Craftsborn settlements shaped by water and soil — the kiln fires of Jingdezhen, the money houses of Pingyao, the boats of Wuzhen — where merchant guilds and artisan traditions quietly gave rise to small, beautiful daily lives and the living essence of Jiangnan's aesthetic.
Jingdezhen
AE97The thousand-year porcelain capital — where kaolin clay and Chang River water combine to produce the synonym for Chinese ceramics, the porcelain fountainhead of the Maritime Silk Road.
Yangzhou
AE98The wealth crossroads where the Grand Canal meets the Yangtze — the center of the imperial salt monopoly, birthing Yangzhou's extravagant salt-merchant culture and aesthetics.
Wuzhen
AE99The quintessential Jiangnan water town of small bridges, flowing streams, and waterside homes — covered corridors stretching for miles along the river, China's most beautiful and lived-in waterside settlement.
Suzhou
AE100A dual-chessboard ancient city of parallel waterways and streets — precision hydraulic logistics networks seamlessly embedded with literati refinement into the urban fabric.
Pingyao Ancient City
AE101China's best-preserved Ming-Qing walled city — the financial headquarters of Shanxi merchants, the inland Wall Street that once routed the empire's entire silver circulation.
Fenghuang Ancient Town
AE102A Xiangxi frontier town on the Tuo River — stilted houses perched tier upon tier on both sides of the steep valley, the collision zone of Miao and Tujia cultures with the Han frontier wall.
Hongcun
AE103An ox-shaped biomimetic ancient village in Anhui — driven by gravity-flow water channels, Moon Pond as the stomach, water ditches as intestines, the most beautiful traditional Chinese ink-wash painting village.
Xitang
AE104Xitang's Misty Rain Corridor — kilometers of covered waterside arcades winding like a dragon, a bottom-up human-scale commercial interface self-organized by commoners without any official planning.
Langzhong Ancient City
AE105Langzhong at the great omega bend of the Jialing River — ringed by mountains on four sides and water on three, the ultimate living specimen of classical Chinese fengshui site-selection algorithm.
Shaxi Ancient Town
AE106The only surviving market town on the Tea Horse Road — a dense plaza unit of red-earth fortress, ancient stage, and horse inns, a high-altitude international trade router carved by muleteers' flesh and blood.
Lijiang Ancient Town
AE107A Naxi city at the foot of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain — unwalled, spring water flowing freely through every street, a fluid space of free trade and multicultural convergence breaking all Han axial orthodoxy.
Kaiping Diaolou
AE108Fortified tower clusters built by returned overseas Chinese in Guangdong's Siyi region — reinforced concrete castles blending Chinese and Western architecture, recording a century of diaspora and homecoming.
Jiufen
AE109A mountainside mining town in Taiwan — narrow stone steps and red lanterns sketching a Spirited Away fantasy of mountain-and-sea nightscape.
Wudianshi
AE110A dense lineage-based red-brick settlement on the southern Fujian coast — swallowtail ridges and brick-in-stone craftsmanship, witnessing the wealth and faith of Minnan clans on the Maritime Silk Road diaspora.
Foshan
AE111The heavy-industry town of the Ming-Qing era — a dense cluster of private iron-smelting, casting, and textile workshops, the most famous civilian industrial antenna of medieval China powering ironware exports to Southeast Asia.
Tunxi Old Street
AE112A fishbone-shaped old street on the Xin'an River crystallized by Huizhou merchant mountain-goods wharfs — the starting line from which Huizhou's white silver was pumped outward along the Xin'an bus.
Zhouzhuang
AE145China's No.1 water town; Chen Yifei's painting of the Double Bridges introduced this millennium-old town to the world; Shen Hall and Zhang Hall testify to Ming-Qing merchant wealth.
Xidi
AE146UNESCO World Heritage; well-preserved Ming-Qing Hui-style houses; Hu Wenguang Archway and Pursuit Hall carry the Hu clan's ancestral glory.
Nanxun Ancient Town
AE147Jiangnan water town as a Chinese-Western architectural fusion; silk magnate Zhang Shiming's former residence and Hundred Rooms Alley showcase modern Jiangnan prosperity.
Dali Ancient City
AE148Capital of the Nanzhao and Dali kingdoms; a scholarly city between Cangshan and Erhai; the Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple embody a millennium of Buddhist heritage.
Huizhou Ancient City
AE149Cradle of Hui culture; the Xu Guo Stone Archway and Huizhou merchants' hometown condense a thousand years of Huizhou heritage and commerce.
Zhenyuan Ancient City
AE150Millennium-old military-trade post on the Wulong River; the Qinglong Cave complex hangs from sheer cliffs; Zhusheng Bridge spans the two banks.
Zhujiajiao Ancient Town
AE151Shanghai's premier water town; Fangsheng Bridge arches over Caogang River; Kezhi Garden epitomizes Jiangnan garden elegance.
Wuyuan Ancient Town
AE152China's most beautiful countryside; rapeseed blossom seas and white-walled Hui-style houses compose a golden Jiangnan scroll.
Huangyao Ancient Town
AE153Millennium-old town embraced by karst peaks; Dailong Bridge and the Immortal's Ancient Well preserve authentic Lingnan life.
Heshun Ancient Town
AE154Overseas Chinese hometown on the Southwest Silk Road; China's largest rural library and Ai Siqi's former residence mark this borderland cultural hub.
Shuhe Ancient Town
AE155Best-preserved caravan stop on the Ancient Tea Horse Road; Qinglong Bridge and Naxi houses retain the rustic charm of horse-caravan days.
Ciqikou Ancient Town
AE156Chongqing's thousand-year-old dock town; Bayu folkways and mountain-city life converge; Chen Mahua twists and Maoxuewang tripe are famous far and wide.
Mudu Ancient Town
AE157Foremost garden town of central Wu; Emperor Qianlong visited six times; Yan's Garden and Hongyin Mountain House epitomize Jiangnan refinement.
Luzhi Ancient Town
AE158Tang-dynasty arhat sculptures at Baosheng Temple are national treasures; a bridge every few steps in this water town; Ye Shengtao taught and wrote here.
Anchang Ancient Town
AE159Hometown of shifu private advisers and Shaoxing rice wine; the December festival drapes streets with cured duck and sausage — Jiangnan's most lived-in water town.
Jinxi Ancient Town
AE160Museum town of China; Consort Chen's water tomb and ancient kilns bear witness to Southern Song heritage; bridge density unmatched in Jiangnan.
Furong Ancient Town
AE161Thousand-year-old town suspended over a waterfall; the Qin-Han Western Youyang city site; Tujia stilted houses hang over the great cascade.
Qingyan Ancient Town
AE162Ming-dynasty military stronghold where Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism coexist; the ancient wall and lu zhu jiao (braised pig trotters) are Qingyan's icons.
Yunshuiyao Ancient Town
AE163Part of the UNESCO Fujian Tulou World Heritage site; Yunshuiyao ancient path and waterwheels compose a pastoral idyll.
Gongtan Ancient Town
AE164Sheer-cliff town on the Wujiang Gallery; Tujia stilted houses tier down the slope; the flagstone old street continues a salt-trade legacy since Three Kingdoms.
Chikan Ancient Town
AE165Lingnan arcade-building museum; overseas Chinese culture crystallized in Guan Library and European-style villas.
Luodai Ancient Town
AE166No.1 Hakka town in western China; guildhall complexes and Hakka culture thrive here; sad cool jelly and Hakka cuisine draw visitors from afar.
Qiandeng Ancient Town
AE167Birthplace of Kunqu opera and hometown of Gu Yanwu; Qinfeng Pagoda and the flagstone street witness 2,500 years of Wu-region heritage.
Cicheng Ancient Town
AE168Foremost ancient county town in Jiangnan; Tang-dynasty urban layout preserved intact; filial piety culture and the Confucian Temple carry a thousand-year lineage.
Qikou Ancient Town
AE169No.1 town on the Yellow River's nine bends; key ferry port for western Shanxi merchants; Lijiashan cave dwellings are the Potala Palace of the Loess Plateau.
Hongjiang Ancient Commercial City
AE170One of China's best-preserved Ming-Qing commercial cities; Yinzhiwu buildings and Seven Rushes Eight Alleys recreate the tung-oil trade prosperity of western Hunan.
Yaoli Ancient Town
AE171Source of porcelain, homeland of tea, sea of forests; the raw material origin for Jingdezhen ceramics; Ming-Qing commercial street testifies to bygone bustle.
Qiantong Ancient Town
AE172Ming-Qing village in Jiangnan threaded by a Bagua water system; the Tong clan ancestral hall and exquisite carvings showcase eastern Zhejiang clan culture.
Nianbadu Ancient Town
AE173Unique ancient town straddling three provinces where a hundred surnames gather; Fengling Pass and Ming-Qing buildings are living fossils of military-commercial hybrid history.
Sanhe Ancient Town
AE174Water town where the Fengle and Hangbu rivers meet; Yang Zhenning's former residence and the Taiping army ancient wall carry deep history.
Zhangzhou Ancient City
AE175Core region of southern Fujian culture; Tang-Song city layout coexists with Ming-Qing arcade buildings; Taiwan Road old street testifies to Fujian-Taiwan kinship.
Guandu Ancient Town
AE176Tang-dynasty Nanzhao ferry port; Miaozhan Temple Diamond Throne Pagoda is the foremost vajra throne pagoda in central Yunnan; once the busiest trade port on Lake Dian.
Lukang Old Street
AE177Taiwan's most historic port town; officially opened for trade during the Qing era; dense temples and southern Fujian-style old houses bear witness to its golden age as 'one government, two deer, three Monga'.
Tamsui Old Street
AE178Port town at the mouth of the Tamsui River; Fort Santo Domingo and consulate buildings tell the story of modern Taiwan's international trade; Dr. George Mackay preached and practiced medicine here.
Anping Old Street
AE179The earliest Han Chinese settlement in Taiwan; Sword Lion tablets and Anping Fort carry Ming-Zheng-era memories; narrow lanes and old walls are living fossils of Taiwan's pioneering history.
Huanglongxi Ancient Town
AE180Best-preserved thousand-year-old river-wharf town in western Sichuan; ancient banyan trees and stilted houses line the Fu River; fire-dragon lantern dance and 'one-noodle' are the town's living cultural icons.
Pingle Ancient Town
AE181Top-ranked town in western Sichuan on the Ancient Tea Horse Road; Qin-Han post roads and ancient paper-making workshops survive; ten thousand mu of bamboo sea encircles the town like a green wall.
Zhoucun Ancient Commercial City
AE182Known as 'No.1 village under heaven' and 'dry dock'; Ming-Qing era cradle of Lu merchants and northern silk distribution center; filming location for The Dyeing House and other TV dramas.
Taierzhuang Ancient City
AE183Grand Canal town once famous for 'merchants gathering, river full of fishing lanterns'; rebuilt after the Battle of Taierzhuang in WWII; now a world-renowned memorial ancient city.
Qingzhou Ancient City
AE184One of the Nine Ancient Provinces; centuries-old hub between sea and Mount Tai; Ming-Qing old streets and Occasional Garden preserve the complete ancient city pattern.
Zhuxian Town
AE185One of China's Four Great Ancient Towns; birthplace of woodblock New Year prints; site of Yue Fei's victory over the Jin army; mosque and ancient temple testify to multi-ethnic trade history.
Sheqi Ancient Town
AE186Key transfer station on the Ten-Thousand-Mile Tea Road and porcelain trade hub; the Shaanxi-Shanxi Guildhall and Fire God Temple preserve exquisite commercial architecture unrivaled in central China.
Zhengding Ancient City
AE187Ancient Buddhist stronghold in China; the cast-bronze Guanyin at Longxing Temple is the nation's largest; Linji Temple ancestral court and the Grand View Garden film set for Dream of the Red Chamber.
Shanhaiguan Ancient City
AE188Eastern starting point of the Great Wall; 'No.1 Pass Under Heaven' commands the mountains and sea; Ming-Qing military fortress and city layout preserved intact; iconic Great Wall landmark.
Yangliuqing Ancient Town
AE189Hometown of China's woodblock New Year prints; northern folk-custom town nourished by the Grand Canal; Shi Family Mansion and opera stage showcase Tianjin merchant refinement.
Tianshui Ancient City
AE190Hometown of Fuxi and key town on the Silk Road; the Maijishan Grottoes are among China's Four Great Grottoes; ancient streets and Hu's Residence testify to millennia of Longshang Jiangnan heritage.
Jingzhou Ancient City
AE191Birthplace of Chu culture and core arena of the Three Kingdoms; the best-preserved Ming-dynasty city wall in southern China; carries a thousand years of Jianghan civilization memory.
Qingmuchuan Ancient Town
AE192Where Shaanxi, Gansu and Sichuan meet — a town where three provinces converge; Wei Fuxuan's mansion and Huilongchang Old Street witness Republican-era border trade prosperity under a local 'warlord'.