The Dujiangyan Irrigation System is a historical Chinese irrigation system that was constructed around 250 BC by the Governor Li Bing (and his son) of Shu Prefecture in Qin State. It is located in Dujiangyan, 56 km west of present day Chengdu. Today, over two thousand years later, the Dujiangyan Irrigation System still supplies water. The system works by diverting part of the Minjiang River into an aqueduct leading to Chengdu. In 2000, it was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with Mount Qingcheng.
World Heritage Site Inscription Details
Location: N31 0 6.012 E103 36 19.008
Inscription Year: 2000
Type of Site: Cultural Inscription Criteria: II, IV, VI
To build the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, Li Bing had to cut a path through Mount Yulei on the bank of the Minjiang River. This is accomplished before the invention of explosives by repeatedly heating and cooling the rock to crack and weaken it.
The Dujiangyan irrigation system also includes a dike in the middle of the river and spillways to help reduce the silt that flows into the aqueduct. The spillways allow excess water to continue down the Minjiang River in order to prevent the flooding of the Chengdu basin. Thus, in addition to supplying water, the system also prevents flooding.
Due to the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, the amount of irrigated area was expanded from 126,000 hectares to nearly 660,000 hectares covering 36 counties.
The Dujiangyan Irrigation System consists of three main parts:
Yuzui, the fish-mouth-like water-dividing dyke
Feishayan, the spillway for discharging excess water and silt
Baopingkow, the channel through Mount Yulei
The Dujiangyan Irrigation System was recognised by Unesco as a World Heritage Site on 29 November, 2000.
In the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake (also called the Wenchuan Earthquake after the county in its epicenter) that happened on 12 May 2008, the "Fish Mouth" of the ancient Jujiangyan Irrigation System suffered some cracks but was otherwise undamaged.
Getting there
It is best to arrange with a travel agent in Chengdu or abroad to reach Dujiangyan. Visit includes a tour of the Erwang Temple and the Anlan Suspension Bridge.
Before booking a hotel room, make sure you are getting the lowest price for it. Different hotel booking websites offers the same room at different prices. If you stick with one site all the time, you could be paying more for the same room. Now why pay more?
The form below is a Research Engine. It doesn't take bookings. Instead it lets you find the hotel booking website that offers the room you want at the lowest price. You can see and compare what different sites are offering, and then click to choose the one with the best price. Do this, and you're guaranteed to save a whole lot of money on your room reservations!
If you're flying somewhere, use our Flight Checker to compare the rates from different airlines. To use it, enter where you will be flying from, where you will be flying to, your departure date and return date. Select the number of passengers, and then click search.
Our engine will return you a list of possible flights that you can take. You can compare the fare of different airlines for your trip. Click on your selected airline, and we transfer you to the airline website.
AsiaExplorers is researched and written by Timothy Tye. Reasonable care is taken to check and verify the accuracy of the content. AsiaExplorers disclaims responsibility for any inconvenience, mishap, injury or death resulting from following the tips and advice provided directly or indirectly by this website. All pages may be printed out for your own personal, non-commercial use. You may use the information on this website on your blog or website so long as you place a dofollow link back to the page in AsiaExplorers where it appears. Photographs not credited to a third party belong to Timothy Tye and may not be reused in any form unless you are first given permission. Write in to inquire if interested. Third party photographs are governed by their respective licenses. To contact Tim, write to the following email address:
