Yueyang, which is called Baling or Yuezhou in ancient times, and located in the northeast of Hunan Province.
The area now called Yueyang has been inhabited for over 3,000 years. It was originally established as a prefecture called Hanchang in 210 BC during the Three Kingdoms period.
Under the Song Dynasty (AD 960-AD 1279) it was heavily fortified, with walls 4 miles in circumference, and became the seat of the military prefecture of Yueyang, whence its present name. During the Taiping Rebellion, its capture by the rebels in AD 1852 was an important stage in their advance up the Yangtze River valley to Nanjing. At the time of the foundation of the Republic of China in AD 1911, it became a county, taking the name Yueyang.
Water and land transportation in this city is very convenient. Beijing-Guangzhou Railway, Celerity Special Railway Passenger Transport Line from Wuhan to Guangzhou, Beijing-Zhuhai Expressway, 107 National Highway and the Golden Channel of Yangtze River all pass through the city. It is within 1 hour or 2 driving distance from Changsha Huanghua International Airport in the south and from Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in the north. The Dongting Lake Bridge connects the east and the west part of the city and the Jingyue Yangtze Highway Bridge, which is under way, will link the south with the north together. Yueyang Chenglingji Port is one of the eight excellent ports along the Yangtze River and it is the only opening and national first class port for foreign ships in Hunan. Ships can sail directly from it to many countries and regions. Its annual cargo handling capacity has reached 3 million tons and more than 80 thousand standard containers.
Yueyang is rich in travel resources with splendid and beautiful mountains and rivers and abundant scenic spots and historical sites. There are more than 200 tourist attractions in it. The most outstanding among them are famous Dongting Lake landscape zone and Yueyang Tower scenic spot, Miluo River, birthplace of China and World Dragon Boat Culture and Dragon Boat Festival, Temple of Qu Yuan, Zhang Guying Village, ancient building complex built in Ming and Qing Dynasties and well-known as “the First Village in China”, Qianjiadong, the relics of ancient Yao ethnic group, mysterious and beautiful Junshan Islet, the East DongTing Lake Wetland Nature Reserve and its Animals and Plants Reserve which is called “Birds-observing Paradise” and listed in Ramsar Convention on Wetlands by the U.N., Tuanhu Lotus Park, the largest wild lotus landscape in Southeast Asia in addition to Mupu Mountain and Dayun Mountain National Forest Park.
