Foping Panda Valley & Shaanxi Foping National Nature Reserve

Shaanxi Foping National Nature Reserve is located on the south slope of the middle Qinling Mountain in Shaanxi Province. It is 158 kilometers from Hanzhong City in the south and 215 kilometers from Xi ‘an City in the north. Covering 28,586 hectares, it is a forest and wildlife natural reserve that primarily protects giant pandas, and home to the Foping Panda Valley.

Foping National Nature Reserve is the “natural gene bank of animals and plants” due to its 1,580 species of higher plants and 265 species of wild animals, which include giant pandas, oryx, golden monkeys, and leopards. If you are planning a trip to Xian with panda encounter, make sure you go to Foping Panda Valley.

 

Quick Fasts of Foping National Nature Reserve

  • Address: 89 Huangjiawan Road, Foping County, Hanzhong City, Shaanxi Province
  • Opening Hours:
    • March to November: 08:00 – 18:00
    • December to February: 08:30 – 17:30
  • Ticket Price: CNY 60

Please note: The reserve is closed to the general public, but only serves as a foundation for environmental preservation and scientific research

Foping Panda Valley

Qinling Giant Panda Foping Rescue and Breeding Research Base is a giant panda rescue and breeding base in Foping National Nature Reserve. The base is 13 kilometers away from Foping County, 1350 meters above sea level, and covers a total area of 62.5 hectares. It is divided into four functional areas of giant panda rescue and breeding, scientific research and popularization, management and service, wild release and training, and one panda feed base.

There were a many wild pandas here. According to statistics, there is one wild panda for every 5.5 square kilometres. It indicates that greater care is required to safeguard these national treasures. Therefore, Foping Panda Valley was so constructed in 1978.

Foping Panda Valley is highly recommended for your China panda tour to Xian.

Foping Panda Valley
Foping Panda Valley

Rare Plants in Foping National Nature Reserve

There are more than 2000 kinds of plants, with 20 kinds belonging to rare plants. 48 species of 35 genera and 23 families of wild plants are protected as national second class (e.g., Qinling abies, one-leaf monophylla, Miaotai maple, etc.), while 2 families, 3 genera, and 4 species are protected as national first class (including southern Taxus Chinensis, Dendrobium curdendrobium, and elephant trunk orchid).

The rate of vegetation coverage in the area is above 90%, which can provide a comfortable land for wild animals, especially panda.

Other rare Animals in Foping National Nature Reserve

Apart from giant pandas, there are more than 300 kinds of wild animals and the precious ones include snub-nosed monkey, antelope, red panda, tragopan temminckii beside panda, forest musk deer, leopard, golden cat, jackal, crested ibis, Chinese merganser, white-crested pheasant, black stork, vulture, golden eagle, brown-headed Robin, and yellow-breasted Sparrow.

Moreover, there are brown and white panda and white panda beside white and black panda.

Foping National Nature Reserve

Best Time to Visit:

There are two best times to see giant pandas:

  1. Pandas awaken and eat breakfast in the morning, therefore it’s advised that you get upearly and arrive at the park as soon as you can.
  2. It is recommended that you enter the park immediately when it opens in the afternoon, when the pandas wake up from their nap and eat lunch.

How to Get to Foping National Nature Reserve and Foping Panda Valley

By train: Take the Xian to Chengdu high-speed rail. It takes only 40 minutes from Xi ‘an North Railway Station to Foping Station, and there are more than 10 trains a day.

By private transfer: At China Xian Tour, we provide the private transfer service for you to get to the reserve from your hotel in Xian or Hanzhong. It is more convenient.

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