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A day inside Huizhou's scholar's desk. The morning is for Tunxi Old Street, one of the few intact Qing-dynasty commercial streets left in China, where the shops still sell ink, inkstones, tea and carved work. Lunch is Huizhou cooking - the salted mandarin fish and hairy tofu the region is known for - and the afternoon is spent in the Hu Kaiwen ink factory.
Ink making here has not changed much: soot from burning oil, mixed warm with glue and scent, pounded while hot, pressed in carved moulds, dried slowly and lettered in gold. You watch it end to end and then do the last two stages yourself, which is why people remember this day. Flat, indoor-friendly and good in bad weather; suitable for families and for anyone who has had enough stairs.
Morning — Tunxi Old Street
Tunxi Old Street runs for over a kilometre along the Xin'an River and is one of the few shopping streets in China to keep an intact Qing-dynasty street wall: two or three storeys of whitewashed shopfronts behind a continuous arcade, grey tiles overhead and the horse-head gables of Huizhou stepping up the party walls. It was a working commercial street long before it became a sight - timber, tea and medicinal herbs came down out of the hills through here - and the shops still sell what the region makes: ink sticks, inkstones, tea, dried bamboo shoots. Your guide points out which buildings are original, how the street was restored, and what the goods in the windows actually are.
Cultural Insight
A Chinese scholar's desk was set with the "four treasures of the study" - brush, ink, paper and inkstone - and Huizhou produced two of the most prized: Hui ink, and the She inkstone cut from stone beds in Shexian, a few counties away.
Lunch
Huizhou cooking in the old quarter: the region's salted mandarin fish, hairy tofu, and a clear soup with bamboo shoots.
Afternoon — Hu Kaiwen Ink Stick Factory
The Hu Kaiwen name dates from the late eighteenth century and remains one of the recognised makers of Huizhou ink. You follow the process end to end: soot collected from burning oil, mixed warm with glue and a little musk and camphor, pounded on a stone while it is still hot, pressed in carved wooden moulds, then dried slowly over weeks and finally lettered in gold by hand. In the hands-on part you paint the gold lettering onto a finished stick and press a small stick of your own in a mould to take home.
Late afternoon — Inkstones
A short stop with a shop that works She inkstones, so that you can see the stone the ink is ground in and how a stone is judged by its grain and its sound.
Meals
Lunch
Accommodation
Day tour - no hotel night included.
| Group Size | Adult(Age:8-80) Price/p.p | Child(Age:4-7) Price/p.p | Infant(Age:0-3) Price/p.p |
| 2 PAX | from $307 | / | / |
| 4 PAX | from $191 | / | / |
| 6 PAX | from $154 | / | / |
| 8 PAX | from $135 | / | / |
| 10 PAX | from $124 | / | / |
| 20 PAX | from $94 | / | / |
| 30 PAX | from $84 | / | / |
Please read the notes below before you book. They cover entry formalities, pace, weather and what to bring.
Q: Is this tour private or shared?
A: It is a private tour. Only your own party travels with the guide and vehicle, so the pace and the order of stops can be adjusted on the day.
Q: What is the best season for this itinerary?
A: April to June and September to November bring the mildest weather and clearest light. The programme runs year round, and we adjust the daily timings in mid-summer and winter.
Q: Can you handle dietary requirements and accessibility needs?
A: Yes. Vegetarian, halal, gluten-free and allergy-aware menus are arranged when you tell us in advance. Step-free and low-mobility versions of the route can also be planned.
Q: How do we book and pay?
A: Send us your travel dates and group size for a same-day quotation. A deposit confirms the booking, the balance is due before arrival, and prices are guaranteed for 7 days.
