Travel Tips for the Dragon Boat Festival

The Dragon Boat Festival is a traditional Chinese festival with more than 2000-year history, which started from the Warring States Period.

There are many folk stories about the origin of the Dragon Boat Festival. One version is to memorize the great poet Qu Yuan. One version goes that it’s for Cao E, a dutiful daughter in Chinese history. Whatever the truth is, the Dragon Boat Festival has been a important day in Chinese culture.

How to spend the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday? Well, there are some suggestions.

The First Destination: Ruyuan Grand Canyon.

According to Geologists, the Ruyuan Grand Canyon belongs to quartz sandstone landform. Thousands of years of weathering and erosion form the Ruyuan Grand Canyon magnificent, peculiar, beautiful landscape. The Ruyuan Grand Canyon boasts waterfalls, fresh air and various plants. The Tenglong Waterfall falls down from the 200-meter high cliff and bring you a breath-taking view.

The Second Destination: Shawan Ancient Town

Shawan Ancient Town, with a history of more than 800 years, is located in the center of Pearl River Delta. With an air of traditional Guangzhou, prosperous commerce, Shawan Ancient Town is renowned for its name of Sanjie Liushi (Three Streets and Six Markets). It ‘s a concentration area of stylish constructions in Ming and Qing Dynasties.

The Third Destination: Dashatou Wharf

If you have never traveled through the cultural heritages along the Pearl River, you cannot say you really came to Guangzhou. The attractions along the Pearl River go with you no matter in day or at night. It’s a perfect place to date with your love.

The Fourth Destination: Shimen National Forest Park

With the green peaks, turbulent clouds, stylish valleys, various flowers and birds, the Shimen National Forest Park stands out in all seasons. It’s an ideal place for family tour.

The Fifth Destination: Baoqu Roses World 

Baoqu Roses World is the first roses-themed park in China. It imported over 300 kinds of roses seaside.

The Sixth Destination: Panlong Gorge

It seems that the sky of the Panlong Gorge during the Dragon Boat Festival holiday is painted with purple and leads you into a fairy world with an ocean of lavender, European style wooden houses and white Holland windmills.

Tibetan New Year

Tibetan New Year is the most important festival there. On that day, Tibetan families will get together and pray for a better year. The traditional Tibetan New Year is known as Losar, which starts from the first to the third day of the first Tibetan month.

Preparations for the happy event are manifested by special offerings to family shrine deities, painted doors with religious symbols, and other painstaking jobs. People eat Guthuk (barley crumb food with filling) on New Year's Eve with their families. As a convention, there will be a Guthuk stuffed with a different filling to fool someone in the family.

After dinner, they will watch the Festival of Banishing Evil Spirits. When we see the lit torches, people running and yelling to get rid of evil spirits from their houses, we know that the New Year comes.

On the first day of the New Year, housewives will get up very early and prepare the first buckets of water and breakfast before the dawn. After breakfast, people dress up to go to monasteries and offer their prayers. People visit their neighborhoods and exchange their Tashi Delek blessings on the first two days. Feast is the theme during the two days. On the third day, old prayer flags are replaced with new ones. Other folk activities may be held in some areas to celebrate the events.