UNESCO World Heritage SiteNational 5A Scenic AreaSouth China
Danxia Mountain
丹霞山 · Guangdong, Shaoguan
The type-site of the 'danxia' red sandstone landform, a park of glowing red cliffs and peaks.
Danxia Mountain is the defining example of the Danxia landform, a landscape of red sandstone cliffs, pillars and caves eroded into striking shapes. The rocks glow red at sunrise and sunset, and trails lead through narrow slot canyons and up to panoramic peaks above the subtropical forest of northern Guangdong.
The red sandstone of Danxia formed around 140 million years ago and was uplifted and eroded over the last few million years into its present towers and gorges. Geologists named the entire global category of red-cliff landform after this site ('Danxia'). China's Danxia sites were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2010.
Day-by-day routes you won't find online — now starting with an 8-day, 1,500 km loop through western Sichuan. New regions are added regularly; tell us where you want to drive next.
