Pengyang and Zhuanglang Terraced Fields, Aug 2026

By Beatrice Wong
September 1, 2026
8:30 pm
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From Lanzhou, I headed southeast to visit some of the massive terraced fields in the province. When it comes to terraced fields, most people think of the verdant Hani Terraces in Yunnan or the Longji Terraces in Guilin. Few can imagine that this region on the Loess Plateau known for droughts and soil erosion actually has developed such beautiful tiered fields. I chose two of the more famous terraces to visit: Pengyang Terraces 彭阳梯田 and Zhuanglang Terraces 庄浪梯田. I stayed at the Kyriad Hotel 凯里亚德酒店(固原彭阳店) in Pengyang town.

Kyriad Hotel 凯里亚德酒店(固原彭阳店)

Pengyang Terraces 彭阳梯田

The rolling mountains and layered terraced fields of Pengyang彭阳, especially the Jinjiping Terraces 金雞坪梯, have been attracting many photographers in recent years. These terraced fields have been selected as one of the “10 Most Beautiful Countryside in China” as well as one of “China’s Most Beautiful Terraced Fields”. The Pengyang Terraces cover an area of about 40,000 hectares and it is unbelievable that these terraced fields were once barren land and only transformed into lush and green a few decades ago. I can only imagine the villagers’ arduous labor in reclaiming these lands. There are two viewing platforms here: No. 1 (better for sunrise and overall views) and No. 2 (better for sunset). Unlike other terraced fields, I was told that the local government started the “One Flower” project and selected suitable flower varieties to be planted at the different terraces. In the spring, there are supposedly peach and apricot blossoms in the fields, but my driver said he is not sure if they are still planting flowers. I didn’t see any lilies or rapeseed flowers that are supposedly planted in the summer. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t cooperate so there wasn’t any beautiful sunrise or sunset to speak of. I decided to shorten my stay and headed to the larger-scale Zhuanglang Terraces instead.

Jinjiping Terraces 金雞坪梯

Jinjiping Terraces 金雞坪梯

Jinjiping Terraces No. 1 Viewing Platform 金雞坪梯一號觀景台 where you can see the fingerprint shapes of the terraced fields.

There are stairs at Jinjiping Terraces No. 1 Viewing Platform 金雞坪梯一號觀景台 that leads down very close to the fields.

There are stairs at Jinjiping Terraces No. 1 Viewing Platform 金雞坪梯一號觀景台 that leads down very close to the fields.

Jinjiping Terraces 金雞坪梯

Jinjiping Terraces 金雞坪梯

Jinjiping Terraces 金雞坪梯

Jinjiping Terraces 金雞坪梯

Jinjiping Terraces 金雞坪梯

Jinjiping Terraces 金雞坪梯

View from Jinjiping Terraces No. 2 Viewing Platform 金雞坪梯二號觀景台

View from Jinjiping Terraces No. 2 Viewing Platform 金雞坪梯二號觀景台

Zhuanglang Terraces 庄浪梯田

Zhuanglang Terraces 庄浪梯田 cover an area of about 64,000 hectares and are known as “Kingdom of Terraces” with their majestic “thousands of layers of ridges”. Zhuanglang tranlates to “the place where wild buffalo roam” in Tibetan. This area used to be a typical loess plateau gully region with severe soil erosion and was once known as “the most barren place under heaven.” From 1964 to 1998, the locals transformed the ravines of the Loess Plateau into tiered, fertile fields, creating beautiful geometric patterns cascading down the slopes. Verdant terraced fields are built along the contour lines on the hillsides, retaining rainwater and preventing soil erosion. They offer better ventilation and light penetration, which is conducive to crop growth and nutrient accumulation. It was no easy feat leveling these hillsides by digging and pushing without the help of modern machinery and without any funds. Zhuanglang is famous for its ecological model of “sea buckthorn caps on the mountaintops, terraced fields winding around the waists of the mountains, pastures lining the dams, and shoes worn at the bottom of the gullies.” In the summer, rows of rice seedlings stand tall, a deep, dark green, with rolling waves of wheat. There is a main Zhuanglang Terraces viewing platform but I think the view along the narrow road to Zhuanglang First Village 庄浪第一村 is more beautiful.