Join Ian Plant and Kah-Wai Lin on a mesmerizing 13-day photographic journey through two of China’s most breathtaking regions — the poetic seascapes of Xiapu and the majestic peaks of Huangshan (Yellow Mountain).

In Xiapu, experience the rhythm of the tides along Fujian’s ancient coastline, where generations of fishermen have harvested seaweed and shellfish since the Song Dynasty. The interplay of light, mist, and motion across its vast tidal flats transforms daily life into a living masterpiece — a world where art and tradition flow with the sea.

Then travel inland to Huangshan, or Yellow Mountain, a legendary range in Anhui Province whose ethereal beauty has inspired countless poets, painters, and philosophers throughout Chinese history. Here, towering granite peaks, ancient wind-sculpted pines, and mystical seas of cloud form scenes that seem lifted from an ink painting. Explore the scenic wonders of Beihai and Xihai Grand Canyon, hike to dramatic viewpoints for sunrise and sunset, and discover the UNESCO World Heritage villages of Xidi and Hongcun, where traditional Anhui architecture and culture have been preserved for centuries.

Each sunrise and sunset reveals the timeless soul of China — ethereal, poetic, and profoundly alive.

Day 1 (May 10): Arrival – Gateway to the Mountains

Arrive at Huangshan Tunxi International Airport (TXN) and transfer to your hotel in Tunxi, the historic heart of Huangshan City. Once an important trading post during the Ming and Qing dynasties, Tunxi is known for its old merchant street lined with traditional Huizhou-style buildings. In the evening, join us for a welcome dinner, where you’ll meet fellow photographers, review the days ahead, and share the excitement for the adventures to come.

Day 2 – 5 (May 11 – 14): Huangshan – The Legendary Yellow Mountain

We begin our Huangshan adventure with a scenic cable car ascent to the mountain peaks, where we’ll spend four unforgettable days immersed in one of China’s most revered landscapes.

Huangshan, or Yellow Mountain, located in southern Anhui Province, is often hailed as “the loveliest mountain of China.” Its dramatic granite peaks, ancient pine trees, and mystical sea of clouds have inspired countless artists, poets, and philosophers since the Tang Dynasty (7th–10th centuries). Rising to a height of 1,864 meters (6,115 ft) at Lotus Peak, the range showcases distinct ecological zones — lush forests below 1,100 meters, mixed vegetation at mid-level, and hardy pines that cling to the bare rocks near the summit.

Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990, Huangshan’s ethereal beauty became central to Chinese art and aesthetics, especially during the Ming Dynasty’s Shanshui (mountain-and-water) painting movement, which sought to capture the spiritual harmony between nature and humanity. The mountain’s enduring influence can even be seen in modern global culture – its landscapes are said to have inspired the floating peaks of Pandora in James Cameron’s Avatar.

Over the coming days, we’ll photograph Huangshan’s most iconic features – the West Sea Grand Canyon, Beihai Scenic Area, and Flying-Over Rock – from sunrise to sunset. Expect scenes of shifting mist, golden light, and weather-carved pines that transform each hour into a painterly composition.

Day 6 (May 15): Hongcun & Xidi – Living Heritage of Huizhou

After descending the mountain, we travel to Hongcun Village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site famed for its mirror-like ponds, whitewashed walls, and black-tiled roofs set against the backdrop of misty peaks. Dating back over 900 years to the Southern Song Dynasty, Hongcun’s unique water-channel system — designed in the shape of an ox — reflects the ingenuity of ancient Huizhou architecture and urban planning.

In the afternoon, we visit Xidi Village, another masterpiece of Ming and Qing dynasty merchant culture, known for its carved wooden beams, ancestral halls, and elegant courtyards. Both villages have long been celebrated as living museums of classical Chinese aesthetics — and have been featured in films such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Day 7 (May 16): Lishui – River of Sails

After breakfast, we journey southeast toward Lishui, a region in southwestern Zhejiang Province often called the “Green Valley of China” for its rolling hills, ancient villages, and pristine rivers. Depending on timing, we’ll photograph Oujiang River, famous for its scenic “sails on the mist” — traditional wooden boats gliding through tranquil morning fog, a scene that has inspired painters for generations. Overnight in Lishui.

Day 8 (May 17): Xiandu – The Sacred Crossing

Today we visit Xiandu, an area steeped in myth and natural beauty near Jinyun County. Known for its towering Danxia rock formations, arched stone bridges, and the famous “Old Ox Crossing Bridge”, Xiandu has been celebrated as a sacred landscape since the Han Dynasty. We’ll photograph local life at dawn, where an old farmer leading his ox across the bridge evokes timeless harmony between people and nature.

We’ll transfer to Xiapu, arriving in time to photograph the sunset over the tidal flats in Xiapu.

Day 9 – 12 (May 18 – 21): Xiapu – Coastal Mists and the Fishermen of the Sea

Spend the next four days capturing the ethereal beauty of Xiapu, often hailed as one of the most photogenic coastal regions in Asia. Nestled along Fujian Province’s northeastern coast, Xiapu boasts the largest mudflats in China – over 40 square kilometers of shimmering tidal landscapes stretching across 400 kilometers of coastline.

Xiapu’s history reaches back more than a millennium. During the Song and Ming dynasties, it flourished as a vital maritime outpost for China’s sea trade, salt production, and fishing industries. Generations of coastal families have mastered the art of living with the tides, cultivating seaweed, oysters, and laver using techniques passed down through the ages. The bamboo poles and nets dotting the horizon are both working tools and abstract patterns that change with every tide and glint of light – a photographer’s dream.

We’ll rise early for sunrise over the mudflats, capturing fishermen gliding through the mist, women collecting seaweed, and golden light reflecting off tidal textures. Beyond the coast, we’ll explore tranquil inland scenes of banyan trees, village life, and water buffalo in green fields – glimpses of a rural rhythm that endures untouched by time.

Day 13 (May 22): Departure – Farewell to China’s Poetic Landscapes

After a final sunrise session in Xiapu, we’ll transfer you to Fuzhou Changle International Airport (FOC) for your departing flight. As we bid farewell, take with you not only breathtaking photographs but also memories of China’s timeless harmony between land, sea, and sky.