5A Class Scenic Spots： Natural Beauty

5A Class Scenic Spots： Natural Beauty

Located in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River， Chongqing boasts unique human landscape with numerous mountains and rivers. Boating in Wushan Little Three Gorges through valleys and rivers， or climbing to the top of Mount Jinfo in Nanchuan District for a distance view， you have a deep understanding to its natural scenery and rich historical culture. As a good mirror of Chongqing， the 5A class scenic spots are the ones that can help you to best experience its charm as a “Mountain-River City”.

Wushan Little T hree Gorges and Mini T hree Gorges (National 5A Class Scenic Spot)

As a Chinese poem goes， “No river is worthy of my heed since I've been to the sea； no truer clouds there can be except in Wushan.”Located at the center of the Three Gorges Reservoir Region， Wushan is the gateway to east Chongqing. It features breathtaking landscape， and picturesque river and mountains. Crowned as the “Chinese wonderland” and“place of superb scenery in the world”， Wushan Little Three Gorges and Mini Three Gorges are among the“national scenic spots” and “the fi rst group of national AAAAA class tourist attractions”. As early as in 1991，they were listed among the “Top 40 Tourist Attractions in China”. With a total length of 50 kilometers， the Little Three Gorges are the group name for Longmen Gorge，Bawu Gorge， and Dicui Gorge in Wushan with Daning River， the largest tributary of the Three Gorges running through the region. Imposing and precipitous， the gorges shade the sky with a single pass. With peaks connecting the sky and boats moving through caves，the place is full of verdant trees， steep mountains，colorful and changeful sceneries. Moreover， the impoundment of the Three Gorges adds the scenic spot more charm and beauty.

Mount Jinfo in Nanchuan District (National 5A Class Scenic Spot)

Mount Jinfo， the highest peak of Dalou Mountains located in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River， is situated in Nanchuan District， Chongqing. With its outstanding karst feature and superb biodiversity， it has been listed as a World Heritage site since 2001， known as the “Eastern Alps”. Its major vegetation types include subtropical broadleaf forest， coniferous forests and subalpine meadow. Besides typical karst topography of gorges，stone forests and cave systems， Mount Jinfo is alo known for its exceptional plant diversity of 8085 categories， of which there are 3810 categories of medicine. So it deserves the names of“biological gene pool”， and “the medicine pool”. As one of the fi ve renowned Buddhist mountains in China， it has historical Buddhist temples. Besides， it is a good place for tourists in all seasons with its three features： world natural Karst heritage， biodiversity， and Buddhist culture. Now， Mount Jinfo wears eight national laurels：the national 5A class tourist attraction， key national scenic spot，national forest park， national natural reserve area， national base for science education， the most influential tourist attraction in China， and national civilized scenic spot. With its biodiversity and unique kaste feature， Mount Jinfo has been included into the world natural heritage list.

（Picture from Chongqing Tourism Administration）