Tianmen Mountain: tickets, hours and how to visit
A 7.5 km cable car to a cliff-top temple and the 999-step Heaven’s Gate.
Tianmen Mountain at a glance
A 7.5 km cable car to a cliff-top temple and the 999-step Heaven’s Gate. Plan on 4–5 hours here, plus half an hour either side for entry, security and parking.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tickets | CNY 258 including the 7.5 km cable car, shuttle bus and the cliff walkways. Separate from the Wulingyuan park ticket. |
| Opening hours | 08:00–18:00 (Mar–Nov), 08:30–17:00 (Dec–Feb). Cable car queues 60+ minutes after 10:00. |
| Time needed | 4–5 hours; a half day minimum. |
| City | Zhangjiajie, China |
What to see
Three things carry this sight. If you are short on time, do them in this order.
- The 7.5 km cable car30 minutes, the longest passenger cableway in the world
- Heaven's Gatethe 131-metre natural arch, reached by 999 steps or escalators
- The glass walkway1.6 km along the cliff face, 1,400 m up, optional
Tickets and booking
How the ticket works, and what foreigners usually get wrong.
Before you buy
- Price. CNY 258 including the 7.5 km cable car, shuttle bus and the cliff walkways. Separate from the Wulingyuan park ticket.
- Booking. Tianmen Mountain is in the city, Wulingyuan is 40 km away, and visitors book one thinking it is the other. Also: the cable car queue at 10:00 is 90 minutes, at 08:00 it is 10. Go early or book the shuttle-bus route up (included, 30 minutes by road).
- Payment. Most Chinese sights take WeChat Pay or Alipay only. Cash works at staffed windows but not at self-service machines; a licensed guide can pay on your behalf and settle with you at the end of the day.
Getting there and when to go
The cable car station is in Zhangjiajie city, 10 minutes from the railway station — not in the national park. Do not confuse the two; they are 40 km apart.
08:00–18:00 (Mar–Nov), 08:30–17:00 (Dec–Feb). Cable car queues 60+ minutes after 10:00.. The first hour after opening is the quietest — tour groups arrive around 09:30. Late afternoon gives better light but the main viewpoints start clearing people out, so shoot early if that is your priority.
Public transport reaches Tianmen Mountain, but connections and waiting times add up. With luggage, older travellers, or two sights in one day, a car and driver removes the guesswork.
The one thing that goes wrong
Zhangjiajie local note
- Tianmen Mountain is in the city, Wulingyuan is 40 km away, and visitors book one thinking it is the other. Also: the cable car queue at 10:00 is 90 minutes, at 08:00 it is 10. Go early or book the shuttle-bus route up (included, 30 minutes by road).
Pairing Tianmen Mountain with
These are usually on the same day or the same trip.
Tianmen Mountain: questions travellers ask
Tianmen or Wulingyuan?
Do I have to do the glass walkway?
How booking works — three steps, itinerary before price
No deposit to get a plan, and nothing is locked in before you agree.
Send the brief
Dates, party size, how you arrive and what you want to see around Tianmen Mountain.
Get a route and a price
We order the stops by location and traffic, then quote per car per day with fuel, tolls and the driver included.
Confirm and travel
Only after you accept the route and the price do we assign the car and guide.
