetes, coronary heart disease, hypertension, arthritis, neuritis and skin diseases, etc.