Towards Zhangjiajie My Main Goal of Backpacking China this round

It was the first slow train ride in China from Yichang to Zhangjiajie. Previously I only had experience the city metro system and long distance bullet train so the old slow train network was a new experience for me in China. Nice and quiet I would say with a bit of a rustic feel but the slow train was still going quite fast about 120km/hr just that they had more stops along the way compared to the bullet train.

Local Train has Way more people 

K Series Train in China (aka cheap + slow train but still quite fast)

I arrived late evening on the 1st night in Zhangjiajie town and decided to skip one of the main attraction which was the Tienmenshan Mountain Scenic Area once I found out the ticket to go up was a whooping RMB 275 for a day trip. 

At the hostel I met an Zaine an American who was also backpacking China and after a short conversation he changed his plan and checked out the next morning to tag along with me heading to Wulingyuan which was the entrance to Zhangjiajie National Park.

Arriving at Zhangjiajie Train Station

Zhangjiajie Train Station

Travel of Swan Inn Hostel in Wulingyuan was everything a backpacker could ask for. Clean dorm, quiet place, full facilities of washer and dryer and cosy common area where backpackers could chill and exchange info. 

It was also nice that it was just walking distance to the Park entrance and since Zhangjiajie Park was so famous and huge, lots of us was exchange many info on how to best explore the park.

Wulingyuan Gate Entrance to Zhangjiajie National Park

Long story short, we got sucked into the hostel for three full nights despite the higher end price of the hostel at RMB 60 per night. While trying to bargain down the price, the cute hostel receptionist Ms. Mutou told us we could get a private room for the same price. Zaine and I would pair up for a long time travelling together for a while till Guangzhou which was really unexpected for me.

Local Food in Wulingyuan

Wulingyuan

Local Food at Wulingyuan

Throughout my backpacking journey, this was the first time I had companion for a long duration. Usually it was the passing city or maybe the next stop as well but very rare the tag along would last multiple cities. First time I was able to experience the perks of sharing private room as well espescially places that did not have a dorm room.

All settled in, It was time to see the famous Zhangjiajie ...

Traveled on: Nov 2023