UNESCO World Heritage SiteNational 5A Scenic AreaEast China
Fujian Tulou (Hakka Earth Buildings)
福建土楼 · Fujian, Zhangzhou
Giant circular communal earth fortresses built by the Hakka people, enclosed villages of rammed earth.
The Fujian Tulou are extraordinary communal fortresses — mostly circular or square earthen buildings several storeys high, housing entire clans behind thick rammed-earth walls. Set among tea hills and terraces in mountainous southern Fujian, these 'little kingdoms of the family' combine defence, kinship and feng shui, with the Tianluokeng cluster famously nicknamed 'four dishes and one soup'.
Built mainly between the 15th and 20th centuries by the Hakka and other clans, the tulou were communal fortified villages adapted to bandit threats and clan life. Their unique architecture was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2008 as Fujian Tulou.
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.
