Longji Rice Terraces

Lying approximately 22 kms from Longsheng County, the Longji Rice Terraces (龙脊梯田), first built in the Yuan Dynasty (1271 – 1368) and completed in the Qing Dynasty (1644 – 1912), is situated on the Longji Mountain (龙脊山) at the Ping’an Village (平安寨). Including the Ping’an Rice Terraces (平安梯田) and the Jinkeng Dazhai Rice Terraces (金坑大寨梯田), the Ping’an Rice Terraces have an altitude between 300m and 1100m above the sea level.

The road to the Rice Terraces is just like a ribbon winds around the mountain. The Longji Rice Terraces are built along the slope winding from the riverside up to the mountain top, the highest part being 880 m in elevation while the lowest part is 380 m. The coiling line that starts from the mountain foot up to the mountain top divides the mountain into layers of water glittering in the sun in spring, layers of green rice shoots in summer, layers of golden rice in fall, and layers of silvery frost in winter.

Time for travelling
It is not for hiking from January to March because there is nothing in most of the terraces. Between April and May, the terraces are filled with water for planting seedlings. From June to the end of September, the terraces are decorated by greens. When rice gets yellow between the end September and the early November, the fields will shock you with its yellow ribbons. You will be amazed by the power of the Chinese people and their wisdom in ancient times when you enjoy the surroundings in autumn around terraces. Therefore, you could get different experiences at different time around the year. You could hike to the terraces or take a cable there from the foot of the mountain.

Transport
You can take a bus from the Guilin Qintan Bus Station (桂林琴潭汽车站) to the Longsheng Bus Station (龙胜汽车站). The fee is about CNY 35 per person. And then transfer to the bus for the Longji Rice Terraces.