Tianhe Pool Scenic Area

Chinese name: 天河潭景区 (Tianhe Tan Jingqu)
Location: Shiban Town, Huaxi District, 24 km to Guiyang City, Guizhou Province.
Opening time: 08:30-17:00
Ticket:
- CNY70 for entrance, ticket for pleasure-boat and tourist battery truck;
- CNY50 for entrance and ticket for pleasure-boat during high season (Mar.1st- Oct.31th);
- CNY40 for entrance and ticket for pleasure-boat during low season (Nov. 1st- Feb.29th).
How to get there: take bus No.211 at Hua Guo Yuan Wetland Park (花果园湿地公园), and get off at the Tianhe Pool Scenic Area. 

Travel tips:
1. In the scenic area there are water caves and dryland caves; it is common to tour the water caves first in pleasure-boat and then tour the dryland ones after crossing the Silver River Cave.
2. It is easy to be lost in caves, and it is wise to closely follow the crowds or tour guide.
3. It is suggested to wear appropriate clothes as the clothes may get wet easily with splashed water of falls.
4. It is accessible to take cableway to Zhenshan Village (镇山村), where the local dishes cooked with native poultry and fresh vegetables are available.

Introduction to Tianhe Pool Scenic Area

Combined the mighty of Huangguoshu Waterfall, the fantasy of Dragon Cave and the grace of Huaxi, Tianhetan Scenic Area is picturesque and offers much more, such as falls, springs, pools, rocks, caves and the stone bridge. Named after a deep pool of the same name, Tianhe Pool Scenic Area enjoys peaceful ambient and idyllic scenery with stone bridges, flowing water, farmhouses, and waterwheels. Once a secluded location for Wu Zhongfan, a famous poet of late Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and early Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), a great many poems were left to praising the beauty of the area. With typical carbonate rocks featuring frequent wrinkles, interlaced fractures and winding river valleys, there are over 20 calcified shoals provide more than 20 unique polychrome caves in series, which are the highlights of the scenic area with all views of rivers, caves, bridge holes, lakes, cenotes, bold cliffs, narrow gorges, etc.

What to see in Tianhe Pool Scenic Area?

1. Various caves and Tianhe Pool
A 210-m-wide calcified shoal waterfall is firstly leap to the eyes after entering the Tianhe Pool Scenic Area, and below the waterfall is the Xiangba Valley, which is scattered all over with grotesque lime caves. Among all caves in Tianhe Pool Scenic Area, the Longtan Cave is the most famous- a fairyland which is consists of two parts, the water caves and dryland caves. It is 1000 meters long, 20-80 meters wide, over 50 meters high and a deepest water depth of 21 meters. In the cave are typical karst scenes of stalactites, stalagmites and stalagnates in thousands of postures. The dryland cave is about 200 meters long and with the Naihe Bridge being the most famous. The bridge connects two cliffs and below it is an unfathomable deep pool.

Tianhe Pool (literally Sky River Pool), the quintessence of Guizhou landscapes, is so named because its water is flying down from a high above river. And over the river is the famous Tiansheng Stone Bridge, which connects the charming beauty of lakes, mountains and the magical karst caves.

2. Liusuo
Liusuo, or patent protector, is a traditional way to cross the river in the air in ancient time. The Liusuo in Tianhe Pool Scenic Area is 400 meters long spanning over the elegant Tianhe River, use which visitors can both have a marvelous full view of the whole park and experience the suspending galloping over the water.

3. Idyllic landscape with ancient water culture and ethnic culture
In the ethnic village of Tianhe Pool are a series of stone houses and various ancient tools related to water, such as, Xiabache (a kind of tool to make perfume by waterpower), waterwheel, water-powered roller for grinding grains, and water mill. Visitors can pay a visit to a peasant house to enjoy exquisite embroidery made by Miao people, or to take part in kinds of ethnic activities, such as bamboo dance, unite dance and grabbing of bridegroom.