Fragrant Hill Red Leaf Festival

Best viewing time: Mid-October to mid-November every year

Introduction

Fragrant Hills in the west of Beijing and the surrounding hillsides are planted with large areas of Royal Purple and Maple, whose leaves turn red around the first frost of every year. The red leaves turn into sheets spreading all over the mountains and plains, giving a fiery and glorious impression. The forest is tinged with diverse colors, which is very spectacular. Fragrant Hill Red Leaf Festival is held during October to November annually, it also attracts a large number of citizens and tourists.

Activity arrangements in 2015

Zhiyuan Study in Jingyi Garden is open: Zhiyuan Study in Jingyi Garden, Fragrant Hills is 254-year-old and is open to visitors, free of charge, in August of this year, after two years of restoration. This marks that Qinzheng Palace building group – the first sight of twenty-eight sights in Jingyi Garden, has entirely completed its restoration, which took 12 years.

Touring hour: 8:30am to 16:00pm

“Five pavilions” are open after repairs: Five famous pavilions – Gorgeous Forest, Never Green, Cloud Nest Pavilion, Yanyue Pavilion, and Xiaoyou Pavilion, has been restored and open to visitors. The Five famous pavilions were burned down by Anglo-French allied force in 1860. Afterwards, they were renovated at the former site.

Practical information

Opening hours:

Fragrant Hills Park: 6: 00 am – 18:30 pm

Temple of Azure Clouds: 8:00 am – 16:30 pm

Operating hours of Fragrant Hill Cableway:

During Red Leaf Festival: General days: 8:30 am – 17:30 pm;

Two-day weekend: 8:00 am – 17:30 pm

Ticket price: In the ten peak days during the viewing season of Fragrant Hill red leaf, namely October 17th, 18th, 24th, 25th, 31st and November 1st, 7th, 8th, 14th, 15th, the park will implement limited entry measures at different times. Tourists holding annual, quarterly or monthly ticket or the elderly courtesy card of Beijing, please visit the park at 6:00am to 9:00am, or 16:00 pm to 6:30 pm.

Bus route:

Special Bus Line for Fragrant Hill Red Leaf Festival

In passenger flow peak day, Bus Group formulates a special Red Leaf Festival timetable for ten bus lines via Fragrant Hill area, that is No 331, 360, 563, 630, 698, 714, 318, 505, Express 360 and “special”5. On the basis of the maximum capacity, each line deploys extra channel-model buses with large-capacity. 10 lines with additional 110 vehicles plan to increase more than 500 trips in peak days. Special Express line uses tourist buses in the way “one seat for one person and without stop.” It departs from subway Beigongmen Station at 9:00 to 17:00. One-way fare is 5 yuan.

Self-driving Route (to Fragrant Hills)

From the Fifth Ring Road: Leave the fifth ring road from Xiangshan Road Exit, and drive northwest along the Xiangquan Roundabout (with signpost) for about five minutes.

From the Fourth Ring Road: Leave the fourth ring road from Sihai Bridge exit, and drive northwest (with signpost) passing by Minzhuang Road, turn to north in the intersection of Hanhe Road, and drive towards northwest by the Xiangquan Roundabout (with signpost) for about five minutes.

From Xiangshan South Road: Drive north passing by Hongqi Village, and drive west at the intersection of Reclining Buddha Road (with signpost) for about five minutes.

From the Summer Palace: Drive west from Qinglong Bridge passing by Xianghongqi and Niangniangfu to Xiangquan Roundabout and drive northwest (with signpost) for about five minutes

Best touring route

1. Ecological route to explore “red leaf” from the ancient road

Turn left from the East Gate, passing by Jingcui Lake, Cuiwei Pavilion, Shuangqing Villa, Fragrant Hill Temple, Langfeng Pavilion, Heshun Door, Yutai Door to reach Xianglu Peak, which was an imperial road used by the ancient emperors, to admire the view from mountains.

2. Power saving route to view “red leaf”

If you are on a tight schedule or unwilling to go too far away, entering from East Gate will be a good choice for you. Directly you can catch a sight of two fancy maple trees. Walk south for 5 minutes to reach the Jingcui Lake area, where you can see the splendid scenery of red leaves covering the mountain. That is the best choice for you to take photos and appreciate the historical landscape scenery, “red leaves and yellow flowers contrast each other finely,” described by ancient poem in the Cuiwei Pavilion area.

3. Overlook “red leaf” route from a high place

It only takes 17 minutes by cableway, to reach the summit–Xianglu Peak. During the gentle process, you can overlook the colorful maple leaves of the South Mountain, and appreciate the overall landscape of red leaves, which is very different from the view from flat ground.

4. Appreciate “red leaf” route around Fragrant Hills

The road from the east coast of Jingcui Lake to Never Green has been opened recently, which marks the construction of mountain road from Jingcui Lake to Xianglu Peak area as completed. Visitors can overlook Temple of Azure Clouds, Vajrasana Pagoda, Glazed Pagoda, and also appreciate the full view of Fragrant Hills from south to north. Walking from Never Green along the wall of South Mountain, you can see the beautiful scenery of maple trees on both sides of the road.