Ganzhou

Ganzhou lies in the south of Jiangxi Province, commonly known as Gannan. It is the largest prefecture-level city in Jiangxi by area and by population; here the Zhang River and the Gong River converge to form the Gan River, and it is a National Historical and Cultural City that blends the Jiangnan Song City, the cradle of the Hakka and the red capital into one. The city covers a land area of 39,379.64 square kilometers, with a permanent resident population of 8.9606 million at the end of the year, and administers 3 urban districts and 13 counties while overseeing 2 county-level cities. The Song-dynasty city wall, Bajing Terrace, Yugu Terrace and the Fushou drainage channels, in use for more than 900 years, give substance to the name "Jiangnan Song City"; the Hakka walled houses of Longnan, such as Guanxi Xinwei and Yanyi, tell of the Hakka ancestors living together as clans; the Ruijin Cradle of the Republic tourist area and the Yudu Memorial Park of the Central Red Army's Long March Assembly and Departure record the years of the Central Soviet Area and the departure of the Long March. Anyuan's Sanbai Mountains, Chongyi's Shangbao terraces and the Tongtianyan grottoes add clear notes of landscape beyond its culture; the seasons here are distinct and forest coverage is high, so most of the year is good for travelling; the municipality is vast and driving between its counties and cities takes time, so itineraries must allow for the hours on the road. Look at the city, the walled houses and the mountains, then try a few Hakka dishes — the rice-noodle snacks in the lanes are the most everyday comfort of a journey. The municipality is broad and its scenery and culture are scattered among the counties and cities; there is no need to see everything in one trip, so pick a thread and walk it slowly. Spring and autumn are best, when the landscape and old villages are especially rewarding in the light, and the layers of Gannan unfold little by little.

Ganzhou lies in the south of Jiangxi Province and is commonly known as Gannan. It borders Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west and the province's Ji'an and Fuzhou to the north, making it a thoroughfare linking the four provinces of Jiangxi, Guangdong, Fujian and Hunan and the southern gateway of Jiangxi. The city has a land area of 39,379.64 square kilometers, about 23.6% of Jiangxi's total area, and is the largest prefecture-level city in the province by area. It holds three weighty calling cards at once: the "Jiangnan Song City" with its dense Song-dynasty relics, the "cradle of the Hakka" as the first stop in the Hakka ancestors' southward migration, and the "red capital" at the core of the Central Soviet Area. Travelling in Ganzhou usually means moving back and forth among these three threads — looking at the city, the walled houses and the mountains, and at a chapter of modern Chinese history that is not so distant after all.

Ganzhou lies at the southern edge of the mid-subtropical zone, ringed by the Wuyi Mountains, the Zhuguang Mountains and the Jiulian Mountains, and the Dayu Range. Its terrain is high around the edges and low in the middle, with mountains and hills accounting for a large share. The highest peak in the city is Mount Qiyun, on the border where Chongyi and Shangyou meet Guidong of Hunan, whose main summit rises 2,061.3 meters above sea level. The city's rivers converge toward the center like spokes on a hub: the Zhang River and the Gong River meet north of Ganzhou city to form the Gan River, which flows north into Poyang Lake and belongs to the Yangtze River basin. Many mountains, many basins and crisscrossing river valleys are the first impression this land gives, and they also shape the pattern in which the towns of Gannan spread along river valleys and basins while villages scatter over the slopes according to the lay of the land.

The climate here is a humid monsoon climate of subtropical hills and mountains, with four distinct seasons and ample rainfall, and neither scorching heat nor severe cold lasts long. According to long-term averages from many years of climate observation, the city's mean annual temperature is 19.1 degrees Celsius, its mean annual precipitation is 1,583.9 millimeters, and its forest coverage reaches 76.23%, making it one of the cities with higher forest coverage in the country. Rain is frequent at the turn of spring and summer, autumn brings clear and crisp skies, and winter is short and mild; extreme, unbearable weather is rare in the course of a year, which makes travel arrangements relatively relaxed. Precisely because rain and heat come in the same season, the woodlands and orchards of Gannan grow vigorously, and the sea of clouds and terraced fields in the mountains have been nurtured by this climate.

The administrative history of Gannan can be traced back very far. In the thirty-third year of Qin Shi Huang (214 BC), Nanye County was established here under Jiujiang Commandery — the beginning of county government in Gannan. In the fifth year of Jiahe of the Wu kingdom of the Three Kingdoms period (236), an office equivalent to the prefectural level, the Luling Southern Commandant, was set up here with its seat at Yudu. Thereafter commanderies and counties repeatedly split and merged, and Gannan gradually became a key link between the Central Plains and Lingnan, leaving behind the distinctive marks of a transitional zone in language, customs and dwellings. Today's Gannan dialect, the form of the walled houses and local tastes all show the shadow of this meeting of north and south.

In the ninth year of Kaihuang of the Sui dynasty (589), Nankang Commandery was renamed Qianzhou, and the alternative name "Qian" was used for a long time. In the twenty-third year of Shaoxing of the Southern Song (1153), because the character "Qian" contains the head of "tiger" and was considered inauspicious, the imperial court, taking the meaning of the Zhang River and the Gong River flowing together, changed Qianzhou to Ganzhou, and this name has been used to this day. In 1998 the State Council approved the abolition of Ganzhou Prefecture and its establishment as a city; in 1999 the prefecture-level city of Ganzhou was formally inaugurated. The city now administers 3 urban districts and 13 counties and oversees 2 county-level cities, with the municipal government seated in Zhanggong District. Behind the changes of name lies nearly 2,000 years of effort and accumulation in this city; from Qianzhou to Ganzhou, the rivers have always been the reason for its naming and the foundation of its prosperity.

The ancient city of Ganzhou was first built in the fifth year of Yonghe of the Eastern Jin (349), and a well-preserved stretch of Song-dynasty brick city wall still survives. Running from the East Gate past Bajing Terrace to the West Gate, it is about 3.6 kilometers long and 7 meters high on average, and is the best-preserved Song-dynasty brick city wall in the country; in 1996 the State Council proclaimed it a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level. The wall preserves a great many inscribed bricks, layer upon layer of repairs from successive dynasties, and the reign titles of the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing can all be found on the bricks. Walking along the wall, with the river on one side and the lanes of the old town on the other, the wall feels less like a ruin than a part of city life.

Bajing Terrace on the ancient city wall marks a high point of Ganzhou's culture. First built in the Jiayou era of the Northern Song, it was where the prefect Kong Zonghan had the views from the terrace painted as the "Eight Views of Qianzhou" and asked Su Dongpo to write eight poems to match the pictures — the first set of "eight views" in Chinese history. Not far away, Yugu Terrace stands on the summit of Mount Helan; first built in the Tang dynasty, it was here that the Southern Song poet Xin Qiji left the famous lines "Below Yugu Terrace the clear river water flows; how many tears of travellers are in it," making this small terrace renowned throughout the land. Looking out from the terrace, the Zhang and Gong rivers join and the river and city lean on each other, the view is open, and on a clear day the distant mountains can be seen. Writers of successive dynasties never stopped inscribing poems here, and the cultural thread of Ganzhou has been carried on among these towers and terraces.

Coming down from Yugu Terrace, you can walk to the old pontoon bridge outside Jianchun Gate. Made of 100 wooden boats linked in a chain by iron cables, it was a vital water crossing of ancient Ganzhou and is still in use today; the deck rises and falls gently with the water, and people come and go across it from dawn to dusk. Adjoining the pontoon bridge, Zao'er Lane preserves the street pattern of the Song dynasty and later, where grey bricks and dark tiles, fire-sealing walls and cobbled paving interleave. The lane is not long, yet it gathers the architectural details of Ganzhou's old town. There is no deliberate bustle here, but rather the ease of old-town daily life; the smell of cooking drifts from the mouth of the lane, reminding you that this is still a street where people live — walk slowly and look slowly, and you will do it justice.

That the ancient city of Ganzhou has stayed free of flooding for a thousand years is thanks to a drainage system hidden beneath the ground — the Fushou drainage channels. Built under the Northern Song prefect Liu Yi, they were named because the course of the channels resembles the seal-script characters "fu" and "shou" (fortune and longevity). The Fushou channels originally ran no less than 12.6 kilometers in total, of which at least 1.9 kilometers still keep their ancient form and materials, having been in use for more than 900 years. Using the differences in terrain, they link open ditches, covered culverts and ponds, and rely on water gates that open and close automatically to block river water from flowing back; in heavy rain, when the river outside is high, the city within rarely floods. Today at the Fushou Drainage Museum you can still see ancient channels that are still flowing: a thousand-year-old underground project that still performs its flood-drainage function, which is remarkable even today.

Tongtianyan in the northwest of the city is another grotto landscape worth mentioning in Ganzhou. Named for "stone peaks ranged like a screen, with an opening at the top reaching the sky", it preserves 359 stone-niche statues from the Tang to the Song and 128 inscriptions on cliff faces from the Song to the Republic of China period, and is praised as "the finest grottoes in Jiangnan". It is one of the larger grotto groups in southern China and the southernmost of them, and in 1988 it was listed as a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level. The Song scholar Yang Xiaoben once lived in seclusion here, Su Dongpo came to visit drawn by its fame, and Wang Yangming of the Ming dynasty also lectured here. With the red-cliff walls accompanied by ancient trees and clear springs, most of the statues were carved directly from the rock; Guanxin Cave is where Wang Yangming expounded his doctrine of "extending innate knowledge", and the inscriptions and statues scattered across the rock faces reward careful reading and deserve half a day of unhurried viewing.

Ganzhou is one of the main places where the Hakka live, with Hakka people making up more than 95% of the city's population, and it is known as the "cradle of the Hakka". When the Hakka ancestors migrated south from the Central Plains, Gannan was the first stop where they settled, and it thus left behind a great many well-preserved walled houses. In 2014 the Hakka walled-house building technique of Gannan was inscribed on the national list of representative items of intangible cultural heritage. Living together as clans, the Hakka combined home, ancestral hall and fort into one — both a defence against outside disturbance and a living space for revering ancestors and observing propriety. To see Gannan, the walled houses are a lesson you cannot skip; and to see them, Longnan is where they are most concentrated.

Longnan is praised as the "world capital of walled houses". Across its territory are distributed 376 Hakka walled houses of distinct character, more than 70% of all the Hakka walled houses in Gannan, in forms ranging from square and semicircular "weilong" houses to round tulou-style buildings. Guanxi Xinwei was begun in the third year of Jiaqing of the Qing (1798) and completed in the seventh year of Daoguang (1827); it covers an area of 7,426 square meters, its enclosing wall is about 8 meters high, and there are watchtowers at its four corners; its layout is known as "nine blocks and eighteen halls", and it has been called "the ancient Roman castle of the East". Yanyi Weilong in Yang Village was begun in the seventh year of Shunzhi of the Qing (1650) and completed in the sixteenth year of Kangxi (1677); at 14.3 meters it is the tallest of the walled houses of Gannan, with thick walls and outstanding defensive features. In 2001 Guanxi Xinwei and Yanyi Weilong were together listed as Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level. In 2023 the 32nd World Hakka Conference was held in Longnan, bringing the walled houses once more before the world.

Ganzhou was the main body and core area of the Central Soviet Area. In 1931 the Provisional Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic was established in Ruijin, and Ruijin has been called the "red capital" ever since. Today's Ruijin Cradle of the Republic tourist area is a national 5A-level scenic area, made up of four sections: Yeping, the Red Well, the "Second Soviet Congress" and the Chinese Soviet Memorial Park. Yeping preserves a relatively complete cluster of revolutionary sites; beside the Red Well stands a stone tablet inscribed "When you drink the water, do not forget those who dug the well"; and seen from the air the auditorium of the Second Soviet Congress resembles the octagonal cap of the Red Army. Walking into these old sites, looking at the plain old objects one by one and reading the slogans on the walls and the documents of those years, history is no longer a narrative in books but a tangible sense of being on the spot, and it becomes easier to understand the weight of this land in the history of the Chinese revolution.

The departure point of the Long March is in Ruijin, and also in Yudu. In October 1934 the Central Red Army assembled and crossed the river from the ferry on the bank of the Yudu River, setting out on its long expedition. The Yudu Memorial Park of the Central Red Army's Long March Assembly and Departure was built around the ferry, and is a national 4A-level scenic area; the Monument to the Departure of the Central Red Army's Long March within it is 19.34 meters tall, its body shaped like a twin-sailed ship, meaning that they set sail from here on the expedition, while the Memorial Hall of the Central Red Army's Long March Departure recreates the scenes of those years with objects and images. This is also a national demonstration base for patriotic education, a place suited to a quiet stay and a serious walk; only slowly can you read out those years.

The landscapes of Ganzhou carry weight as well. The Sanbai Mountains of Anyuan are the source of the East River and the birthplace of the drinking water of the residents of Guangdong and Hong Kong, and a tourist destination of "remembering the source when drinking the water" significance for Hong Kong compatriots; in 2022 they were promoted to a national 5A-level scenic area, with flying waterfalls among primeval forest, cool and pleasant in summer, and a reputation as a "natural oxygen bar". The Shangbao terraces of Chongyi are a long scroll of farming; in 2018 they were named a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System and later also a World Heritage Irrigation Structure. The terraces' highest point is 1,260 meters above sea level and their lowest 280 meters, with up to 62 tiers in the most terraced places, and they are called the largest Hakka terraces in China; at harvest time in autumn the layers turn golden, making them an excellent spot for photography.

In addition, Dayu's Yashan is a national 4A-level scenic area, dense with forest and clear springs, known for forest health and mountain holidays, and with cultural sights such as an ancient temple in the mountains; the Yangming Lake of Shangyou (formerly Doushui Lake) was formed by the impounding of the Shangyou River hydroelectric project, with many lake bays and islands — lakes within lakes and islands within islands; Huichang's Hanxianyan is one of the larger Danxia landform scenic areas in Jiangnan, named for the legend that Han Zhongli, one of the Eight Immortals, cultivated himself into immortality here; and Chongyi's Yangming Mountain and Ningdu's Cuiwei Peak each have their own attractions. What these landscapes share is a high degree of preservation of forest and water, suited to slowing the pace. Pick a homestay near one of the scenic areas and stay a night: watch the mist rise from the valleys at dawn, and take a walk by the lake or under the trees in the evening — you will feel the quiet side of Gannan more than by rushing from sight to sight, and more easily understand the everyday life of this land living together with its mountains and waters.

The table in Ganzhou is the most authentic expression of Hakka flavour. Hakka cuisine of Gannan features freshness, tenderness, smoothness, fragrance, sweetness and heat; steaming with rice flour and quick stir-frying are common methods, and meat and vegetables are paired and richness and lightness balanced. Among the dishes the local authorities especially promote are Ganzhou stir-fried fish, Ningdu three-cup chicken, Gannan stuffed tofu and "four stars around the moon", while the snacks cannot do without Ruijin beef soup, Anyuan three-fresh rice noodles, mugwort rice cakes, yellow rice cakes (huangyuan miguo), Xinfeng radish dumplings and nine-layer cake. Rice noodles are the star of breakfast in Gannan: a bowl of three-fresh noodles with pork liver, lean pork and small intestine, the soup fresh and full of flavour. The golden, chewy huangyuan miguo in the lanes and such everyday foods as lei cha and tangpi are also worth a try; the tastes of the counties and cities differ slightly, but none can do without the one word "fresh".

In terms of transport, Ganzhou is already quite convenient. Ganzhou West Station is a high-speed rail hub, and with the opening of the Nanchang-Ganzhou and Ganzhou-Shenzhen high-speed railways one after another, Ganzhou has joined the national high-speed rail network and entered the two-hour economic circle of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. By air, Ganzhou Huangjin Airport serves many domestic cities, and after Ganzhou Ruijin Airport opened in 2025 the city has taken on a twin-airport pattern. Expressways and national and provincial roads cover every county and district, making self-driving to Ruijin, Yudu, Longnan, Anyuan and other places fairly smooth; it is just that Ganzhou is vast, and from the urban area to the farthest county is quite a drive, so itineraries must allow enough time on the road. Buses and ride-hailing in the urban area are fairly convenient, and walking or cycling within the old town is very pleasant; if you want to link up scattered sights such as Ruijin, Yudu, Longnan and Anyuan, self-driving or a chartered car will be more free and make it easier to stop at your own pace.

If you want to see the general picture in one go, plan on 3 to 4 days. Keep the first day in Zhanggong District, following the ancient city wall to Bajing Terrace, Yugu Terrace, the old pontoon bridge and Zao'er Lane, then walk around the Fushou Drainage Museum and the lanes of the old town, and climb the wall at dusk to look at the river. On the second day, leave the city in the morning for the Tongtianyan grottoes, and in the afternoon go to Ruijin for Yeping, the Red Well and the "Second Soviet Congress". On the third day, visit the Yudu Memorial Park of the Central Red Army's Long March Assembly and Departure, then turn toward Longnan for Guanxi Xinwei and Yanyi Weilong. If you have a fourth day, go to Anyuan's Sanbai Mountains or Chongyi's Shangbao terraces to add the landscapes of Gannan. Driving between the counties and cities takes time, so it is best to string the route in one direction to avoid doubling back, and the trip will leave no regrets.

Ganzhou is not a city you can take in at a glance. It layers the Song-dynasty city, the Hakka walled houses, the red of the Soviet Area and the green of Gannan on the same land, where they do not clash but complete one another. The rice-noodle stalls in the early morning, the old lanes in the afternoon, the river breeze after nightfall — all carry an unhurried ease. There is no need to rush the itinerary here: walk a stretch along the city wall, sit a while in a walled house, look quietly around a memorial hall, then find a small eatery and try some local dishes, and the taste of Gannan will come out of itself. When you leave you will find that what you remember is often not a particular sight, but this solid everyday life — a gust of wind by the river, a ray of light in a walled house, a steaming bowl of rice noodles on the street.