Photo: Haha169 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Jiangsu · Nanjing
Qixia Mountain, Nanjing
Each late autumn, Qixia Mountain — counted among China's four great maple-viewing mountains — sets its slopes alight. The hillside maples turn crimson and gold around the thousand-year-old Qixia Temple, a survivor of the Southern Dynasties, while golden ginkgo and dark tallow trees add their own colours to the mix. Walk from the temple archway past Mingjing Lake, where red leaves double in the still water, into Red Leaf Valley, where whole hillsides burn like a sea of fire. Carved into the cliffs nearby, the Thousand Buddha Cliff shelters hundreds of stone figures from the same ancient era. The colour peaks from mid-November into early December, which makes right now the perfect week to see it. For a deeper experience, climb to Fengxiang Peak in the early morning, when mist still hangs in the valleys and the maple light feels almost private.
Arrive early in the morning for soft light and thinner crowds; the park opens at 7:00 and closes at 17:00, and November is peak season, so weekdays are far calmer than weekends. Follow the west-gate route past the temple, Mingjing Lake and Red Leaf Valley, and wear comfortable shoes for the stone steps. Pair it with the Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum or Nanjing's old city wall for a full Nanjing day.
November 4, 2026
