Huizhou Ancient City

• Region: Anhui
• Region type: Province
• City: Not yet specified
• Destination type: Not yet specified

Huizhou Ancient City sits at the heart of She County in Huangshan City, Anhui Province, and is widely counted among China's four best-preserved old cities, alongside Lijiang, Pingyao, and Langzhong. Rather than a museum piece, it is a living town of stone-flagged lanes, whitewashed Hui-style houses with dark horse-head gables, and merchant mansions decorated with intricate wood, brick, and stone carvings. It grew wealthy as the home base of the Huizhou merchants, a trading network that dominated salt, tea, and timber commerce during the Ming and Qing dynasties and poured its profits back into ancestral halls, memorial arches, and academies. Visitors come both for standout monuments, such as the octagonal Xu Guo archway, and for the everyday texture of a town where residents still live among centuries-old buildings.

The ancient city occupies the old downtown core of She County (Shexian), a county under the administration of Huangshan City in southern Anhui Province. It lies roughly 23-25 kilometers northeast of Tunxi, the modern center of Huangshan City, and about 34 kilometers from Huangshan Tunxi International Airport. The site straddles the banks of the Lianjiang and Xin'an rivers, in the hilly Huizhou cultural region that also encompasses the nearby UNESCO villages of Xidi and Hongcun and, further afield, the peaks of Mount Huangshan itself.

She County shares Huangshan's humid subtropical monsoon climate, with clearly defined seasons. Spring and autumn are mild and comfortable, with daytime highs generally in the high teens to mid-20s Celsius, making them the most pleasant times to wander the old streets. Summers are hot and humid, with temperatures that can climb toward the mid-30s Celsius and a plum-rain season from mid-June to mid-July that brings the heaviest rainfall of the year. Winters are relatively mild for the latitude, with lows occasionally dropping close to freezing but rarely severe. Rain is possible in any month, so travelers should be prepared with a compact umbrella or light rain jacket regardless of season.

Spring (March to May) and autumn (September to November) are the recommended windows, offering mild temperatures, lower humidity, and clearer light for photographing the whitewashed facades and carved archways. Summer visits are workable but come with heat, humidity, and a higher chance of heavy rain during the June-July plum-rain period, while winter is quieter and can be atmospheric if snow dusts the rooftops, though it is colder and some outdoor sightseeing is less comfortable.

The site dates back to 221 BC, when She County was first established during the Qin Dynasty. It became the seat of a prefectural government under the Tang Dynasty, and in 1121 (some sources cite 1211, during the Song era) the prefecture was renamed from She Prefecture to Huizhou, a name that endured for roughly eight centuries. Huizhou remained an intact administrative unit governing six counties -- Shexian, Yixian, Xiuning, Qimen, Jixi, and Wuyuan -- until the late Qing Dynasty. The city's golden age arrived with the rise of the Huizhou merchants from the Ming Dynasty onward, whose wealth funded the mansions, ancestral halls, and memorial arches that still define the old town today.

Huizhou Ancient City is regarded as the cultural cradle of Huizhou civilization, a distinct regional identity with its own dialect, cuisine, and artistic traditions. The Huizhou merchants combined commercial success with Confucian scholarly values, reinvesting trading profits into education, ancestral temples, and elaborate residential architecture, producing the woodcarving, brick carving, and stone carving collectively known as the Three Carvings of Huizhou. The region is also credited as a source for the local opera traditions that fed into the development of Peking Opera in the 18th century, and Huizhou-style architecture and ink-making crafts (Huizhou inksticks and She inkstones) remain nationally recognized cultural heritage.

Walk the stone-flagged lanes of Doushan Street, a roughly 300-meter stretch of Ming-Qing merchant houses with carved doorways. Step inside the Huizhou Prefectural Government complex, the most complete surviving prefecture-level yamen in China, to see restored magistrate's halls and courtyards. Photograph the Xu Guo Stone Archway, China's only surviving eight-sided memorial arch. Explore Hui Garden for its carved brickwork and landscaped courtyards. Wander down to the Yuliang area to see the ancient stone dam on the river. Watch daily life continue in residential lanes away from the main tourist routes, and sample Huizhou snacks and chafing-dish cuisine from small local eateries along the way.

Xu Guo Stone Archway (1584) is the star attraction, an eight-pillared memorial arch carved with dragon and phoenix motifs, unique among surviving Chinese archways. The Huizhou Prefectural Government office (Huizhou Yamen) covers about 24,000 square meters and includes ceremonial halls and administrative quarters open to visitors. Doushan Street preserves rows of merchant residences with horse-head gable roofs and elaborate door carvings. Hui Garden (also called West Garden) showcases the Three Carvings tradition in a compact landscaped setting. The South and East Gate Towers retain construction techniques dating back to the Song Dynasty. Just outside the walls, the Yuliang Ancient Dam is a large stone weir on the Xin'an River with origins traced to the Tang Dynasty.

The easiest route from central Huangshan City (Tunxi) is by taxi or private car, a drive of roughly 40 minutes to under an hour covering about 23-25 kilometers. By public transport, take a coach from Huangshan (Tunxi) Bus Station to Shexian, then transfer to a local Shexian bus (route 4, or routes 1/2/3 depending on the drop-off point) to reach the old town. Travelers arriving by rail can take a train to Shexian Railway Station, or a high-speed train to Shexian North Station, and then continue by local bus or a short taxi ride. Huangshan Tunxi International Airport, about 34 kilometers away, is the nearest air gateway, with onward travel by taxi or bus.

The old town itself is open all day with no gate, but ticketed sites inside (Xu Guo Archway, Huizhou Yamen, Hui Garden, etc.) generally operate from around 8:00 AM to 5:00-5:30 PM. Hours can vary by season and site, so verify current hours before visiting.

Walking the streets of the ancient city is free. A single ticket to the Huizhou Yamen area costs about CNY 48, while a combined ticket covering the Yamen, Xu Guo Archway, Doushan Street, and other sites runs around CNY 95-100. Prices may vary seasonally, so verify current pricing before visiting.

Most visitors spend around 2 to 4 hours seeing the core sights; allow closer to a full day, or overnight, if combining the old town with the Yuliang riverside area and a slower wander through residential lanes.

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Local restaurants scattered through the old town and Doushan Street serve Huizhou cuisine, one of China's eight major regional culinary traditions, known for its use of wild herbs and preserved ingredients. Signature dishes to try include Huizhou-style stinky mandarin fish (fermented and pan-fried), hairy tofu with its distinctive fuzzy mold coating, braised bamboo shoots with cured pork, and the communal Huizhou chafing dish (huo guo style hotpot). Street snacks such as stone-baked rice cakes and sesame-crusted flatbreads are widely available from small vendors along the main lanes, making it easy to graze while sightseeing rather than sit down for a full meal.

The UNESCO World Heritage villages of Xidi and Hongcun, celebrated for their Ming and Qing residential architecture, are within reach of Huizhou Ancient City and commonly combined with it on a multi-day Huangshan itinerary. Chengkan Ancient Village, known for its distinctive bagua (eight-trigram) street layout, is another nearby historic settlement. Mount Huangshan (Yellow Mountain) itself, one of China's most famous scenic mountains, is the main draw of the wider region and typically requires a separate half-day to two-day visit. The Yuliang Ancient Dam and riverside district sit just outside the old city walls and can be reached on foot or by a short ride.

Nearest railway access is Shexian Railway Station or the high-speed Shexian North Station; the nearest airport is Huangshan Tunxi International Airport, about 34 km away; local Shexian city buses (routes 1, 2, 3, and 4) connect the old town to the wider county.

Huizhou Ancient City is generally a safe, low-key destination popular with domestic tourists, but visitors should still keep an eye on belongings in crowded lanes and markets, as pickpocketing can occur anywhere heavily trafficked by tourists. Stone-flagged streets can be uneven and slippery when wet, so wear sturdy, non-slip shoes, particularly during the humid summer rains. Some renovated sections mix modern shops among historic buildings, so stick to marked ticketed areas for the most authentic and well-maintained heritage sites. As with most of China, carry a copy of your passport for identification, and keep some cash on hand since small vendors may not accept international cards.

Comfortable, sturdy walking shoes are essential for the uneven stone-flagged lanes. Bring a compact umbrella or light rain jacket, since rain is possible in every season and especially likely during the summer plum-rain period. Sun protection (hat, sunscreen, sunglasses) is useful in spring through autumn, while a warmer layer is worth carrying in winter. A portable phone charger and offline map or translation app are practical given limited English signage in some areas, and small denominations of cash help for street snacks and minor purchases.

Combine a visit with the nearby villages of Xidi or Hongcun to make the most of a trip to the Huangshan area, since Huizhou Ancient City alone can be seen in a half-day. Arrive early in the morning to avoid the busiest tour-group hours, particularly around the Xu Guo Archway and Doushan Street. Buying the combined ticket up front is usually better value than paying per site if you plan to see the Yamen, archway, and garden. Wander beyond the main pedestrian street to see residential lanes where locals still live, for a quieter and more authentic sense of the old town. Confirm opening hours and ticket prices locally or through a hotel concierge before setting out, as these can shift seasonally.

China's national emergency numbers apply: police 110, ambulance 120, fire 119, and the national tourism complaint hotline 12301. For site-specific assistance, the Huizhou Ancient City ticketing/management offices have been listed with contact numbers +86-559-6526108 and +86-559-6533160.

This section is being updated and will be available shortly.

This section is being updated and will be available shortly.

This section is being updated and will be available shortly.

This section is being updated and will be available shortly.