Longji Rice Terraces (Ping'an)

The Longji Rice Terraces, known as the Dragon's Backbone, climb the hills of Longsheng Various Nationalities Autonomous County, roughly two and a half hours from Guilin in Guangxi, China. Zhuang and Yao farmers carved the terraces over about 700 years, building stacked paddies that follow the contour of the slopes up to heights of around 1,000 metres. Ping'an is the village and viewing area closest to Guilin, a Zhuang settlement of wooden stilt houses in Longji Town, and it is the most visited of the terrace areas. Two main viewing platforms are reached on foot from the village: Seven Stars Chasing the Moon and Nine Dragons and Five Tigers, each a climb of about an hour from the entrance along stone steps. The entrance ticket costs 80 yuan, and a cable car, optional, costs about 110 yuan round trip. Children under 1.2 metres enter free, and reduced prices apply to ages 6 to 18 and students. Visitors should allow a half day to a full day, and many stay overnight in guesthouses in the village to see the terraces at dawn and dusk. The scenery changes with the farming year: flooded paddies reflect the sky in late April and May, the terraces turn green in June and July, and they glow golden from late September to mid October before harvest. Winter can bring mist and occasional snow, and the terraces are bare. The ticket office opens around 7:00 AM and closes about 6:00 PM, although the village itself is open all day. Crowds are heaviest at midday and during Golden Week. Local porters carry luggage up the steep paths for a fee, and village shops sell bamboo rice, tea and handicrafts. From Guilin, tourist buses run to Longsheng and onward to Ping'an, and a chartered car costs about 400 to 500 yuan.