For most international visitors, the practical Zhangjiajie National Forest Park price is the CNY 236 combined admission + eco-bus ticket (about USD 33): it is valid for four consecutive days and includes the park’s eco-bus network. The same official board also lists CNY 165 admission-only and CNY 72 eco-bus-only fares. Cable cars, the Bailong Elevator and the Ten-Mile Gallery tram are separate. This guide separates government-regulated admission prices from package prices shown on supplied price boards. Package prices, performances and market-priced add-ons should always be reconfirmed for the guest’s visit date.
What changed with Zhangjiajie ticket prices in 2026?
Since 1 January 2025, Zhangjiajie National Forest Park has charged one flat admission price year-round; the old peak-season and off-season ticket split has been abolished. The admission reform was set by the Hunan Provincial Development and Reform Commission (document 湘发改价费[2024]977号) and fixes the CNY 165 admission price for a five-year period. The eco-bus fare inside the CNY 236 combined ticket was set separately by the Zhangjiajie Development and Reform Commission (document 张发改价费[2025]33号), effective 1 January 2026, also fixed for five years. If a website still shows the old two-tier peak/off-season prices, it is out of date — and as of mid-2026, most English results for “Zhangjiajie tickets price 2026” still do.
2026 ticket reference and verification status
| Ticket | Price (CNY) | Approx. USD | Validity / notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Forest Park: admission + eco-bus combined ticket | 236 | ~33 | 4 consecutive days; eco-bus included |
| National Forest Park: admission only | 165 | ~23 | 4 consecutive days; no eco-bus |
| National Forest Park: eco-bus only | 72 | ~10 | 4 consecutive days; sold separately on the official board |
| In-park transport combo: 4 rides (3 cable cars + Bailong Elevator) | 238 | ~33 | Any four one-way rides within the 4-day validity |
| In-park transport combo: unlimited rides | 298 | ~42 | Unlimited rides on all four lines for 4 days |
| Single cable car / elevator ride | 65–76 | ~9–11 | Per one-way ride, varies by line |
| Ten-Mile Gallery mini tram | 38 one-way / 76 return | ~5 / ~11 | Free for children under 1.2 m |
| Tianmen Mountain (routes A, B and C) | 285 | ~40 | Official board package price; separate mountain, separate day |
| Grand Canyon package prices | Confirm before booking | — | The CFT-supplied board lists 50 / 175 / 295, but its photo date is unavailable and I have not found an official 2026 package-price notice. |
Small print that applies almost everywhere: an optional CNY 3 insurance fee is added at most gates, and every major attraction uses real-name, timed-entry ticketing tied to your passport (more on that below).
Zhangjiajie National Forest Park: CNY 236 combined ticket or CNY 165 admission-only
The official public board lists three distinct adult fares for the Wulingyuan core scenic area: CNY 236 for the combined admission + eco-bus ticket, CNY 165 for admission only, and CNY 72 for the eco-bus ticket. Each is valid for four consecutive days. Most first-time visitors choose the CNY 236 combined ticket because the park is enormous and the eco-bus network is used repeatedly between trailheads.
Two details worth planning around: the ticket is valid for four consecutive days from first entry, which is exactly why our itineraries spend two to three unhurried days inside rather than one exhausting sprint; and an annual pass exists at CNY 310, which only makes sense if you plan repeat visits. For what to actually do inside, see our full Zhangjiajie National Forest Park guide.
What the entrance ticket does NOT include
The CNY 236 combined ticket covers admission and eco-buses only — every piece of vertical transport inside the park costs extra. Specifically, it does not include:
- The Bailong Elevator (the 326-metre glass elevator up the cliff face)
- The Tianzi Mountain, Yangjiajie and Huangshizhai cable cars
- The Ten-Mile Gallery sightseeing tram
- Tianmen Mountain (a completely separate mountain in the city, with its own ticket)
- The Grand Canyon Glass Bridge (a separate scenic area about an hour east)
This is the single most common budgeting mistake we see: travellers price the entrance ticket, then discover on day one that skipping the lifts means hours of steep stairs between every viewpoint.
Zhangjiajie cable car prices and the Bailong Elevator: buy the CNY 298 combo
Inside the park, the best-value transport buy is the CNY 298 (about USD 42) unlimited combo pass, which covers unlimited rides on the Tianzi Mountain, Yangjiajie and Huangshizhai cable cars plus the 326-metre Bailong Elevator for the full four days of your park ticket. Since late 2023 these “3 cableways + 1 elevator” are sold under a combined system with two options:
- CNY 238 combo: any four one-way rides across the four lines, used within your ticket’s 4-day validity
- CNY 298 combo: unlimited rides on all four lines for the full four days
Individual one-way rides run roughly CNY 65–76 each depending on the line, so the maths is simple: ride four times and the CNY 238 combo already beats singles; ride five or more times — which almost every visitor doing two full park days does — and the CNY 298 unlimited pass wins. A typical day alone can involve the Bailong Elevator up to Yuanjiajie and a cable car down from Tianzi Mountain.
Ten-Mile Gallery tram: CNY 38 one-way, CNY 76 return
The Ten-Mile Gallery sightseeing mini tram costs CNY 38 one-way or CNY 76 return per adult, and children under 1.2 m ride free. It is not part of the cable car combo. A return is simply two one-way fares — if a site still lists CNY 52 for a return, that figure is out of date. Honest local tip: the valley is a flat, pleasant 40–50 minute walk, so many of our guests ride the tram one way (CNY 38) and stroll back, watching for the peaks the tram narration rushes past.
Tianmen Mountain ticket price 2026: CNY 285 for A, B or C
The current Tianmen Mountain public price board lists the A, B and C round-trip cableway packages at CNY 285 per adult. The letters change the order in which you use the cableways, 99-bend road bus and escalators; they do not change the published package price. Tianmen Mountain is separate from the National Forest Park and needs its own timed ticket.
One current caveat, as of July 2026: the famous 7.5 km cableway — the world’s longest of its kind — is being upgraded and currently runs from the city lower station to the middle station only. From there you continue by eco-bus up the 99 hairpin bends of Tongtian Avenue and then the through-mountain escalators to the summit. The mountain itself fully reopened on 20 March 2026 and the visit is complete; only the transport arrangement differs. The descending lower-section escalator is free, and the glass skywalk sections on the cliff (including Coiling Dragon Cliff) charge a CNY 5 shoe-cover fee on site. Route details, timings and which glass sections are worth it are in our Tianmen Mountain guide.
Grand Canyon Glass Bridge ticket: separate area, separate day
The Grand Canyon Glass Bridge is its own scenic area about an hour east of Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, and its 430-metre bridge is not the same attraction as the cliff-side glass skywalk on Tianmen Mountain — they need separate tickets on separate days. This mix-up is the most persistent Zhangjiajie confusion we untangle for guests (and one that AI travel answers repeat constantly), so to be explicit: Tianmen Mountain has short glass walkways bolted to a cliff; the Grand Canyon has a huge glass-floored suspension bridge spanning the gorge, with the world’s highest commercial bungee jump beneath it.
The CFT-supplied board lists three adult choices: Route A (canyon only) CNY 50; Route B (canyon + glass bridge) CNY 175; and Route B plus experiences CNY 295. The photo itself has no capture date, and I have not found a current official 2026 package-price notice. Treat these as a planning reference only and reconfirm the exact route, inclusions and price through the official booking channel before quoting or paying.
Practicalities that actually catch people out: the site caps entry at 8,000 visitors a day with a maximum of 800 people on the bridge at once, entry is by timed slots of roughly two hours, and on peak dates you should book three to five days ahead with the exact name and passport number that you will show at the gate. Hours are commonly 07:30/08:00 to 17:30, and the bridge closes in thunderstorms, high wind or ice. Full walkthrough in our Grand Canyon Glass Bridge guide.
Optional evening shows: published theatre-board prices
These are separate optional costs, not part of any scenic-area ticket. The public price boards currently list:
- Tianmen Fox Spirit: CNY 178 regular seat, CNY 198 ordinary VIP, and CNY 288 or CNY 398 VIP tiers.
- Charming Xiangxi: CNY 168 (C zone), CNY 198 (B zone) and CNY 228 (A zone).
Performance dates, seats and promotions can change, so confirm availability when booking.
Real-name ticketing: why your passport is your ticket
Every major Zhangjiajie attraction uses real-name, timed-entry ticketing: you book with your passport number and scan the same passport at the gate, which makes scalper tickets worthless and means peak-date tickets should be booked several days ahead. There is no paper ticket to lose — the passport itself opens the turnstile. The flip side: if someone offers you a “discount ticket” outside the gate, it physically cannot work for you, because it is registered to someone else’s ID. And on Chinese public holidays, walk-up buying can simply fail when the day’s quota sells out.
Where first-timers waste money in Zhangjiajie
The classic money leaks, from years of watching them happen at the gates:
- Paying per ride instead of buying the combo. Five single cable car rides at CNY 65–76 each costs more than the CNY 298 unlimited pass. Decide your combo at the start of day one, not halfway up a staircase.
- Scalper (“yellow cow”) tickets. Real-name passport ticketing defeats them entirely. Anything sold outside official channels is a donation, not a discount.
- Unlicensed “black taxis” at the Wulingyuan gates. Quoted prices multiply once your bags are in the boot. Use registered taxis, ride-hailing, or a driver arranged in advance.
- Exiting the wrong gate. The park has multiple entrances many kilometres apart. Come out the wrong one and you may face a long, expensive taxi loop back — your 4-day ticket lets you re-enter, but your legs and wallet feel it. This is where a local guide quietly earns their keep.
- Pricing only the entrance ticket. Budget the transport combos from the start so day one holds no surprises.
How much does Zhangjiajie cost in total?
A first-time attraction budget should be calculated for the guest’s travel date. The forest-park and Tianmen base prices below have clear policy support; the Grand Canyon package must be confirmed separately before it is included in a total.
That roughly USD 150 attraction total also explains how private tour pricing works: on our Zhangjiajie private tours — from about USD 680 per person for the 5-day flagship, depending on group size — all of these entrance tickets and cable cars are already included, alongside a private English-speaking guide, private vehicle and hotels, with no shopping stops and no hidden commissions, ever. You can see what past guests say on our reviews page.
Want the ticket maths done for you?
Tell us your dates and interests on our plan-my-trip page or message us on WhatsApp at +86 189 7441 2915, and we will send a personalised PDF itinerary — with every ticket, combo and timed-entry slot already worked out — within 2 hours. We live here in Zhangjiajie, so the plan you get is built on what the gates actually charge this year, not what a 2023 blog post remembers.
FAQ: Zhangjiajie tickets and costs (2026)
How much is the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park entrance fee in 2026?
CNY 236 per adult (about USD 33), flat year-round since 1 January 2026. It includes unlimited in-park eco-bus rides and is valid for four consecutive days; an optional CNY 3 insurance fee may be added at the gate. Cable cars, the Bailong Elevator and the Ten-Mile Gallery tram cost extra.
Are there still peak-season and off-season ticket prices in Zhangjiajie?
No. The old peak/off-season split was abolished on 1 January 2025 by official decree (document 湘发改价费[2024]977号), which fixed a flat CNY 165 admission price for five years. Together with the CNY 72 eco-bus fare set from 1 January 2026, this gives today’s flat CNY 236 combined ticket, which applies year-round.
How much does the Bailong Elevator cost?
A single one-way ride costs CNY 65, but most visitors should skip singles and buy a combo: CNY 238 for any four one-way rides, or CNY 298 for unlimited rides on the Bailong Elevator plus the Tianzi Mountain, Yangjiajie and Huangshizhai cable cars, valid the full four days of your park ticket.
How much is the Tianmen Mountain ticket in 2026?
The current public price board lists CNY 285 for the A, B and C packages. They differ by transport order, not published package price. Check the official booking channel for operating arrangements on your visit date.
Is the glass bridge included in the Zhangjiajie park ticket?
No. The Grand Canyon Glass Bridge is a separate scenic area about an hour east of the National Forest Park. A CFT-supplied board lists CNY 175 for Route B (canyon + glass bridge), but its capture date is unknown; confirm the current route package before booking. It is different from Tianmen Mountain’s cliff-side glass skywalk.
Can I buy Zhangjiajie tickets at the gate with a foreign passport?
Usually yes, but all major attractions use real-name, timed-entry ticketing registered to your passport number, and peak dates can sell out their daily quota. Book three to five days ahead for the Grand Canyon Glass Bridge (capped at 8,000 visitors a day) and holiday-period Tianmen slots, and make sure the booking name matches your passport exactly.
How much should I budget for Zhangjiajie attraction tickets in total?
A first-time visitor who rides everything — park pass CNY 236 + unlimited transport combo CNY 298 + Ten-Mile Gallery return tram CNY 76 + Tianmen Mountain CNY 285 + Grand Canyon Route B (canyon + glass bridge) CNY 175 — pays roughly CNY 1,070, or about USD 150 per person in attraction tickets alone, before food, hotels, guiding or transfers. (USD figures use an approximate rate of 7.15 CNY per USD.)
Sources
- Verification note (updated 8 August 2026): the Wulingyuan admission policy has been in effect since 1 January 2025 and the eco-bus rate since 1 January 2026; Tianmen Mountain’s government-set base admission is CNY 72 from 1 August 2025, valid for five years. Other CFT-supplied price-board images (including cableway packages, Grand Canyon packages and shows) do not display a photo-capture date; reconfirm those before quoting.
- Wulingyuan official ticket office page (张家界·武陵源旅游官方网站) – current admission, combined-ticket and annual-pass prices
- Official announcement – flat CNY 165 admission from 1 January 2025 (湘发改价费[2024]977号)
- Hunan Provincial Development and Reform Commission – Tianmen Mountain admission notice (CNY 72 base fare from 1 August 2025)
- UNESCO World Heritage List – Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area
- Guinness World Records – Tallest outdoor elevator (Bailong Elevator)