Huanglong National Park: The Ultimate Guide to Sichuan’s “Yellow Dragon”

Written by Catherine | Updated March 12,2026

If you are a nature lover, Huanglong National Park will not let you down. The densely distributed travertine landscapes inside the park will catch your attention at every turn. The attractions are mainly concentrated in Huanglong Valley. Here, thousands of colorful pools stretch along the valley, formed by mineral deposits, microorganisms, and sunlight reflection. The golden travertine beach flows meander through the valley like a golden dragon, and the colorful lakes are like dragon scales. This is why it is named “Huanglong” or “Yellow Dragon”. Now, it has been listed as a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site.

The scenic area is located in Sichuan Province, China. It is close to Jiuzhaigou National Park, about 120 – 140 km away. If Huanglong Scenic Area is regarded as a world of colorful travertine pools, Jiuzhaigou is a kingdom of alpine lakes and waterfalls. If time permits, it is highly recommended to include both of them when planning a China nature tour.

Content Preview

• Quick Facts About Huanglong National Park
• Main Attractions in Huanglong National Park
• Huanglong National Park Tickets & Opening Hours 2026
• Best Time to Visit Huanglong National Park
• How to Plan a Huanglong National Park Tour
• How to Get to Huanglong National Park
• Huanglong vs Jiuzhaigou: Which Park Is Better to Visit?
• Practical Travel Tips
• Plan a Huanglong National Park Tour with China Xian Tour

Quick Facts About Huanglong National Park

• Chinese name: 黄龙国家风景区
• Location: Songpan County, Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture
• Opening hours: 08:00~18:00
• Ticket price: June 1^st– December 15^th: CNY 170; December 16^th – May 31^st: CNY 60
• Best time to visit: September – October
• Recommended Visiting Time: 4 – 5 hours
• Highlights: the most abundant travertine forms, colorful lakes and a Tibetan Buddhist temple

Main Attractions in Huanglong National Park

Five-Color Pool

Five-color Pool is the most iconic landscape in Huanglong National Park. Covering an area of 2,1000 sq m, the pool is actually composed of a total of 693 colorful lakes. With an altitude of 3,576 meters, it has been the world’s largest and highest-altitude open travertine pool group. Nature has shaped the pools into different forms, like fans, arches or tiered terraces. They are well-arranged, layer-by-layer. Under sunlight, the pools present various colors, such as white, purple, blue and green, just a color palette when looking from afar. So it is reputed as Heavenly Lake.

Zhengyan Pool

Zhengyan Pool is the second-largest pool group in the park, which also consists of 658 lakes. After arriving here, you will find the pools here boast more diverse shapes. Look carefully, some resemble lotus flowers, some resemble lotus leaves. Some are small enough to hide in your sleeves, while others are as big as an acre of land. Each shows a different color, golden yellow, emerald green, etc. Viewed from different angles, each pool has its own unique features. There are also various trees surrounding the pools, which are reflected in the clear water.

Jinsha Pudi Beach Flow

Jinsha Pudi Beach Flow has been certified by Guinness World Records as “the largest, longest and most colorful surface travertine beach in the world”. What is its scale? 1,300 meters long and 40  – 122 meters wide. Due to the sloping terrain, pools can not form here. After the water flows through the slope for numerous years, layers of golden travertine beach are formed, shining like a golden carpet under sunlight. This is another rare wonder in Huanglong National Park. A plank road is built beside the beach flow for tourists to appreciate closely. The best time to catch the golden moment is from 10:00 – 14:00.

Feipu Liuhui Waterfall

When you see layers of emerald water bursting through the dense forest and rushing down from a 10-meter-high and 60-meter-wide rock bank, you are arriving at Feipu Liuhui Waterfall. After approaching, dozens of waterfalls will come into sight and the mist spreads like a fairyland. Behind the waterfall is a golden travertine cliff, making the entire waterfall more magnificent and splendid. Under sunlight, it reflects various colors. From a distance, it looks like a rainbow from the sky, exceptionally brilliant and dazzling, thus got the name.

Huanglong Middle Temple

Built in the Ming Dynasty, Huanglong Middle Temple is a Tibetan Buddhist Temple. Originally, there were a total of 5 halls, but now, only the Guanyin Hall is retained with 18 Luohan statues. The architecture is ancient and magnificent and the statues are exquisitely carved. Its design has integrated the religious elements of both Tibetan and Han Buddhism. Surrounded by red pine forests and rhododendron forests, the environment is tranquil here. A tourist rest area is set inside the temple, providing water and souvenirs, etc. It is an ideal place for a rest.

Huanglong National Park Tickets & Opening Hours 2026

Note: the sightseeing bus is limited to 6000 tickets per day. The section it covers has a steep slope and it takes about 50 minutes on foot. It is recommended to book it online 15 days in advance. The Abatour official website and Wechat account offer the service.

Best Time to Visit Huanglong National Park

April to November are all proper time to visit Huanglong National Park. While the best time must be late September – October. During this period, most primitive forests, red pine, spruce, fir and rhododendron, are dressed in different colors. Golden, orange and green are interwoven. In autumn, the rainfall decreases, the pool water settles more and has extremely high transparency. With sunlight at just the right angle and more full reflection of light, the color saturation of the lakes reaches the peak of the whole year.

Also, the far-reaching mountain has also been covered with snow. This breathtaking scroll of colorful leaves and lakes and snow mountains can only be appreciated in autumn. Besides, the weather is also cool and pleasant, ideal for both hiking and photography. If you do not have time to visit during this time, spring and summer also offer charming scenery. Just avoid the rainy days, when the water will turn turbid.

As for the best time of the day, 08:00 – 10:00 offers gentle lights and clear views of lakes. The temperature is also moderate and the tourists are fewer, allowing you to enjoy the scenery leisurely.

How to Plan a Huanglong National Park Tour

To visit the core area of Huanglong National Park, it usually needs 4 – 5 hours. The following route is the most classic and recommended:

Tourist Center (take the free shuttle bus to the cable car service center) – Take the upward cable car – Take the sightseeing bus to the end – Walk 800 meters to the Five-Color Pool – Five-color Pool – Walk downward to Huanglong Rare Temple – Yinyue Pool – Huanglong Middle Temple – Jiexian Bridge – Zhengyan Pool – Suoluoying Pool – Mingjing Daoying Pool – Penjing Pool – Jinsha Pudi Beach Flow – Xishen Cave – Liantai Waterfall – Yingbin Pool – Exit

Advantage of the route: It combines cable car and walking. Its advantages is that it saves time and energy, meanwhile covering all the main scenic spots.

Good to know:

But if you visit there during the dry season, it is not advised to hike down the mountain. Just focus on the Five-Color Pool and the surrounding scenic spots. Because the scenery of other attractions may be not as beautiful as you imagine and it is tiring to hike all the way downward.

Instead, choose the round-trip cable car and the sightseeing bus. Tourists who are short of time or have limited strength can also try this route.

Some tourists may ask whether I can challenge a complete hiking tour. It is more recommended for tourists who have good strength and want an in-depth tour. The comparison table below is for your reference.

Recommended tour

4 DAYS

Jiuzhaigou Huanglong Tour with Panda Volunteer Program

Explore This Tour

How to Get to Huanglong National Park

• By Air: Jiuzhai Huanglong Airport is the closest airport to the park, it mainly operates flights to/from Beijing, Hangzhou and Chengdu. And the schedule may be adjusted according to the seasons. After arrival, there are direct airport buses and taxis to the scenic area. You can find it at the opposite of the arrival hall.
• By Train: Huanglong Jiuzhai Station is the choice of most tourists. Also, both tourist direct buses and taxis are available. Another choice is Songpan Station. Though relatively far, it also offers tourist direct buses to the park.
• By Bus:About the long-distance bus, Chadianzi Bus Station and Xinnanmen Bus Station usually offer 1 – 3 departures to the park, but it takes about 7 – 8 hours, so it is not very recommended.

How to get to Huanglong from Chengdu and Jiuzhaigou

• From Chengdu: For tourists who want to visit Huanglong after their Chengdu tour, flight, train and bus are all available. But the most recommended is to take the train to Huanglong Jiuzhai Station first and then transfer to the tourist direct bus.
• From Jiuzhaigou:the fastest way is to take the bus at Jiuzhaigou Bus Station. The buses mainly depart in the morning, and it takes about 2.5 hours.

Huanglong vs Jiuzhaigou: Which Park Is Better to Visit?

Huanglong Nation Park and Jiuzhaigou National Park are both world-class natural heritage sites, but they differ a lot in landscapes and sightseeing experience. Which one to choose? It mainly depends on your preference, time and body condition. Their core differences are listed below:

How to choose: if you have more than 3 days, it is highly recommended to visit both of them. If only one can be chosen, visit Jiuzhaigou if you are first-timers or photographers, travel with elders and kids, or prefer a relaxing tour; visit Huanglong if you are interested in geological landscapes, have a tight schedule or have good strength.

Recommended tour

3 DAYS

Classic Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong Tour

Explore This Tour

Practical Travel Tips

Altitude Sickness Prevention: the attractions inside the scenic area are basically 3,000 meters above sea level. So if you are worried about altitude sickness, take Rhodiola rosea and prepare an oxygen bottle in advance. The tourist center also offers it, the price is CNY 25/300 ml bottle. Do not buy at the entrance, which is smaller and more expensive. Free oxygen can also be obtained at the entrance of the scenic area, you can prepare an oxygen bag in advance. Inside the scenic area, there is one rest area about every 700 meters, a total of about 10. All offer free oxygen. Besides, you can also prepare the glucose solution.

Food: restaurants are located at the tourist center and near both the upper and lower stations of the cable car, but the choices are limited and the price is higher, so it is better to enjoy a meal in Songpan County, where you can taste the authentic dishes of the Tibetan and Qiang nationalities. Or prepare some snacks in advance.

What to Pack & Wear: passport, layered clothing, comfortable hiking shoes, sunscreen, altitude sickness medication, oxygen bottle, snacks, power bank, some cash

Photo spots:

• At the corner of the wooden walkway in the middle section of the Five-color Pool: You can capture the panoramic view of the color pool and the snow-capped mountains.
• Huanglong Middle Temple: Red walls and golden roofs with snow-capped mountains.
• Wanglongtai Viewing Platform: The bestspot to overlook the entire Huanglong Valley.
• Mingjing DaoyingPool: Squat down to take pictures of the “Mirror of the Sky”.

Other Visiting Tips: Don’t touch the pool water! A fine will be imposed for damaging the travertine landscape.

Plan a Huanglong National Park Tour with China Xian Tour

If you want to enjoy a visual feast, Huanglong National Park will be an ideal destination. Whether you prefer affordable small group tours or private tailored trips, China Xian Tour can offer help. We can also include Jiuzhaigou or Chengdu in the tour if needed. Compared with other travel agencies, we promise to offer the best possible value based on comparable service quality. And our itinerary will include the tickets, hotels, and some meals, so your tour will be more carefree. Do not hesitate to contact us to enjoy your leisurely tour.