Capital · Cultural centre · Guizhou
Guiyang
贵阳
Forest city on the Nanming River and gateway to the karst
Guiyang is the capital of Guizhou province, a city of green karst hills on the Nanming River at about 1,100 metres above sea level. Founded as a Ming garrison and provincial seat, it is today the transport hub of the province and a centre of China's data-centre industry, and a base for visiting the waterfalls, caves and minority villages of Guizhou.
Key facts
Overview
Guiyang lies in a basin on the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau, where the Nanming River winds between limestone hills. Its altitude gives it mild summers, which draw visitors from the hotter lowlands, and its hills remain wooded even in the city centre.
For most of its history the city was a modest administrative and garrison town. Rail links in the 1950s and the industrial build-up of the Third Front in the 1960s enlarged it, and since the 2010s high-speed rail, expressways and the Gui'an New Area with its data centres have turned it into one of the fastest-growing cities in western China.
Names and nicknames
筑
The city's one-character abbreviation, traditionally linked to the bamboo that grew in the area.
林城
“forest city”
For the wooded hills that surround and interrupt the built-up area.
History
A settlement existed on the site under the Yuan dynasty, which built a fortified town called Shunyuan. The Ming made it the seat of Guizhou province in 1413 and rebuilt it as a walled garrison city. The name Guiyang, “south of Gui Mountain”, dates from the Ming prefecture of Guiyang. The philosopher Wang Yangming lectured at the Wenming Academy here after his exile at Longchang. In the war against Japan the city received refugees, schools and industries from the east, and it became a prefecture-level city of the People's Republic with wide boundaries that include the counties of Xiuwen, Kaiyang and Xifeng.
1280s
Yuan fortified town of Shunyuan
The first walled settlement on the site of the present city centre.
1413
Seat of the new Guizhou province
The Ming made the town the provincial capital and garrisoned it to protect the route to Yunnan.
1509
Wang Yangming lectures at the Wenming Academy
Invited by the provincial education commissioner, the philosopher first taught his idea of the unity of knowledge and action here.
1598
Jiaxiu Pavilion built
The three-storey pavilion on a rock in the Nanming River became the emblem of the city.
1959–1966
Railways reach Guiyang
Lines to Liuzhou, Chongqing and Kunming ended the city's isolation and brought Third Front industry.
2014
Gui'an New Area and high-speed rail
The Guiyang–Guangzhou high-speed line opened and the new area west of the city became the base of the province's data industry.
Landmarks
Historic site
Jiaxiu Pavilion
甲秀楼
Ming pavilion on a rock in the Nanming River, reached by the Fuyu Bridge; rebuilt several times since 1598.
Nature
Qianling Park
黔灵山公园
Forested hill park in the city with a lake, free-ranging macaques and the Hongfu Temple, a Chan (Zen) monastery founded in the seventeenth century.
Street or quarter
Qingyan Ancient Town
青岩古镇
Ming garrison town in the south of the municipality with stone walls, gates, temples, a church and memorial arches.
Museum
Guizhou Provincial Museum
贵州省博物馆
The province's main museum, with archaeology and extensive collections of Miao, Dong and Buyei costume and silver.
Historic site
Wenchang Pavilion
文昌阁
Ming-era pavilion on the old city wall dedicated to the god of literature.
Park or garden
Huaxi Park
花溪公园
Riverside park of streams, stepping stones and karst hills in the southern district of Huaxi.
Neighbourhoods
Nanming
南明区
The southern part of the old city along the river, with Jiaxiu Pavilion.
Yunyan
云岩区
The northern part of the old city, with Qianling Park and the main shopping streets.
Guanshanhu
观山湖区
New administrative and business district to the north-west, where the provincial government is based.
Huaxi
花溪区
University district in the south, with Huaxi Park and Qingyan.
Food
Silk dolls
丝娃娃
Tiny pancakes filled at the table with shredded vegetables and a sour-spicy dip.
Changwang noodles
肠旺面
Noodles with pork intestine, blood tofu and crisp pork in chilli broth.
“Courting” tofu
恋爱豆腐果
Grilled fermented tofu split and filled with chilli sauce; the name is said to come from couples who ate it during the war years.
Huaxi beef rice noodles
花溪牛肉粉
Rice noodles in beef broth with pickled mustard greens.
Culture
Guiyang is a Han city in a largely minority province: Buyei and Miao villages lie within the municipality, and the provincial museum and festival performances bring the cultures of the whole province to the capital. Its intellectual tradition centres on Wang Yangming, commemorated at the Yangming Shrine and at Longchang in Xiuwen county. Street food and night markets are central to city life.
Mountains and nature nearby
Getting around
- Guiyang Longdongbao International Airport lies east of the centre and is connected by metro.
- Guiyang North station serves most high-speed trains; Guiyang East and the older Guiyang station also have long-distance services.
- A metro network links the old city, Guanshanhu and the stations; buses and taxis cover the rest.
Day trips
Longchang, Xiuwen
修文龙场
The site of Wang Yangming's exile, with the Yangming Cave and a memorial park.
Tianhetan
天河潭
Karst scenic area of waterfalls, caves and pools south-west of the city.
Huangguoshu Waterfall
黄果树瀑布
The province's best-known waterfall, in Anshun, reached by high-speed train or expressway.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
- Guiyang Municipal People's Government — Guiyang Municipal People's Government (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Seventh National Population Census communiqués — National Bureau of Statistics of China (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Guiyang — Encyclopaedia Britannica (retrieved 27 September 2026)