Watchtower Group of Zili Village
Watchtower Group of Zili Village
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4.0
72 reviews
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31
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JJ_TravelExpress
London, UK177 contributions
Jul 2018 • Friends
The site is reachable by bus 617 from Kaiping city centre (one every 20 mins or so), the journey is about 40 mins. Taxi will cost you around 65yuan.
We bought the combo admission costing 150yuan per person, it gave us access to Zili village and the nearly Li Yuan. Shuttle bus between the sites was included in the price of the ticket (check the bus timetable at the entrance). Zili village was a fascinating place to visit, full of culture and history. We had a great time exploring the different towers. The villagers were friendly and welcoming. Many of the smaller buildings offered lunches (around 20-30 yuan per dish), overlooking the lotus pond. We'd have loved to eaten there but unfortunately we had a tight schedule and had to catch the shuttle to Li Yuan.
We bought the combo admission costing 150yuan per person, it gave us access to Zili village and the nearly Li Yuan. Shuttle bus between the sites was included in the price of the ticket (check the bus timetable at the entrance). Zili village was a fascinating place to visit, full of culture and history. We had a great time exploring the different towers. The villagers were friendly and welcoming. Many of the smaller buildings offered lunches (around 20-30 yuan per dish), overlooking the lotus pond. We'd have loved to eaten there but unfortunately we had a tight schedule and had to catch the shuttle to Li Yuan.
Written July 25, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Andrew_Alin
Greater Adelaide, Australia1,628 contributions
One of the smaller villages containing diaolou. Not so much watchtowers as just a tall and narrow building, but interesting nonetheless from the mixture of different (and often clashing) architectural styles.
This village is one of the quieter ones, so less crowds, and less touts and vendors. An interesting visit for a hour or two.
This village is one of the quieter ones, so less crowds, and less touts and vendors. An interesting visit for a hour or two.
Written March 21, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lee
Hong Kong, China1 contribution
Sep 2015 • Friends
Having travelled in many places in China, Kaiping Diaolou is a unique architecture style different from what you can see in other places. We had a 2 days visit guided by Stanley from NineXplorers which is a great option if you only have a weekend to visit. We arrived in Kaiping area on time for lunch and tried some local specialty like goose meat. In the afternoon we visited the Majianglong Dialou cluster which is surrounded by beautiful bamboo trees, rice fields and star fruit trees.Thanks to our guided tour, we learned the stories of these unusual buildings, their purpose, their styles etc...
Early evening we had some free time to either explore the old town of Chikan or to have a rest in the brand new hotel where we stayed. For Dinner we went to a local place and had some delicious clay pot rice. We tried some with eel, with frogs legs and with pork and sausage, all excellent ! We also tried some street food like different kind of tofu, stuffed green peppers etc...
Next early morning we wondered around the local market and had a wonderful dim sum breakfast. We then visited the Zili village Diaolou, the Fangshi Denglou and the Jinjiangli Diaolou, each of them with their own unique style and design. All of these Diaolou are located in a beautiful green area, very peaceful and quiet.
In conclusion, we had a great weekend discovering a lovely area with interesting architecture and stories, we tried some delicious local food. I can only recommend Stanley and his NineXplorers tour guide who made this trip so pleasant, everything was taken care of from the bus ride to the minivan, the hotel reservation, entrance tickets, English guided tour etc...we were a group of 10 people and this is the maximum it can get, and the ambience between all of us was nice and friendly.
Early evening we had some free time to either explore the old town of Chikan or to have a rest in the brand new hotel where we stayed. For Dinner we went to a local place and had some delicious clay pot rice. We tried some with eel, with frogs legs and with pork and sausage, all excellent ! We also tried some street food like different kind of tofu, stuffed green peppers etc...
Next early morning we wondered around the local market and had a wonderful dim sum breakfast. We then visited the Zili village Diaolou, the Fangshi Denglou and the Jinjiangli Diaolou, each of them with their own unique style and design. All of these Diaolou are located in a beautiful green area, very peaceful and quiet.
In conclusion, we had a great weekend discovering a lovely area with interesting architecture and stories, we tried some delicious local food. I can only recommend Stanley and his NineXplorers tour guide who made this trip so pleasant, everything was taken care of from the bus ride to the minivan, the hotel reservation, entrance tickets, English guided tour etc...we were a group of 10 people and this is the maximum it can get, and the ambience between all of us was nice and friendly.
Written September 19, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Michele H
Bellingham, WA423 contributions
May 2015 • Friends
After being in Beijing and Xi'an, this area was a welcome change - very little traffic or crowds. This whole area is fairly new to UNESCO, so I'm guessing that's why very few people were there, and most were Chinese, not foreign tourists. The buildings are wonderful, scattered around the rice fields. We payed a fee to see all 5 areas, but only made it to 3 in one day, as we had to drive from one spot to another and it was also a very hot day. Very interesting architecture and history and not too touristy - yet. The gardens in the area were beautiful and peaceful.
Written May 20, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LoShanghai
Shanghai, China45 contributions
Sep 2014 • Couples
We enjoyed visting Zili village. A nice group of watchtowers, built in 1920's with western architecture. We took a local bus from Kaping (30 min) which drop us off at the road junction , then it was a 15 min walk to the village.
Written September 10, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Marija_12
Zadar, Zagrebacka, Croatia235 contributions
Feb 2014 • Solo
I giving it 4/5 only because there is barely any info given in English (it's a UNESCO site after all) and lots of garbage in one place within the park. Other than that, I absolutely loved the place! It was so tranquil and "authentic", two things you can rarely see in China. There are 2 or 3 villages plus the main one where you can climb few diaolous. The interior of the houses is spartan and not too interesting since you have probably seen similar furniture elsewhere in China. Maybe 100 visitors were in the park, but they were all gathered around the diaolous you can climb. No lines of tacky souvenir shops and food stalls yet. The admission is 80, acceptable I guess. Note that there are hundreds of diaolous scattered in the area, though they are mostly in larger villages, mixed with more modern buildings.
Written February 13, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
bcheong
Shanghai, China48,551 contributions
Jun 2023 • Friends
Nice UNESCO site , buildings and watchtowers built 18-20th centuries. Unlike many other UNESCO sites in china, this one is not crowded. We could climb up to a few and enjoy the view. Zili village is one of the few you can visit. But coming here during the summer is too hot, we were sweating bullets
Written June 11, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SeeMoreLiveMore
Singapore, Singapore513 contributions
Sep 2019
I visited 2 villages of the UNESCO-listed watch tower villages. This is by far the prettier one, with more of the iconic watchtowers. So, if time is limited, this is the one to go for.
Written December 16, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Damien F
Dongguang County, China244 contributions
Nov 2018 • Couples
If you're driving a car this place is within easy reach, close to major roads and not far from Kaiping City. Otherwise it is possible to reach it by bus.
Entrance fees at 78 RMB are quite high and anyone coming with private car should think of getting ticket for 4 attractions altogether at 150 RMB. Would suggest you to star touring as early as it opens, as it might take some time at each spots; and knowing that between 5 - 5:30 pm it would close.
I personal rented out an audioguide for 20 RMB (but with a 300 RMB deposit) but next time I definitely would pick an expert guide to get more explanations.
Entrance fees at 78 RMB are quite high and anyone coming with private car should think of getting ticket for 4 attractions altogether at 150 RMB. Would suggest you to star touring as early as it opens, as it might take some time at each spots; and knowing that between 5 - 5:30 pm it would close.
I personal rented out an audioguide for 20 RMB (but with a 300 RMB deposit) but next time I definitely would pick an expert guide to get more explanations.
Written November 12, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
3lgdz
Manila, Philippines1,462 contributions
Dec 2016 • Family
Zili Village 自力村 has the largest collection of diaolou – mostly residential. It’s 11 km west of Kaiping. The residents, it is said, all have the surname Fang 方。Three of these are open to the public during the time that we visited – Mingshi Lou 銘石樓, Yesheng Mansion 葉生居廬 and Lansheng Mansion 瀾生居廬. We only visited the first two – Yunhuan Lou 雲幻樓 is usually open, but it was being renovated at the time of our visit.
It's a nice place to walk around and admire the architecture of the different watchtowers that were designed with both Chinese and "European" styles. The rural setting is also picturesque when you take a panoramic photo of the diaolou from the top of one of them. You can see the locals, mostly elderly, quietly hanging their poultry to dry or selling some vegetables, eggs or root crops. This place has not been touristified - so it's never too crowded. However, there are adequate tourist faciltiies such as restrooms and English translations, as befitting a UNESCO site.
Entering the main building of the Mingshi Lou, you can observe that the windows have steel railings for protection against bandits. There are photographs of the owner together with his wives. Some of the notable objects we saw while climbing up the diaolou include: photo of the parents of Mr. Fang, ceramic handiwork and wine bottles from Hong Kong, octagonal container for holding New Year’s treats, rattan case, portable sewing machine, teapot warmer, photo of the eldest son of Mr. Fang, poster featuring an ocean liner, men’s handbag, gallon jar for water, ancestral tablet, gramophone, “Jinshan trunk” or bag carried by returned overseas Chinese, make-up box and the bronze statue of Mr. Fang.
As a default format, when you enter each floor from the right, there is a living room in the middle (usually with chairs and photos), together with four or more doors. Usually there are bedrooms, but there may also be a kitchen or toilet. Each wife is usually assigned one floor for her own use.
There’s usually an ancestral shrine/altar on the top floor. On the top floor of Mingshi Lou, there's also a hexagonal pavilion in the center. On the day we visited, film crew were present at the Mingshi Lou.
Yesheng Julu or Yesheng Mansion 葉生居廬 is another typical example of a "lu" - or mansion style architecture during the 1930's. It's similar to the Mingshi Lou, although the balcony is off-limits and the highest floor has steel railings obstructing the view. In effect, take the best panoramic shots of the countryside from the top floor of Mingshi Lou.
Zili Village is highly recommended for any visitor to Guangzhou.
It's a nice place to walk around and admire the architecture of the different watchtowers that were designed with both Chinese and "European" styles. The rural setting is also picturesque when you take a panoramic photo of the diaolou from the top of one of them. You can see the locals, mostly elderly, quietly hanging their poultry to dry or selling some vegetables, eggs or root crops. This place has not been touristified - so it's never too crowded. However, there are adequate tourist faciltiies such as restrooms and English translations, as befitting a UNESCO site.
Entering the main building of the Mingshi Lou, you can observe that the windows have steel railings for protection against bandits. There are photographs of the owner together with his wives. Some of the notable objects we saw while climbing up the diaolou include: photo of the parents of Mr. Fang, ceramic handiwork and wine bottles from Hong Kong, octagonal container for holding New Year’s treats, rattan case, portable sewing machine, teapot warmer, photo of the eldest son of Mr. Fang, poster featuring an ocean liner, men’s handbag, gallon jar for water, ancestral tablet, gramophone, “Jinshan trunk” or bag carried by returned overseas Chinese, make-up box and the bronze statue of Mr. Fang.
As a default format, when you enter each floor from the right, there is a living room in the middle (usually with chairs and photos), together with four or more doors. Usually there are bedrooms, but there may also be a kitchen or toilet. Each wife is usually assigned one floor for her own use.
There’s usually an ancestral shrine/altar on the top floor. On the top floor of Mingshi Lou, there's also a hexagonal pavilion in the center. On the day we visited, film crew were present at the Mingshi Lou.
Yesheng Julu or Yesheng Mansion 葉生居廬 is another typical example of a "lu" - or mansion style architecture during the 1930's. It's similar to the Mingshi Lou, although the balcony is off-limits and the highest floor has steel railings obstructing the view. In effect, take the best panoramic shots of the countryside from the top floor of Mingshi Lou.
Zili Village is highly recommended for any visitor to Guangzhou.
Written June 9, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi, I want to visit Kaipeng also and need a local guide who speaks English. Can you give me the contact details of the guide you used please?
Written July 10, 2016
I went there without an interpreter and received a lot of impressions. You can find historical information on the Internet, and for the rest did not really need a translator. The drivers at the station will show you a flyer and you show the pictures which places you are going to visit and negotiate the price. This all can be negotiated with the help of gestures.
Written July 14, 2016
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