Zhangjiajie Private Day Trip: Avatar Mountain & Forest Park

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Free cancellation

1/6

Duration8h

GroupPrivate

LanguagesEN

PickupAt your hotel

See the sandstone peaks that inspired Avatar, without arranging the route yourself

A private guided day tour of Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Southern China, with an English-speaking guide, private driver and all park tickets included. The tour covers Tianzi Mountain via cable car, the Bailong Elevator (one of the world's tallest outdoor elevators), Avatar Hallelujah Mountain, and a hike along Golden Whip Stream. Eight hours total; lunch is not included, so plan to eat before departure or bring snacks. Your passport is required for park entry.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore Zhangjiajie National Park

Visit Zhangjiajie National Forest Park
Take cable car up Tianzi Mountain
View Helong Park and Imperial Brush Peak
See Avatar Hallelujah Mountain and No.1 Bridge
Ride Bailong Elevator
Hike Golden Whip Stream

The Experience

You start with hotel pickup and a private driver who handles the route while you settle in. The day opens at Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, a UNESCO-protected landscape of sandstone karst pillars shaped over thousands of years by water erosion and winter ice expansion. The pillars rise through subtropical rainforest, and this geology is what drew filmmaker James Cameron to use the park as inspiration for the Hallelujah Mountains in Avatar.

From there, a cable car carries you up Tianzi Mountain—Tianzi means Son of Heaven, named after a minority leader's revolution nearly 900 years ago. At the top you see the full sweep of the Wulingyuan Scenic Area, with named peaks like Imperial Brush Peak and Fairy Spreading Flowers Peak. Then comes the Bailong Elevator, a 335-meter glass lift built into a cliff face that takes three minutes to rise and holds 48 passengers at a time. It's the world's tallest outdoor sightseeing elevator. You'll stand at Yuanjiajie, where Avatar Hallelujah Mountain rises as an independent 150-meter pillar, and walk across the First Bridge under Heaven.

The hike along Golden Whip Stream closes the day. It's a one-way route of around 7.5 kilometers (4.7 miles) that takes two and a half to three hours, with a murmuring stream running alongside, clear water, forest canopy, wildflowers and birdsong. The path is well-traveled but steep in places; watch for monkeys that will steal food if you're not careful. Your guide leads the way and handles the timing so everything fits inside the eight-hour window. Air-conditioned transport, refreshments during the drive, and all park admission are included; you bring your own lunch or eat before you leave.

What’s included

Professional English-speaking guide.
private air-conditioned vehicle with experienced driver.
all park admission tickets.
cable car up Tianzi Mountain.
Bailong Elevator access.
in-transport refreshments.

Good to know

Easy physical levelPublic transport nearbyNot for heart conditionsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by IslamiChina Travel

Is this one for you?Book this tour if you're arriving with a free afternoon or a single day to spend and want to see the major peaks without building the route yourself—the private guide, driver and fixed itinerary mean you move through all four main stops (Tianzi Mountain, the Bailong Elevator, Avatar Hallelujah Mountain and Golden Whip Stream) without waiting for group departures or figuring out connections.