How to Visit Longji Rice Terraces from Guilin (Tips, Photos & Map)

Dear Travelers,

We’d like to have the following quick guide to be always updated for the benefit of new visitors visiting Longji Rice Terraces from Guilin. If anybody having used the piece finds necessary updates, please leave a message or feedback. Thanks!

with their ticketing office building located about 1km to the south of Heping Town (和平乡),  about 14 km to the southeast of Longsheng County (龙胜),  76km to the north of Guilin city proper (桂林) and 146km to the northwest of Yangshuo (阳朔).

Longji Rice Terrace Scenic Spot

Plan your Guilin tour? Longji Rice Terrace (龙脊梯田), literally “Dragon’s Backbone Terraced Paddy Fields”,  is a large scenic area. Officially known as Longji Rice Terrace Scenic Spot (龙脊梯田风景名胜区), it encompasses five natural villages – Dazhai Village (大寨) & Tiantouzhai Village (田头寨) (both Yao minority villages), Ping’An Zhuang Minority Village (平安寨), the Ancient Zhuang Minority Village (龙脊古壮寨)and Huangluohong Yao Minority Village (黄洛红瑶寨).

Longji Rice Terrace Scenic Spot mainly refers to the rice terraces in the three forest-fringed villages –  Ping’An Village (平安寨),  Dazhai Village (大寨) and Tiantouzhai Village ( 田头寨).

Longji Rice Terrace Scenic Spot
Address: Longsheng County, Guilin City, Guangxi, China
Tel: 0773-7583188
Official Website: http://longjitour.com

Ping’Ancun Village (平安寨)

Ping’Ancun Village is 18km to the northeast of the Longji Rice Terrace Ticketing Office ( Also the Bus Station and Parking Lot for Longji).

Dazhaicun Village (大寨) & Tiantouzhai Village ( 田头寨)

Dazhaicun Village and Tiantouzhai Village are 24 km to the northeast of the Longji Ticketing Office Building. Tiantouzhai is located on the hillsides above Dazhai Village. Both the two villages are roughly in the same area.

Longji Rice Terrace Scenic Spot Ticket Office

Longji Rice Terrace Scenic Spot Ticket Office is located about 1km to the south of Hepingxian (和平乡),  about 14 km to the southeast of Longsheng County (龙胜),  76km to the north of Guilin city proper (桂林) and 159km to the northwest of Yangshuo (阳朔).

76km to the north of Guilin and 159km to the northwest of Yangshuo (Google)
1km to the south of Hepingxian about 14 km to the southeast of Longsheng (Google)

Entrance Tickets

Adult ticket :80 RMB;
Group ticket (more than 20 people):75 RMB;
Scenic spot shuttle bus for group travellers (inside the scenic area) : 40 RMB;
Local public Bus for individual travellers: 40 RMB
Huangluo Yao Village Song and dance :80 RMB;
Jinkeng Sightseeing Cable Car : RMB 100 round-trip/RMB 55 one-way
Open all year round.

Longji Rice Terrace ticketing office building
Ticketing Counter for Individual Travellers at Longji Rice Terraces

The tourist service complex designed for Longji Rice Terrace Scenic Spot includes the ticketing office, bus station, toilets and other facilities.

Longji Rice Terrace Scenic Spot Ticket Office Map (Google)

How to get to the Longji Rice Terrace Ticketing Office from Guilin? 

There are daily buses directly getting to the Longji Ticketing Office Building from Guilin Qintan Bus Station and Guilin North Bus Station(76km)

There are three main bus stations in Guilin:

1) Guilin Qintan Bus Station 桂林琴谭汽车站
Add: 31 Cuizhu Road, Guilin 翠竹路31号
Tel: (0773)3832703
Departures ( to Longji ): 7:00-19:00 (every 15 minutes ); 25 yuan

2)Guilin North Bus Station 桂林汽车北站
Add: 76 Beichen  Road, Guilin北辰路76号
Departures (to Longji ): only 4 daily 8:25/11:40/13:40/17:20

3)Guilin South Bus Station 桂林汽车南站
No departure for Longji
Add: West of Kaifeng Road, Guilin 凯风路西侧

How to get to Ping’An Village,  Dazhai Village and Tiantouzhai Village from the Ticketing Office?


If you take a public bus from Guilin to the ticketing office in Longji,  you need to change for a local public bus to go further to each of the villages after you purchase your entry ticket.

If you take a car or van ( less than 9 seats ) to get to Longji Terrace, you can directly drive to each village. But you still need to purchase your ticket at the center before you go to each village.

At present, the official shuttle buses in Longji Rice Terrace Scenic Area are only designed for tourist groups instead of individual tourists. For those who come here organised by a travel agent need to purchase a 40-yuan bus ticket for the shuttle service shuttling from the ticketing office to Ping’An, Daizhai and Tiantouzhai.

It seems Longji Rice Terrace is not an individual tourist-friendly place where as an independent traveler, you are not allowed to use the shuttle service starting from the ticketing office. Instead, you have to take the local public buses outside the ticketing office to Ping’An (18km), or further to Dazhai and Tiantouzhai (24km).

It is an hourly bus ride with the bus fare at 40 yuan, a return ticket and valid for multi-days. So keep your bus ticket for a return trip from the villages back to the ticketing office.

All the local public buses come from Longsheng, on to Hepingxian Town and the ticketing office, so your bus ticket is also valid between the villages and Heping Town, or Longsheng. That means you are able to take bus to the villages directly from Heping Town or Longsheng as well as the Longji Ticketing Office.

Visit Ping’Ancun Village, or Dazhaicun Village and Tiantouzhai Village?

For a day tripper from Guilin or Yangshuo, people don’t have enough time to cover the three villages and have to make a choice between Ping’An Village, and Dazhai & Tiantouzhai villages due to the limited time since each village involves 2-3 hour hiking. Ping’An Village is about 19km away from Dazhai Village & Tiantouzhai Village.

So choose Ping’An Village, or its competitors Dazhai Village and Tiantouzhai Village? Ping’An Rice Terrace area often represents Longji Rice Terraces since Ping’Ancun Village was the first village in the scenic area developing rice terrace sightseeing tourism while Dazhai and Tiantouzhai are newcomers, beautiful competitors in a less touristy area.

Personally I highly recommend visiting Dazhai & Tiantouzhai since they have a much larger area put together of terraced paddy fields with more photogenic views. The upside is that they have a long cable car lifting you to the top of the mountain for a panoramic view of the terraced fields if you don’t have strong legs for hiking.

How to Visit Dazhaicun (大寨& Tiantouzhai (田头寨)

There is the same parking area and entrance to the two villages with Tiantouzhai Village perched on the hillsides and Dazhai Village at the foot of the hills. There are three high viewing platforms in the area – Platform No. 1, No 2 and No. 3.  

Dazhaicun Village and Tiantouzhai Village 24 km to the northeast of the Longji Ticketing Office Building.

You may hike from Dazhaicun to No.02 Platform in Tiantouzhai and up to the No.01 Platform on the summit. The Platform No.03 can be reached by the cable car service starting from the parking lot and by the entrance. Cable car: 55 yuan single and 100 return tickets.

Dazhaicun Village (大寨& Tiantouzhai Village (田头寨)

For a fast glimpse of the massive terrace rice fields, you may take the cable car up to the Viewing Platform No.03.  For hiking lovers, you may hike up from Dazhai Village along the trails with English signposts.

The time hiking up to No.01 and No.2, then back to the entrance takes about 4-5 hours. The last return bus from Dazhai to the ticketing office or Longsheng leaves at 5:30 pm. So carefully schedule your travel time for a day trip to Longji.

Follow me to have a virtual tour of Dazhaicun Village and Tiantoucun Village.

The Parking Area by the entrance to Dazhaicun Village and the Cable Car Station.

The Parking Area at Dazhai Village Longji

Take the cable car up the Viewing Platform for a bird’s-eye’s view of the magnificent terraced paddy fields.

Take the cable car at Longji Terraced Paddy Fields

The Dazhai Village and the surrounding rice terraces viewed from the Platform No.03.

The Dazhai Village and the surrounding rice terraces

A close-up view of the rice terraces.

close-up view of the rice terraces

The bird’s-eye view of the rice terraces from Panorama House Hotel higher on the mountain.

The bird’s-eye view of the rice terraces from Panorama House Hotel

The Viewing platform No.01 is the best place in Longji to see the sunrise.

The Sunrise at Longji

The sunrise over the terraced rice fields viewed from the Platform No.01.

Longji Rice Terraces Viewed from Platform No.01

The terraced paddy fields known as “Seven Star flying to the Moon”.

Seven Stars flying to the Moon

The  “the Thousand Terraces of the rice fields ” viewed from the Platform No.02

the Thousand Terraces of the rice fields

Recommended Hotels
1) Dragon’Den Hostel (大寨青年旅社):  Tel: 0773 – 7585780  Located in Dazhai Village
2) Meijing Lou (美景楼): Tel: 0773 7585678  Located in Tiantouzhai Village
Panorama House Hotel (全景楼大酒店):  On the summit of the mountain Tel: 0773 – 7585688

How to Visit Ping’An (平安村)?

Many individual trippers favor Ping’Ancun Village simply because it is closer to the ticketing office, saving time and another factor is Ping’An is more developed with better catering service and it is learned that even some foreigners run a bar restaurant there.

Ping’Ancun Village 18km to the northeast of the Longji Rice Terrace Ticketing Office (Google)

There are two Viewing Platforms – from the No.01 Platform you can catch the stunning view of the so-called “Nine Dragons and Five Tigers”, a metaphor vividly depicting the terraced paddy fields resembling dragons and tigers; from the No.02 Platform you ‘ll see ” Seven Stars Accompany the Moon” that refers the seven high terraced platform and the watered platform that resembles the Moon, a fantastic view.

The view of “Nine Dragons and Five Tigers ” at Ping’An Village

Nine Dragons and Five Tigers

The Seven Stars Accompanying the Moon at Ping’An

The Seven Stars Accompanying the Moon

The Ping’ An Village

The Ping’ An Village

Recommended Hotels
1) Longji Holiday Hotel (龙脊酒店): Tel: 0773 7583545
2) Liqing Hote (丽晴饭店) Tel: 0773 13878352092

Best time to view Longji Rice Terraces

Every year, the end of May and the beginning of June are the good season for viewing the terraces filled with water, when the terraces seem to be a layer of mirror.

The end of July and the beginning of August are all green. The end of September and the beginning of October are good time for viewing the golden yellow terraces.

Tip:  Hassle-free Guilin Guided Tours

If you don’t want to do a self-guided tour and prefer the hassle-free escorted tours,  here are some options for organized tours to Guilin:

Guilin Tour
Guilin Private Tour
Guilin Group Tour
Guilin Layover Tour
Beijing Guilin Tour
Hong Kong Guilin Tour
Guilin Car Rental with Driver
Guilin Customized Tour

Further Readings


Guilin Tour- Top 10 Things to do in Guilin
Best time to visit Guilin
Where to stay in Guilin
Top 10 Guilin Luxury Hotels
Top 10 Guilin Boutique Hotels
Top 10 Guilin Budget Hotels
Guilin Tourist Scams, Tourist Traps in Guilin
Guilin Taxi

How to Visit Elephant Trunk Hill
Folded Brocade Hill (Diecai Hill)
Jingjiang Princes’s City to be Skipped
Stroll around Shan Lake and Rong Lake in Guilin
Yangshuo Taxi: Yangshuo Taxi Fares, Tips and Phones

Li River Cruise
How to Visit Xingping
Impression Liu Sanjie Mega Performance in Yangshuo
Biking through Shili Scenery Gallery in Yangshuo
Yangshuo West Street
Bamboo Rafting on Yulong River in Yangshuo

How to Visit Longji Terraced Rice Fields
Visit Huangyao Ancient Town from Yangshuo or Guilin
Daxu Ancient Town
How to Visit Chengyang Wind & Rain Bridge

Any questions, just drop a line.

29 thoughts on “How to Visit Longji Rice Terraces from Guilin (Tips, Photos & Map)

  1. Hi,

    I am planning for Guilin trip on Dec 25th Dec 2016. Would that be advisable to visit Longji Terrace in Dec

  2. Hi Payel Kar,

    It is okay to see Longji Rice Terraces. But it is not the good time to view the magnificent terraced fields, no water and a bit bald, and chilly.

  3. 7 of us (all adults and 6 of us aged 60 – 69) would like to make a day trip from Guilin to Pingan Village in late November. What is the last bus from Pingan Village to the Ticket Office entrance and the last transport available from there to Guilin? Is is possible to go and hike in Pingan Village from Guilin in the morning around 8 am and return before 7pm? Is is whorthwhile making a trip to Longji Rice Terrace in late November? Your advice is much appreciated.

  4. Hi Ma Han Chu,

    First, it’s okay to visit Longji Rice Terrace in late November, a local harvest time with golden yellow colors.

    Basically it is possible to go and hike in Pingan Village from Guilin in the morning around 8 am and return before 7pm. We are not sure the last bus from Pingan to the ticket office and back to Guilin. But once you are in Longji, you will be clear about all this.

    Have a good time in Guilin!

  5. Hi! If I hire a driver (coming from Guilin), can he drive me from the ticket office to the cable car?
    How long does it take by car, please?
    Which one demands less time in total? Hike to view point 2 or Cable Car to view point 3? (I hv a 6 year old, so wanted to do what’s easier and more fun for him)
    Tks a lot!

  6. Hi Priscila,

    Yes, a private car can enter Longji Rice Terraces Area inclduing the place where you take the cable car. If my memory doesn’t fail me, the drive distance from the tourist center ( Ticketing office ) to the cable car station is about 20 km! Take it easy.

    Traveling with your kid, just take the cable car and get to the No.03 Viewing Platform and you can get most of the amazing view of the terraced fields.

    Have a nice time!

  7. Dear Sarah Wauters,

    First you take flight or high speed train from Shanghai to the city of Guilin ( 桂林), then connect the local bus going to Ping’an Village. Before you getting to Ping’an village, you should go to the ticket office for Longji Terraces to buy the entrance ticket.

    Have a nice trip!

  8. Dear Daniel

    Thank you for your answer. I am planning to travel to Yangshuo and the Longji Rice Terraces. I read that there is a shuttle bus from the Guilin airport to Yangshuo. And is there still a bus from Yangshuo to the Longji Rice Terraces?

    Or is it better that I book a hotel in Guilin and do a one day trip to Yangshuo and a one day trip to Longji Rice Terraces?

    Greetings

    Sarah

  9. Dear Sarah Wauters,

    1. Timetable for the shuttles between Guilin Airport and yangshuo:

    1) Guilin Airport – Yangshuo Bus Station:09:30、11:00、12:30、14:00、15:30、16:30、18:00、20:00
    Yangshuo Bus Station – Guilin Airport: 07:00、09:00、11:30、13:00、14:30、16:00、17:30、19:00
    Bus fare: 50 yuan
    Time: 2 hours
    Distance: 95 km

    Then take bus back to Guilin.

    2) It is better to book a hotel in Guilin and do a one day trip to Longji Rice Terraces.
    Most of the tourist desks at the hotels in Guilin offer a day trip to Longji, easy and comfortable, and you book through them. Alternatively you can take a bus to go there.

    3) Not suggesting to go directly from Yangshuo to Longji, due to the uncertainty of the shuttle service.

    Have a nice trip!

  10. Thank you for the useful information.

    Could you please specify whether there is a ticket office near Dazhai village, or is there only one central ticket office? Some of the maps seem to indicate that there are several ticket counters, including one at the parking lot near Dazhai village, but I’m not sure whether it is indeed so (perhaps those are just for checking tickets, rather than for selling them…). Basically, I thought of taking a local bus from either Longsheng or Heping to Dazhai, buying the ticket there, and later hiking from there to Ping’an. Or do I have to get first to the Longji Rice Terrace Ticketing Office, and only then take a local bus from there to Dazhai? (sorry for the confusion, simply some websites suggest taking the bus directly to Dazhai/Ping’an, while others, as in this case, suggest first going to the ticketing office…)

    Thank you in advance!

  11. Dear Charles,

    As far as I know, there is just one ticket office at the tourist center selling all-through tickets ( one ticket for all ) for Ping’An Village, Dazhai Village and Tiantouzhai Village. Each village has its own ticket check points.

    If you take a bus to get to the ticket office, you need to change for the local bus to go to any of the villages after you purchase your entry ticket at the center;
    If you take a car or van ( less than 9 seats ), you can directly drive to each village. But you still need to purchase your ticket at the center.

  12. Dear Charles,

    Just a follow-up to my previous reply.

    Basically  you are able to take bus to the villages (Ping’An Village,  Dazhai Village and Tiantouzhai Village) directly from Heping Town or Longsheng and your bus will still pass by the Longji Ticketing Office and the staff will be on board to sell the tickets.  That means you still need to purchase your ticket at the center before you go to each village.

  13. How can i reach and visit Longji Rice Terraces from Dubai? which is the best time to visit Longji Rice Terraces when it is fully green in color. Is there any international package tour operators are available to assist us?

  14. Dear Sunil,

    Thanks for your inquiry! You can take flight from Dubai to Hong Kong. Then take flight from Hong Kong to Guilin where you visit Longji Rice Terraces. In spring time, the terraces turn green.

  15. Hi Daniel,

    me and my friend would like to make a trip to Longji Rice Terraces /Ping’An on Sept 13th or 14th 2018.
    I recently noticed, that the “Guilin Bus Station” stopped operating in July 2018 and that there is a new Bus Station, the “Guilin South Bus Station”, but I can’t find an adress of this new Station nor a plan of Buses departing from it. Do you know where this new Station is and if there is a bus route to Longji? If there is one, which, and when do the Buses depart?
    Also, was this no-longer-existing “Guilin Bus Station” the “Guilin Qintan Bus Station” or an other Bus Station? If not, is it better to take a bus from the Qintan Bus Station to Longji or from the new Station? Are the available routes direct ones or do we have to change buses e.g. at Heping Village (as I read on an other website)?

    Thank you in advance!

    Elena

  16. Dear Elena,

    Thanks for your feedback! We have just updated the travel guide.

    There are three main bus stations in Guilin:
    1) Guilin Qintan Bus Station 桂林琴谭汽车站
    Add: 31 Cuizhu Road, Guilin 翠竹路31号
    Tel: (0773)3832703
    Departures ( to Longji ): 7:00-19:00 (every 15 minutes ); 25 yuan

    2)Guilin North Bus Station 桂林汽车北站
    Add: 76 Beichen Road, Guilin北辰路76号
    Departures (to Longji ): only 4 daily 8:25/11:40/13:40/17:20

    3)Guilin South Bus Station 桂林汽车南站
    No departure for Longji
    Add: West of Kaifeng Road, Guilin 凯风路西侧

    So take the bus from Qintan Bus Station.

    Any new information, please update, Thanks!!

  17. Hi,

    How much would a taxi or private car be from Yangshou to Dazhai?
    What is the best way to arrange this?

    Thank you in advance.

    Cheers,
    Jess

  18. Hi there, the location is still beautiful, but it is very clear that mass tourism is changing it, not for better. Particularly, one can see how many new building in the old villages are under construction, as if traditionmal architecture wasn’t enough protected. How long until these beautiful and touching
    landscapes and villages will not be such any more?

  19. Hi there, the location is still beautiful, but it is very clear that mass tourism is changing it, not for better. Particularly, one can see how many new building in the old villages are under construction, as if traditional architecture wasn’t enough protected. How long until these beautiful and touching landscape and villages will not be such any more?

  20. Hello,

    what are the operating hours for Dazhai cable car?

    what is the best time to visit; early morning or late afternoon after all the tour groups leave?

    thanks

  21. Dear Amita,

    Both early morning and later afternoon are the good time to see the rice terraces. As as far as I know, the cable car runs from 8:00am to 6:00pm. Have a good time!

  22. Hi, where can I buy tickets for Longji rice terraces? Is Longji Ticketing Office the only option or can I purchase tickets at entrance (for example in Ping’An village)?

  23. Dear Ona,

    Thanks for your inquiry!

    As far as I know, Longji Ticketing Office is the only place for buying tickets on the spot apart from online booking which is mainly in Chinese.

    Ping’An village is integrated into the general Longji terraced area. Have a nice time in Longji!

  24. Hi Daniel,

    I just wanted to ask if it is possible to get a bus directly from Heping Town to Tiantouzhai or do you need to walk up from Dazhai?

    Thanks 🙂

  25. Dear HMort,

    Basically you need to walk up from Dazhai to Tiantouzhai. As for the direct bus from Heping Town to Tiantouzhai, I have no experience taking the bus. But I’ve just checked online and get the information that you can take the local bus from Heping to Dazhai. Enjoy your trip!

  26. Dear Victor,

    ¡Es peor, Marzo es aburrido! En la actualidad a las terrazas no recomendamos, no se arrepiente, ir a la posibilidad se arrepentirá, recomendamos elegir 5-6 o septiembre-octubre para ir.

    Cada año, finales de mayo y principios de junio son la temporada para que las terrazas se llenen de agua, cuando las terrazas parecen ser una capa de espejo.

    A finales de julio y principios de agosto estaban bien, cuando todo era verde.

    A finales de septiembre y principios de octubre había color amarillo dorado, y las terrazas eran vistas como si estuvieran llenas de oro.

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