City guide · 九寨沟 Jiuzhaigou
Jiuzhaigou County (base for Jiuzhaigou Valley)
The valley mouth as the gate and the snow mountains as the wall — the Tibetan-Qiang mountain-village base for entering Jiuzhaigou
Jiuzhaigou County, under the Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan, lies in the high mountain gorges where the eastern edge of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau transitions to the Sichuan Basin; the county town of Nanping is about 400 kilometres from Chengdu. As the gateway to the World Natural Heritage sites of Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong, it is itself a plateau small town: the Baishui River runs through it, the Tibetan, Qiang, Hui and Han peoples live together, and hotels and Tibetan family inns cluster around the valley mouth. For most visitors this is both the starting station into the fairy-tale waterscape and a base for experiencing Tibetan-Qiang customs, restocking supplies and acclimatising to the altitude — the valley mouth is about 2,000 metres above sea level, the county town about 1,400 metres.
History
How the city came to be
The Jiuzhaigou area was in ancient times the land of the Di and Qiang peoples. The nine Tibetan villages in the valley — Heye, Shuzheng, Zechawa and others — have lived for generations among the high mountain lakes; the village names are the source of the name Jiuzhaigou. Historically the area was administered by the Songpan Subprefecture, and the Tibetans lived by farming, herding and forestry, with limited contact with the outside. In the Republic it belonged to Songpan County; in 1953 it was assigned to Nanping County (later renamed Jiuzhaigou County). In 1978 Jiuzhaigou was listed as a national nature reserve; in 1984 it formally opened to tourism; in 1992 it was inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List. On 8 August 2017 a magnitude-7.0 earthquake struck Jiuzhaigou County and the scenic area was badly damaged; after post-disaster restoration and reconstruction it fully reopened in 2021, with restored sights such as Sparkling Lake (Huohuahai) unveiled anew.
- 1953Nanping County was established, and the Jiuzhaigou area came under its administration
- 1978Jiuzhaigou was listed as a national nature reserve
- 1984Jiuzhaigou formally opened to receive tourists
- 1992Jiuzhaigou was inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List
- 1998Jiuzhaigou County took its name, renamed from Nanping County
- 2003Jiuhuang Airport opened, cutting Chengdu–Jiuzhaigou to a one-hour flight
- 2017On 8 August a magnitude-7.0 earthquake struck Jiuzhaigou County, damaging many parts of the scenic area
- 2021The Jiuzhaigou scenic area fully reopened across its whole territory
Must see
Places you shouldn’t miss
Local life
Food and local daily life
Jiuzhaigou
Must-try
- Yak hotpot / yak soup pot
- Tibetan butter tea / barley cakes
- Hand-pulled lamb
Yak hotpot / soup pot, Tibetan butter tea / highland-barley cakes, hand-torn mutton, potato ciba cakes, yak jerky
| Where to eat | The restaurant street in Zhangzha town at the valley entrance, simple meals at the visitor centre |
|---|---|
| Dining etiquette | An area where Tibetan and Qiang peoples live — respect temples and prayer flags, don't touch prayer flags or step over fire basins, and ask before photographing locals |
| Typical price per person | CNY 70–120 |
| Tips | The Nuorilang centre inside the scenic area has simple meals but long queues, so bring your own food; drink little alcohol at altitude. |
Prices are typical rates as of October 2026, not exact quotes; CNY equivalents are approximate where exchange rates fluctuate.
yuhanlikefilm · CC0