Mingyue Mountain National Forest Park southwest of Yichun is the city's defining natural attraction and one of the more rewarding mountain parks in Jiangxi for visitors willing to hike beyond the main tourist zones. The park covers several distinct areas connected by trails and road: the hot spring resort at Wentang at the base, Buddhist temple sites in the Yangshan area above, and the upper reaches where ridgeline trails reach peaks above 1,000 metres with views across the forested Jiangxi hills.
The hot springs at Wentang are selenium-rich and have been commercially developed into spa resort facilities — not the rough natural pools you might hope for, but genuinely effective for tired legs after the climb. The Yangshan Buddhist zone contains temples tracing their lineage to the Tang dynasty, including monastic communities that are still active. Several of these temples are associated with the Chan (Zen) tradition and carry significance for Buddhist pilgrims that exceeds what their modest external appearance might suggest to a casual visitor.
The hiking itself is straightforward on maintained trails. The higher trails see fewer visitors and offer the best forest, including stands of old growth bamboo and pine that persist above the zones most accessible to cable cars. Spring brings wildflowers; autumn turns the deciduous species along the lower trails. The mountain is most crowded in the two weeks around the national holidays in October.