Where is the best place to go for a self-guided tour in Henan?

Every time I travel, I search for tips online, and this time is no exception. But after asking again and again, there is nothing that I want or that suits me. Therefore, this time I will also contribute and record our trip to Henan to serve as a reference for friends who come to visit in the future.

This year’s National Day is rare, and my husband has seven days off (his own business, so it’s not a day off). Then make a good plan to go out and have some fun. On a self-driving trip, my parents-in-law, my husband and I, and a two-year-old baby were a group of five. We chose to go to Henan, which is more than 700 kilometers away from Beijing. Since the scenic spots in Henan are relatively scattered, we decided to set up a base in Zhengzhou after summarizing our online experience. On the evening of September 30, we purchased a hotel online called "Flavor Famous Hotel" for 96 yuan a night. We made a group purchase first. I got 4 tickets for two nights. I’ll check it out first.

Day 1 Beijing - Zhengzhou

We set off from Ciyun Temple Bridge at 6:30 in the morning and walked along Chang'an Street. Unexpectedly, there were more people in this car than in each other. It was already past 8 o'clock when we reached the Dujiakan Toll Station. When we reached Doudian, we took another gamble and a large truck overturned. The stretch from Beijing to Hebei has seen numerous car accidents.

Beijing-Hebei toll is 15 yuan.

At around 12 noon, we had lunch at Hebei Yuanshi Service Station, a box lunch costing RMB 15. There are also many snacks, which are very selective.

Hebei-Henan toll is 160 yuan.

We arrived in Zhengzhou at around 5 pm. After my mother-in-law got car sick and vomited, and my son cried when he pooped, we finally arrived in Zhengzhou. I stayed in a hotel called "Taste Famous" in Zhengzhou. Because it is a hotel, the accommodation was as expected. The room was small and damp, and the sanitary conditions were also very poor. I was already very tired, but seeing such accommodation again The conditions are somewhat annoying. Let's go eat. I've been hungry all day. After going to the restaurant, I discovered that this place is not without its merits. The chef here is good at making Manchu and Han banquets. He has met with leaders of many countries and won many international awards. Looking at the menu and the pictures will make you want to stop. Come and have a meal. It's not easy to meet a master who can cook a Manchu banquet. I ordered a few signature dishes, but I was so hungry that I forgot to take photos. All in all, the food was very good and the accommodation was not satisfactory.

Day 2 Zhengzhou - Kaifeng - Zhengzhou

Early in the morning, a group of us set off from Zhengzhou to Kaifeng Mansion.

The first stop is "Qingming Riverside Garden". It is said to be a large garden built after the Riverside Scene during the Qingming Festival, but it has no classical connotation. The buildings are all modern imitations, and there are small businesses and hawkers everywhere, trying to make money in various ways, and the smell of money is everywhere. Tickets are 80 each.

The second stop is "Bao Gong Temple". Tickets are 20 each. It is an ancestral hall built by local people to commemorate Bao Qingtian and Bao Zheng. This kind of literati landscape must be explained by a tour guide, otherwise you will not have any impression after watching it. For 20 yuan, I found an intern tour guide to explain it. one time. You know, today's Kaifeng is no longer the Kaifeng in history. It has been flooded three times. The Kaifeng Mansion back then was actually hidden under the river water.

The third stop was "Kaifeng Mansion". It was already past 5 o'clock. I don't know when we would visit Kaifeng Mansion again. We had to rush back to Zhengzhou that day. So we decided to take a photo in front of Kaifeng Mansion and then eat Kaifeng steamed buns and Kaifeng snacks, so we didn’t look at the ticket price. "Kaifeng First Floor" deserves its reputation. The steamed buns are indeed delicious. We ordered soup-filled buns, fresh food buns, vegetarian buns, and several more dishes. We ate until we couldn't eat any more and then went home.

Day 3 Zhengzhou - Luoyang - Jiaozuo

It was early in the morning again, and we drove to Luoyang. We arrived at Longmen Grottoes at around 10 o'clock in the morning, and it was already crowded with people. Because I've been here before, I don't feel much about it. There are just a lot of people, lining up, and moving forward. I had to hold Dangdang in my arms because there were too many people, so I had to keep an eye on the child. It was really hard for me and his dad, and we were both tired along the way. Tickets for Longmen Grottoes are 120 yuan/person, and bundled tickets are 60 yuan/person.

I finished visiting the grottoes at around three in the afternoon. Drive to Jiaozuo Yuntai Mountain. It was already past 6 pm when we arrived at Yuntai Mountain. Fortunately, we had contacted the farmhouse for accommodation online before, otherwise we would not have a place to stay. Our plan is to get up early tomorrow and go into the mountains and return to Beijing the same day. I had a meal at the farmyard. It was ridiculously expensive. The meat was less than 50 yuan, and a stewed chicken cost hundreds. What kind of stuff is this? It’s fine if you don’t want to eat it, just order some green vegetables.

Day 4 Jiaozuo-Beijing

I got up at around 5 o'clock in the morning, had something to eat and then went to take the bus. The buses came very quickly, one after another. Got on the bus without waiting. It was almost 6 o'clock when we arrived at the entrance of Yuntai Mountain. It was still dark and there was no light at all. There were so many people there that it probably took us an hour to wait in line to the ticket gate. Because there were too many people, there were armed police officers and soldiers guarding the fence, and there was a deserted area. I used the excuse that my children were young and let us wait here. The officers and soldiers were pretty good, so we wouldn't be crowded. And we haven’t bought the tickets yet, so the officers and soldiers said we can go to the ticket gate to replenish the tickets. At this moment, I had an idea and queued directly from the open space into the queue closest to the ticket gate. My parents-in-law followed suit and my husband also got in. We boarded the queue before others (I really couldn’t help it, people). There are too many to be afraid of, just let the Eight Immortals cross the sea and show their magical powers). There was another little hiccup when I entered. Because there was no money to find the replacement ticket, it took me a long time to buy the ticket. It was already bright when we entered the mountain. The team entering the mountain left me speechless again. What would it be like if the road was narrow and there were many people? One is dangerous, and the other is traffic jams, which are no more annoying than traffic jams. There are three or four rows of people standing on the mountain road alone. It is so crowded. What makes me sad is that we not only have two elderly people but also a two-year-old baby. It is depressing and annoying. My heart is so overwhelmed that I can't see the beautiful scenery at all. All I can see is the back of my head, so there’s no view. I made a decision immediately and will never travel on holidays in the future. Is this tourism? This is simply suffering. Just walking slowly like this, we arrived at "Red Rock Gorge" after walking for more than two hours. Taking photos, this is the only gain. Local people said that it usually only takes more than an hour to visit Hongshi Gorge. Our trip that day took more than 4 hours including queuing time. It was really miserable.

After ten o'clock, we arrived at the second scenic spot "Xiaozhaigou". The largest waterfall, "Yuntai Tian Waterfall", was collectively passed by us because it was a long and steep journey. Keep queuing, this place is much better than Hongshiya, at least you don’t have to move around. Listening to the tour guide next to me explaining that there is "a spring at three steps, a waterfall at five steps, and a pool at ten steps", it sounds strange to me, but seeing so many people, how can I feel in the mood to appreciate it, not to mention how blocked I am.

At around 2 o'clock, my husband took the baby to see the monkeys in the Macaque Valley. We couldn't walk any more, so we waited at the foot of the mountain. I don’t know what the mountain is like. It is said that the monkeys are kept in cages and there are monkeys juggling.

It’s 3:30. Let’s return. There are still more than 700 kilometers to go. Everyone was very tired along the way. Dinner at the Shahe Service Area in Hebei was priced at 28 yuan per person for the buffet, which was pretty good. It was almost 1am when we got home. I took a shower and tidied up again, and then fell on my warm and comfortable big bed at 3 o'clock, thinking to myself: Oh my god, I finally touched the ground.

To sum up this trip, there are several lessons to be learned. First, there is no need to stay in Zhengzhou for two days. Which city you want to go to directly book accommodation in that city; secondly, when traveling with the elderly and children, never choose such a time and place. If you choose, it will completely torture yourself; thirdly, during holidays, never It's enough to go out, go for a walk, visit with relatives, or play games at home.