Discover Pingyao Ancient Town

Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Pingyao has allegedly the last remaining intact Ming Dynasty city walls, and the city exudes history and transports you back in time to the era of the great Emperors. The remarkably well preserved shops and houses really give the visitor a sense of how life was during the period of Imperial rule and hence the city is fast becoming the high point on a growing number of people’s itineraries. The ancient centre is small and can be explored on foot. A walking tour will take you through the narrow streets with their Qing Dynasty shops and houses, and give you the chance to see the enormous and intact city walls, the local governor's office, and the Rishengcheng Draft Bank. Also worth a visit is the Double Forest (Shuanglin) Temple, located 7km outside of Pingyao Ancient City. This temple was originally founded in the 6th century, but the present buildings date back to the Ming and Qing dynasties. The temple contains over 2000 colourful Buddhist sculptures of varying sizes and styles. Further outside town you will find the Wang Family Estate, a huge private house complex divided into two parts with walls the size of Forbidden City in Beijing. The compound was home to the Wang family and their many servants and has 54 courtyards and over 1000 rooms.