Chengyang Eight Villages Dong Ethnic Style
Today, I want to share with you a stunning off-the-beaten-path travel destination—Chengyang Eight Villages🎉! It feels like a corner forgotten by time, preserving the purest Dong ethnic customs, guaranteed to make you fall in love instantly💖!
📍Chengyang Eight Villages is located in Linxi Town, Sanjiang Dong Autonomous County, Liuzhou City, Guangxi.
✈ If you’re flying in, you can first arrive at Liuzhou Bailian Airport, then take the high-speed train to Sanjiang South Station, and finally take a taxi to the scenic area🚕.
🚄 If you choose to travel by high-speed train, just get off at Sanjiang South Station. After exiting, a taxi ride of about 30 minutes will get you to the scenic area, costing around 50 yuan💰.
🚗 For those driving, just navigate to “Chengyang Eight Villages Scenic Area.” It’s about a 3-hour drive from Guilin and around 2.5 hours from Liuzhou🛣️.
There are many unique homestays in the scenic area🏠. I highly recommend experiencing a stilt house homestay! Waking up in the morning, opening the window to breathe fresh air, and feeling the beauty of nature🌳.
For example, the “Yueye Ge Tang” homestay not only has a prime location with a beautiful view of Yongji Bridge right outside the window but also features a terrace for stargazing✨. At night, you can join the fire pit tea party, which is super fun🥰.
The “Nanyi Homestay” is also great, a designer-style stilt house with a bathtub facing the terraced fields, making you feel one with nature while soaking🛀.
If you want to save some money, the “Chengyang Bridge Hotel” outside the scenic area is a good choice, costing about 150 yuan per night. It’s just a 5-minute walk to the village, offering excellent value for money👍.
🏯Chengyang Yongji Bridge: This is the iconic landmark of Chengyang Eight Villages, known as one of the “World’s Four Great Historical Bridges.” It spans the Linxi River, with a unique design featuring blue stone piers and a wooden deck topped with multiple pavilions and towers—truly spectacular👏. Standing on the bridge, feeling the breeze, and admiring the flowing water and scenery on both sides is incredibly relaxing😌.
🌉Puji Bridge: Compared to Yongji Bridge, Puji Bridge is more rustic and tranquil. It attracts fewer tourists, making it a great spot for photography📸. Arrive around 7 a.m. when the mist hasn’t lifted yet, and the whole bridge seems shrouded in a fairyland, creating photos with an amazing atmosphere✨.
🎇Drum Towers: Chengyang Eight Villages has several drum towers, each with its own story. At the Ma’an Drum Tower, you can learn spinning thread from a Dong grandmother🧵 and experience traditional handicrafts; at the Yanzhai Drum Tower, you can hear the village elder tell stories about the Dong “Kuan Yue” agreements, like a living Dong legal code📜, very fascinating. After 8 p.m., by the fire pit at the drum towers, you can enjoy roasted sweet potatoes🍠 and listen to pipa songs—a truly soul-soothing moment🎶.
🍱Hundred Family Banquet: You must try the Hundred Family Banquet🥘! For 68 yuan per person, carry a bamboo basket to collect ingredients from each household, prepare food together, cook together, and share the feast. Here, you can taste special dishes like sour fish🐟, glutinous rice wine🍶, and niu bie soup (a challenge for the brave😜). The singing contest is also fun—if you win against the girls, you might even get your meal for free🎤!
🎨Intangible Cultural Heritage Handicrafts: At the Dong cloth tie-dye workshop (Yanzhai), you can dye a unique starry blue scarf🧣 with indigo root and enjoy the fun of tie-dyeing; at Grandpa’s bamboo weaving class (Pingzhai), you can weave a little grasshopper🦗 yourself, experiencing the charm of traditional bamboo weaving and bringing back a meaningful travel souvenir🎁.
🍵Youcha Banquet: This is a special Dong ethnic breakfast! Made from fried rice, scallions, tea leaves, and more, the savory and fragrant youcha instantly energizes you💪.
🐟Sour Meat and Sour Fish: At “A Jie’s Kitchen” in Yanzhai, you must try the sour meat and sour fish🐟. These are fermented in wooden barrels for over three years, with a unique flavor that pairs perfectly with glutinous rice😍.
🐟Grilled Fish Feast: By the riverbank, you can catch rice flower fish and skewer them on branches to grill🔥, full of wild charm. The grilled fish is crispy outside, tender inside, and incredibly aromatic, leaving you wanting more😋.
🍶Glutinous Rice Wine: Don’t miss drinking plenty of glutinous rice wine at the Hundred Family Banquet🍷. It tastes sweet but has a strong kick, so don’t overindulge😜.
👟Most paths in Chengyang Eight Villages are paved with bluestone slabs and can be slippery when wet, so be sure to wear non-slip shoes to avoid falling😵.
🧴The UV rays here are strong, and there are many mosquitoes, so remember to take sun protection and mosquito repellent measures. Bring sunscreen, a sun hat🧢, mosquito repellent, and other essentials to avoid sunburn and insect bites🦟.
🎒Since most homestays are on slopes, dragging a suitcase is inconvenient. It’s recommended to carry a backpack for an easy and enjoyable trip😃.
😃The Dong people here are very warm and hospitable. Be brave and chat with them! You might hear many interesting stories and legends📖.
🎉Chengyang Eight Villages is truly a charming place. Whether it’s the unique architecture, delicious food, or warm people, it’s unforgettable💕. Everyone, pack your bags and come start an unforgettable journey here🚀!