Yongkang Fangyan

　　Guide: A national scenic area, located 23 kilometers from downtown Yongkang. The Fangyan Scenic Area boasts beautiful scenery and has long been known as a “heavenly paradise on earth.” It features not only peaks, caves, valleys, waterfalls, streams, and lakes, but also rich historical culture and revolutionary sites. The entire area is divided into eight major scenic zones, with over 200 large and small attractions. Attractions: Temple Fair – From the first day of the eighth lunar month to around the Double Ninth Festival in September every year, processions from Yongkang’s urban and rural areas as well as from Xinchang, Shengzhou, Shaoxing, Zhuji, Wenzhou, Lishui, and surrounding counties and cities come to participate in deity-welcoming parades or martial arts displays, showcasing skills with weapons such as swords, spears, fists, and sticks. The Fangyan Scenic Area is home to thrilling cliffs and precipices, naturally sculpted rock formations, a scattering of cave chambers, and a variety of spectacular waterfalls and placid lakes. Among the cultural attractions are an ancient cluster of temples in stone caves, the largest local deity temple in southern China — the Temple of Hu Gong the Great, and the unique Five Peaks Academy, the birthplace of the Yongkang School of the Southern Song Dynasty. Hu Gong, whose given name was Ze, was a native of Yongkang, Wuzhou (in present-day Zhejiang) during the Northern Song Dynasty. In the first year of the Mingdao era, while serving as Vice Minister of Works, Hu Ze petitioned to abolish the poll tax for the people of Qu and Wu prefectures, winning him great popularity. The locals regarded Hu Gong as their guardian and god of fortune. A wall inscription quoting Chairman Mao’s words “Govern a region well, and benefit its people,” located next to the Hu Gong Ancestral Hall, corresponds visually with the imperial plaque inscribed with the characters “He Ling” (meaning “Divine and Majestic”) by Emperor Gaozong of the Song Dynasty at the entrance to Fangyan. The Fangyan Cultural Temple Fair, which originated nearly a thousand years ago from the worship of Hu Gong, is a vibrant and magnificent event. Transportation: All trains on the Jinhua–Wenzhou Railway stop at Yongkang Station. From downtown Yongkang, take bus No. 2 to the New Bus Station, then transfer to a special shuttle bus to Fangyan, which runs every four minutes.

　　Address: Yongkang Fangyan Town, Yongkang City, Jinhua

　　Type: Geological mountain landform

　　Recommended visiting time: 1–2 days

　　Tel: 0579-89200610

　　Opening hours:

　　09:00–18:00.

　　Ticket information:

　　Fangyan Scenic Area: 50 RMB; Five Peaks Scenic Area: 20 RMB; Shigu Liao Scenic Area: 50 RMB; Lingyan Scenic Area: 20 RMB.