Dafo Temple
Guangzhou, China
Temple of the Six Banyan Trees, Guangzhou
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Photo: Huangdan2060, CC0, Wikimedia CommonsFit in nearby today
The essentials in 10 seconds
- Entry
- Free since 2019, no booking
verifyingi
From reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go. - Opening hours
- Daily ≈ 8:00–16:30; some sources say 17:00
verifyingi
From reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go. - Time on site
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A typical visit without queueing. In high season add 15–30 minutes. - 30 min
- With kids
- Fine with kids
- Pagoda climb
- Not guaranteed — no official word on whether it's open
verifyingi
From reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go. - Address
- 87 Liurong Road (六榕路87号), Yuexiu District
- Metro
- Gongyuanqian (Lines 1 and 2) ≈ 10 min walk; Ximenkou (Line 1) ≈ 10 min; Jinianfang (Line 2) ≈ 12 min
verifyingi
From reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go. - Time needed
- 30–40 minutes; about two hours with nearby Guangxiao Temple
- Dress
- Cover shoulders and knees — it's a working monastery
Key facts
537founded under the Liang dynasty, originally as Baozhuangyan Temple
3 sourcesi
English and Chinese WikipediaVisitOurChinaChina Xian Tour57.6 mheight of the Flower Pagoda, including its spire
2 sourcesi
Chinese WikipediaVisitOurChina9 / 17tiers outside, floors inside the pagoda
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Chinese WikipediaVisitOurChinaHPC Bristol1100the poet Su Dongpo saw six banyans here — and gave the temple its name
3 sourcesi
Chinese WikipediaHPC BristolEnglish Wikipedia1663the main hall's three bronze Buddhas were cast — originally for Dafo Temple
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Chinese WikipediaChina's Key Temples (thetempleguy)6 m, 10 theight and weight of each of the three Buddhas
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Chinese WikipediaGuangzhou government portal gz.gov.cn (on the Dafo statues)1.8 m, 1 tbronze statue of Huineng, the Sixth Patriarch of Chan
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Chinese WikipediaVisitOurChina1983named a National Key Buddhist Temple
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Chinese WikipediaEnglish Wikipedia (category)2006listed as a Major Historical and Cultural Site protected at national level
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Chinese WikipediaEnglish Wikipedia (category)¥0free entry — the ¥5 ticket was dropped in 2019
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Yangcheng Evening News (10 Sep 2019)China Xian TourEastChinaTripIs the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees free? Hours and entry
Yes, entry is free. Guangzhou's development and reform commission scrapped the ¥5 ticket from 10 September 2019, as the Yangcheng Evening News reported, and guides updated in 2025 and 2026 agree. Some older listings still quote ¥5 for the temple and ¥10 to climb the pagoda — those prices are out of date.
Opening hours vary by source: China Xian Tour, EastChinaTrip and Ctrip give 8:00–16:30 with last entry at 16:30, while VisitOurChina and a few others say 17:00. We found no official timetable, so aim to arrive by 16:00. It's open every day. On the 1st and 15th of the lunar month and on Buddhist festivals the courtyard fills with worshippers.
Payment: you'll only need money for incense or donations. Alipay or WeChat Pay linked to a foreign card works almost everywhere in China; carry a few small yuan notes as back-up.
What is the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees?
Liurong Si (六榕寺) is a working Buddhist monastery in Yuexiu District, the historic heart of Guangzhou, and one of the city's oldest temples. Its landmark is the Flower Pagoda (花塔, Hua Ta): octagonal, 57.6 m tall, with nine tiers outside hiding seventeen floors inside. Its colourful eaves and spire are said to look like an opening flower — hence the name.
The temple was founded in 537, under the Liang dynasty, to house Buddhist relics brought by sea from Cambodia, and was first called Baozhuangyan Temple. It changed names several times. The current one comes from the poet Su Dongpo (Su Shi), who stopped here in 1100 on his way back from exile in Hainan, admired six lush banyan trees in the courtyard and wrote two characters: 六榕, 'six banyans'. According to Chinese Wikipedia, his inscription still hangs over the gate.
The pagoda took its octagonal form in the late 11th century — English Wikipedia says 1097, though one historical photo archive gives 1047. It has been repaired many times since, including in the 1870s, after an early-20th-century earthquake, in the 1970s–80s and in 2001, when the walls were reinforced.
Our take: for sheer age, this is the most authentic temple in central Guangzhou. It's small and calm, but it packs in a near-thousand-year-old pagoda, a famous poet and genuine 17th-century bronze Buddhas, moved here from Dafo Temple.
How to get to the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees
Tap a route to highlight it on the map.
Where are you starting from?
We’ll draw it on the map on foot and by taxi; metro and buses open in your maps app. Your location isn’t stored.
On foot
- Dafo Temple is about 19 min away on foot.
- Beijing Road is about 20 min away on foot.
More tips
- The handiest station is Gongyuanqian (公园前), the Line 1 and 2 interchange that also serves Beijing Road. From Beijing Road itself you can also walk it in about 20 minutes.
- From Gongyuanqian, come up on Zhongshan Road (中山路) and walk west about 400 m to Liurong Road (六榕路), then turn right (north). The temple is halfway along, about 300 m up — roughly 10 minutes in all. Guides disagree on the exit (B, E, I2), so check the station map.
- From Ximenkou (西门口) on Line 1 it's the mirror image: about 450 m east along Zhongshan Road, then left onto Liurong Road — also around 10 minutes.
- On Line 2 you can also use Jinianfang (纪念堂, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall) and walk south, about 12 minutes according to guides.
- From Baiyun Airport, take Line 3 from Airport North (Terminal 2) to Tiyu Xilu and change to Line 1 for Gongyuanqian. Terminal 1 and Airport South station are currently closed for renovation.
- By taxi or DiDi, show 六榕寺, 六榕路. For the metro, contactless foreign Visa or Mastercard cards work at marked gates (unofficial), or use the Guangzhou Metro QR code in Alipay.
What to see at the temple
- The Flower Pagoda (花塔) — the reason to come. Walk all the way round it: granite at the base and, at the top, a bronze pillar that Chinese Wikipedia dates to 1358, covered in over a thousand tiny Buddhas. The pagoda stands right in front of the main hall, which is unusual in Chinese temples.
- The Mahavira Hall (大雄宝殿) with three bronze Buddhas, each 6 m tall and 10 tonnes — Shakyamuni, Amitabha and the Medicine Buddha. They were cast in 1663 for Dafo Temple, moved here in the 1970s and installed in this hall in 1984. The ones at Dafo today are recasts.
- The Sixth Patriarch Hall (六祖堂) — a bronze Huineng, 1.8 m tall and about a tonne. Huineng shaped southern Chan (Zen) Buddhism, and this statue is one of the temple's most revered.
- The Guanyin Hall — a bronze goddess of mercy about 4 m tall, from the same 17th-century casting, according to Chinese Wikipedia.
- The 六榕 inscription over the gate — the two characters by Su Dongpo that named the temple. Banyans still grow in the grounds, though the original six are long gone.
- The courtyard itself — benches, incense burners, monks at prayer. Sit for a few minutes: the avenue outside is loud, but in here it's quiet and smells of incense.
Can you climb the Flower Pagoda?
Probably not, so don't build your visit around it. We found no official notice from the temple. Older guides mention a ¥10 climb 'when open', current ones don't mention it at all, and unofficially visitors haven't been let inside for years — most likely to protect the structure. One guide says you can go part of the way up; treat that as a lucky exception.
The pagoda is worth seeing from the ground. The best view is from a corner of the courtyard where it fits into one frame with the roof of the main hall. If the climb does happen to be open on your day, ask at the gate about the price and have some cash ready.
Is it worth visiting, and how long do you need?
Yes, if old Guangzhou interests you. In 30–40 minutes you see a pagoda nearly a thousand years old and bronze Buddhas from the 1660s — the largest old castings of their kind in Guangdong, according to Chinese Wikipedia. Add Guangxiao Temple, six minutes' walk away, and you have the best temple hour in the city.
Skip it if you're only after a climb — that's unlikely to happen — or if you expect a grand complex: the courtyard is compact and boxed in by the city. For an evening temple with lights, pick Dafo; for carving and ceramics, the Chen Clan Academy.
Address and what's nearby
The address is 87 Liurong Road (六榕路87号), Yuexiu District. Liurong Road is a short street, about half a kilometre, running north from Zhongshan Road between Gongyuanqian and Ximenkou stations. Look for the pagoda above the rooftops and the gate with the 六榕 plaque.
About 400 m west is Guangxiao Temple (光孝寺), an even older monastery where, by tradition, Huineng was ordained — the two make an easy pair. Some 600 m south is the historic Huaisheng Mosque, and about a kilometre north is Yuexiu Park.
Search map apps for 六榕寺 or Liurong Temple. Google Maps doesn't work in China without a VPN, so download an offline map before you go. Note that English Wikipedia's map pin is almost a kilometre off — go by the address.
Six Banyan Trees or Dafo Temple?
| Six Banyan Treesyou are here | Founded 537, pagoda 11th century | 57.6 m Flower Pagoda | The originals, cast 1663 | Free | ≈ 8:00–16:30 (unofficial) | Gongyuanqian (1, 2), Ximenkou (1) | 30–40 minutes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dafo Temple | 10th century, rebuilt 1663 | Golden roofs of the new halls | Recasts of the originals | Free | ≈ 7:30–21:30 (unofficial) | Beijing Lu (6), Gongyuanqian (1, 2) | 30–40 minutes |
Dafo Temple details are from its YesGo page. Easy order: Six Banyan Trees and Guangxiao by day, Dafo under its lights in the evening — they're about a kilometre apart.
Before you go
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Temples in Guangzhou compared
Every Guangzhou place of worship YesGo has scored. Tap a column heading to sort.
| Dafo Temple | 45 | 30 min | Free | 18 min walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shamian Island | 43 | 1 h 30 min | Free | 2.9 km |
| Temple of the Six Banyan Treesyou are here | 38 | 30 min | Free | — |
Old Guangzhou in a day: academy, two temples and Beijing Road
The Chen Clan Academy in the morning, the Six Banyan Trees and neighbouring Guangxiao Temple at midday, then Dafo Temple under its lights and dinner around Beijing Road. Add it to your route and YesGo will work out the timings and transfers.
- Chen Clan Academy1 h · ¥10
- 26 min walk from the previous stopTemple of the Six Banyan Treesyou are here30 min · Free
- 18 min walk from the previous stopDafo Temple30 min · Free
- 3 min walk from the previous stopBeijing Road1 h · Free
4 places · about 3 h 47 min with walks · 47 min on foot in total
Nearby and on your route
How to do it right
- Start at Guangxiao Temple when it opens, then walk six minutes to the Six Banyan Trees — you'll catch both courtyards while they're quiet.
- Photograph the pagoda in the morning, when the sun is on its east side: the temple faces east, not south like most Chinese monasteries.
- You don't need to light incense or donate to visit — both are entirely optional.
- For food, head to Zhongshan Road or towards Beijing Road, 10–20 minutes' walk.
- Bring water and a hat in summer: the courtyard is open to the sun and Guangzhou gets hot and humid by midday.
- With kids, half an hour is plenty: the pagoda and the giant Buddhas, then on to Yuexiu Park.
Questions
Is the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees free?
Yes. Entry has been free since 2019; the ¥5 price in older listings is out of date.
What are the opening hours?
Unofficially, daily from about 8:00 to 16:30; some listings say 17:00. Arrive by 16:00 to be safe.
Can you climb the Flower Pagoda?
Probably not. There's no official word that it's open, and unofficially visitors aren't allowed inside. Plan to see it from the courtyard.
How do I get to the temple by metro?
Take Line 1 or 2 to Gongyuanqian, or Line 1 to Ximenkou, walk along Zhongshan Road to Liurong Road and head north — about 10 minutes.
How long do you need?
30–40 minutes for the pagoda, courtyard and halls; about two hours if you add Guangxiao Temple next door.
Why is it called the Six Banyan Trees?
In 1100 the poet Su Dongpo saw six banyans in the courtyard and wrote the characters 六榕, 'six banyans'. The name stuck.
How tall is the Flower Pagoda?
57.6 m including the spire. It has nine tiers outside and seventeen floors inside.
Are the Buddhas really from Dafo Temple?
Yes. The three bronzes were cast in 1663 for Dafo Temple and moved here in the 1970s; Dafo now has recasts. This comes from Chinese Wikipedia, and other temple descriptions also date the statues to the 17th century.
Is there a dress code?
Nothing formal, but cover shoulders and knees — it's a working monastery.
Have you been? Was it worth your time?
1 — no, 5 — absolutely
Your vote counts towards the YesGo score.
Sources and fact-check
- Chinese Wikipedia — '六榕寺': founding, names, Su Dongpo, pagoda (height, tiers, 1358 pillar, repairs), Buddhas from Dafo Temple, heritage status, address
- English Wikipedia — 'Temple of the Six Banyan Trees': 537, 1097 pagoda, Su Shi, temple status
- Yangcheng Evening News (10 Sep 2019) — city development and reform commission decision: temple entry changed from ¥5 to free
- China Xian Tour (updated 29 Dec 2025) — free entry, hours, metro stations, walking times (unofficial)
- EastChinaTrip (30 Oct 2026) — free entry, hours, Gongyuanqian station (unofficial)
- VisitOurChina — pagoda height and tiers, Huineng statue, old entry and climb prices (unofficial)
- China's Key Temples (thetempleguy) — 17th-century bronze Buddhas in the main hall, east-facing layout
- HPC Bristol, Historical Photographs of China — pagoda tiers, Su Dongpo in 1100
- Guangzhou government portal gz.gov.cn — dimensions of the 1663 Dafo Temple statues
- Wanderin China — Guangzhou metro guide: foreign cards at the gates, Alipay QR (8 Sep 2026)
- Wikidata — coordinates of the temple, Guangxiao Temple and metro stations, used for walking distances
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