One Day Private Tour to Mt. Huashan, No Shopping

► Pick-up from Your Hotel in Downtown Xi’an
At about 8:30, your private guide and driver will pick you up from your hotel and then drive about 2 hours to Mt. Huashan, one of the Five Sacred Mountains in China, which will inspire your awe with its well-known precipitous cliffs, narrow steep paths, as well as breathtaking natural vistas.

• Things to Know:
1. The best seasons for visiting Mt. Huashan are spring (March to May) and autumn (September to October) due to the pleasant climate and scenery, but it’s better to avoid travelling on Chinese holidays, such as May Day (May 1st to 3rd) and National Day (Oct 1st to 7th).
2. Since we will be doing a lot of walking, we advise you to wear comfortable and anti-slip hiking shoes. Carry a coat even in the hot summer (June to August) because of the relatively low temperatures at the summit. Sun protection items are also essential.
3. There’s no restaurant on the mountain, so have an abundant breakfast at your hotel and take along some snacks like bread and chocolate with you. Rest stops offering simple food and drinks can be found occasionally, but note that they are at exaggerated prices.
4. Don’t drink too much water as it is not easy to find toilets on the mountain.

★ Round-trip Cable Car is Included

Composed of five peaks: West Peak, South Peak, Middle Peak, East Peak, and North Peak, Mt. Huashan is so vast that it cannot be completed entirely on foot within a day. Therefore, for a better mountain hiking experience, we generously included the effortless and time-saving round-trip cable cars in this tour, and handpicked the 4-hour route covering most of the typical scenery of Mt. Huashan for you:
► West Peak (cable car up) - Middle Peak - North Peak (cable car down)

Upon arrival, take a tourist bus to the lower station of the West Peak cable car to take a 20-minute cable car ride along a 4,000-meter-long line (2.5-mile-long) to reach the West Peak while enjoying the stunning mountain views beneath.

West Peak: Mythical Rocks & Legendary Shrines

After getting off the cable car, get ready for your adventurous hike. Among the 5 main peaks of Mt. Huashan, the West Peak, a complete natural boulder standing at 2,082 meters (6,831 ft.) high, is the most beautiful and precipitous one, from which you’ll get an overall impression of what Mt. Huashan feels like. Remember to take a photo with a huge lotus-shaped rock on it, which gives the peak another name - Lotus Peak. Marvel at its northwest side, known as the Sheshen Cliff, standing upright as if cut by a knife. Besides, we’ll linger to wonder at a Taoist sanctum Emerald Cloud Palace, Giant Spirit God's Foot, and Axe-splitting Rock named after an old Chinese mythological story of Chenxiang riving the mountain to save his mother.

Middle Peak: A Leisurely Greenery Transition Stop

After a break, continue to hike down for about 1 hour directly to the Middle Peak, a small peak attached to the west side of the East Peak. It was counted as part of the East Peak in ancient times, but is now listed as one of the main peaks of Mt. Huashan. Get a brief relaxation in this serene environment with rare flowers and plants and lush woods, the most famous of which are the Rootless Tree and Sacrificing Tree. When visiting the Taoist Jade Maiden Temple, take the chance to learn a love legend during the Spring and Autumn Period (770 - 476 BC) about the Peak from your guide.

► Customized Itinerary: Free Upgrade to a More Challenging Route
If you have really good physical strength and are a venturesome hiker, your guide can also take you to follow another more challenging and more time-consuming hiking route from West Peak to the Middle Peak: West Peak - South Peak - East Peak - Middle Peak. The itinerary allows you to visit all five peaks in 5 to 6 hours, covering some of the most dangerous paths like Hawk’s Turn Road on the East Peak, which offers the best view of the sunrise, and the Changkong Plank Trail on the highest South Peak, the Monarch of Mt. Huashan. The former requires you to lean sideways against the inward-sloping cliff and hold on to an iron chain, using the tip of the foot to explore the small stone pit and descend, while the latter involves walking on a wooden road that is only about 30 cm (1 ft.) wide and has no railing on the outside. Visitors with heart problems or a fear of heights should think twice before paying on-site to try!

North Peak: Breathtaking Sunset & Thrilling Challenge

Next, let’s head to the North Peak, also called Cloud Terrace Peak, as sheer cliffs surround it in all directions just like a flat terrace in the clouds. This is a relatively long hiking journey that takes about 2 hours. Luckily, you just need to hike down at most times. The first spot we will pass by is the Golden Lock Pass, where people used to hang a golden padlock on the iron chains as a prayer for happiness and good health. Then bravely set your foot on the most beautiful trail of Mt. Huashan, the Black Dragon Ridge, boasting a super narrow and near vertical path which only allows people to climb one after another with the help of iron rails. After descending the 999 stairs of the Heavenward Ladder, we will arrive at the North Peak. Enjoy a fantastic sunset, a bird’s-eye view of other peaks, as well as the Black Dragon Ridge from a new perspective - it looks like a huge dragon lying on a ridge soaring skywards. Finally, take the cable car down the mountain from the North Peak in 7 to 8 minutes.► Drive Back to Xi’an
At the end of this one day private Mt. Huashan tour from Xi’an, your guide and driver will escort you back to your hotel in downtown Xi’an. Hope you had a great time with us! For Xi’an’s UNESCO sites, consider our classic day tour to the Terracotta Army Museum, Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, and City Wall. For a longer stay, check our 3 to 4 days in-depth tours or contact us to customize your ideal itinerary.

For Your Information: If you want to have dinner before returning to your hotel, ask your driver to drop you off at one of the branches of Meet Chang’an Restaurant that is near your hotel to taste some authentic local flavors. The Crispy Gourd-shaped Chicken is a must order. Also, try an Internet-famous dish, Lychees-shaped Shrimp Balls, which is inspired by an interesting historical allusion - Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (reigned 712-756) spoiled his concubine Yang so much that, as she loved lychees, he once spared no efforts to let the subtropical fruits be transported from the far south of China to Xi’an. Average cost per person: CNY 70 (USD 10).