Xixi Tourism and Cultural Scenic Area

　　The Dongtai Xixi Tourism and Cultural Scenic Area is divided from south to north into three zones: the historical and cultural leisure zone, the modern cultural leisure zone, and the ecological and cultural leisure zone. The historical and cultural leisure zone centers around the thousand-year-old ancient town of Xixi, creating a historical and cultural landscape integrating filial piety culture, sea salt culture, and Buddhist culture. The modern cultural leisure zone blends traditional art with modern culture, featuring facilities for art dissemination, premium appreciation, and leisure entertainment. The ecological and cultural leisure zone centers on the Xixi Botanical Garden, offering leisure facilities for modern agricultural displays, agricultural science education, and farming experience tours.

　　Filial Piety Culture

　　Filial piety culture is widely known. Since the Western Han Dynasty, the beautiful love story of Dong Yong and the Seventh Fairy has been widely circulated in Xixi. According to research, there are over 50 place names related to this legend still in existence (such as Heluolun, Dongjiaduo, Shezitou, Fenghuangquan, Cilanghe, Moyunzhuang, Dong and Xi Xie’erzhuang, Saojingjing, and the tomb of the Han Dynasty filial son Dong Yong and the Dong Filial Piety Temple, among others). On October 26, 2002, the first issue ceremony of the “Folklore – Dong Yong and the Seventh Fairy” stamps was simultaneously held in Dongtai, Jiangsu; Xiaogan, Hubei; and Anqing, Anhui (Xiaogan focused on filial piety culture, while Anqing emphasized its identity as the hometown of Huangmei Opera). In May 2006, the “Dong Yong Legend” of Dongtai was included in the first batch of National Intangible Cultural Heritage. Covering an area of 150 mu with a total investment of 100 million yuan, the first phase of the Dong Yong and Seventh Fairy Cultural Park spans 45 mu and includes attractions such as the Dong Yong and Seventh Fairy sculpture, the Dongxian Temple, a relief corridor, the Old Locust Tree, the Earth God Temple, and the tombs of the Han Dynasty filial son Dong Yong and the Dong Filial Piety Shrine. In December 2010, it was successfully rated as a National 2A-level Tourist Attraction. In April 2012, based on the initial eight sightseeing spots of the first phase, supporting tourism facilities such as walking paths and landscape bridges were added within the park, along with the development of twenty-four scenic spots related to the legend of Dong Yong and the Seventh Fairy. This expanded the romantic culture of their love, and the entire park officially opened to the public during the Dong Yong and Seventh Fairy Cultural Tourism Festival in 2013, eventually achieving National 3A-level Tourist Attraction status by the end of that year.

　　Sea Salt Culture

　　Xixi boasts abundant historical relics, with numerous ancient temples, pagodas, bridges, and roads in the area. Haichunxuan Pagoda — the landmark of Dongtai — is located on the north side of Taidong River in Xixi. Built during the Tang Dynasty and renovated in the Song Dynasty, it is a two-layer brick structure of “inner Tang and outer Song” style, with a history of over 1,380 years, making it the oldest among the 58 existing ancient pagodas in Jiangsu. Commonly known as the “Xixi Pagoda,” it is also called the “Filial Mother Pagoda,” “Sea-Calming Pagoda,” or “Yuchi Pagoda.” It was designated as a Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit in 1982 and a National Cultural Relics Protection Unit in 2013. Tongsheng Bridge and Bazizi Bridge — both are single-arch brick bridges from the Song Dynasty. Tongsheng Bridge is located on Yanxi River in front of Taishan Temple, while “Bazizi Bridge” is situated at the confluence of Yanxi River and Xiong River, connecting three riverbanks. Known as “one step, two bridges, spanning three banks,” Bazizi Bridge was built more than 200 years earlier than Zhouzhuang’s Twin Bridges and is now a Dongtai Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Unit. Limu Street — located on the north side of Yanxi River, features bluestone-paved roads and preserves many Ming and Qing dynasty residences. During the Ming and Qing periods, Limu Street was famous in the central Jiangsu Li-Lower Water Region for selling limewood and farming tools, hence its name. Sanli Road — an ancient coastal pathway.

　　Starting from the eastern end of Limu Street, it stretches over 1,600 meters (commonly referred to as Sanli Road). Constructed during the founding period of Xixi Town, it has a history of over 2,000 years, predating the Fan Gong Dike by more than a thousand years. Xixi Ancient City is located on the east side of Taishan Avenue in the Xixi Scenic Area. Following the principle of “ancient town as the body, culture as the soul,” it highlights the theme of Song Dynasty culture, recreating the prosperity of ancient Xixi’s salt and canal commerce, and establishing a classical-modern, culture-commerce integrated commercial complex in the style of the Song Dynasty. New attractions mainly include the city gate tower exhibition hall, Yanxi Academy, and Sanxiang Pavilion. Xixi Ancient City has become an iconic architectural complex within the Xixi Scenic Area, complementing the Taishan Huguo Chan Temple, Dong Yong and Seventh Fairy Cultural Park, and Haichun Pagoda Garden, forming a concentrated tourism hub with both point and linear layouts.

　　Buddhist Culture

　　The Haichun Pagoda Garden and Buddhist Culture Park project centers on two heritage sites: the Tang Dynasty “Haichunxuan Pagoda” and the Song Dynasty thousand-year-old ancient temple “One Temple Five Shrines” of Taishan Temple. Leveraging the rich ecological water network system of local rivers such as Yanxi River, Wuzhao River, and Fenghuang River, it has developed tourist attractions including a vegetarian restaurant, lotus square, prayer bead corridor, Buddhist education and culture museum, Guangfu Chan Temple, Haichunxuan Pagoda, Filial Piety Culture Museum, and Purple Bamboo Retreat. These form a centralized Buddhist culture experience area, integrating the pagoda, temple, and garden into an organic whole. The completed Haichun Pagoda Garden organically unifies “Zen meditation culture” with “filial piety and compassion culture,” blending local Xixi culture with Buddhist religious culture. It enhances the taste of attractions through cultural depth, reflecting harmony between humans and nature.

　　Ecological Construction (Editor’s Note)

　　Xixi Botanical Garden is located in the northern part of the Xixi Tourism and Cultural Scenic Area, covering a total area of approximately 2,300 mu. Integrating modern agriculture with ecotourism, it has been recognized as one of the first “Jiangsu Provincial Modern Agricultural Industrial Parks” and a “Jiangsu Provincial Four-Star Rural Tourism Spot.” Centered around a 600-mu artificial lake called “Xianhu” (Fairy Lake), the botanical garden is divided into three functional areas: a modern agriculture exhibition zone, a high-efficiency horticulture demonstration zone, and an agricultural sightseeing tourism zone. It serves as an ideal destination for experiencing farming culture, reconnecting with nature, and enjoying agrotourism.

　　The Dongtai Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government attach great importance to the development and construction of the Xixi Tourism and Cultural Scenic Area. Development of the scenic area commenced in 2007. In December 2011, the Xixi Tourism and Cultural Scenic Area Management Committee was formally established to coordinate and vigorously advance the project, achieving remarkable results. The planned scope of the Xixi Scenic Area extends east to Chanchang River, west to the new National Highway 204, south to Taidong River, and north to Xiangdong River, covering an area of approximately 16 square kilometers with a total population of 15,000. It includes five communities (villages): Yanxihe Neighborhood Committee, Taishan Temple Neighborhood Committee, Wanlu Neighborhood Committee, Xijiao Village, and Sancao Village. The development goal of the Xixi Tourism and Cultural Scenic Area is to firmly adhere to the development philosophy of “culture as the soul, integration and innovation, and industrial expansion,” fostering interconnected growth between cultural heritage and production development. Through the creation of waterscape spaces, enhancement of the ecological environment, and excavation of cultural heritage, it aims to become a high-quality tourism destination integrating vacation travel, urban leisure, and cultural industries, as well as a distinctive cultural industry cluster in the Yangtze River Delta. The plan is to build a multi-billion-yuan cultural industry park within 3–5 years, establishing the Xixi Scenic Area as a provincial (and eventually national) cultural industry demonstration base and a National 4A-level (with future aspirations for 5A) tourist attraction.

　　Source: Jiangsu Provincial Forestry Bureau