10 Days in Zhoukou

The walled tomb-temple of Fuxi runs to about 875 mu, some 58 hectares, and the lunar-second-month fair once drew a reported 825,000 visitors in a single 2008 day. Boat the lake ring in the afternoon.

1. zhoukou taihao mausoleum
2. zhoukou longhu lake

The trigram terrace ties to the Fuxi legends; Xiange Terrace remembers the account of Confucius going seven days without food between Chen and Cai; Pingliangtai preserves a walled town of some 4,300 years ago.

1. zhoukou huaguantai
2. zhoukou xiange tai
3. zhoukou pingliangtai site

A slow loop of the old town inside the lake ring — Huaiyang was Chen, capital of Chu in the late 3rd century BC — with temple-fair clay toys and lakeside teahouses filling the gaps.

1. zhoukou huaiyang old town
2. zhoukou longhu lake

The Guandi Temple began in 1693 as the Shanxi-Shaanxi guildhall of the river port; the prefecture museum adds Chen- and Chu-era finds, then the Sha-Ying riverfront for dusk.

1. zhoukou guandi temple
2. zhoukou city museum
3. zhoukou shaying riverfront

An honest county day about 90 kilometres east — the Taiqing Palace grew into an imperial temple under the Tang, who counted Laozi among their ancestors; the Mingdao Palace complex climbs the old Laojun Terrace.

1. zhoukou taiqing palace
2. zhoukou mingdao palace
3. zhoukou laojun terrace

Thirty-odd kilometres northwest down the Sha-Ying, the manor begun in the Qianlong era lines grey-brick courtyards above the old ferry landing; pair it with a river-bank lunch in Dengcheng town.

1. zhoukou ye family manor

An honest county-city day about an hour south — the walled Yuan family compound at Yuanzhai, home village of Yuan Shikai, born there in 1859, keeps Qing-era courtyards behind its moat-and-wall plan.

1. zhoukou yuanzhai compound

A neighbouring-city day, labelled as such — about two hours by road north to the old Song capital for its imperial-park sights, night market and city wall; back to Zhoukou by late train or stay the night.

1. kaifeng

Another honestly labelled neighbour day — a little over two hours east to Shangqiu for the rebuilt Guide city walls and the Yingtian Academy; return by evening bus or continue from Shangqiu's rail junction.

1. shangqiu

A morning round of the wildlife park's drive-through zones, a market lunch, then the HSR from Zhoukou East, opened with the Zhengzhou-Fuyang line in 2019.

1. zhoukou wildlife world
2. zhoukou city markets