【Chaji Ancient Town|The Ink-Wash Secret Realm of Southern Anhui】
🌿【Why Choose Chaji?】
Avoid the crowds of Hongcun and Xidi; this is the living fossil of Huizhou architecture! Over 200 Ming and Qing dynasty ancient buildings are hidden among green mountains and clear waters, with streams flowing through the village. Morning mist shrouds the horse-head walls, and every snapshot looks like a National Geographic cover photo. Even more delightful, the village retains its most authentic everyday life—grandmas pounding clothes by the stream, old craftsmen making Mao tofu on site, and the air filled with the sweet fragrance of osmanthus rice wine.
📅【Best Time to Visit】
March to May for rapeseed flower seas, September to November for golden rice fields, summer for cool weather (average 25°C), and autumn for forests painted like oil paintings. In July, you can also experience the “Starry Sky Poetry Gathering,” where villagers recite Li Bai’s poems in front of Degong Hall, accompanied by the guqin—super healing!
🚗【Transportation Guide】
▫️High-speed rail to Jingxian Station → turn left out of the station and take the village minibus (11 RMB/person, 1 hour direct, last bus at 16:30)
▫️Self-driving: Navigate to “Chaji Ancient Town Parking Lot” (10 RMB/day), and you can also check in along the Southern Anhui Sichuan-Tibet route
▫️Tips: If you miss the bus, you can take a taxi to Hou’an (5 km), many homestay owners offer pick-up services
🏨【Accommodation Recommendations】
✅Guangyuan Building (💰from 128 RMB): Streamside scenic rooms, a self-built viewing platform on the third floor overlooking the whole village, the location for Chaji’s promotional photos! Free access to the rooftop for star photography, with the soothing sound of flowing water at night
✅Chaji Sanxi Homestay (💰400+ RMB): Newly opened in 2024, panoramic floor-to-ceiling windows + original wood design, bathtub facing green mountains, perfect for soaking and cloud watching
✅Tianshentang (💰from 150 RMB): Renovated Ming and Qing old house, WiFi password hidden in the courtyard couplets, experience the true charm of an ancient residence
✨Perks: Staying in a homestay inside the ancient town grants free admission, and owners can help purchase discounted tickets
📸【Must-Visit Photo Spots】
1. 【Honglou Bridge】Ming dynasty stone bridge + three-story red building, shoot the bridge and its reflection in the early morning mist, use live mode to capture the flowing ink-wash effect
2. 【Degong Hall House】Old house supported by Yuan dynasty nanmu wood pillars, the door arch features a “Carp Leaping over the Dragon Gate” brick carving, shooting upward with the door frame and sky creates a strong time-travel vibe
3. 【Guangyuan Building Viewing Platform】The highest point in the village, shoot the myriad lights at dusk, instantly turning into an ancient-style masterpiece once lanterns light up
4. 【Abandoned Water Mortar House】A hidden niche spot, an old house entwined with vines, paired with linen long shirts for a cinematic feel
5. 【Painter’s Village】Chance to see the same homestay as actor Hu Ge, watch art students from the Academy of Fine Arts create on site, cobblestone paths + easels make the most artistic scene
🍽️【Food Highlights】
✅Must-try list:
▫️Chaji Renjia: Beef hotpot + stinky mandarin fish stuffed tofu (average 55 RMB per person, say the code “Huizhou Three Carvings with Three Fresh” to unlock the hidden menu)
▫️Hehetang: Chestnut braised chicken + cured meat copper pot rice (you can specify the crispiness of the rice crust), slow-cooked over a wood fire for rich flavor
▫️Breakfast surprise: Bamboo shoot shumai + osmanthus rice wine brew (Chaji’s unique breakfast shop, bamboo tube cups available to take away)
▫️Mao tofu: Peiyuanqiao Restaurant charcoal-grilled on site, crispy outside and tender inside, dipped in spicy sauce, 5 RMB/piece, very satisfying
⚠️Avoid: Prices for Mao tofu in scenic area shops are chaotic; prioritize the homemade version by the 77-year-old grandma at “Chaji Tofu Workshop” (5 RMB/bowl)
🎨【In-Depth Experience Recommendations】
🔹【Architecture Enthusiast Route】: Honglou Bridge → Honggong Ancestral Hall (Yuan dynasty nanmu pillars) → Baogong Ancestral Hall (Ming dynasty wood carving essence) → Erjia Ancestral Hall (Qing dynasty ancestral hall pinnacle) → Painter’s Village (live art creation scene)
🔹【Photography Marathon Route】: Shoot upward at Degong Hall doorstep → Erjia Alley’s weathered walls (wait for an old man in a straw raincoat to enter the frame) → Qingshan Tower panoramic view (free tower access, full mountain clouds and tea fragrance, super healing)
🔹【Intangible Cultural Heritage Handcraft Experience】: Learn to make kudzu starch balls with villagers, or DIY handmade paper at Hongxing Xuan Paper Workshop (can engrave words as a souvenir)
🔹【Starry Sky Secret Spot】: After 10 PM, street lights turn off; shoot the Milky Way near the town entrance bridge or Xishe area, tripod recommended
⚠️【Practical Tips】
1. Ticket secret: May be free after 4 PM or save 10 RMB by buying through homestays
2. Avoid pitfalls: Don’t accept copper coins, don’t touch stone lions, don’t ask about ancestral hall plaques (local customs)
3. Dress suggestion: Wear linen long shirts + old cloth shoes (local tailor shop can customize for 50 RMB), cobblestone roads are non-slip and photogenic
4. Traffic tip: Southern Anhui Sichuan-Tibet route is prone to weekend traffic jams; enter the Taoling section before 7 AM
【Nearby Linked Activities】
▫️Taohuatan (30 minutes by car): Bamboo rafting across Qingyi River, retrace Li Bai’s “Taohuatan water is a thousand feet deep” water route, night light show is stunning
▫️Xuan Paper Cultural Park (40 minutes by car): Experience ancient papermaking, rub Li Bai’s poems and take home exclusive ink-wash artworks
▫️Huangtian Ancient Village (1 hour by car): Qing dynasty “Western-style ship houses” wonder, aerial view shows rooftops like decks, feel the oriental romance
The beauty of Chaji is hidden in the moss on the cobblestone roads, in the sound of old craftsmen hammering wood, and in the smoke rising gently at dusk. There is no noisy sightseeing here, only the tenderness of time’s sediment. Come to Chaji and turn your days into poetry~