[2025 Kunming Attraction] Travel Guide for Kunming Confucian Temple (Updated Apr)

#springwander Often called Kunming’s “Little Forbidden City,” Wen Miao carries the charm of history in its elegant courtyards and grand architecture. A stroll here feels like stepping into a quieter, more intimate reflection of the past. For photography lovers, the prime spot is right at Nine Rhino Bakery—where the entrance frames a perfect shot. Want an extra touch? Head up to the second floor for a window-framed perspective of this cultural gem. In the soft light of spring, Wen Miao offers a scene both timeless and poetic. 🏛️✨📷

How many people pass by this elegant place hidden in the bustling city without knowing it~ Red walls and golden tiles, flying eaves and brackets, carved beams and painted buildings, 🏫 Swaying bamboo forest, fragrant books, evergreen pines and cypresses, and proud ginkgo trees🌿 The antique buildings form a sharp contrast with the surrounding high-rise buildings. The current Confucian Temple was moved here during the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty and has a history of more than 300 years. A typical three-door, four-column stone archway Three gates: the middle one is Lingxing Gate, the main gate of the Confucian Temple The left and right are "Li Gate" and "Yi Road" Inside are ancient buildings such as Panchi, Bishui Bridge, Dacheng Gate, Dacheng Study, and Dacheng Hall. 🧎 Confucian Temple Tickets: Free🎫 No reservations required, no incense burning 📍Confucian Temple is located at No. 96 Renmin Middle Road, Wuhua District, Kunming It is located in the downtown area, very close to Nanping Street, next to Zhengyifang. 🚇 Take the bus to Zhengyi Road and walk 200 meters to the destination. 🚇 Take Metro Line 5 to Huashan West Road Station Exit D and walk 600 meters to the destination. Navigation: Confucian Temple

Home make bakery shop, the shop atmosphere is very good, take beautiful pictures. In the shop, there is a bookstore, a cat cafe inside the shop.

🌸Kunming is not a fast-moving consumer attraction like instant noodles, nor is it a transit station to other travel destinations in Yunnan, but a Pu'er old tea that needs to be savored carefully. 🌹During my three-day trip, I used Zen to tap the folds of time on the first day, used ecology to feed back historical imagination on the second day, and searched for the anchor point of the intersection of civilizations in the modern and contemporary waves on the last day, and finally let this "Spring City" appear in the multi-dimensional vibration of taste, touch and vision. Day 1⃣: A time-space compass where Sanskrit and Confucianism interweave Caoxi Temple→Wenquan Cliff Carvings→Anning Confucian Temple (Anning Museum)→Jingzhu Temple→Kunming Confucian Temple→Zhengyifang Kunming Old Street The Song Dynasty wooden hall of Caoxi Temple hides the creative translation of Central Plains architecture by craftsmen of Nanzhao State. The dialogue between Kublai Khan's "Zhenhai Shenci" and Yang Sheng'an's poems in the Wenquan Cliff Carvings reveals that Yunnan has always been a melting pot of Central Plains civilization and frontier wisdom. In the afternoon, I looked up at the Qing Dynasty clay sculptures of 500 Arhats at Jingzhu Temple. These laughing and scolding gods, wearing straw sandals and smoking dry tobacco, were clearly the various forms of the caravans on the Ancient Tea-Horse Road. In the evening, we turned into the Kunming Confucian Temple. The mottled cracks on the chiwen of the Dacheng Hall formed a montage with the newly built wall of the internet-famous coffee on Zhengyifang Old Street. At this moment, I tasted the wild mushrooms steamed in a Jianshui steam pot in the "Laodian Mountain Village", and I was surprised to find that the so-called tradition is never a specimen, but an active gene that is constantly reorganized. Day 2⃣: A civilization index constructed by gull feathers and bronze Feeding seagulls at Haigeng Dam→Xishan Scenic Area→Yunnan Provincial Museum The red-billed gulls at Haigeng Dam in the early morning are not only an ecological business card, but also a reflection of the bronze buckle of the "Feathered Man Racing" of the ancient Dian Kingdom. As bread crumbs drew silver arcs in the air, two thousand years ago, priests on the shores of Dianchi Lake might have been scattering shell money to the water god. Climbing up the Longmen Gate on the Western Hills, the relief of the five-line musical scores in front of Nie Er's tomb and the flying eaves of the Sanqing Pavilion Taoist Temple form a wonderful polyphony - this is not only the home of the musician's soul, but also the sacred place where the royal family of Nanzhao Kingdom worshipped the sky. In the afternoon, I stopped in front of the gilded knight shell container in the Yunnan Provincial Museum. The horse-leading men and umbrella-holders solidified in bronze suddenly overlapped with the oil-paper umbrella in the hands of the Bai grandmother who passed by me while feeding gulls in the morning. Spending the night by the Dianchi Lake, the rising steam from the sauerkraut beef hotpot clearly carries the codes written alternately by the ancient Dian, Yi, and Han people. Day 3⃣: The birthmark of modernity blending blood and green Military Academy→Cuihu Park→Yunnan University (Donglu Campus)→Lu's Mansion→Zhenqing Temple→Golden Temple→Expo Park→Airport In the Generals' Corridor of the Military Academy, the swords of the heroes still shine coldly; turning into the bank of Cuihu Lake, the echo of Wen Yiduo's last speech still trembles among the crabapple flowers; under the Baroque dome of Yunnan University Huize Academy, the calculus formula calculated by Xiong Qinglai and the bells of the border caravans once resonated wonderfully. Touch the telegraph keys of the National Protection Movement under the French columns of the Lu Mansion, and go to the shadows of the crape myrtle flowers in the Zhenqing Temple to watch the Taoist nuns studying quantum mechanics - the magic of this city is that it can always allow seemingly opposing things to complete genetic recombination. When the sword of Wu Sangui in the Golden Temple and the flags of all nations in the Expo Park appeared at the same time in the twilight, I realized that Kunming’s modernity was destined as early as when it became the "Crossroads of Asia". Attached is the 3⃣day 3⃣night itinerary: Day 1⃣Chengdu→Kunming Arrive in Kunming in the evening of the first day, pick up the car, and check in to the hotel Day 2⃣ Caoxi Temple→Wenquan Cliff Carvings→Anning Confucian Temple (Anning Museum)→Qingzhu Temple→Kunming Confucian Temple→Zhengyifang Kunming Old Street Food: Shushupu Sour Bamboo Chicken, Laodian Mountain Village Yunnan Cuisine Day 3⃣ Feeding seagulls at Haigeng Dam→Xishan Scenic Area→Yunnan Provincial Museum Food: Xishan Farmhouse, Pickled Cabbage Beef Day 4⃣Kunming→Chengdu Army Military Academy→Cuihu Park→Yunnan University (Donglu Campus)→Lu's Mansion→Zhenqing Temple→Golden Temple→Expo Park→Airport Food: Yunnan snacks ✔️TIPS for sightseeing: 1⃣It is recommended to rent a car. Although Kunming is not big, the distance between attractions is far, and it is more convenient to drive by yourself; 2⃣If you stay in the city, it is recommended to choose Cuihu or Jinbi area

The first "Confucius Temple" in Yunnan Province! It was first built in the tenth year of Xianchun in the Southern Song Dynasty (1274). It was built by Sayyid Ajjal Shams al-Din, an outstanding politician of the Yuan Dynasty in my country, on the right side of Wuhua Mountain in Kunming. After the Revolution of 1911, the Kunming Confucian Temple became a popular paradise for the common people of Kunming, with a teahouse, chess room, newspaper reading room, opera lantern room and lighted open-air stadium. To date, the relevant departments have renovated it many times and it was once renamed "Public Amusement Park" and "Kunming People's Art Museum". 📍Detailed address: No. 96 Renmin Middle Road, Wuhua District, Kunming City 🚗Transportation strategy: 🚌There is a Confucian Temple bus stop 🚇The subway can take you to Huashan West Road Station ⏰Best time: 9:00--17:00 💰Ticket price: Free🆓 🌟Highlights: There is a [Spring City Living Room] bookstore at the entrance of the Confucian Temple, which is designed in a very 🈶style. The first floor is a book area, and there are also some exhibitions, cultural creations, handcrafts, etc. Going up the spiral staircase on the second floor, there is an open area, which should be used for salons, book sharing sessions and other activities. 📌Practical tips: The Tuyao bakery in the ancient Yi village of Leju that I wrote about before has opened a branch here. The bookstore is also filled with the aroma of bread 🍞 and coffee ☕️, which is especially suitable for sitting around for an afternoon and reading a book. The Confucian Temple is at a crossroads away from Kunming Old Street. You can go to the old street for dinner at mealtime. It is an AAAA-level scenic spot suitable for both tourists and locals.

📍At Kunming Confucius Temple | A beautiful and delicious dessert shop Beautiful desserts that are perfect for winter. Warm and delicious, slightly sweet but not greasy, every bowl is delicious. 🥰 🤲Recommended 🌰Pumpkin soup: Golden and bright, as if the winter sun is concentrated in this bowl, just looking at it makes you feel good. The texture is smooth and soft, and the natural aroma of pumpkin is intertwined with the sweetness of chestnuts and osmanthus. 🥣Pistachio soup: Bright green, covered with pistachios. Delicate texture, melts in your mouth. At the same time, because pistachios are high in oil, it has a rich and complex taste. 🫕Taro soup: Taro itself has a natural sweetness, and after steaming and stirring, the sweetness is more prominent, and the taro aroma is strong. It is even softer and denser in cold weather. 🍠Handmade roasted sweet potatoes: Roasted sweet potatoes are fragrant, sweet, and soft, and after roasting, they release sweet juice, making them even more delicious. This shop combines traditional roasted sweet potatoes with modern dessert elements to create innovative delicacies with a variety of flavors. 🟫Brown sugar pearl roasted sweet potatoes: Amber-colored pearls are chewy and soft. After being roasted, the aroma of brown sugar is better released. 🟥Strawberry roasted sweet potatoes: Strawberries, oatmeal, blueberries, and sweet potatoes with sweet berries bring you natural sweetness in winter. 🟧Mango Oreo roasted sweet potatoes: The addition of Oreo cookie crumbs brings extra crispness to the roasted sweet potatoes, contrasting with the softness of the sweet potatoes and adding layers. The sweet and sour mango also adds a new flavor to the roasted sweet potatoes, balancing the sweetness of the sweet potatoes and making the overall taste more refreshing.

The Wenmiao Temple in Kunming presents a unique landscape where tradition and modernity blend beautifully. Upon entering the temple, the contrast between the high-rise buildings and the red tiles and classical architecture of the temple immediately catches the eye. This place feels like a junction between the past and the present, offering a striking scene for photography with traditional structures set against a modern urban backdrop. Especially when the skyscrapers appear in the distant background, it creates an atmosphere that seems to transcend time. As you move further inside the temple, an old garden and a serene pond provide a sense of tranquility, as if escaping the hustle and bustle of the city. The walking paths lined with trees and stones, the gentle breeze over the pond, and the shadows cast by the trees over the water are perfect elements to capture in photos. The changing scenery with the light makes it particularly appealing to photographers. The harmony with nature felt here showcases another side of Kunming, and the stillness of the temple adds to the profound sense of appreciation.

Due to its antique atmosphere, it is a popular spot for couples to take wedding photos in traditional wedding attire. The grand main hall of the Confucian shrine and the intricate traditional architecture provide a backdrop that makes the bride and groom feel like they have stepped back in time. The red tiles, turquoise pillars, and serene gardens enhance the romantic sentiment of a traditional Chinese wedding. In addition to couples taking wedding photos, Wenmiao is also a beloved retreat for Kunming residents. Despite being in the city center, entering Wenmiao feels like time has stopped, offering a tranquil atmosphere that provides comfort to both travelers and locals. People reading books or chatting on benches scattered throughout the garden, and those taking a moment to rest in the shade, create a peaceful and everyday beauty. Wenmiao is not just a relic of Confucian heritage; it is a cherished space that continues to breathe life today. As a traveler, visiting this place allows you to glimpse the leisurely life of Kunming, with smiling faces taking photos and people strolling leisurely in a harmonious blend of tradition and modernity.

Kunming Confucius Temple, located in the city of Kunming, is a traditional Confucian shrine in China, established to honor Confucius. The Kunming Confucius Temple was first built during the Ming Dynasty in 1371 and has been restored several times, retaining its ancient charm to this day. The temple is a space that follows Confucian ideals, which emphasize scholarship and education, and was frequently visited by scholars preparing for imperial exams or performing rituals. The Kunming Confucius Temple is an excellent example of traditional Chinese architecture, featuring classical symmetrical structures, curved roofs, and intricate decorations. Upon passing through the main gate, visitors enter a central courtyard, with the Dacheng Hall, where Confucius is enshrined, at its center. The Dacheng Hall houses statues of Confucius and other Confucian sages, serving as a place for worshipers to pay their respects. Today, the temple is known as a place where Kunming residents and tourists can quietly stroll and experience Confucian culture. The red tiles and grand architecture make it a great spot for photography, especially in its serene atmosphere, allowing visitors to feel the essence of ancient times.

The Confucian Temple in Kunming was first built during the Yuan Dynasty, and its location was changed several times. In the 29th year of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1090), it was relocated to its current location at 96 Renmin Middle Road. It was overseen and constructed by Fan Chengxun, the Governor-General of Yunnan-Guizhou, and Wang Jiwen, the Yunnan Governor. The original complex included nearly ten buildings such as the Lingxing Gate, Dacheng Gate, Dacheng Hall, and Chongsheng Hall. In 1941, it was bombed by enemy aircraft, and only the Lingxing Gate stone archway remained from the entire ancient architectural complex. In 1993, it was declared a Kunming Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Unit by the Kunming Municipal People's Government. The current Dacheng Hall and others are reconstructions. The Lingxing Gate of the Confucian Temple is a three-door, four-pillar style stone archway, with relief sculptures of coiled dragons embracing the columns between each door, which are exquisitely crafted and vividly depicted. To the left and right are the 'Gate of Courtesy' and the 'Path of Righteousness.' The courtyard is filled with blooming begonias, elegant and serene.