The Untamed filming locations begin with a specific moment every fan remembers, and it is almost never the plot. It is the look of the place — the grey stone steps, the mist sitting low over a bamboo ridge, the courtyard where two people stood and said nothing. The Untamed was shot across some of the most photographed backlots and mountain valleys in China, and nearly all of them are open to the public. You can stand in them.
This is your map of The Untamed filming locations: every major one for 陈情令 (Chén Qíng Lìng), what was actually shot there, how to get there without speaking Mandarin, and what it realistically costs.
The Short Answer: The Untamed was filmed mainly at Hengdian World Studios (Zhejiang) for the Cloud Recesses, Koi Tower and the great halls, and in Duyun, Guizhou for the misty mountain exteriors. Both are reachable by high-speed rail from Shanghai or Guiyang. Allow 3–5 days and roughly ¥2,500–4,000 (US$350–560) on the ground if you base yourself in Hengdian first. You do not need a tour; you do need Alipay or WeChat Pay set up before you go.
Why The Untamed is the easiest C-drama pilgrimage to actually complete
Most C-dramas scatter their locations across five provinces and three studios, which means most fans never complete a full pilgrimage. The Untamed is unusually concentrated. Roughly 80% of what you remember was shot in one place — Hengdian World Studios — because the production leaned heavily on its permanent backlot sets rather than location shooting.
That is very good news for you. It means a single long weekend in Zhejiang can put you in the Cloud Recesses, on Koi Tower, and inside the Jiang family’s Lotus Pier. The Guizhou material is a separate trip, and a harder one, but it is the part that looks the most like the show.
The Untamed filming locations at a glance
| Location | Where | What was filmed | Effort |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qinqing Palace (秦王宫) | Hengdian, Zhejiang | Koi Tower steps, Jin family scenes | Easy — inside the park |
| Ming Qing Palace (明清宫苑) | Hengdian, Zhejiang | Cloud Recesses interiors, Lan clan halls | Easy — inside the park |
| Riverside Scene (清明上河图) | Hengdian, Zhejiang | Street-level scenes, market sequences | Easy — inside the park |
| Duyun, Guizhou | Duyun, Guizhou | Cloud Recesses mountain exteriors, bamboo forests | Medium — needs a separate domestic flight or long rail |
| Daocheng / western Sichuan | Sichuan | Some distant mountain establishing shots | Hard — remote, seasonal |
Hengdian: where most of The Untamed actually was shot
Hengdian World Studios (横店影视城) is a purpose-built film park in Dongyang, Zhejiang, roughly two hours from Shanghai by high-speed rail. It is not a theme park in the Disney sense — it is a working studio that also lets tourists walk the sets, which is exactly why it looks right on camera.
For a scene-by-scene breakdown of what to photograph inside the park, see our Untamed Hengdian photo guide.
Getting there changed in September 2024, when the studios got a high-speed rail station of their own — Hengdian station (横店站), on the Hangzhou–Wenzhou line. A light-rail line also runs to Ming Qing Palace station (明清宫站), which sits at the gate of the Ming Qing Palace zone. Our full Hengdian guide covers each route in detail.
Three of its zones carry almost all the Untamed material you will recognise.
Qinqing Palace (秦王宫) — the Koi Tower steps
The vast black-walled Qinqing Palace, built for Chen Kaige’s The Emperor and the Assassin, doubles as Koi Tower, the seat of the Jin clan. The famous wide steps — the ones in the opening procession and the final confrontation — are here, and they are every bit as long in person as they look on screen.
Go early. The steps face east and catch hard morning light, which is both the best photography window and the moment before tour groups arrive. By 10am the same staircase is a queue.
Practical note: the steps are steep and unshaded. There is no handrail for most of the run. If you are going up for the photo, wear shoes you trust.
Ming Qing Palace (明清宫苑) — the Cloud Recesses interiors
The Cloud Recesses (云深不知处) interiors — the Lan clan’s halls, the library pavilion exteriors, the long white corridors — were largely shot here. Ming Qing Palace is a full-scale replica of Beijing’s Forbidden City, which is why the proportions feel so authoritative on camera.
This is also the single best zone for the aesthetic shots most fans come for: white walls, grey tile, long sightlines. Late afternoon, when the sun is low and the light goes gold, is when it looks most like the show.
Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival (清明上河图) — the street scenes
Built from the Song-dynasty painting of the same name, this zone supplied the market streets, bridges and canal-side scenes. It is the most walkable of the three and the easiest place to just wander without a plan.
Duyun, Guizhou: the mountains that made the show look real
The mist, the bamboo, the impossible vertical ridges — that is Guizhou, and specifically the area around Duyun (都匀) in the south of the province. The Cloud Recesses mountain exteriors and several of the more atmospheric outdoor sequences were shot here rather than at Hengdian.
We break that region down on its own in Finding the real Cloud Recesses in Guizhou — which of the two Cloud Recesses sets is which, and how to reach them without a car.
This is the leg that separates a casual visit from a real pilgrimage, and it is genuinely harder:
- Guizhou has less English signage than Zhejiang, and Duyun is a smaller city with fewer foreign visitors
- The filming sites are spread out and not all are formal attractions
- You will almost certainly need a car and driver for at least one day
Our full breakdown of how to do this leg is in the Guizhou and Duyun location guide. If you only have one trip in you, do Hengdian first and treat Guizhou as the sequel.
Suggested 5-day Untamed itinerary
The 5-day Untamed route, day by day
Two zones on Day 3 is only realistic if you start at opening. Dream Valley is a separate evening park.
Day 1 — Arrive Shanghai. Land, activate your SIM or eSIM, confirm Alipay works with your card. Stay near Hongqiao for an early departure.
Day 2 — Shanghai to Hengdian. High-speed rail to Hengdian station, or to Yiwu and then the light rail to Ming Qing Palace station. Check in, then spend the late afternoon walking the free-access areas to get oriented.
Day 3 — Qinqing Palace and Ming Qing Palace. Two zones in one day is achievable if you start at opening. This is your Koi Tower and Cloud Recesses day.
Day 4 — Riverside Scene and Dream Valley. Riverside Scene in the morning, Dream Valley (the evening park) after 4pm if it is running.
Day 5 — Return, or fly onward to Guiyang. If you are continuing to Guizhou, fly Shanghai–Guiyang and take the rail down to Duyun the same day.
How much it actually costs
| Item | Typical cost (CNY) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-zone combo ticket | ~239 (1 day) / ~399 (2 days) | Official combos covering the five ticketed zones — far better value than buying single zones |
| Single-zone ticket | 190 at the gate / 185 booked ahead | Buy only if you want one zone. Each zone admits you once only. |
| High-speed rail Shanghai–Yiwu or Hengdian | ~120–180 | 1.5–2 hours |
| Hotel in Hengdian (mid-range) | 250–450/night | Cheaper than Shanghai |
| Taxi/DiDi within Hengdian | 15–40 per trip | DiDi works, cash does not help much |
Budget roughly ¥2,500–4,000 for five days on the ground, excluding international flights. Add ¥1,500–2,500 if you are continuing to Guizhou.
The Untamed places, mapped
When people search for “The Untamed places,” they usually mean one of a handful of real spots in China — and they split cleanly into two regions: the built sets in Zhejiang, and the real mountains in Guizhou.
- Hengdian World Studios, Zhejiang — the built sets: Ming Qing Palace (the Cloud Recesses interiors), Qinqing Palace (the Koi Tower steps) and Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival (the street scenes). Fly into Yiwu (YIW), or take the high-speed train from Shanghai in about two hours.
- Duyun, Guizhou — the Qin-Han studio city, plus the mountains that give the show its scale. Fly to Guiyang (KWE), then roughly an hour by rail to Duyun.
- Luosike Mountain (螺丝壳), Guizhou — the high-altitude meadow and wind farm used for the Cloud Recesses back mountain and its waterfall. This is the one most English guides miss, and it is where the series’ closing scenes were shot.
- Shanghai — the practical gateway. Most fans fly in here, then rail out to Hengdian or onward to Guizhou.
The Cloud Recesses are a composite: the interiors are Hengdian sets, the mountain exteriors are Guizhou. Our Cloud Recesses guide breaks down which shot came from where, and the C-drama map puts all of it on one page.
Common questions
Where was The Untamed filmed?
Two regions, and only two. Hengdian World Studios in Zhejiang supplied the built sets — the Cloud Recesses interiors at Ming Qing Palace, the Koi Tower steps at Qinqing Palace, and the street scenes at Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival. Duyun in Guizhou supplied the mountains, the waterfalls and the outdoor Cloud Recesses material. Almost nothing in the show was shot anywhere else.
Was The Untamed filmed in China?
Yes — entirely. Both sets of shooting locations are in mainland China: Hengdian is in Dongyang, Zhejiang province, about two hours by high-speed rail from Shanghai, and Duyun is in Qiannan, Guizhou province. There is no overseas location, which is part of why this is one of the easiest C-drama pilgrimages to finish in a single trip.
How do overseas visitors book Hengdian tickets, and which areas need a reservation?
Hengdian’s official English site says overseas visitors can make the initial booking with a mainland Chinese friend’s ID card, then contact the mini-program’s online customer service to replace the order details with the visitor’s passport details. Bring the original passport recorded on the order. The official reservation portal requires a separate reservation for orders including Dream Valley, Ming Qing Palace, Guangzhou Street · Hong Kong Street, Qinqing Palace, Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival, or Dream Bund; each visitor ID in a multi-person order must reserve separately. The current steps, direct reservation portal, and fallback hotline are linked in the Hengdian guide. See the full Hengdian guide.
Can I visit without speaking any Mandarin?
At Hengdian, yes, if you prepare the booking steps first. The operator’s published route is: use the WeChat ticket QR, place the initial order with a mainland friend’s ID, then ask online customer service to replace the order details with your passport. If your ticket order includes one of the six reservation-listed areas, reserve separately for each visitor ID. Keep the updated order and reservation confirmations accessible; use WeChat’s built-in translation for Chinese labels. In the Guizhou sites, English support can be more limited, so download an offline translation app and save the Chinese place names before you travel.
What is the best month to go?
Late March to May and September to November. Summer in Zhejiang is genuinely brutal — 38–40°C with high humidity, and the film sets are almost entirely outdoors with no shade. Winter is fine temperature-wise but the light is flat and some evening shows stop running.
Is one day at Hengdian enough?
For The Untamed specifically, no. Two days is the realistic minimum if you want Qinqing Palace, Ming Qing Palace and Riverside Scene without sprinting. Three days lets you add Dream Valley and actually enjoy it.
Where should I stay?
Inside or immediately adjacent to Hengdian town, not in Dongyang city. The park gates open early and the value of being five minutes away is real. Mid-range options around ¥250–450 per night are plentiful and bookable through international platforms.
Your next move
Worried about the practical stuff?
Visas, payment, trains and the apps you’ll need before you land — the four things you cannot work out on the ground. Each guide is dated and sourced.
Ready to go?
Most of The Untamed was shot at Hengdian. The city guide covers tickets, transport, the gates and where each zone is.
Last verified
Sources: China Railway 12306 - ticket pre-sale and refund rules · Guizhou Provincial Government - Duyun Qin-Han Film City · Hengdian World Studios - official visitor notice (tickets, hours, transport) · Hengdian World Studios — English overseas booking and admission instructions · Hengdian World Studios — English overseas booking instructions · Hengdian World Studios — reservation areas and per-ID rule · Hengdian World Studios — scenic-area reservation list, per-ID rule, and hotline
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