Wutai Shan (Five Terrace Mountain), Shanxi, China

5FlyfishermanBeijing 5:00 PM Nov 10, 2020

Amazing area with multiple budddhist temples
What a area, temples verywhere with old history. If you are fancy about buddhism or hirtory of China this is place for you. At this area can easily spent a days just look at different temples at different altitude.

5sjamtsho 5:00 PM Aug 27, 2013

Wutai Shan for pilgrims/ tourists
I went to Wutaishan from Beijing by train. It is about 6 hours’ train ride to Wutaishan station in a place called Shahe. Wutaishan peaks with its base as Taihuai town is actually another hour’s bus ride from there. I took the night train from Beijing and arrived at dawn, and there were several red buses waiting to take us. Just before getting into Taihuai town, there is a checkpost where visitors are required to buy passage to the heritage site of Wutaishan (I think it was Y 130) and a Y 50 public transport pass. With this you can ride the local buses without having to buy tickets. Mount Wutai is a World heritage site well known for both its geological and scenic natural landscapes, and cultural heritage. It boasts of over 68 different styles of temples built over 7 dynasties housing numerous Buddhist relics, and is described as “the epitome of Chinese Buddhism”. It is associated with the Boddhisattva of Wisdom, Manjushri (‘Jam dPal bYang). ‘Wu Tai’ literally means five peaks/ terraces, viz. the East, West, Central, North, and South Peaks each representing a manifestation of Manjushri. The town of Taihuai serves as the hub to travel to these peaks, and is home to numerous religious sites of great significance. One could easily spend several days visiting the numerous temples. I spent about a week and still could not visit them all as I chose to do it at a relaxed pace. For pilgrims, it is a good idea to book the government run taxi/ vans that do a day-long trip that takes you to the five peaks. The cost of the ticket is Y360 per person. They were sold out for the first three days we were there, even though I saw somewhere to the tune of 500 vans parked at the station. Beware of other vehicles offering to take you, usually at much higher rates. They may not have the permit to enter all the peaks even though they seem to be quite safe. You could do well to negotiate the cost in advance if they cannot take you to all the five peaks. Roads are mostly narrow and unpaved to the peaks, and so smaller vehicles and buses do not ply on these. For those who love trekking, this is beautiful country and the weather in July end was just perfect. On weekends the mountains are strewn with trekkers. Half the train from Beijing when I went was filled with trekkers who got off at Wutaishan station. Be wary of buying stuff including food if you cannot speak mandarin or if they know you’re not Chinese. The cost goes up manifolds, but bargaining seems to be the way to go. I returned to Beijing by bus, and it was most comfortable journey ever. The road was excellent, the bus seat comfortable, and the views great. I would recommend taking a bus not only because it goes straight to Taihuai and takes only five hours. The buses operate from Liuliuqiao station in Beijing twice a day I think. It is a gem of a place to visit.