One Day Private Pingyao Side Trip

Our guide will pick you up at the lobby of your hotel at around 09:00 in the morning. You will be escorted to the well-known Wang Family's Compound in around 1.5 hours' ride. It is a large and magnificent architectural complex originally built around 250 years ago. Lunch is on your own arrangement, and you can seek advice from our guide. In the afternoon, the tour continues to Zhangbi Ancient Fortress where you will go through the maze-like underground tunnels. After that, we will drive you back. On the way, you will pay a visit to Shuanglin Temple, which is different from many other temples for it still maintains its very old character. Your private Pingyao tour ends as we drive you back to your hotel or see you off at Pingyao Railway Station.

Located in Lingshi County in Shanxi Province, the Wang Family's Compound is 35 kilometers (22 miles) away from Pingyao Ancient City. This luxurious residence was originally built during 1762-1811 by the descendants of the Wang Family. What makes this compound so impressive are the sheer size and gorgeous ornamental structures. It is like a mini walled city with more than 200 courtyards, each of them has its own distinctive features. The intricately carved wood doors, window casings, stairways, stone carvings, etc. could be found everywhere in the courtyards.

Different from the compounds and ancient city, Zhangbi Ancient Fortress is an exception of Shanxi merchants' culture. To resist the invasion of enemies, Chinese ancestors made full use of its geographic advantages and built a 10,000-meter long underground military tunnels with three floors in the village. Zhangbi Ancient Fortress is a complex of historical relics, tombs, residences and tunnels, in which the labyrinth-like underground tunnels are the most interesting.

Shuanglin Temple

Shuanglin Temple is a peaceful, quiet and beautiful old temple. It is one of the three treasures of Pingyao, having been included in the World Heritage List by UNESCO in 1997. Praised as the 'ancient painted sculptures museum', this temple houses as many as 2056 colorful sculptures of Chinese Buddhism reflecting the exquisite skills of the artisans of the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. The sculpture of One-thousand Hand Kwan-yin is definitely the most mesmerizing.