Tianyou Peak (天游峰) is the highest accessible viewpoint in the Wuyishan Scenic Area and the essential hike for anyone visiting the mountains. The climb follows stone steps cut into the cliff face for about 215 metres of vertical ascent, with chains bolted into the rock for steeper sections. The summit gives a panoramic view of the Nine-Bend River below and the cascade of peaks and valleys stretching in every direction.
The best time to climb is early morning, particularly in autumn and winter when cloud inversions fill the valleys and the peaks rise above a sea of white. The descent on the north side passes the First Spring Under Heaven (天下第一泉), a natural spring whose water has been used to brew tea in the mountains for over a thousand years. Allow about three hours up and down, including time at the top.