Songpan Travel Guide
Location:Located in the northern part of Sichuan, Songpan is a small minority town and a stopover place to/from Huanglong, Jiuzhaigou or Zoige.
History:
Songpan, which was built during Tang Dynasty and was later rebuilt during Ming Dynasty, was an important military post in ancient times. Songpan was also an important economic and trading center for horse and tea exchange between Sichuan, Gansu, Qinghai and Tibet.
In 1935, led by Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai, the retreating Chinese Communist Army marched through the plateau of Songpan to advance to the north western province.
While Songpan can be a charming city in its own right, the countryside surrounding the city offers a variety of tourist attractions. The hills surrounding the city are visual delights of Tibetan cattle herders leading their livestock over rolling grasses, endless valleys, and generally beautiful landscape. All of this can be seen through affordable horseback riding outlets on the outskirts of the city.
Transportation:
There are regular buses to Songpan from Chengdu, where there is an international airport. There are also daily buses from towns and cities such as Jiuzhaighou, Hongyuan and Zoige.
From Chengdu: take the Chegndu-Jiuzhaigou via Songpan bus at around 8:00am in Chengdu Xinanmen or Chadianzi Stations. Arrival at 16:00. Better buy ticket beforehand.
From Jiuzhaigou: take Jiuzhaigou-Chengdu bus at 7:30am in Jiutong Bus Station and get off at Songpan.
For moving on, comfortable touristy buses are available from Songpan to other destinations. Departure between 6:00~8:00am to Chengdu, Jiuzhaigou, Zoige, Hongyuan, Maerkang.
Hotels:
Just stepping out of the new and quiet Songpan Bus Station, you will see hostels standing in great numbers along the roadside. Y15~20/bed or Y30/room, shared bath room.
The Good Luck Guesthouse is also near the bus station. Dorm rooms range from RMB 12 to 20. Beware of the home made baijiu (rice wine, 40-60% alcohol content) you may be offered here, it's way too strong.
The Ice Mountain Hostel's friendly staff can supply you with electric blankets and clean rooms for RMB 20-30 a bed. It's just to the left of Emma's Kitchen, if you can't find it just ask Emma herself.
Dining:
Songpan's Hui, Tibetan, and Qiang influences yield a surprising variety of foods for a town this size. You'll be in heaven if you like bread, between the Hui pancakes and nan, Tibetan flatbreads and the assorted loaves available, you could be on a bread-tasting tour of the city for a good couple of days.
Shunjiang Street offers a wealth of Tibetan, Hui, and Chinese restaurants to choose from. The Hui are well known for their pulled-noodle dishes, you can try these at Lanzhou Noodles on the north end of Shunjiang Street.
Songpan's most famous restaurant, if it can be called that, is certainly Emma's Kitchen. Emma's extremely friendly and helpful and cooks up some pretty mean Western fare (including pizza). You'll also find her restaurant at the north end of Shunjiang Street.
Weather:
The climate of Songpan varies greatly according to the different areas in this county. In the Fujiang river drainge area, it is warm and moist with distinct seasonal differences.
Spring connects autumn without summer transition. The annual average rainfall comes to 720mm, 72% of which comes from the rainy season. The yearly average temperature is 5.7℃, while the lowest temperature could reach -21.1℃.
The best time period for visitors to Songpan is from May to December.
Entertainment:
Horse Treks are offered by several guest houses and agencies around town but are serviced by one horse trekking company.
It is an extremely exciting experience horse trekking in Songpan. Riding on the horseback and climbing over mountains as high as 4000 meters, you can enjoy the unique sceneries in the virgin forests and breathe the fresh air.
Attractions:
Huanglong Nature Reserve
Huanglong, a smaller, isolated version of Jiuzhaigou, some 75km northeast of Songpan, is famed for its mountainous landscapes, colorful pools of limestone formations, diverse forest ecosystems, as well as waterfalls and hot springs.
Huanglong includes Huanglong Valley, Danyun Gorge, Snow Treasure Peak, while Munigou comprises two scenic spots-the Zhaga Waterfall and the Erdao Lake.
The Huanglong Nature Reserve was enrolled as a world natural heritage site by UNESCO in 1992.
Monigou Scenic Spot
Mounigou, located to the west of Songpan Ancient Town, occupies an area of 160 square kilometers.
Mounigou has an elevation between 2,800 meters to 4,070 meters with an annual average temperature of 7℃. It belongs to the western part of Huanglong Scenic and Historic Interest Area. Mounigou consists of two big scenic spots: the Zhaga Waterfall and the Erdaohai Lake.
The highlights of Mounigou Scenic Spot are Zhaga Waterfall, Mouni Forest, Feicui Hot Spring, Baihua Lake, Yuliang Lake, Tian’e Lake, Karst Cave Group, etc.
Guanyin Pavilion
Guanyin Pavilion, situated atop a hill southwest of Songpan Town, offers a good view of the town and surrounding mountains.
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