This remote and exotic region is the homeland to Dong, Miao, Shui and other minorities. With its unsophisticated local customs, unique national culture and fantastic habits with a long history and numerous historic heritages and relics of many Chinese minorities, Guizhou is an ideal destination for ethnic lovers and adventure fans.
Population: There are many ethnic groups in the province with a population of 39,310,000. 49 ethnic groups are living in Guizhou, 17 of whom are ethnic minorities and have lived here for generations. Ten ethnic groups of Han, Miao, Bouyei, Dong, Tujia, Yi, Gelao, Shui, Hui and Bai have a population of over 100,000 respectively. The population of ethnic minorities account for 36.77% of the provincial total, ranking third in China.
Administrative Division
Guizhou consists of four prefecture-level cities--Guiyang, Liupanshui, Zunyi and Anshun, three minority autonomous prefectures--Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, Qiannan Miao and Bouyei Autonomous Prefecture and Qianxinan Bouyei and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, and two prefectures--Bijie and Tongren. Under the prefecture level, there are nine county-level cities of Kaili, Duyun, Xingyi, Tongren, Bijie, Chishui, Qingzhen, Renhuai and Fuquan and 79 counties (districts and special districts). Guiyang is the capital of the province.
Climate
Because of its high altitude and relatively low latitude, which means it is influenced by southeasterly monsoon, the climate in Guizhou varies greatly in different regions. Generally, however, the weather is mild and humid. Abundant moisture makes chilly temperatures and severe heat rather rare. With an average air temperature of 5.2C in January and 24.3C in July, Guizhou is an ideal summer resort.
► Best Time to Guizhou
The best time to Guizhou is spring and autumn, especially the late March to May, and September to mid-October. Spring (March to May) in Guizhou is rainy season. Summer in Guizhou is not too hot, and the air isn’t dry. The hottest month July has a temperature changing from 22 ℃ to 25 ℃. Autumn is mild and pleasant in Guizhou, but still has rainy days. Winter is the longest season among the four seasons in Guizhou. It is not too cold, and the coldest month January has a temperature varies from 3 ℃ to 6℃.
Guizhou has instable climate and lots of disastrous weather like drought, autumn wind and hailstone, tourists who are going to visit Guizhou should try to stay away from this season.
► Clothing Tips
Traveling Guizhou in May, the weather is cool in the morning and evening, but hot at noon, tourists had better take your thin coats of long-sleeved Tees. Generally, people can dress their T-shirt in summer
If you travel to Tongren City where the high temperature center of Guizhou Province is, then you might suffer a high temperature. In summer, the temperatures can reach the highest 42.5 ℃, much higher than any other cities in Guizhou. Tourists need to pay more attention to this.
Culture
► Miao Paper-cut
Miao minority of southeast of Guizhou province called paper-cut as cut flowers, or Miao stained paper. In the long practice of embroidery, artists found that using paper-cut patterns instead of painting patterns on the surface of embroidery could be accurate to copy constantly, which saved labor and time, and also can keep the embroider surface clean and bright, from then on, they used paper-cut patterns as embroidery "blueprint". In order to guarantee the quality of the embroidery, the Miao women put their smart talent and joys and sorrows of aesthetics to the paper-cut patterns to make it different with distinctive national features.
► Food Culture
Guizhou food, also called Qian cuisine, consist of Guiyang dish, northern Guizhou dish and ethnic cuisine and so on several kinds of flavors. In the early Ming dynasty, the Guizhou cuisine has been mature; many dishes had a history of more than 600 years. The one big characteristic of Guizhou dishes is sour. Guizhou has a ballad that "three days do not eat sour food, peole would be staggered". Nearly every Guizhou citizen’s home would have pickled Chinese cabbage, which is really appetizing.
► Minority
Guizhou is a multi-ethnic province, the province has a total of 56 nationalities, including native nationalities of Han, Miao, Buyi, Dong, Tujia, Yi, Hui, Bai, Kelao, Shui, Yao, Zhuang, She Maonan, Manchu, Mongolian, Mulam and Qiang of 18 minorities. At the end of 2009, Guizhou minority population accounts for 39% of the total population in the Guizhou province. The province has three ethnic autonomous prefectures and 11 ethnic autonomous counties. For thousands of years, all ethnic groups live in harmony, and create a colorful Guizhou culture together.
Tourism
With the swift development of tourism in Guizhou, four major tourist routes have been formed stretching towards east, west, south and north with Guiyang as the center. The eastern route focus on national flavor (several minority villages in Kaili), the western route features in natural landscape (Huangguoshu Waterfall in Anshun as the example), the northern route is praised for renowned cities and wines (Zunyi) and the southern merges natural attractions and national style into a whole. For a better and clear understanding for your visiting, Top China Travel lists some major tourist cities with brief introductions as followings.
► Best Places to Visit
Guiyang
Guiyang is the capital of Guizhou Province, and it is located at the east of the Yunnan- Guizhou Plateau in the southwest of China. The city features low latitude, high elevation and diversified landforms. Guiyang is the home to some of China's most spectacular sceneries with verdant mountains, and limestone peaks. And Jiaxiu Pavilion is a famous human landscape in Guiyang.
Jiaxiu Pavilion
Kaili
Kaili is located in a minority prefecture of Miao and Dong minorities, called as Qiandongnan as well in Chinese as it is located in southeast part of Guizhou. Traveling Kaili, you can visit Miao minority village to experience the minority custom. Visiting there you can enjoy some of the most fascinating minority villages you wish to encounter in China. Those Miao people who moved to America and Europe are known as Hmong people. Entire region hosts more than 100 festivals every year, with the greatest concentration around February, March, October and November. Qingman Short-skirt Miao Village and Xijiang Miao Village are most famous minority village in Kaili.
Xijiang Miao Village
Anshun
Located about 105km from Guiyang, Anshun is a key connecting between Sichuan Province and Guizhou Province. There is multi-ethnic region where is the home of Mulao Minority, Buyi Minority and Miao Minority. The colorful ethnic culture and customs are the most highlights of this region. It features in natural landscape, including the Huangguoshu Waterfall and Tianxingqiao Scenic Resort.
Huangguoshu Waterfall
Transport
► Train
Guizhou provincial capital Guiyang is the railway hub in southwestern China, centered on Guiyang, Qian-Gui (Guizhou-Guangxi) railway, Chuan-Qian (Sichuan-Guizhou) railway, Gui-Kun (Guyang-Kunming) railway, Xiang-Qian (Hunan-Guizhou) four railway trunk lines run through Guizhou, the operating range of 2093.00 km (at the end of 2013). Gui-kun, Chuan-Qian and Xiang-Qian trunk railways have realized the electrification transformation, electric traction operational mileage of 1138 kilometers, freight is double than before. Nan-Kun (Nanning-Kunming) railway (in Guizhou province are 227 kilometers) has built; and there are some railway will soon be opened. After railway is completed, Guizhou as the main passage of southwest people will further improve its transport hub, which will play an important role for the economic development, not only in Guizhou, but also of Sichuan and Yunnan.
► Bus
Guizhou is the important province of transportation hub in southwest China, and is the important transit stop to the coastal areas in northwest and southwest.
Guizhou forms a road network of centering around Guiyang and connecting various cities and counties in Guizhou. Southwest first highway—Guiyang to Huangguoshu waterfall highway was open to traffic and there are highways from Guiyang to Zunyi, Guiyang to Xinzhai of Guangxi.
As of December 2013, highway mileage in Guizhou province reached 3200 kilometers, including Lanhai, Hangrui, Xiarong, Rongzun Hukun, Shankun Duxiang,and Guiyang eight national beltways. Highway network has covered 68 counties and cities, county coverage rate of 77%.
► Air
Guizhou aviation system has formed “One trunk-line airport and eight feeder airports” layout, trunk-line airport is Guiyang airport, 8 feeder airports are respectively the Zunyi Xinzhou Airport, Tongren Fenghuang Airport, Xingyi Wanfenglin Airport, Anshun Huangguoshu Airport, Liping Airport, Libo Airport, Bijie Airport, and Huangping Airport. In 2013, passenger throughput of “One trunk-line airport and eight feeder airports” which has been constructed and put into use of 11.254 million person-time, take-off and landing flights 107446 sorties, year-on-year growth of 25.5% and 29.5% respectively. In addition, there will be built Liupanshui, Renhuai, Qianbei, Weining, and Luodian five regional airports, striving for covering nine cities by 2015 and forming “One trunk-line airport and thirteen feeder airports” layout.
Ask a Question
Situated in southwest China and attributed to subtropical plateau zone, Guizhou is known as "Qian" for short. Mountains and hills take up over 97% area of Guizhou Province where visitors could see the most typical Kaste area in the world. With unique surroundings, varied topography, pleasant weather and a temperature of 15 °c on an average without sever cold in winter and sweltering hot in summer, Guiyang is suitable for travelers to visit all around the year.
