Things to do in Henan

The Longmen Grottoes were incredibly crowded, but considering it's one of the four major grottoes in China, the crowds made it worthwhile. The tour guide was excellent; she explained all the details of the scenic area very thoroughly. Thumbs up! 👍👍👍

Stepping into Qingming Riverside Landscape Garden is like opening a living "Dongjing Menghualu" (The Eastern Capital: A Dream of Splendor), with every step resonating with the bustling prosperity of a thousand years ago. Qingming Riverside Landscape Garden is a time labyrinth that allows you to fully immerse yourself in the Northern Song Dynasty; once you enter, you'll never want to leave.

3. A family trip, accompanying parents and children to visit Laojun Mountain. The scenery is stunning, the scenic area is well-managed, and the cable cars and trails are reasonably arranged, making queuing and passage very smooth. The whole family can enjoy the beautiful scenery of the sacred mountain, making the trip warm and pleasant.

It's very worthwhile, but it's also very crowded, which might slightly detract from the overall experience. However, the people are incredibly welcoming, and there are many beautiful spots for taking photos. The food is also affordable and inexpensive, which kids enjoy. I'll definitely go back when it's less crowded.

The price is quite reasonable. The main attractions are the performances and the interactive games with NPCs in the park where you can win silver tickets. I wouldn't recommend it when it's crowded. The "Three Attacks on Zhu Family Village" and "Iron Flower Show" require reservations after entering the park, which are quite difficult to book. Overall, it's okay.

The tour guide was incredibly professional, and the few hours flew by. She even piqued my mom's interest, as she doesn't usually enjoy museums, and listened attentively the whole time.

There was a slight unpleasantness with the merchant's customer service when making the reservation, as I had booked a guided tour of the Longmen Grottoes, but the merchant's page description was incorrect and I requested a refund, which they refused. I only got a refund after contacting the platform's customer service. Because of this unpleasant experience, I didn't have high expectations for the tour. However, once inside the museum, Mr. Pei's explanation was truly dedicated, and he was a very kind person; it was clear he genuinely loved the experience. Special praise! 👍 He made up for the merchant's shortcomings! 👍

At 9:00 AM, the gates of Kaifeng Prefecture were packed with people, all waiting to witness the opening ceremony. The ceremony was incredibly impressive. Entering through the main gate, one proceeds along the central axis from the prefectural gate, through the ceremonial gate, the main hall courtyard, the main hall, the council hall, and the Plum Blossom Hall. The eastern route includes the Kaifeng Prefectural Government Inscription Stele, Yinbin Hotel, Mingjing Lake, Xuanyue Mountain, Fan Gong Pavilion, Qianlong Palace, Qingxin Tower, and Mingli Academy. The western route features the Kaifeng Prefectural Government Inscription Stele, the Prefectural Prison, Yingwu Tower, the drill ground, the Five Sacred Mountains Map, and Tianqing Temple. During the chrysanthemum exhibition, beautiful displays adorn each hall. Visiting all the sites takes about half a day. Climbing Qingxin Tower offers a panoramic view of Kaifeng Prefecture and the distant cityscape.

The world famous Shoalin temple is within the Songshan scenic area. The almost theme park like entrance area is filled with food and souvenir shops, following the foot paths you should hit the performance centre depending on your timing you can catch a short indoor kung fu show. After that took a leisurely 20 min walk to the actual Shoalin temple grounds. You can rent electric buggy’s if you do t like to walk. It’s pretty much free and easy after this you could do hikes if you wanted. We took the two person Songyang cableway to the phoenix terraces to view the famous ‘book pages’ cliffs which is a short walk from the top station followed by a long flight of stairs, was pretty misty when we were there but a nice view anyway. Nice experience.

Yuntai Mountain Scenic Area, a 5A-level scenic area, is located in Xiuwu County, Jiaozuo City. It is one of the world's first Global Geoparks, encompassing areas such as Hongshixia (Red Stone Gorge), Tanpuxia (Panpu Gorge), and Zhuyu Peak. It is a science-based ecological tourism area characterized by the Taihang Mountains' waterscapes and rich geological features. We chose to visit the Hongshixia area, representing the core essence of the Yuntai Mountain Global Geopark (Figure 1). The main geological feature of the scenic area is purplish-red quartz sandstone dating back 1.2-1.4 billion years (Figure 2), formed by iron oxide staining and water erosion. The gorge is approximately 70 meters deep and 2000 meters long (Figure 3). The tour follows a one-way loop, avoiding backtracking, and walks along the cliffside plank road, taking approximately 2 hours. Along the way, cascading waterfalls, deep pools, and potholes abound, offering scenic views at every turn (Figure 4). Bailong Waterfall cascades down from a height of tens of meters, its water curtain forming a rainbow in the sunlight (Figure 5), attracting tourists to stop and take photos. There are many canyon scenic areas in China. Some have rugged rocks and sharp lines, but they are "dry," meaning they have no water or only a few streams—they are "dry canyons." However, the Red Stone Canyon we visited today, and the nearby Baquan Canyon in Shanxi, are "lush," with springs every three steps, waterfalls every five steps, and pools every ten steps. The majestic canyons paired with clear water are even more beautiful and pleasing to the eye (Figures 6-7). Zhuyu Peak, the highest point in the scenic area, is about 1297 meters above sea level. Its majestic appearance can be seen everywhere in the canyon (Figure 8). Wang Wei's famous poem "Remembering My Brothers in Shandong on the Ninth Day of the Ninth Lunar Month" was inspired by this place. The waterfalls, pools, and springs in the canyon have abundant water, unlike the dry season. Reaching the upper reaches near the exit and seeing Zifang Lake (Figure 9), we understand that this is the "constant and strong support" for the valley floor.