Daxu Old Town

Daxu (大圩古镇), literally “big town” in Chinese, is a time-honored old town with well-preserved traditional Chinese architecture and stone-paved streets. It is situated on the north bank of the Lijiang River, about 23 kilometers by river and 17 kilometers by road from Guilin City.

Daxu, with a history of more than 1,000 years, is one of four renowned ancient towns in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China. The town originally formed in the early Northern Song Dynasty (960-1126). As the center of connecting with other provinces, it was treated as a main spot for trading goods. Thousands of people, with their own products, gather together there. Until now, some ancient traditional shops are still open in this town, such as noodle-making shops, wine shops, rice tofu (rice bean curd) shop, Chinese medicine offices, antique shops, traditional Chinese painting shops, etc.

Daxu Old Town

An ancient street for about two kilometers runs through the town. On both sides of the narrow street stand two-story Ming- and Qing-dynasty buildings with gray bricks and tiles. Equipped with a front door, skylight, main room, wing-room and backyard, each house has a functional design combining business and living into one unit. On the south side of the town, there is a single-arched bridge, built during Ming dynasty (1368-1644) and named Longevity Bridge. Stones on the bridge have been rubbed down over the years by countless carts and footsteps until they are now smooth and glossy.

Daxu Old Town

Daxu Old Town offers a charming pastoral landscape of ancient folk houses, paddy fields, and mountains by Li River. Moreover, when visiting Daxu from April to December, tourist can pick strawberries, fresh pomelos, oranges, orient melons to experience Chinese rural lifestyle.