During our trip to Southeast China for the vibrant Chinese New Year celebrations, we made a stop that turned out to be a surprisingly fun and utterly unique experience: Chuanlord Manor (长鹿农庄). Located in a noticeably rural area, quite a distance from the bustling city centers, the park somehow manages to maintain a genuine countryside feel even within its boundaries, offering a refreshing and sometimes charmingly quirky blend of rural tranquility and theme park excitement.
Chuanlord Manor boasts a truly interesting and diverse collection of rides, catering to visitors of all bravery levels. You'll find plenty of gentle children's rides scattered around, perfect for the little ones to enjoy carousels or mini-trains, but the park also packs an unexpected punch with some serious thrills for older kids and adults. The most prominent ride dominating the skyline is definitely the Dragon & Phoenix Coaster, an intense looping coaster that delivers exhilarating speed, steep drops, and inversions that get the adrenaline pumping! They also offer other fun coasters like a wild mouse-style Jungle Mouse with its sudden, sharp turns that make you feel like you're about to slide off the track, a spinning coaster where your car rotates freely as you navigate the twists and turns, and a more family-friendly powered dragon coaster that winds through a themed area at a more leisurely pace.
A particularly unusual and intriguing set of rides are the Shenzhou Surfing shuttle coasters. With four tracks in all, these aren't traditional circuit coasters. Instead, they launch you forward and then shuttle you back and forth on relatively short, intense bursts of speed and height, offering a unique and slightly disorienting thrill unlike a traditional coaster loop. The ride area somehow exists within the rural landscape without completely overwhelming it, creating a slightly surreal but fun juxtaposition of steel structures against greenery.
However, the true pleasure and what genuinely sets Chuanlord Manor apart is experiencing its unique and often wonderfully quirky animal-related attractions. Animals aren't just in standard exhibits; they are integrated into the park experience in surprising and interactive ways. You can attend scheduled shows and watch various animals (during our visit, we saw clever dogs, mischievous monkeys, and even performing pigs!) demonstrating tricks – it's often charming, sometimes hilarious, and clearly a massive favorite for the kids, getting lots of claps and cheers.
For more hands-on fun, there are activities that blend classic carnival games with live animals in unexpected ways. For instance, you can try to toss a ring around a duck's neck for prizes! It's a delightfully unusual and challenging game involving real ducks paddling in a pool; trying to get a ring over a moving target like a duck's neck is harder (and frankly, funnier!) than it looks, providing plenty of laughs. You can also step near various ponds and designated areas to purchase small bags of food and enjoy feeding the fish (often large, eager koi that create a swirling feeding frenzy!) or other animals present like wandering ducks or geese, watching their enthusiastic reactions up close.
The park successfully maintains a very rural feel throughout its expansive grounds, with plenty of green spaces, mature trees, and a generally relaxed ambiance that feels distinct from a typical concrete theme park. This blend of adrenaline-pumping rides, charmingly low-tech and often wonderfully quirky animal interactions, and the peaceful countryside setting creates a truly unique atmosphere that feels authentically Chinese in its merging of recreation with nature and agriculture. Visiting during Chinese New Year added an extra layer of festive atmosphere, with holiday decorations around the park and maybe even some special events, making the experience feel even more celebratory and unique.
With its variety of gentle rides for the little ones, exciting bigger coasters for thrill-seekers, and especially the numerous interactive animal encounters and entertaining shows, Chuanlord Manor is highly recommended if you're looking for a fun-filled day out with your kids. It's genuinely designed to delight younger visitors (and those young at heart!).
Chuanlord Manor offers a charmingly unconventional and memorable theme park experience. It successfully blends the excitement of modern rides with the simple joys of interactive animal encounters and the relaxed atmosphere of a rural setting. It's a place full of unexpected moments, laughter, and guaranteed fun, particularly for families seeking something a little different and off-the-beaten-path during their visit to Southeast China. It proves that theme park fun doesn't always have to be in a big city setting!
Recent Posts
