Things to do in Yichang

Welcome to Yichang

Located east of the Three Gorges Dam, Yichang is the embarkation point for passengers cruising up the Yangtze River toward Chongqing. With a population of around four million people, Yichang is small by Chinese standards and quite clean and quiet.

If you’re in Yichang, you’re probably there getting on or off a cruise or paying a visit to the Three Gorges Dam (the largest in the world); but the city offers several other points of interest for visitors passing through. Yichang was an important post in the Sino-Japanese War, and you can see the old defensive walls and ruins as well as a war memorial at the Three Visitors Dave and Park, located just outside of town.

If you only have limited time on the way to or from a cruise, consider spending it shopping for some local specialties, including chestnuts, persimmons, Sanxia oranges and tea.

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Top 5 attractions in Yichang

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Three Gorges Dam Five-Step Ship Lock

Scaling the monumental Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River near Yichang city in Hubei, the Three Gorges Dam Five-Step Ship Lock is one of the largest in the world. Large freight ships ascend or descend 40 stories in five separate stages, while many smaller vessels use the ship elevator (ship lift), which is the world’s biggest.

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Three Gorges (Sanxia)

China’s signature river trip, a Three Gorges (Sanxia) cruise is the defining experience of the Yangtze, Asia’s longest river. Famed for their beauty for more than 1,000 years, the Three Gorges have been reshaped by the rising waters of the Three Gorges Dam. But the magic of Qutang Gorge, Wu Gorge, and Xiling Gorge endures.

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An imposing dam on a rushing river, surrounded by orange cranes and mountains in the distance.

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Three Gorges Dam

Towering twice as high as the Statue of Liberty is tall, the Three Gorges Dam is earth’s largest hydroelectric project and home to the planet’s largest boat lift—the Three Gorges Dam Five-Step Ship Lock. It has reshaped not only the Yangtze River but the Three Gorges that gave it its name: Xutang Gorge, Wu Gorge, and Xiling Gorge.

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The Three Gorges Dam (Sanxia Daba) closeup on a sunny day, China.

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Three Gorges Dam (Sanxia Daba)

China’s largest construction project since the Great Wall and the biggest dam in the world in terms of installed capacity, the Three Rivers Dam spans 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) and is more than 600 feet (183 meters) tall. The dam is an impressive feat of engineering despite the controversy surrounding its environmental and human impacts.

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The image shows a large river of green water meandering between steep mountains.

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Xiling Gorge

One of the Three Gorges that the Yangtze River runs through between Yichang and Chongqing, Xiling Gorge is known for its soaring limestone cliffs and rugged landscapes. The Three Gorges Dam has raised the height of the river since Chinese poets began to write about these surroundings, but the area still offers stunning photos—not to mention scenic caves, streams, bridges, temples, waterfalls, and minor gorges.

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