A modern rail-hub capital with a fine free museum and Lord Bao's shrine, handy as a stop on the way to Huangshan.
A modern rail-hub capital with a fine free museum and Lord Bao's shrine, handy as a stop on the way to Huangshan.
A park in central Hefei holding the shrine and tomb of Bao Zheng (Lord Bao), the Northern Song official famous for his honesty and fairness, who came from Hefei. Entry has been free since May 2024; the shrine, the tomb and the tall Qingfeng Pavilion are open 9:00–17:00 (last entry 16:30).
The province's main museum, in its new Shushan hall: bronzes on the 2nd and 3rd floors, and on the 4th floor, rebuilt Huizhou houses with wood, brick and stone carving. Free with a booking; Metro Line 3 to Shengbowuyuan station.
A free park around a lake about 3.5 km round, next to the Anhui Museum and ringed by office towers. Good for an evening walk after the museum.
A water town in Feixi county, south of the city, named for the three rivers that meet there, with Ming- and Qing-style streets and the former home of the physicist Chen-Ning Yang. The streets are free; the small museums and houses charge separately. Sanhe is also known for its rice dumplings (三河米饺).
Chaohu, one of China's five largest freshwater lakes, lies wholly within Hefei. On its north shore, Binhu National Forest Park has woods, wetlands and cycle paths, free and open 9:00–17:30.
A clear, golden broth slow-cooked from an old hen, a dish from Hefei's Feixi county served all over the city.
Freshwater crayfish cooked in a spicy or vinegar-based stock and eaten with your hands, Hefei's signature street food.
A whole chicken coated in honey, fried, then simmered with herbs and spices until it falls off the bone, named after the warlord Cao Cao.
Hefei is the capital of Anhui province and a meeting point of high-speed lines: east to Shanghai and Nanjing, west to Wuhan and south to Huangshan. It is a large, modern and fast-growing city, and honestly less of a sightseeing destination than its neighbors. The province’s famous mountain and old villages lie about 1.5 hours south by train, and Hefei’s own sights are fewer and newer than Nanjing’s.
What it has is enough for a day: the shrine and tomb of Lord Bao, the Northern Song official famous for his honesty and fairness, who came from here; a large, free provincial museum; and Sanhe, an old river town on the city’s southern edge. It suits travelers going between Shanghai or Nanjing and Huangshan who want to break the trip, and those coming from Wuhan, whose line meets the others here.
Arrive at Hefei South (our high-speed train guide covers booking with a passport) and start at Bao Gong Park, well before the shrine’s 16:30 last entry. Spend the afternoon at the Anhui Museum, booked ahead, and walk around Swan Lake next door. For dinner, look for Feixi old hen soup, crayfish, and Luzhou roast duck, a crisp-skinned local roast. Stinky mandarin fish, a Hui dish from the south of the province, is widely eaten in Hefei too.
With a second morning, take a taxi or DiDi out to Sanhe for its old streets and rice dumplings, or to the Chaohu shore at Binhu. Then catch an afternoon train from Hefei South to Huangshan North, about 1.5 hours on most fast trains, and sleep near the mountain. Set up Alipay before you arrive for metro rides, bookings and meals; the paying in China guide explains how.
Checked on 29 October 2026. Opening times and ticket rules change; confirm on the official site before you go.
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