At Chagan Lake, wetlands stretch to the horizon; at Lake Songhua Resort, ski slopes define the winter offerings. The province is also home to protected areas, museums and historic sites—from the tombs of the Koguryo Kingdom to Changchun’s film history. These varied highlights offer plenty of ways to discover Jilin according to your interests.
Lakes, wetlands and natural areas
Chagan Lake Scenic Area is located in Qian Gorlos Mongol Autonomous County, in Songyuan, Jilin Province. Chagan Lake has a surface area of 500 square kilometers. It is the largest inland lake in the province and one of China’s ten largest freshwater lakes. Wildflowers are reflected in the water, while vast wetlands stretch to the horizon and shape the views across the lake.
The scenic area combines sightseeing, entertainment, recreation, vacations, dining, shopping and exhibitions. Its seven tourist activity zones include water recreation, picnicking and camping, ecological wetland tours and agricultural sightseeing. An annual winter event is also held at Chagan Lake: the Fishing and Hunting Cultural Tourism Festival runs from December 28 to February 28, attracting visitors from China and abroad.
The lake’s culture also includes a centuries-old Mongolian fishing method, recognized as a national item of intangible cultural heritage in China. During winter fishing, holes are drilled in the ice and a two-kilometer-long net is set underwater. A winch powered by Mongolian horses hauls it in. At Chagan Lake, wetland tours and water recreation sit alongside a traditional practice closely tied to fishing in winter.
Other natural attractions have their own distinct features. Momoge National Nature Reserve in Baicheng is home to numerous white cranes and covers 144,000 hectares. Xianghai Nature Reserve in Tongyu County is both a national 4A-level scenic area and a Class A nature reserve. Changbai Mountains National Nature Reserve covers 190,000 hectares and is home to more than 2,400 plant species, 500 vertebrate species and thousands of invertebrate species. Changbai Mountain Scenic Area is part of UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme.
Southeast of Changchun lies Jingyuetan National Scenic Area, 18 kilometers from People’s Square in the city center. It encompasses 119 mountain ranges at elevations of 220 to 406.5 meters. Of its 96.38 square kilometers, 5.3 square kilometers are water; forest cover exceeds 96 percent. The area lies at the foot of the Changbai Mountains and forms a transition zone between the eastern Changbai region and the western Horqin Grassland. Lake, forest and ridges together define the landscape.
Winter sports at Lake Songhua Resort
Lake Songhua Resort is located in Jilin City, Jilin Province. It has 37 ski runs with a total length of 41 kilometers across a ski area of 175 hectares. A long snow season and powder snow define the resort’s winter profile. The figures for the ski runs and ski area give a clear sense of its scale as a winter sports destination; the province’s other natural areas offer different highlights, including wetlands, forests and protected habitats.
Koguryo heritage, museums and film history
The UNESCO World Heritage property Capital Cities and Tombs of the Ancient Koguryo Kingdom includes Guonei City, Wandu Mountain City and 40 tombs in Ji’an, Jilin Province. The aristocratic tombs have stone chambers covered by earthen mounds. Murals depict scenes of everyday life, sports, hunting and nature, as well as gods, supernatural beings and dragons. The cities, tombs and murals together reveal different facets of this World Heritage property.
In Changchun, the Changchun Film Studio Museum is dedicated to the art and production of film. It includes the Changchun Film Art Gallery, the Changchun Film Studio Exhibition Area, the Changchun Film Studio Printing Workshop Exhibition Area, the Changchun Film Theater, the Changchun Film Music Hall and Changchun Cultural Street. Through the preservation of cultural relics, art exhibitions and interactive film experiences, the museum showcases film art, props, special effects, filmmaking techniques and production. It is a national 4A-level tourist attraction and one of the first national industrial cultural tourism sites.
Museums also offer different ways to explore the region’s culture. The Changbai Mountains Natural History Museum is located in Erdaobaihe Town, Antu County, Jilin Province. Its four halls present the landscape and natural resources, as well as the history and development of the Changbai Mountains. The Changbaishan Folk Museum displays exhibits from Manchu and Korean ethnic groups and presents local history and regional folk culture. At Jilin Beishan Park Scenic Area, traditional temple fairs are among the best-known attractions; traditional Chinese culture there encompasses Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and folk culture.
Discover more destinations: Changchun, Tonghua, Yanbian, Jilin, Baicheng, Siping, Baishan, Liaoyuan, Songyuan.
For the broader travel overview: China.
