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Guilin

Guilin was first established by Emperor Qinshihuang (214 BC) as the Guilin Shire. It was located on the Guixiang "Corridor" which was an important passage connecting Zhongyuan and Lingnan. During the Three-Kingdom period, the Wu Kingdom built up Shi'an Shire here, and from then on Guilin has come to be a political and transition center. Till Tang Dynasty, Guilin had become a relatively big city with great halls and walls. In Song Dynasty Guilin was the capital of Guangnanxilu, which governed Guangxi and Hainan Island. In Ming Dynasty, Guilin was also the seat of Jingjiang Prince Mansion and Guangxi Three Departments. Emperor Yongli had been here twice. Our revolutionary pioneer Sun Yat-san had his residence set up here and directed the northward expedition. In 1940 Guilin was reset as a city and the capital of Guangxi Province. So Guilin has been the political, economic and cultural center in northeast Gui Region ever since its founding.

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Geography

Guilin is situated in the northeast of Guangxi Province and southwest of Nanling Mountains. It is in the basin surrounded by Yuecheng Range, Ocean Hill, Jiaqiao Range and Tianping Hill. It appears at the southern end of Gui-Xiang Corridor. Carbonate rocks form the main body of the city ground where the karst physiognomy spreads widely, and there are many complete and wonderful karst sites, which have highly scientific value and tourist value.

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Climate

Guilin is in subtropical and monsoon zone with warm and moist surrounding, so it is not very cold in winter and not very hot in summer. There are little snow and evergreen trees. It also has plenty of rainfall with an average precipitation per year of 1,872 mm.

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Natural Ecological Environment

Karst caves and stone forests feature the wonderful natural ecological environment of Guilin, whose altitude is 140-160 meters. Li River is meandering through Guilin from north to south, with a yearly sand content of 0.067kg/m3 and strong self-cleaning ability. The earth consists of mainly red soils, with PH ranging from 4.5 to 6.5. The plants in Guilin belong to the southern green plants of the sub-tropical evergreen forests, with a variety of 2,329 species, which fall into 247 divisions and 969 sections. There are 1,593 kinds of animals in Guilin, falling into 60 divisions and 295 subdivisions.

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Economy

The key points of Guilin's economy are tourism and agriculture. Its new economic advantage is the modern industry featured by high technology and the tertiary industry characterized by tourism trading and service. In 1998, the GDP of the city amounted to 29.142 billion yuan, and the fixed capital in vestment was 6.366 billion yuan. The gross production of grain went up 50 2.183 million tons, meat 640 thousand tons, and aquatic products 71.9 thousand tons. The gross production of agriculture totaled 16.523 billion yuan, and that of industry was 35.43 billion yuan. The income of tourism was 3.193 billion yuan.

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Culture

Guilin has a long history and brilliant culture. To the north of Guilin City, there are Baojiyan Cultural Site in Old Stone Age 30,000 years ago and Zengpiyan Cultural Site in New Stone Age 9,000 years old, which provide precious data to the research of pre-historical culture in South China. After the construction of Lingqu Canal in Qin Dynasty, Guilin has shown its state of cultural exchange between South and North. Guilin mountains and rivers as the best scenery attracted a lot of famous poets in Tang Dynasty. The poems and essays they wrote added charming brilliance to the Guilin mountains and rivers, forming a unique culture of mountains and rivers. At that time in Guilin, the culture of Buddhism was flourishing. In Song and Yuan Dynasty, the culture in Guilin made greater progress and was listed on the top in the country. In Ming and Qing Dynasty, Guilin became a key cultural city in Lingnan. The education in Guilin is so developed that it is also called the Zhuangyuan City. There are also many famous painters of whom over one hundred have their names in history. The Gui Opera, Cai Tone, drama and mass cultural activities are very popular and lasting.

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A Survey of Tourist Industry

Guilin is an ancient cultural city with a history of 2,110 years. The development of tourist resources could be dated back to the second year of Jingping of the Song State in Southern Dynasty (424 AC). Till Tang Dynasty, the Guilin mountains and rivers had been famous all over the country. During Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing.

Dynasties, both the natural and cultural tourist recourses in Guilin were significantly developed, and tourist activities were rich and colourful. The tourism of Guilin continued to develop in later period. In 1948, China Travel Service, Guilin Branch was founded and began to operate, signifying that the modern professional travel service came into being in Guilin.

After the liberation, the municipal government emphasized that tourism should be the pillar industry of Guilin, and consequently formulated the construction of scenic spots and the development of tourism. In the city projects of 1965, 1970 and 1975, Guilin was separately defined as the Landscape Tourist City, the Socialist Landscape City and Socialist Scenery Tourist City. On 23rd of October in 1985, the State Council defined Guilin as a Key Scenery Tourist City and Historical Cultural Famous City of China. In 1986, the State Council listed Guilin as one of the seven key tourist construction cities during the period of the seventh Five-year Plan. In 1985 and 1991, Guilin mountains and rivers ranked the second place both in the top ten Places of Interests and in the Forty Best Tourism Attractions in China. In 1998, China National Tourism Administration conferred Guilin as one of the Top Tourist Cities in China.
During the process of developing tourist industry, Guilin attaches great importance to the construction of tourist attractions, the maintaining of Li River, and the perfecting and improving of the tourists' reception capacity. After over 20 years' development, Guilin makes remarkable progress in tourist industry, basically forming a multi-functional and multi-level industry system and overall and high-quality tourist reception capacity. Guilin has become a world-renowned tourist city. During the recent years, Guilin always ranks within top 10 in terms of international tourist arrivals. International tourist arrivals amounted to 410,000 and domestic tourists reached 6 million in 1988 in spite of the influence of the financial crisis in southeast Asian countries.

Guilin has 28 star-rated hotels with 13,621 beds, 18 international travel services, 65 domestic travel agencies, 430 hotels and guesthouses for tourists, 15 coaches and cruises companies and over 1,000 tour guides who can speak foreign languages. About 40,000 people are directly involved in tourist industry. Besides, the economic benefits of Guilin City increased annually. The total revenue of tourist industry touched 1.18 billion yuan in 1997 and still achieved 0.921 billion yuan in 1998 in spite of the influence of the turmoil of southeast Asian countries. Tourism infrastructure improves steadily in recent years. The completion of the Liangjiang International Airport, Guilin Expressway and Guilin Railway Station eases the transportation congestion. Guilin has more than 40 air routes directed to big cities both at home and abroad. The postal and telecommunication industry also gains its rapid progress. The total installment capacity of program-controlled telephone of Guilin City has amounted to 135,000 and wireless telephones have been installed on the cruises on the Li River, which offers great convenience to tourists.

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City Flower of Guilin Sweet Osmanthus

Sweet Osmanthus is the city flower of Guilin. It is an evergreen plant and belongs to Sweet Osmanthus genus and Sweet Osmanthus family. Guilin has many Sweet Osmanthus tree forests, hence the name of Guilin (Forest of Sweet Osmanthus trees).

The history of Sweet Osmanthus in Guilin can be traced back to 10,000 years ago. Pollen had been discovered in the relics of Zengpiyan Cave of the New Stone Age located to the south of the city. Guilin has been enjoying a fame of "home of Sweet Osmanthus" for a long time.

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Symbol of Guilin

The logo features the characteristics of Guilin City. It uses the image of Sweet Osmanthus as the outline and the symbolic Elephant-trunk Hill and its reflections on the river is in the middle of the logo. The logo is not only significant, but also fully illustrates the beautiful views of the city.

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Local Culture

• Drama and Opera
  Gui Opera came into being in Ming and Qing Dynasties and became a popular art form in Guilin and north regions to Guilin. Tourists from Anhui Province introduced the Anhui Tune in Guilin, and the Anhui Tune developed into Gui Tune later. Melting with palace opera of Jingjiang Palace and folk opera introduced by musicians from palace in Ming dynasty, Gui Opera performed in Guilin local dialect then formed with Gao, Kun, Chui, Tan, and Za tunes. In 1950, Bracelet, a show of the Gui Opera by Guilin Gui Opera Troupe had won the second prize in performances and the first prize in performer in China Opera Show. The Legend of Concubine Yao, a new play by the troupe, had been rewarded the Wenhua Prize by China Cultural Administration.

• Gui Opera
  Gui Opera came into being in Ming and Qing Dynasties and became a popular art form in Guilin and north regions to Guilin. Tourists from Anhui Province introduced the Anhui Tune in Guilin, and the Anhui Tune developed into Gui Tune later. Melting with palace opera of Jingjiang Palace and folk opera introduced by musicians from palace in Ming dynasty, Gui Opera performed in Guilin local dialect then formed with Gao, Kun, Chui, Tan, and Za tunes. In 1950, Bracelet, a show of the Gui Opera by Guilin Gui Opera Troupe had won the second prize in performances and the first prize in performer in China Opera Show. The Legend of Concubine Yao, a new play by the troupe, had been rewarded the Wenhua Prize by China Cultural Administration.

• Cai Tune
  Cai Tune in Guilin is the earliest popular folk opera form to the north of Guilin. Male players use colorful fans, while the female players walk in small steps with colorful handkerchiefs. They play actively, singing and dancing at the same time. Sister Liusanjie, a Cai Tune play had been adapted for the movie, which made it even more famous.

• Folk Art Forms
  The folk art forms mainly include Wenchang, Yugu, Dagu, Linglingluo, and Tanci. With special Guilin characteristics, these folk art forms are performed in Guilin local dialect and are melted with folk songs in South China, Dagu in North china and Tanci in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.
  In 1962, a professional folk arts troupe was founded in Guilin and it had almost 100 plays up to 1991. Representing Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, it had participated in the China National Folk Art Forms Show for 4 times. The play of Wu'niang Going to the Capital won the first prize in 1981. The plays of Toasting, Qingwen Sewing the Clothes, and New Official Taking Position of Linglingluo, won prizes in 1986 and 1990. The play of Chunlan Yin had been rewarded the Wenhua Prize in 1997.
  
   

• Folk Customs
  Zhuang Nationality is original inhabitants in Guangxi. Plate-shoes dance is a popular art form in Zhuang Nationality regions. The shoes can be divided into three types: plate-shoes for 2, 3 and more persons. It reflects the teamwork spirit of unification to win victories.

• Plate-shoes Dance, Zhuang Nationality
  Zhuang Nationality is original inhabitants in Guangxi. Plate-shoes dance is a popular art form in Zhuang Nationality regions. The shoes can be divided into three types: plate-shoes for 2, 3 and more persons. It reflects the teamwork spirit of unification to win victories.

• Lusheng Dance, Miao Nationality
  Lusheng, a reed-pipe wind instrument, is popular in minority nationalities regions in Southern part of China. A famous saying in Miao Nationality goes like this: one can not resist tempt to dance when he hears the sound of Lusheng. When guests come, boys play Lusheng and girls dance to welcome guests with Lusheng dance.

• Ziyuan River Lantern and Song Festival
  Held from July 13 to 14 of the Chinese Lunar Calender, River Lantern and Song Festival is the traditional festival of Ziyuan County which is 107km away from Guilin city.
  During the festival, grand gatherings will be held by Han, Yao, Miao and other nationalities. Lion dance groups, dragon dance groups, river lantern groups and arts troupes from all villages will get together and give a splendid folk art show. When night falls, people will place the river lantern to the river to memorize their ancestors and pray for the good fortune for their offsprings. The river lanterns make the river fabulous at night. After the river lantern show, the art performances and cross-singing contest will last all night. The market will be crowded with people on the following day. All these events make the small town noisy and flourishing.

• Longsheng Red Clothes Festival
  Longsheng County is an autonomous county with multi-nationalities. Red Yao is a branch of Yao Nationality in Longsheng. Women of Red Yao are in favor of red clothes, hence the name. Red Clothes Festival, also known as Zhaina, will be held on March 15 in the lunar calender every year for Sishui Town. On occasions of festivals, Red Yao people gather in Sishui Street to exchange agricultural means of productions and products, buy daily necessities, or visit their friends and relatives. The young people will take the chance to find their lovers. Red Yao people are good at singing and dancing. Folk sports such as bamboo pole balancing, tug-of-wars, and rooster fighting, are really interesting. Women of Red Yao have long and nice hairs. They love to match beauties. A beauty in Red Yao criteria must be pretty, knowledgeable, logical in words, singing well and having good moral standard. Zhainais rich in content and programs include singing in antiphonal style, long drum dance, sports contest, hair competition, and Miss Village contest.
  With the development of tourist industry, Red Clothes Festival now has become the festival for all nationalities every year. It will be held on March 15 in lunar month, or April 8, at Zhaina (Sishui Village), or at the foot of Longji Mountain.

• Bull Fighting
  Minority nationalities in the northern part of Guilin have many festivals and folk customs, such as bull fighting, horse racing, and Lusheng dance, etc.

• Da Youcha
  Youcha, a kind of gruel of sweetened and fried flour, is the eating habit of Dong Nationality as well as other nationalities in northern part of Guilin. Youcha is made of tea, corn or rice, which are fried and boiled with Ciba, beans, and peanuts. Youcha is eaten with the ingredient of shreds of ginger, chopped green garlic, pepper powder, and cordate houttuynia. Meat Youcha is made with shrimps, small fishes, sausages, pork liver, and lean meat. When drinking Youcha, host and guests sit around the stove, and hostess makes and serves the Youcha. On September 15 in lunar calendar, young people of Dong Nationality drink 15 cups of Youcha, and they drink and sing at the same time.

• Gongcheng Tanxi
  Tanxi, also known as Ghost Opera, is developed on Tan dance. Tanxi is different from ordinary operas. It has no roles of Sheng, Dan, Jing and Chou, and also has no specialized and standardized playing procedures. Normally, Tanxi is played by 1 to 3 persons in colorful clothes and masks. The performance is influenced by Cai Tune and it absorbs the tunes of Cai Tune. Tanxi has no special troupes and mainly performs on occasions of praying and offering sacrifices to gods and ancestors.

• Lusheng Dance
  Lusheng is a reed-pipe wind instrument. Lusheng Dance is a traditional recreation on festivals of Miao Nationalities. Young men form a group of Lusheng and play the instrument together. The sound can be heard very far. Girls are dressed in their holiday best, wearing dragon and phoenix silver caps, silver hair clasp, and silver comb. Girls dance with the rhythm of Lusheng. Young people fall in love with each other through the dance. Boys who are good at playing Lusheng will be popular among girls.

• Long Drum Dance, Yao Nationality
  Long Drum Dance is a traditional art form of Yao Nationality. About 2 chi 5 cun ('chi' and 'cun' and ancient Chinese length measurements), Long Drum is made of Yanzhi wood. The drum is thin in the middle with the decorations of flowers, birds, dragons and phoenix patterns on it. Some long drum has bells on both ends and in the middle. When people play the drum, the bells sound harmoniously with the drum sound. It is said that ZaPanKuai was hit to cliff by brutal antelopes. People then began using skin of antelopes to make drum and beat it when dancing to show the hatred to antelopes and the memorization to their ancestors.
  
   

• Festivals and Celebrations
  Guilin Mountain and River Festival is a grand ceremony introduced by Guilin Municipal Government to tourists from home and abroad. It has been held 6 times from 1992 to 1997. the event features in integrating mountain and river sightseeing with local folk lore, arts performances with lantern decorations, shows and games, tourists soliciting activities with economic trade, and festivals with scenic spots along the Lijiang River. During the festival there are evenings to show Guiling's elegance, introduction and research of Guilin's scenery, folk customs, history and culture, and other cultural, artistic and recreational activities. Meanwhile, all kinds of expositions, trade fairs, negotiation meetings are held. The festival has broadened the influence, deepened the cultural content, and improved the development of Guilin tourism.

• Dragon Boat Festival
  Dragon Boat Contest is the grandest events on May 5th in Chinese lunar calendar. Guilin Dragon Boat Contest is held every 3 years. Participants actively make preparations and practice half a month in advance. The banks of the Lijiang River will be crowded with viewers on the day of May 5th. In the contest, dragon boats cleave on the river with the deafening sound of dragon boat songs, bells and drums. The winners will gain silver coins and a roasted pig. Participants attach great importance to the final win of the contest. It is a nice time to visit Guilin Dargon Boat Contest in May for tourists from home and abroad. Guilin held the first International Dragon Boat Contest in 1998, which attracted Dragon Boat troupes from Southeast Asian Countries, Hong Kong SAR, Macau, and China's Taiwan.

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Transportation

Accessibility
Guilin enjoys convenient transportation. Liangjiang International Airport has opened international and domestic air routes. It has 48 domestic air routes from Guilin to Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an, Guangzhou and other cities in China, 3 air routes from Guilin to Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, 1 international air route from Guilin to Fukuoka in Japan.
Xianggui railway passes Guilin. Guilin Railway Station has now finished and put into operation, which is the largest in South China. No.37/38 train from Guilin to Guangzhou is express train especially for tourists. Guilin boasts a net work of highways, which lead to the whole province and neighboring provinces. Guilin-Liuzhou-Beihai Expressway has entrances and exits to urban area, Hunan Province and Liuzhou. Guilin can reach Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macau via Wuzhou by waterway. It has 8 wharfs, and there are one foreign tourists' wharf and one domestic tourists' wharf in Zhujiang River and Mopanshan Mountain respectively.

International, Domestic Air Routes (or Charter) Airport
Lying in Southwestern part of Guilin, Liangjiang International Airport is close to Liangjiang Town, Lingui County, 28km to Guilin City. It is put into operation on October 1, 1996. It covers a total area of 4.06 square kilometers with a parking apron coverage of 150,000 square meters, which is enough for 20 airplanes. With the passengers handling capacity of 5 million person times in a year, it is a modern airport with 9 waiting halls next only to Beijing Capital Airport and Zhuhai Airport. It has a category-1 road 25.6km long leading from Guilin City to the airport. By now, Guilin has 48 air routes to Shanghai, Xi'an, Beijing, Guangzhou and other cities, 3 air routes to Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, and 1 international air route to Fukuoka in Japan. Cities with direct flights to Guilin : Beijing, Shenzhen, Huangshan, Xi'an, Zhuhai, Macau, Nanning, Chongqing, Ningbo, Chengdu, Tianjin, Wenzhou, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Beihai, Urumqi, Shantou, Xiamen, Haikou, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Zhengzhou, Kunming, Guiyang, Changsha, Dalian, Hefei, Wuhan, Jinan, Hong Kong, Macau, Taipei, Fukuoka.

Railway Station and Excursion Trains
Guilin is the destination of Xianggui Railway. Xianggui Railway is connected with Jingguang, Qiangui, Hugan and other railways. There are 28 trains from or pass Guilin to Beijing, Shanghai, Hengyang, Nanning, Liuzhou, Guangzhou, Kunming and Xi'an every day. No.37/38 trains air trains for tourists from Guangzhou to Guilin.
Guilin by now has 2 railway stations. Namely they are South Railway Station and Guilin Railway Station, both of which has spacious waiting hall, and lounges for foreigners, VIP guests, and excursion passengers. There are also information office, ticket office, baggage checking office, left-luggage office, food and beverage shops, and guesthouses in the railway stations.

Passengers Wharf
Early in Qin Dynasty, Lijiang River was connected with Xiangjiang River by Ling Canal and it then became the best waterway from north to south in ancient times. After liberation, Guilin makes full use of its geographic location, establishes wharf management bureau, constructs the passengers wharf and its facilities, and develops it into a wharf mainly for tourists. Guilin has 8 wharfs with 47 cruises, which aim to provide tourists with services of sightseeing along Lijiang River and night tours on the river. 28km away from Guilin City, there are wharfs for foreigner tourists and domestic tourists in Zhujiang River and Mopanshan Mountain respectively. Guilin has 67 luxurious cruises with 5,800 guest seats for overseas tourists and 112 cruises with 9,000 guest seats for domestic tourists. From 1978, cruises can not go sailing from Guilin during the dry season (November to February next year). Tourists have to board on Yangdi Wharf. Tourists can tour on Lijiang River in the section from Yangdi to Yangshuo in winter.

Expressway
Measuring 138.5km long, Liugui Expressway starts at Liaotian, Guilin, and ends at Jinglan, which is in the east of Liuzhou, via Yongfu and Luzhai. It is 23.5 meters in width (21.5 meters wide in mountainous regions) and is a 4-lane expressway. The expressway is a cement road with a speed limit of 100km/hour (80km/hour in mountainous regions). An emergent parking zone and a special emergent phone is available every 500 meters and 2km on the road. The No.1 and No.2 traffic police teams of Guilin Communications Department are stationed in Guilin and Liuzhou. Traffic police is on duty along the road to safeguard the expressway unimpeded.

Urban Traffic
Guilin has convenient public bus network throughout the city. It has 266 buses and 26 bus lines. Starting on May 1st, 1998, sightseeing buses runs from the General Station to Reed Flute Cave via Railway Station, Nanxi Park, Elephant Hill Park, Seven-star Park, Fubo Hill and Brocade Hill From 7:00 to 19:00, it runs once an hour with tour guides on bus.
There are also periodical sightseeing buses arranging one-day tour for individual tourists owned by Guilin International Travel Service.

Taxi
Taxis in Guilin totaled 1,651 by April 1998. There air luxurious and ordinary taxis in Guilin with the starting rate of RMB 11/3km and RMB 9/3km respectively. Taxis can be found 24 hours a day and tourists can take taxi everywhere at any time. The city government attaches great importance to the management of taxi services. It issued the Managerial Regulations on Guilin Taxis in December 1996. All taxis must be in a nice outlook, must use odometer, must not refuse to take passengers, and must not bully and blackmail passengers. In 1997, Communications Bureau issued Specifications on Guilin Taxis Service to standardize the taxi industry in Guilin.

Public Buses on Special Routes

Public Buses on Special Routes
Guilin is the hub of Guibei Highway. It has buses to other parts of Guangxi, Hunan, and Guangdong provinces, and also has special lines to 9 scenic areas of Xing'an, Xiyuan, Gongcheng, Lingchuan, Longsheng, Lipu, Sanjiang, Rongshui, and Jinxiu. Guilin has 20 public bus lines and 6 special lines. It also has a line to Yangshuo. There are starting points in Guilin Railway Station, Miaopu Road, and Wayao. Guilin Public Transportation Company has set 3 Tourist lines :
No.3 bus: Guilin Railway Station, West Hill Park, and Reed Flute Cave
No.13 bus: Seven-star Park, Brocade Hill, Fubo Hill, and Reed Flute Cave;
No.15 bus: Nanxi Park, Elephant Hill park, Seven-star Park, Fubo Hill, Brocade Hill, and Reed Flute Cave.

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Shopping and Food

Food and Restaurant

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  Information provided by China National Tourism Administration.

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