Shenzhen Splendid China folk culture village is a theme park in the center of Shenzhen, close to Window of the World. Originally it consisted of two parks: Splendid China and China folk culture village, but those two parks have been combined in 2003 into one bigger park. When you first enter the park, you have the option of first visiting the Folk Culture Villages or first the Splendid China part. I visited the park with my girlfriend, her parents and my parents. We all thought the Folk Culture Villages part of the park was much more interesting than the Splendid China part. The shows and many small performances make it definitely worthwhile. Below you will find a detailed description of the main attractions inside the park.
Splendid China consists of miniatures of important buildings and
historical sites throughout China. For example we saw Potala Palace
(from Tibet), the Great Wall, the Forbidden City. Also some lesser
known scenic sites such as mountains and rivers are recreated. You can
visit this part of the park in under two hours, because it’s not so
interesting. It’s very spacious and feels more like a public park.
China folk culture village is much more interesting. There are in total 24 ethnic villages, for example you can see houses from Hainan island, a very big Dong-minority bridge, houses from the Dai people in Yunnan and so on. There are different performances throughout the day at each village. For example we saw people from Xinjiang dancing in traditional clothes, we saw a Tibetan performance and two strong guys carrying a very long pole. The wonderfully crafted houses have lots of details and although it’s not the real thing, it still is very interesting to see all the different styles. The live performances also make it feel much more real and interesting.
Besides the numerous small performances (free of charge), the park also has three big performances for which you need to pay extra. We first went to the big horse-show near the Tibetan area in a faily big arena. This show is a couple of times per day and costs 10 yuan per person. It depicts a large-scale battle with lots of horses and fighting and some tricks like jumping on a jumping horse.
The Oriental Costume show is very beautiful, personally I thought this was the best show. Good choreography and many women in beautiful costumes. It’s not allowed to take photos, but I can highly recommend this performance.
The third is called the “Dragon and Phoenix show” and is inside the large stadium between Splendid China and Folk Culture Village. Personally I though this show was a little less refined than the costume show, but nonetheless quite good. Lots of people on the stage, many moving parts, fire explosions, live animals etc.
Overview of the shows times and prizes:
- “Large horse war show”: 11:30, 14:00, 16:10. Costs 10Y/person
- “Oriental costume show”: 17:00, costs 30Y for normal seat (good enough) or 80Y for VIP seat
- “Dragon and Phoenix show”: 19:30, costs 20Y/person, 50Y/person for VIP seat
Verdict: 8.5
Much better than I expected. The ‘Splendid China’ part is a bit boring, but the Folk Cultural Villages part makes up for it with the many small performances. The three big performances add bonus points. Too bad not everything is included in the price and restaurants inside the park are quite expensive.
How to get there?
Take the subway and get off at Huaqiao Cheng (华侨城, Overseas Chinese Town) and
then walk a little bit to the east to the park’s entrance. The entrance
is clearly visible with lots of lanterns and a big square. Even though we visited during the October National holiday, it was not
overcrowded in the park.
Alternatively you can take the bus: 21, 26, 54, 59, 79, 109, 113, 204, 209, 210, 222, 223, 234, 245, 319, 324, 327, 365, 367, 373
Admission Fee:
Tickets cost 120Y per person (there are discounts for old people and
small children), but it’s possible to buy slightly cheaper tickets via travel
agents online (alibaba).
Opening Hours:
09:00 to 18:00
http://www.cn5000.com.cn/english/index.asp