23 Years' Spring Festival Trip to Eastern Guangdong (Heyuan, Longchuan, Meizhou, Dabu, Chaozhou, Shantou)

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For the Spring Festival of 2023, we chose a free trip to Eastern Guangdong: Guangzhou - Heyuan - Longchuan - Meizhou - Dabu - Chaozhou - Shantou - Guangzhou (on the way back, we just caught the toll-free period on the expressway, saving half the road and bridge fees, haha). We set off a few days before the Chinese New Year. (Note: You read that right, it's 2023! I've been procrastinating so long that I'm only writing this now!)

The most famous attraction in Heyuan should be Wanlu Lake.

The hotel we chose was: Heyuan Xiangfeng International Hotel.

We found this hotel nice and comfortable (though I thought the room was a bit small). If you book a river-view room, you can see the night scenery. There is parking, and the hotel has morning tea downstairs (tasty and with a discount) as well as dinner (a bit pricey).

We drove from Guangzhou in the morning and arrived at the hotel around noon. After having morning tea, we headed to Wanlu Lake. However, we didn't take a boat; we just visited one spot: Jinghuayuan (Mirror Flower Margins). We also had to buy a ticket for the electric cart to get to the destination. Having been to Qiandao Lake in Hangzhou before, Wanlu Lake didn't surprise me much (haha), but if you haven't been, it's worth a look.

After visiting Wanlu Lake, we drove to Xinfengjiang Hydropower Station. At that time, cars were not allowed to drive up; we parked at the foot of the mountain and walked up the road.

On the way to Xinfengjiang Hydropower Station, there was a fork leading to Bijia Mountain Park. Because of time constraints, we couldn't go, so we decided to go hiking there the next day! The following is the itinerary for the next day.

From Bijia Mountain, you could also see the scenery of Wanlu Lake.

During the day we went to Bijia Mountain, then rested in the afternoon and went to Taiping Old Street. It was crowded with shoppers before the New Year, so it was just so-so.

After staying two nights in Heyuan, we set off for Meizhou on the third day. But on the way to Meizhou, we visited Tuocheng in Longchuan. Tuocheng was renamed in memory of Zhao Tuo. After touring there, we continued to Meizhou.

The hotel we chose was: Meizhou White Swan Guest Hotel.

The hotel was nice and provided breakfast. From then on, we could start each day with marinated noodles for breakfast (haha, I like it!).

After visiting Longchuan, we arrived in Meizhou in the afternoon. In the evening, we had dinner at Jinyuan Restaurant. Typical main meals in Meizhou include Meicai Kou Rou (pork belly with preserved mustard greens) and salt-baked chicken.

After dinner, we took a walk along the river and explored the old streets of Meizhou.

On the fourth day, we visited the China Hakka Museum in Meizhou, Renjinglu, Dongshan Academy, Thousand-Buddha Pagoda, and Meizhou Confucian Temple (mainly a city tour).

In the evening, we had dinner at Meizhou Weilongwu Xingyuan Hotel. The environment was nice, but I found the food average.

On the fifth day, our destination was Dabu. On the way to Dabu, we visited the Renhou Wen Gong Ci (ancestral hall) mentioned in the museum to see the Weilongwu (enclosed dragon house), Ye Jianying Memorial Hall, and the Yan Nan Fei Tea Garden - Qiaoxi Ancient Charm, three major attractions.

We arrived in Dabu in the evening. The hotel we chose was: Dabu Ruijin Hotel. It also provided breakfast, and the most pleasant surprise was that we could have the New Year's Eve dinner there. After all, it was already the 29th of the lunar month when we arrived, and we were a small group, yet we still enjoyed a delicious New Year's Eve dinner – what a blessing!

On New Year's Eve, we originally planned to visit Tai'an Tower, but it was closed that day and only opened on the first day of the lunar new year. So we postponed that attraction to the next day. Instead, we went to Baihou Famous Town Tourist Area and Hua'e Tower. The houses inside Baihou Famous Town were also closed on New Year's Eve, so we only looked from outside. We were also worried whether Hua'e Tower would be open. Fortunately, it was open! Happy! I don't know if it will open on future New Year's Eves, but in 2023 it was open, hehe.

To be honest, I've been to Weilongwu in Fujian before, but I think Hua'e Tower in Meizhou is more beautiful (this is just my subjective opinion!).

You can go up Hua'e Tower and get some really nice shots.

Okay, after visiting Hua'e Tower, we went back to the hotel. Below is the lineup of the New Year's Eve dinner. I thought it was delicious, and you could also order some snacks. I saw many big families booking large rooms to eat there.

Early on the first day of the lunar new year, we went to Tai'an Tower. It's a square-shaped design, and I thought the ticket price was quite high.

On the first day, we left Dabu for Chaozhou. I won't mention which hotel we stayed at because we just chose a relatively cheap one, as hotels are very expensive during the Spring Festival.

On the way to Chaozhou, we visited the Sanheba Battle Memorial Hall.

After visiting the memorial hall, we headed straight to Chaozhou Guantang Brothers Beef Restaurant (Guantang Main Branch) for lunch. It's the main branch, not the one inside the city streets. If I remember correctly, I recommend eating at the main branch. The setup really feels like a banquet, haha. The food was delicious, served quickly, and we ate to our heart's content. There were plenty of parking spaces, and it was open on the first day of the lunar new year, which was very friendly to us travelers, haha.

After lunch, we arrived at our hotel in Chaozhou. After resting a bit, we went to Guangji Bridge and the Chaozhou Ancient City. We also wanted to visit Han Wengong Ci (Han Yu Memorial Temple), but unfortunately, it required a reservation. Reservations were full, so we couldn't get in. Maybe next time, if we have the chance.

I didn't expect so many people on the first day of the lunar new year. There was even a queue to enter Guangji Bridge. The general route is: Han Wengong Ci - Guangji Bridge - Chaozhou Ancient City. We only looked at the outside of Han Wengong Ci, and with a little regret, we queued to enter Guangji Bridge, haha.

After one night in Chaozhou, we went to Shantou the next day. It happened to be the second day of the lunar new year, and Shantou had fireworks. We didn't expect to encounter that.

The route was roughly: Shantou Small Park - Shantou Old City - Xiti Park.

We stayed two nights in Heyuan, two nights in Meizhou city, two nights in Dabu, one night in Chaozhou, and one night in Shantou. The total trip was 9 days and 8 nights, covering eastern Guangdong.

On the ninth day, we drove back to Guangzhou.

During this trip, I noticed that cities in this area of Guangdong are quite similar, built along rivers, with arcade buildings, etc. For food, Meizhou has marinated noodles and pomelo, while Chaoshan has beef hotpot. The most impressive thing was Hua'e Tower in Dabu, which was not overly commercialized and was very beautiful. And the beef hotpot we had in Chaozhou made me really happy – it brought a feeling of 'life should be like this.' I hope that restaurant gets better and better.

I'm seriously procrastinating. It's the end of 2024 and I've finally finished writing the travel notes for the Spring Festival of 2023. Time flies so fast. Keep it up!

Travel journal directory

1. Heyuan

2. Longchuan

3. Meizhou

4. Dabu

5. Chaozhou

6. Shantou

7. Going home

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