Shaoyang – Rivers, City Wall and Towers

Shaoyang reveals itself as a city of rivers and Baoqing’s history: the Shaoshui and Zijiang rivers meet within the city, while the old city wall and historic towers are tangible traces of the city’s past. Low hills shape the landscape; the urban area lies approximately 200 to 300 metres above sea level. If you’re looking for a holiday apartment for a stay focused on culture and the city, you might first consider whether riverside scenery, historic buildings or both will shape your travel plans.

Riverside Scenery and City History

The confluence of the Zijiang and Shaoshui rivers is one of Shaoyang’s distinctive landscape features. Together with Shuifu Temple, it forms the scene known as “Twin Rivers in the Autumn Moon,” considered the first of Baoqing’s twelve scenic views. This scene thus brings together a river landscape and a named site in the city’s history. The North Tower offers a different view of the surroundings: from there, the vista stretches across the Zijiang and the surrounding landscape.

The elevation and low hills also help to put Shaoyang’s landscape into perspective. The city can be explored not only through its buildings but also through its setting among rivers and hills. For families who enjoy looking out for special sights together while travelling, the river names, landscape and historic buildings offer different ways to explore and spark conversation.

The Old City of Baoqing and Its Towers

The city wall of the old city of Baoqing is in Daxiang District, on the south bank of the Zijiang. It is the largest surviving structure in the old city of Baoqing and illustrates the development of civilisation in the Shaoyang region as well as the long history of urban construction in Shaoyang. In 2002, it was designated a protected cultural relic of Hunan Province; in March 2013, the State Council designated it a major national protected cultural relic. Those interested in history will find a tangible structure here that reveals Shaoyang’s connection with old Baoqing.

The North Tower is a 37-metre-high, octagonal brick pagoda with seven storeys. It was designated a major national protected cultural relic in China in 2001 and is the only old tower in Shaoyang that still stands with this status. Its height, shape and number of storeys make it easy to distinguish. Together with the view over the river, the tower is a separate attraction for travellers who want to combine architecture and landscape.

The East Tower stands on a hill in East Tower Park, within the urban area of Shaoyang. The octagonal brick pagoda is 33.8 metres high and has seven storeys. Each storey has doors and windows; two spiral stairways lead to the top of the tower. From there, you can see the Zijiang, the Shaoshui, the North Tower and Shuangqing Pavilion. The two towers thus differ not only in height but also in how they are described: the East Tower stands out for its structure, storeys and views from the top.

Putting Shaoyang in Context as a Destination

If you choose what to see during your stay based on your interests, these places offer different highlights: the city wall for Baoqing’s history, the towers for historic architecture and the rivers for the scenery. The North Tower’s height and the East Tower’s dimensions also give children easy-to-picture details that help them tell the buildings apart. So you can look for a holiday apartment for your trip to Shaoyang that suits the cityscape you’d like to explore.

The transport links are also useful for getting your bearings around the city: National Highways 320 and 207, as well as the Shanghai–Kunming and Erguang expressways, pass through Shaoyang. The Huai-Shaoheng and Luozhan railway lines also run through the urban area. If you’re planning your trip, these names are helpful reference points for keeping Shaoyang in mind as a destination.

More destination pages to choose from: Loudi, Huaihua, Yiyang, Zhuzhou, Xiangxi, Yueyang, Zhangjiajie and Hengyang.

For the broader travel overview: Hunan.