Emeishan Hiking

Mt. Emei is called Emeishan in China. It is one of the 4 greatest Buddhist Mountains in China. Mt. Emei Hiking has long been one of the interesting things to do while traveling in Sichuan. In old days the hiking was a holy pilgrimage trip to many Buddhists and now a favored hiking places for hikers in China. A hiking trip to Mt. Emei provides you a much closer look into the local culture and its wonderful nature. Included here are the most detailed information about hiking in Mt. Emei.

Emeishan Hiking Planning Ideas >>

Hiking Trails, Terrain, Distance and Elevation

The hiking trails in Mt. Emei are all paved stairs from the base to the summit. There is no muddy section, no dagerous sections at all. But there are steep parts and crowded parts. The hiking stairs in Emei is basically very steep especially by 99 bends and before Elephant Bathing Pool. Most of the hiking is well-shedded under trees. You won't be exposed except the final part when you arrive at the summit.

Elevation

The base of Mt. Emei is at below 800 meters above sea level. The summit of Mt. Emei is at around 3100 meters. Baoguo Temple is at 520m, Baoguo Temple has the same alttiude as the city of Emei does. Qingyin Pavilion is at 670m. Wannian Monastery is at 1010m. Hongchunping is at 1010m. Xianfeng Monastery is at 1800m. Elephant Bathing Pool is at 2060m. Leidongping is at 2430m. Jieyin Hall (Cable Car Lower Terminal) is at 2550m. Golden Summit is at 3050m.

Mt. Emei Hiking Maps

Distance

There are maps sold at Emei and also the existed online information about the hiking distance that we found are false. The following numbers are what we believe to be true distance between each locations. We are quite certain about these numbers since we measured these by ourselves more than one times.

Lower Part of Mountain

Baoguo Temple – Fuhu Temple: 1.3km

Fuhu Temple – Qingyin Pavilion: 6.3km

Qingyin Pavilion – Wuxianggang Car Park: 2km

Qingyin Pavilion - Wannian Temple: 1.7km

Wannian Temple - Wannian Car Park: 2km

Middle Part of Mountain

Wannian Temple - Jiulinggang Ridge: 5km

Qingyin Pavilion – Xianfeng Monastery: 7.2km

Xianfeng Monastery - Jiulinggang Ridge: 2.6km

Jiulinggang Ridge - Xixiang Pond: 1.2km

Xixiang Pond – Leidongping Car Park: 3km

Higher Part of Mountain

Leidongping Car Park – Jieyindian Cable Car: 1km

Jieyindian Cable Car – Golden Summit: 2.7km

Emeishan Hiking Season >>

Food and Accommodations

In the mountain of Emei there are only limited places for food and accommodations. Basic food and drinking water is available at each food store every 3-5km along the hiking trail(Please note after covid some food stores have shut off and we've seen less shops along the hiking trail in 2024. But all monasteries have shops open and sell drinking water and snacks). Monaseries provide plain vegetarian food at meal time. For accommodations along the hiking route, it is better to stay at the monasteries instead of the small and basic hostels that are also food stores. Almost every monastery has guesthouse services and often there are beds or rooms available. The water in the streams are not drinkable. For further reading on the accommodation details of Mt. Emei.

Packing and Luggage

Most of the hiking in Mt. Emei is not near any roads so if you plan to stay overnight in the mountain above Wannian Temple, Qingyin Pavilion or Leidongping, it is better to travel light since no cars can get you to where you sleep. Take only what's necessary and do not carry things you don't acctually need. Things that are recommended to carry except the essential ones include torch, extra base layer, mosquito sprays. For wearings please refer to our weather page.

Accessibility and Amenities

There are no roads beyond Qingyin Pavilion, no roads beyond Wannian Car Park, no roads beyong Leidongping. All places and monasteries can only be accessed by foot after these locations. The accommodations along the hiking route will have power, internet and reception is unreliable, hot water is available. Food option is limited and for most overnight places there is just one monastery and one or two stores outside of the monastery and nothing else.

Safety Issues

The risk of getting lost while hiking Mt. Emei is very low. Mt. Emei hiking is long but it is well-marked and the trails are under good conditions. There are simple shops along the trail every 3-5 km. Along the hiking trail there is phone reception that you can call for help if needed.

The risk of getting killed by falling rocks or landslide is very low. The risk of getting injured due to long distance of walking, twisted ankel, falling is low.

Monkeys can be annoying. Be careful of the monkeys don't show them your food otherwise there is risk of getting stuff snatched by the monkeys. Bugs and mosquitos are plenty but normally they don't cause any issues.

The walking stairs are usually damp in each season, so care must be taken while walking especially during the less-walked sections where the trails may covered by moss.

The risk of getting sunburn is low as Mt. Emei hiking trail is well-shedded with trees. Risk of heavy rain/landslide - related issues are low except for summer time but they have people check the trails all the time. Risk of low temperature is possible especially while walking at over 2000 meters in winter time when temperature drops below 5C or even 0C. At higher altitude the temperature between day and night is huge. In winter it can be snowy and windy by the summit. Icy trails possible in winter. Altitude sickness is very low by the summit even though its elevation is at around 3000 meters but there is basically no risk of getting mountain sickness here.