Name: Guiping

Chinese name: 桂平

Province: Guangxi

Status: District city

Population: 1,837,441

Area: 4,074 km²

Guiping is a small town in central Guangxi province under the jurisdiction of Guigang prefecture-level city. Though it may not seem particularly welcoming at first glance, the warmth of the local population will quickly make you forget the grey concrete walls that line the streets.

History

During the Qin Dynasty (221 BC – 206 BC), Guigang fell under the jurisdiction of Guilin and Yulin counties.

Under the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644), it was renamed Guixian County. In 1988, Guigang was promoted to prefecture-level city status.

Guiping was the birthplace of Hong Xiuquan. As a resistance leader, he declared himself the brother of Jesus Christ and raised a great army. He sparked the Taiping Rebellion against the authority of the Qing Dynasty in the mid-19th century. It was one of the deadliest civil wars in China's history.

Today

Guiping appears to be a town cut off from the world. Underdeveloped, it hardly reflects the beauty of the surrounding landscape, but the warmth extended by locals to the few travelers who venture here gives it undeniable charm.

The town itself offers little of particular interest, but the beauty of its surrounding landscapes makes it well worth a detour.

The magnificent Longtan Forest Park nature reserve invites you to walk through one of the region's most ancient forests. An unparalleled calm reigns here amid lush vegetation.

Xi Shan Park, or the Western Mountain Park, perched on a hillside nearly 1,000 meters high, also promises pleasant nature walks. Proclaimed a national park, it spans over 2,000 km². Here is cultivated the renowned Xi Shan fragrant tea, which you can purchase at one of many local shops.

Some twenty kilometers north of Guiping lies the small Jintiancun village and the Qiyi Jinianguan Museum, the former residence of Hong Xiuquan. Remnants of the Rebellion are displayed here.

Climate

Guiping enjoys a subtropical monsoon climate with short, mild winters and long, hot, humid summers.

Precipitation is mainly recorded during May, June, July, and August, when temperatures are highest. Rain is also very frequent in March and April.

It is best to visit Guiping and its surroundings in autumn, from September to November.

Daily buses connect Guiping with Nanning and Wuzhou.

Connections to Guangzhou are also available.

From Guilin and Liuzhou, buses depart for Guigang. You can then take a bus from Guigang to Guiping.

Inexpensive taxis will take you to the park entrances or to Jintiancun village.

What to do in Guiping?

• Hike through the Longtan Forest Park.
• Trek through the forest of Xi Shan Park.
• Visit Jintiancun village and its museum.