Wutai Shan (Five Terrace Mountain)

Wutai Shan (Five Terrace Mountain)

Wutai Shan (Five Terrace Mountain)
4.5
About
Consisting of five high plateaus, this area is one of China's four sacred Buddhist Mountains.
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.

4.5
436 reviews
Excellent
250
Very good
127
Average
37
Poor
17
Terrible
5

Ali Gulsen
Guangzhou, China16 contributions
Aug 2021 • Couples
first day, we started from hongmenyan pass following east terrace, hongmenyan, north terrace, central terrace, west terrace then take the white shuttle bus to go down. hiking path took 27 kilometers alone. we covered less than 7 hours. the highest peak is 3100 meters north peak.
if the sun is up and no winds, it is a fun walk. otherwise, one should be prepared for 10 degrees Celsius felt temperatures with wind shield.

second day, we started from opposite direction of caves through South peak reaching west peak. slightly shorter distance and less altitude gain.

two days are demanding for legs. sun cream and both heat and cold preparation are necessary.

temples are destroyed and rebuilt. nothing authentic. but nature, climate, ecosystem with local animals are amazing. there were also no air condition in the entire town, despite at the peak of summer the temperatures are so comfortable. advised trip for summers only.
Written August 3, 2021
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.

FlyfishermanBeijing
Beijing, China265 contributions
Nov 2020
What a area, temples verywhere with old history. If you are fancy about buddhism or hirtory of China this is place for you. At this area can easily spent a days just look at different temples at different altitude.
Written November 11, 2020
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.

sjamtsho
Melbourne, Australia11 contributions
Jul 2013 • Family
I went to Wutaishan from Beijing by train. It is about 6 hours’ train ride to Wutaishan station in a place called Shahe. Wutaishan peaks with its base as Taihuai town is actually another hour’s bus ride from there. I took the night train from Beijing and arrived at dawn, and there were several red buses waiting to take us. Just before getting into Taihuai town, there is a checkpost where visitors are required to buy passage to the heritage site of Wutaishan (I think it was Y 130) and a Y 50 public transport pass. With this you can ride the local buses without having to buy tickets.
Mount Wutai is a World heritage site well known for both its geological and scenic natural landscapes, and cultural heritage. It boasts of over 68 different styles of temples built over 7 dynasties housing numerous Buddhist relics, and is described as “the epitome of Chinese Buddhism”. It is associated with the Boddhisattva of Wisdom, Manjushri (‘Jam dPal bYang). ‘Wu Tai’ literally means five peaks/ terraces, viz. the East, West, Central, North, and South Peaks each representing a manifestation of Manjushri. The town of Taihuai serves as the hub to travel to these peaks, and is home to numerous religious sites of great significance. One could easily spend several days visiting the numerous temples. I spent about a week and still could not visit them all as I chose to do it at a relaxed pace.
For pilgrims, it is a good idea to book the government run taxi/ vans that do a day-long trip that takes you to the five peaks. The cost of the ticket is Y360 per person. They were sold out for the first three days we were there, even though I saw somewhere to the tune of 500 vans parked at the station. Beware of other vehicles offering to take you, usually at much higher rates. They may not have the permit to enter all the peaks even though they seem to be quite safe. You could do well to negotiate the cost in advance if they cannot take you to all the five peaks. Roads are mostly narrow and unpaved to the peaks, and so smaller vehicles and buses do not ply on these.
For those who love trekking, this is beautiful country and the weather in July end was just perfect. On weekends the mountains are strewn with trekkers. Half the train from Beijing when I went was filled with trekkers who got off at Wutaishan station. Be wary of buying stuff including food if you cannot speak mandarin or if they know you’re not Chinese. The cost goes up manifolds, but bargaining seems to be the way to go.
I returned to Beijing by bus, and it was most comfortable journey ever. The road was excellent, the bus seat comfortable, and the views great. I would recommend taking a bus not only because it goes straight to Taihuai and takes only five hours. The buses operate from Liuliuqiao station in Beijing twice a day I think.
It is a gem of a place to visit.
Written August 28, 2013
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.

horst_8877
Shanghai, China415 contributions
Sep 2015 • Couples
Wutai Shan stands as synonym for the county of Wutaishan, the 3058 m high Mt. Wutai there with 5 plateau summits, and the temple complex around Taihuai Monastic Village (UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE) that nestles in the valley below Mt. Wutai’s 5 summits on a level of 1750 m. Taihuai village is located along the mountain road S205 about 50 km NE of Wutai County City and about 220 km NE of Taiyuan City. We came here as most of the tourists do as part of a guided tour with a bus of the Shanxi Tourism Organization. A car or bus needs about 3 hrs from Taiyuan downtown to “Wutai Shan” bus stop at the southern end of Taihuai Village. The main street follows a small river; most of the touristic attractions are accumulated west of the river in second or third row behind residential buildings and shops. In the middle of Taihuai is a big parking area, smaller parking places are available near the southern entrance gate “Shan Men” and northern end near Pusading Temple. The first temple was built at Mt. Wutai 2000 years ago. Many Buddhist, Taoist and Lama Temples followed and their number peaked at more than 300. Today there are more than 50 active Monasteries and Temples with Xian Tong Temple the oldest and largest. The landmark of Wutaishan is the one tall bottle-shaped eye-catching “White Pagoda” of Tayuan Temple which stands at the outer line of the village thus can be seen nearly from everywhere. Coming from South and following a small bumpy road near some small shops to the left leads to the southern gate. Major temples of very different age, architecture, style and significance can easily be visited one after another within short time as they line up at this same small road. Tayuan White Pagoda Temple, Xian Tong Temple, Pusa Ding Temple and Guang Hua Temple from South to North are the main attractions for tourists. But even if sometimes filled with grinding crowds they catch and focus visitors’ attention, drown distractive noise and still represent examples of outstanding temple art and architecture and they remain authentic and deeply impressive. Monks, Pilgrims, Nuns, religious visitors, prayer and superficial daily tourists melt into one fascinating colorful multi-ethnic multi-cultural pluralistic tolerant peaceful crowd of humans. It is impossible to visit all temples within 2 or 3 days. In contrast to other temple places of touristic interest in China with often annoying and disturbing hawkers and street vendors hunting down tourists and duping them buying any kind of rubbish Wutaishan is very civilized with appropriate sales of Buddhist items like incense sticks and Buddhist art. Even commonly messy food and drink stalls are rare. Beside limited hotel capacity in Taihuai Village there are plenty of Bed+Breakfast offers from private families, which are basic and simple but clean and cheap. In the afternoon the bosses come to the street waiting for guests, easy to contact them there, some have few key words in English. We stayed two nights at different homes and enjoyed their friendly welcome and fun. So far I have not seen that impressive temples before while living in China for almost 10 years apart from the temples of Wutaishan. If you are into temples, you must visit this place!
Written September 21, 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.

Walnut8993
31 contributions
Jul 2016 • Couples
Wutai Shan was really enjoyable. I liked seeing all of the monks, especially the Tibetan monks that go there on pilgrimages. And I got to watch them walk and chant together. It was enjoyable. The scenery was great too, and the water quality was excellent! There is a lot to do here because there are numerous temples. However the best temples are very crowded and people are pushy trying to get inside. Parking is very difficult, so I would recommend taking the bus from the ticket center. In the summertime it gets fairly chilly in the mornings and night, and very hot with strong sun in the daytime. So pack accordingly. Also be warned that a lot of the temples there are new and under construction, not ancient. However, I was told this area is famous because it was the birthplace of Buddhism in China. Chairman Mao also lived here before and they have a display of the place he lived and they have some Chinese opera performances there. One last warning, don't be surprised to see a lot of the monks looking bored and playing on their new iPhones.
Written July 14, 2016
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.

MBGAVL
Asheville, NC28 contributions
Aug 2012 • Family
Our family of 4 adults stayed here for 4 days in August 2012. The bad first: It had been very difficult to secure rooms online prior to our trip - it took dozens of emails. Although the Visitor Center has a large Welcome sign in English, no one there spoke any English. Our daughter speaks basic Mandarin but she was not understood nor could she understand the dialect. We were overcharged for our first meal by at least 10 times the true cost. (We went to a place that was filled with locals; this was not a posh restaurant.) We had already been in China for two weeks when we arrived, traveling on our own (not a tour) and had managed well before this point. We had an unpleasant experience with a young man who latched on to us, posing as our "guide" and lost an afternoon of sightseeing to get away from him. The police were not helpful. This was the most stressful of the four area we visited during our three weeks.

It was also the most special in some ways. The monasteries are wonderful and retain a sense of the sacred. We found ourselves being drawn into a feeling of pilgrimage and spent the last two days revisiting the temples we found most compelling. After being in heavy smog for two weeks, it was delightful to see blue sky and mountains. Early one evening a young Buddhist mini-van driver went out of his way, on his time off, to do us several lovely kindnesses. He would not accept any recompense for his time and effort. On balance, we would go back to Wutai-Shan.
Written May 8, 2013
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.

Nicholettravels
Singapore, Singapore38 contributions
Dec 2016 • Friends
Go in the winter if you want to avoid tourists and explore the temples and the serenity of the mountain without the crowds that Wutai Shan normally attracts.
However, it does get really cold as many temples are high up in the mountain. There are also lots of stairs to climb to reach the temples which can get slippery and quite dangerous in the winter.
The people living there are extremely hospitable and were quick to help us when in need, and readily invited us into their lives.

This place however ONLY has temples so if you're not that into temples, 1-2 days should be good.
Written February 24, 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.

lewisjohann
Miami, Florida, United States6 contributions
Jan 2017 • Solo
I knew that many Asian countries scam foreigners, but this made me never want to return to China. I came to WuTai Shan during winter (January 2017) and it seems that the bus service isn't running. I asked both the hotel owner and another local and they both advised me to take a private taxi. The driver wanted 200 yuan to take me from my hotel to the Eastern peak and back. Once we got there, he said he needed 300 more yuan to take me back down because "the roads were too bad." Stuck on a freezing cold mountain with no internet connection, I had no choice but to pay the extra fee just to get back to my hotel room. I know he doesn't represent all Chinese people, but the idea of being scammed like that when all I wanted to do was learn more about their culture and history makes me never want to even try again.
Written January 21, 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.

André Linde
Chana, Thailand272 contributions
Aug 2014 • Friends
This place is located more than 2000 meters above sea level, so it can be chilly. Especially when there's no heating in your hotel room, what happened to us. Besides that Wuteishan is a breathtaking place with lots of temples everywhere. The most beautiful one is a temple that you can reach by climbing 1080 steps. Inside the complex you can see and hear buddhist monks sing chants, see how the monks live, see people pray, look out over Wutei Shan and shop at the souvenir shops downstairs.
The White Pagode is also worth a visit.
Written July 7, 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.

Meeyoru
York, UK107 contributions
May 2015 • Family
First thing, if you are driving, be careful. The road getting into the mountain is rather swerving and continuously up and down. The temples are gathered in the small village in the middle of the mountain. It's high up, so the temperature would be lower. There are so many temples in the village. Personally, I feel unnecessary to go to everyone. The most famous ones would be Wuye temple, Guangji temple, Tayuan temple, PusaDing and Dailuo Ding. We managed to visit all of these in one day and not in a hurry. Each temple would charge entrance separately but normally only cost 10 RMB each. You have to buy a ticket before entering the mountain gates. I think there is a possibility to register for a second entrance free of charge within a limited time period. We didn't use it so not sure how long. Also, people who are older than 60 could get 50% discount for the entrance, so bring identification card or passport with you. In fact, in Shanxi province, lots of sites are free for people older than 60. Make sure to check before buying tickets.
Written May 18, 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.

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Wutai Shan (Five Terrace Mountain), Wutai County

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