[2025 Dingzhou Attraction] Travel guide for Dingzhou Confucian Temple (updated Dec)

Dingzhou is a county-level city under Hebei Province, with a history of over 2,600 years. It was the capital of the Zhongshan Kingdom during the Warring States period, the Zhongshan region in the Han dynasties, and the Later Yan dynasty, making it a major birthplace of Zhongshan culture. Here, you will find not only profound historical and cultural heritage but also rich natural landscapes and delicious food, making it a worthwhile travel destination. Below is a detailed introduction to traveling in Dingzhou: Day 1: Historical and Cultural Journey 🌞 Morning itinerary: 📍 Dingzhou Museum Address: No. 107 Zhongshan Middle Road, Dingzhou City Highlight: National first-class museum! Don’t miss the "Gold Thread Jade Burial Suit," the museum’s treasure! 🏺 Recommended visit duration: 2-3 hours (Tip: Reserve in advance via the official WeChat account for free admission) 📍 Kaiyuan Temple Pagoda, Dingzhou Address: No. 56 Zhongxing East Road, Dingzhou City Opening hours: 8:30 AM - 5:30 PM Must-do: Climb the 83.7-meter brick pagoda for a panoramic view of the city! 📸 (Note: Wear non-slip shoes~) 🍜 Lunch recommendation Try authentic "Dingzhou Menzi" + hand-torn sausage Recommended restaurant: Lao Guo Menzi (Song Street branch) 🌙 Afternoon itinerary: 📍 Confucian Temple, Dingzhou Address: Qingfeng South Road, Dingzhou City Must-see: The twin dragon and phoenix locust trees personally planted by Su Shi! 🌳 Visiting tip: Pay respects to the Confucius statue and pray for academic success 📍 Gongyuan Examination Hall, Dingzhou Address: 100 meters west of Dongfang Xintiandi Fun experience: Dress up as a Ming or Qing dynasty exam candidate for a time-traveling adventure 📝 🌃 Nightfall Recommended night stroll on Song Street! The ancient buildings under the lights are breathtaking 🌠 For dinner, choose "Eight Big Bowls," each dish with its own story! 🌿 Day 2: Natural Ecology and Slow Living 📍 Zhongchun Garden Address: Northwest side of Dongsheng Ecological Park Northern Song Dynasty garden! Immersive time-travel experience is super fun 💫 "Zhongchun Eight Scenes" are stunning photo spots 📍 Dongsheng Ecological Park Address: G107 (Jinggang Line), Dingzhou City Must-see: Tropical plant pavilion + four-season flower sea Highly family-friendly 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 🍷 Afternoon itinerary: 📍 Huangjia Winery Wine tasting + one-stop tour experience (If driving, please don’t drink~) 📍 Zhaicheng Historical and Cultural Street The story of Yan Yangchu’s education is definitely worth learning about! Great place to shop for cultural and creative goods 🛍️ 🚗 Day 3 (Optional): Explore the millennium secrets at the Han Tomb Stone Carving Museum Be amazed by the exquisite murals at Dadao Temple 🎨 🏨 Accommodation recommendations: Best value: Dingzhou International Hotel Artistic style: Boutique homestay on Song Street ✨ Tips: 1. Scenic area combo tickets are more cost-effective! 2. Bring sun protection gear 3. Be sure to wear comfortable shoes

This is the best-preserved ancient examination site in northern China, as if traveling back to the imperial examination era📚 📍Address: No. 22, Caocang Hutong, North District, Dingzhou City, Hebei Province 🎟Ticket: Adult ticket 30 RMB/person ⏰Opening hours: 8:30-17:30 🏯 Architectural highlights: 1️⃣ Gongyuan complex built in 1738 Covering an area of 22,150㎡, the most complete imperial examination site in northern China The two main buildings, Haoshe and Kuige, are especially worth seeing! 🖋 Kuige and Haoshe are stunning: - Space to accommodate hundreds of examinees - The half-pitched four-cornered Kuige structure is magnificent - Houses a "Kuixing" dot-shaped sculpture with a strong ceremonial feel✨ (It is said to have been added during the renovation in the Daoguang period~) 🌳 Qianlong Twin Sophora Legend: Two ancient sophora trees were personally planted by Emperor Qianlong during his six southern tours! The historical vibe is amazing👑 📸 Plenty of photo spots: 1️⃣ The free stamp collection point at the entrance is a must-visit 2️⃣ Various ancient examination scenes make great photos anywhere 3️⃣ You can take pictures with Kuixing and the "Kaopeng" plaque 4️⃣ After visiting Gongyuan, nearby are the Confucian Temple, Kaiyuan Temple Pagoda, Yan Yangchu’s former residence, all nationally protected, and it’s also close to Dingzhou Museum (a national first-class museum) 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Parent-child experience: Bringing kids here to feel the college entrance exam atmosphere in advance is so much fun! I joked with my kid, "There are 2,861 days until your college entrance exam" The kid’s confused expression was super cute😂

Zhengding Ancient Town Travel Guide • Must-Visit Attractions: Longxing Temple is renowned as the "Foremost Temple Outside Beijing." Rongguo Mansion served as a filming location for *Dream of the Red Chamber*. The Zhengding Ancient City Wall, a Ming Dynasty relic, offers scenic views from the South Gate Tower. Zhao Yun Temple showcases the life and deeds of the legendary general. • Food Recommendations: Try the ribs at Zhen Ding Haojia Ribs, sample the traditional *hele* noodles at Chen Hezi Hele Village, and don’t miss local specialties like Zhengding Eight Bowls. • Accommodation: For upscale stays, check into Jianguo Puyin Hotel (Shijiazhuang Zhengding Ancient Town Branch), conveniently located within the ancient town. For budget-friendly options, GERISLE Geyu Hotel (Zhengding Ancient Town Small Commodities Night Market Branch) offers great value and a lively atmosphere. Zhuozhou Travel Guide • Must-Visit Attractions: Zhuozhou Museum blends classical gardens with modern architecture, offering insights into local history. Huayang Park is perfect for leisurely strolls. Gao Family Courtyard, built in the late Qing Dynasty, exudes historical charm. • Food Recommendations: Savor Zhuozhou tribute rice and Dukang noodles at various local restaurants. • Accommodation: For luxury, Shuian Huacheng Hotel provides free parking and late-night snacks. Budget travelers can opt for GreenTree Inn (Zhuozhou Railway Station City Government Branch), with convenient transport and parking. Bazhou Travel Guide • Must-Visit Attractions: Shengfang Ancient Town, known as the "Water Town of the North," features unique architecture like Shengfang Museum and Wang Family Courtyard. Dabeisi Temple is grand and awe-inspiring. Bazhou is rich in hot springs—relax at Mingtang Hot Spring Resort. • Food Recommendations: Don’t miss Shengfang crispy candy, Bazhou smoked fish, and fresh river delicacies like Shengfang river crab. • Transportation: Take a high-speed train to Bazhou West Station from Beijing or Tianjin, or drive for easy access. Dingzhou Travel Guide • Must-Visit Attractions: Dingzhou Museum houses three national treasures. Kaiyuan Temple Pagoda is one of China’s tallest ancient brick pagodas. Dingzhou Imperial Examination Hall is a well-preserved ancient exam site. Visit the Double Scholar Trees at Dingzhou Confucian Temple. • Food Recommendations: Head to Chongwen Street or Hui Muslim Street for crispy baked cakes, Dingzhou stewed dishes, and hand-torn sausages. Zhongshan Banquet offers Han culture-themed dining. • Accommodation: For upscale stays, Dingzhou Xiangjiang Wanda Jin Hua Hotel overlooks Times Park. Budget travelers can choose UP Huayi Smart Travel Hotel (Dingzhou Ancient Town Chongwen Street Branch), surrounded by great food and convenient transport.

**Dingzhou Travel Guide: A Cultural Journey Through Millennia, Unlocking Hidden Gems!** **🌟 Dingzhou Highlights** - **Underrated Historical City**: Ancient capital of the Zhongshan State, Hebei's "low-key champion," home to national-level relics and non-commercialized ancient towns. - **Convenient Transportation**: 1.5-hour high-speed train ride from Beijing, 30-minute drive from Shijiazhuang Airport—perfect for a weekend getaway! - **Great Value**: Nearly free admission, budget-friendly for students. --- **📅 Best Time to Visit** - **Spring & Autumn (April-May/September-October)**: Pleasant weather, fewer crowds, and stunning ginkgo trees near Kaiyuan Temple Pagoda in autumn. - **Avoid Mondays**: Some museums are closed. --- **🚗 Transportation Guide** - **High-Speed Train**: Beijing West → Dingzhou East (1.5h). - **Self-Drive**: Exit at Dingzhou on the Jinggang'ao Expressway; parking is convenient in the city (attractions are clustered, walking or shared bikes recommended). --- **📍 Must-Visit Attractions** **1. Dingzhou Kaiyuan Temple Pagoda (Dingzhou Pagoda)** - **Highlights**: The "No. 1 Pagoda of China" from the Northern Song Dynasty, 84 meters tall with climbable stairs and exquisite brick carvings. - **Tips**: Reserve in advance for tower climbing; best photos at sunset; light shows at the square below at night. **2. Dingzhou Museum** - **Treasures**: Eastern Han Dynasty jade bi with dragon and chi patterns, Northern Dynasties white stone Buddha statues. - **Hidden Gem**: Interactive area on the third floor for Dingzhou Pagoda-themed souvenir stamps. **3. Dingzhou Confucian Temple** - **Quirky Surprise**: Tang Dynasty ancient locust tree + Ming Dynasty Lingxing Gate; locals pray here for academic success at the Confucius statue. - **Nearby**: Sip jasmine tea at old teahouses on Wenmiao Street for a taste of local life. **4. Yan Yangchu's Former Residence & Dingzhou Ancient City Wall** - **History Buffs' Must-See**: Birthplace of mass education; free walks along the remaining wall sections with atmospheric night lighting. **5. Chongwen Street Night Market** - **Foodie Paradise**: Try "Hao Family Spare Ribs," "Dingzhou Steamed Pork Buns," and donkey meat burgers. --- **🍜 Food Map** - **Must-Eats**: - **Dingzhou Steamed Pork (Menzhi)**: Made from sweet potato starch, sliced and dipped in vinegar and garlic; try "Wangji Menzhi" (old shop on Zhongshan Middle Road). - **Hand-Torn Sausage**: Pork sausage with balanced fat and lean meat, best eaten cold; vacuum-packed for takeaway. - **Ganglu Sesame Cake**: Perfect with donkey meat or menzhi. - **Breakfast Pick**: South Gate Tofu Pudding (add chili) + fried dough sticks. --- **🏨 Accommodation Tips** - **Budget-Friendly**: Dingzhou International Hotel (near the museum), Hanting (Zhongshan Road branch). - **Unique Stay**: "Yan Yangchu Cultural Inn" (renovated traditional courtyard). --- **📌 Practical Tips** 1. **One-Day Itinerary**: Dingzhou Pagoda → Museum → Confucian Temple → Chongwen Street Night Market (ideal for weekend trips from Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei). 2. **Hidden Perk**: Show your high-speed train ticket for discounts at some attractions. 3. **Avoid Scams**: Be cautious with roadside "antique stalls"—real artifacts are in the museum! --- **✨ Dingzhou is like an overlooked history book—take a day to flip through its pages, and every turn holds a surprise!**

#discoverchina 🗺️ One-Day Itinerary Zhongchunyuan Garden Song Dynasty Street Dingzhou Museum Kaiyuan Temple Pagoda Chongwen Street Dingzhou Yamen (Old Government Office) Confucian Temple (Wenmiao) Zhongshan Han Tomb Back to Kaiyuan Pagoda by night 📸 Top Photo Spots & Must-Sees 🧱 1. Kaiyuan Temple Pagoda — MUST VISIT Known as the “King of Northern Song Wooden Pagodas” Standing 84 meters tall — serious ancient drama energy 😍 Tip: Climbing the tower requires a reservation. You can still snap great photos outside. 🏺 2. Dingzhou Museum — Free Entry! Don’t miss the Big Three: Jade screen carved with celestial scenes Dragon jade disc Lotus-carved dragon-head porcelain vase from Ding Kiln Bonus: Han Dynasty gold-thread jade burial suit, and Su Shi’s “Snow Wave Stone” 🏛 3. Dingzhou Confucian Temple — 10 RMB entry Built in the Tang Dynasty, full of historic charm 📸 Photo tip: Red walls at the entrance = perfect backdrop Check out the ancient “Su Shi Twin Scholartrees” 🌳 🏞 4. Zhongchunyuan Garden — Free! Newly opened classical-style garden based on Song Dynasty design Pavilions, water features, bridges… even replicas of the Eight Views of Dingzhou Wear modern hanfu or a long dress and you’ll be the scenery 💃 #travel #thingstodo

| The teacher is the most sacred and unique. 👍Most recommended: Hebei Dingzhou Confucius Temple is located next to the west gate of Chongwen Street. The Confucius Temple is mainly a place to commemorate Confucius. There is a stone tablet less than ten meters away from the Confucius Temple that reads "Civil and military officials and civilians dismount here", which shows respect for Confucius. There are two old locust trees in the courtyard of the Confucius Temple, which were planted by Su Dongpo himself. Su Dongpo only spent 7 months in Dingzhou, which is the northernmost place he has ever been to (it was already the border of Song and Liao dynasties at that time, and the famous Dingzhou Tower was used as a lookout tower). When Su Dongpo was the governor of Dingzhou, he planted two locust trees in the Confucius Temple. The east one is like a dancing phoenix, and the west one is like a divine dragon. Today, these two locust trees are still alive and are called "Dongpo Shuanghuai". Cross the millennium time and space, and admire and pay tribute to this excellent literati. Ticket: CNY 10, available for purchase at the ticket office at the entrance. Business hours: 8:30-17:00.

In ancient times, inscribing on the beams during house construction was a long-standing custom. It typically included information such as the construction year of the building, the names of the craftsmen, the owner of the house or the financier, and some even added poems and auspicious phrases. This allowed future generations to know a lot of specific information about the house, and sometimes it could even serve as proof of property ownership. 📷📷📷📷 When looking up at the Wen Temple in Dingzhou, one can find inscriptions on the beam. At a glance, it reads something about XX supervising the work, the tribute scholar XXX, and the associate XXX, with handwriting that is still quite clear, which is quite surprising. The entire temple has a long history, dating back to the late Tang Dynasty, and it is the seventh batch of national key cultural relics protection units. Of course, today it is mainly the remains of ancient buildings from the Qing Dynasty. 🖼️🖼️🖼️🖼️ The courtyard also has two locust trees that were personally planted by Su Dongpo when he was the governor of Dingzhou, which are now over 900 years old. The stone carvings scattered in the courtyard also exude a sense of the ages. It's another day with new discoveries.

Dingzhou Confucian Temple, also known as the "Confucius Temple", is a place for worshipping Confucius. It was first built in the 12th year of the Tang Dynasty (858 AD). The worship activities have lasted for more than a thousand years. It was once called "Fuxue", "Zhouxue" or "Xuegong" in history. It has the reputation of "Zhongshan Temple Learning is used throughout the world". Dingzhou Confucian Temple covers an area of ​​15,685 square meters, and currently has three adjacent north courtyards and a south courtyard in the east, west and center. The South Courtyard is a quadrangle-style chastity and filial piety temple. The three northern courtyards are each of the central axis type. The main buildings of the east courtyard are Kuixing Pavilion and Chongsheng Temple; the main buildings of the west courtyard are the main gate, Yimen, and Minglun Hall; the main buildings of the central courtyard are Panchi, Lingxing Gate, Jimen, and Dacheng Hall. The layout of the Confucian Temple is neat, and it has basically maintained the architectural pattern before the Ming Dynasty. It is the most complete Confucian Temple in Hebei Province and was listed as a national key cultural relic protection unit in 2013. The majestic ancient buildings, the lush and flourishing Dongpo Twin Sophora japonica trees (built in 929), the vigorous and upright ancient cypresses, the flourishing Sophora japonica trees and the Falling Star Stone that fell from the sky make Dingzhou Confucian Temple an elegant environment.

You can shoot... arrows inside the Dingzhou Confucian Temple ~ After leaving the Gongyuan, I was so thirsty that I bought a cup of 'Poor Ghost Coffee' at the antique-style pedestrian street and gulped it down. A few hundred meters further west, I arrived at the Dingzhou Confucian Temple. Inside, there are two rather novel attractions. One is the 'Falling Star Stone,' which is a meteorite. According to the Qing Dynasty 'Annals of Dingzhou,' about two li west of the state capital, on the left side of the road, there is a stone lying obliquely, three to four feet in length and one foot seven inches thick. Its quality is pure and hard, and its color is reddish-yellow like unpolished jade. It is said that a star fell here and turned into a stone, hence the common name 'Falling Star Stone.' However... this stone doesn't quite look like the meteorites I've seen in science articles... ^_^ The second is the 'Su Dongpo Twin Pagoda Trees.' Su Dongpo, a gourmet of the Northern Song Dynasty, served as the governor of Dingzhou from 1093 to 1094. According to the Qing Dynasty 'Annals of Dingzhou,' Su Dongpo planted two pagoda trees when he came to the Confucian Temple to worship Confucius. The eastern one is like a dancing phoenix, and the western one is like a divine dragon, which later generations praised as the 'Dragon and Phoenix Twin Pagoda Trees.' To this day, they are lush and thriving (they had not yet sprouted in early March ^_^). There is also an interesting group of 'Pagoda Trees Embracing a Chinese Toon' nearby. In the eastern courtyard, you can spend some money to practice 'shooting,' one of the 'Six Arts.' Admission is 10 yuan.

Such a comfortable place! Wenjiang, you're not promoting it?! Foolish... It's so big inside, it's a great place to stroll around! I even got lost😂!! This environment, it's not appropriate if you don't get a skewer! Meat skewers are 4r, vegetable skewers are 1r, the prices are touching!! I've found the gathering place for Wenjiang people😎 Next to it is the Confucius Temple, it can be arranged on the weekend~