Zhangjiajie: The Real Avatar Mountains — A Complete Guide

Destination Guides • 7 min read

Zhangjiajie National Forest Park in Hunan province is home to the towering sandstone pillars that inspired the floating mountains of Pandora in James Cameron's Avatar. Seeing them in person is genuinely surreal — thousands of pillar-like peaks rising from subtropical forest, often shrouded in mist.

Getting There

Zhangjiajie has its own airport (DYG) with connections from major Chinese cities. From the airport, the national park entrance is about 40 minutes by car.

What to See

• Avatar Hallelujah Mountain (Southern Sky Column)
• Tianzi Mountain — panoramic viewpoint
• Glass Bridge — the world's highest and longest glass-bottom bridge
• Tianmen Mountain — with its spectacular cliff-hugging glass walkway