Holiday in Heshan

About Heshan

Heshan is a city in the Pearl River Delta of Guangdong Province and is nicknamed "Crane Village" (He Cheng) — the name He means crane, and the crane dance has been the cultural hallmark of the city for centuries. The Heshan Crane Dance (He Shan Wu) is UNESCO intangible cultural heritage and is performed at festivals, temple processions, and the Chinese New Year: Two dancers control a life-sized crane through acrobatic movements, accompanied by drums and gongs. Heshan is a significant home for Overseas Chinese: Since the 19th century, tens of thousands of Heshan residents have emigrated to Southeast Asia, Australia, and North America. The Diaolou watchtowers in the surrounding villages — fortress-like stone buildings in a style that mixes Chinese and Western architecture — were built by returnees from abroad and testify to the wealth of the diaspora. The nearby Kaiping Diaolou are a UNESCO World Heritage site. The Guifeng Mountain landscape (Guifeng Mountain) is a national scenic area with bizarre rock formations, Buddhist temples, and hiking trails through subtropical forests. The Jade Mountain Temple at the summit offers a wide view over the Pearl River Delta. Heshan has natural hot springs that have been known since the Ming Dynasty. The Guxiang hot springs (Guxiang Wenquan) southwest of the city offer hot baths in an idyllic mountain landscape — a popular weekend destination for residents of the nearby metropolis of Guangzhou.