Ma'anshan: Li Bai Culture and Hotels

Ma'anshan can be understood through Li Bai, the city's history, and its river landscape. For planning your trip, it is helpful to distinguish between locations: some cultural attractions relate to the city, while Caishiji and the old town of Caishi are in the surrounding area.

Cultural attractions in the surrounding area

For the city of Ma'anshan, an overview published in January 2024 lists five themed tourist routes, including “With Li Bai Through Southern Anhui” and “In the Footsteps of the Poet Immortal.” Both titles put Li Bai in the spotlight. Check whether the routes are available before your trip.

A report from January 2024 put the annual public-benefit cultural and tourism program at more than 20 activities. These included poetry collections, poetry readings, and presentations of tourism offerings. The report also mentions regular free talks on Li Bai culture at public cultural venues, in communities, and at universities. By January 9, 2024, Ma'anshan had held 17 editions of the Li Bai Outdoor Tourism Festival and 35 editions of the Li Bai Poetry Festival.

Museums in the wider region

The Ma'anshan City Museum is a Class II national museum. Its permanent exhibition, described in 2026, is divided into five sections: “Dawn of Civilization,” “Capital Region of the Six Dynasties,” “Distinguished Figures,” “Poetic City of Mountains and Water,” and “Modern Civilization.” The titles place historical periods, notable figures, a poetic cityscape, and modern civilization side by side, offering different perspectives on the city's history.

Zhuran Cultural Park is a memorial park dedicated to Zhu Ran and the culture of the Three Kingdoms. Its main exhibits include a cultural plaza themed around the Three Kingdoms period, a large bronze statue of Zhu Ran, a large relief wall in repoussé copper, and stone reliefs based on Han models. Also in the wider area around Ma'anshan, the Zhu Ran Family Tomb Museum preserves a Wu tomb from the Three Kingdoms period. The deceased is described as particularly clearly identified and of high rank among the excavated Wu tombs in the middle and lower Yangtze region.

Li Bai and Caishiji in the nearby area

Among the cultural sites associated with Li Bai in the Caishiji area near Ma'anshan is Taibai Lou. It was first built during the Yuanhe era of the Tang Dynasty (806–820) and was originally called Zhixian Lou. The building was renovated during the Song and Yuan periods, and rebuilt in 1440 and 1657. After it was later destroyed in a war, it was rebuilt in 1877.

Caishiji, historically also known as Niuzhuji, lies on the Yangtze southwest of Ma'anshan. Steep river cliffs, flowing waters, and striking rocks are among the landscape's defining features. Together with Yanziji and Chenglingji, Caishiji is known as one of the “Three Yangtze Jis.” In the Caishiji Cultural and Ecotourism Area, Yixian Garden, designed in the style of a Jiangnan garden, draws on stories about Li Bai in Anhui, Dangtu, and Caishi.

The old town of Caishi borders the Caishiji area at its north gate. For orientation, it lies south of Jiuhua West Road, north of the Suoxi River, east of Zhongshi Road, and west of Caishi Binjiang Park. A 2020 description characterizes the renewed old town as combining Tang culture, a historic battlefield, a river landscape, and the character of a water town.

A 2020 tourism report recorded regular opera performances and intangible cultural heritage presentations in the Caishiji area. If you would like to plan your visit around a performance, check the schedule in advance. A report from the same year mentions 19 rest areas with shaded seating along the visitor route in the Caishiji tourist area. It recommends a fish banquet featuring fish, shrimp, and crabs as a meal for visitors.

Discover more destinations: Juchao, Tongling, Xuancheng, Huaibei, Hefei, Fuyang, Wuhu, Chuzhou

For the main travel overview: Anhui.