Elephant Trunk Hill is Guilin's signature city landmark — a karst formation on the Li River whose arch resembles an elephant lowering its trunk to drink. The hill sits at the confluence of the Li River and Taohua River in central Guilin, accessible from a paid park (¥75) on the south side OR free viewing from the opposite north bank along Binjiang Road. Most foreigners skip the paid park (small, brief, and you can see the hill from outside) and just shoot it from the free riverbank — same photo, ¥75 saved. Lit at night with floodlights; standard waypoint on the Two Rivers Four Lakes night cruise.
Address
Binjiang Road, Xiangshan District, Guilin
桂林市象山区滨江路
Highlights
- Elephant arch shapeKarst formation looks like elephant drinking from river
- Free riverbank viewSkip ¥75 park; same photo from opposite bank
- Night illuminationFloodlit nightly; part of Two Rivers Four Lakes cruise
What Chinese travelers actually do here
Distilled from Chinese-language travel notes — the practical tips most English guides miss.
- ▸Skip the ¥75 paid park entry — the elephant-trunk shape is best visible from OUTSIDE looking across the river, not from inside the small park. Stand on the opposite (north) bank along Binjiang Road for the exact postcard photo, ¥75 saved.
- ▸Best photo timing: 1 hour before sunset for golden light on the limestone, or after the night floodlights turn on (~7:30 PM in summer, 6:30 PM in winter). Mid-day flat light flattens the elephant shape.
- ▸Photography composition trick: include the small Buddhist pagoda on top of Elephant Trunk Hill in your frame — the pagoda gives the photo scale + adds a layer of cultural context.
- ▸The hill is small (55m tall) — most foreigners spend 10-15 min photographing it then move on. Don't allocate more than 30 min to this stop. It's a 'check the box' Guilin photo, not a destination.
- ▸The night Two Rivers Four Lakes cruise (¥210-280) passes Elephant Trunk Hill among other landmarks — if you're doing the cruise anyway, no need for separate Elephant Trunk visit.
For foreign visitors
- English service: partial english
- Cards accepted: visa, master
- Booking / entry: not needed
- Best time: Sunset golden hour OR night when illuminated
- Wi-Fi: free
- Transit access: metro direct
Photos
What travelers say (14 reviews)
Watch creators visit Elephant Trunk Hill
Each clip is timestamped to the moment the creator arrives at this stop.
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