Xiamen – Yongding Day Tour B

You will be picked up at your hotel at 8:00am (or as confirmed in advance by your guide) and taken on a three hour drive through the countryside to Yongding County to explore the intriguing Chuxi Tulou Cluster.

Most famous amongst the buildings are the typical round Hakka style buildings: Jiqing Lou and Shanqing Lou; and the square Shengqing Lou and Yuqing Lou.

Exploration begins at the oldest and largest, Jiqing Lou, dating from the Ming dynasty. Configuration of the building comprises outer and inner concentric circles with four floors. Independent space for all households is ensured with 72 staircases.

Shanqing Lou is the most recent, having been built in 1979 by overseas Chinese donations, and decorated with marble on the first floor and in the courtyard. Shenqing Lou is a typical rectangle earthen building with two concentric squares.

At the riverside Yuqing Lou, the round communal residence with three stories has a courtyard featuring a brick and wood square ancestral altar.

From exhibits at the Tulou Museum there is much to learn about the development of distinctive Tulou architecture and the historical evolution of the exotic Hakka culture.

Lunch is left to your own arrangement and you may wish to taste some authentic Hakka cuisine.

Another 30 minute drive will take you to Nanxi Tulou Cluster, a beautiful village of dwellings scattered amongst green mountains and lush vegetation. Scenery is made more picturesque by the ash-black capped circular earthen walls of the dwellings dotted throughout the landscape.

Hidden gems are revealed as you guide takes you visiting individual family buildings, such as the elegant Zhenfu Lou and the literary family Yanxiang Lou. Throughout the day, you can admire the stunning terraced landscape that changes with the seasons and is especially beautiful in May and September.

Conclude your whole day Tulou tour by sitting back and relaxing on the comfortable three hours return trip to your hotel in Xiamen.