{"id":1386,"date":"2025-04-24T14:55:39","date_gmt":"2025-04-24T14:55:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/?p=1386"},"modified":"2025-04-29T13:06:41","modified_gmt":"2025-04-29T13:06:41","slug":"the-worlds-narrowest-city-where-residents-use-every-inch-of-space-available","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/24\/the-worlds-narrowest-city-where-residents-use-every-inch-of-space-available\/","title":{"rendered":"The world\u2019s narrowest city, where residents use \u2018every inch of space available\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\"A\t<\/div>
The city is crammed with high-rise buildings (Picture: Alamy Stock Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

If you\u2019re claustrophobic, you might want to think twice before visiting Yanjin.<\/p>\n

Located on the banks of the Heng River in a valley between two steep mountains, it\u2019s widely thought to be the narrowest city in the world.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At its narrowest, Yanjin, in China<\/a>\u2019s Yunnan Province, measures just 30 metres wide \u2013 equivalent to the length of three London<\/a> buses \u2013 while the widest part is 300 metres.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And despite how tight some spaces are, the area is estimated to be home to around 400,000 people.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"Yanjin\t<\/div>
Yanjin is located in China\u2019s Yunnan Province, in the southwestern region (Picture: Metro)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once a relatively unknown city in China, Yanjin has been gaining popularity on social media, with viewers fascinated by its compact layout and sprawling mountain views.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\tSign up to The Getaway newsletter\t\t\t<\/h2>\n
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Fuel your wanderlust with our curated newsletter of travel deals, guides and inspiration.\u00a0Sign up here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Traveller Drew Binsky \u2013 who recently shared his experience visiting the city on YouTube \u2013 claimed that in certain areas \u2018you can almost shake hands with your neighbours from across the alley\u2019.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the video, he showed its array of high-rise buildings crammed beside each other, describing the way residents \u2018make the most of every inch of space available\u2019 as \u2018truly mind-blowing\u2019.<\/p>\n

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\nhttps:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@drewbinsky\/video\/7428034518147255557?q=yanjin%20city%20&t=1745487544085<\/a><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Two strips of land run along either side of the river banks in Yanjin, with just a few bridges running along the murky brown water to connect the two sides.<\/p>\n

Due to its precarious location, the city\u2019s lower areas are often threatened by floods during the rainy season, while its steep mountainsides are prone to landslides.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

To handle these extreme weather events, many of the city\u2019s buildings stand on tall pillars \u2013 and the design has the added benefit of being a great space saver.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"A\t<\/div>
Yanjin is made up of two strips of land running along either side of the river Heng (Picture: Alamy Stock Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Although Yanjin\u2019s main draw is its unique layout, tourists can find plenty to keep them occupied. Dousha, the city\u2019s old town, boasts quaint, narrow streets and traditional buildings.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also surrounded by picturesque mountainous, which can be viewed from the many pedestrian bridges crossing the river. One YouTube traveller<\/a>, who goes by Little Chinese Everywhere, describes the landscape as \u2018spectacular\u2019.<\/p>\n

Or, if sampling the local cuisine is more your thing, there are also plenty of local markets and food stalls to enjoy delicacies like cross-bride rice noodles and steam pot chicken.<\/p>\n

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@nanachat88<\/a> <\/p>\n

The China\u2019s narrowest county,Yanjin county in Yunnan province#china<\/a> #chinatiktok<\/a> #travel<\/a> #amazing<\/a> #city<\/a>#best<\/a> #construction<\/a>#river<\/a> #mountain<\/a> #landscape<\/a><\/p>\n

\u266c original sound \u2013 Nana<\/a> <\/section>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Bear in mind though, getting to Yanjin isn\u2019t easy. The journey involves a combination of long train rides \u2013 and road tripping isn\u2019t an option, as China doesn\u2019t recognise foreign driver\u2019s licences or International Driving Permits (IDP).<\/p>\n

Most travellers take the high-speed bullet train to Kunming, the provincial capital, from major cities such as Shanghai, Beijing or Hong Kong. Once you arrive in Kunming, a long-distance bus (around a six-hour ride one-way) makes up the last leg of the trip to the county itself.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Travellers can find more information on bus routes, times and ticket prices by contacting local travel agents, such as Yunnan Exploration<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"Dousha\t<\/div>
The city\u2019s old town Dousha, boasts quaint narrow streets (Picture: Alamy Stock Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

China is becoming a major tourist destination\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Tourism in China has been booming in recent years, and formerly under the radar places like Yanjin are gaining more and more traction, largely thanks to social media.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Though international tourism figures haven\u2019t quite surpassed pre-pandemic levels, according to China Daily, the industry saw \u2018remarkable developments\u2019 and \u2018unprecedented growth this year\u2019.<\/p>\n

Throughout 2024, holidays including the country\u2019s National Day Golden Week, from October 1 to 7, led to surges in domestic and international tourism.\u00a0<\/p>\n

According to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, a total of 765 million domestic trips were made in China, marking a 5.9% increase year-on-year and a 10.2% rise compared to 2019.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Harbin Ice and Snow World<\/a>, a unique ice and snow festival in Heilongjiang province, also saw an influx of tourists.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Attractions in the iconic ice city, recognised by Guinness World Records as the world\u2019s largest temporary ice and snow theme park, welcomed around 30,000 visitors daily since its opening on December 19, nearly doubling pre-pandemic numbers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yanjin isn\u2019t the only unexpected area to become popular as a result of social either. The city of Tianshui in Northwest China\u2019s Gansu province welcomed 4.64 million tourists in March alone last year after a resident\u2019s video of its signature dish, the fiery malatang hotpot, was viewed by millions online.<\/p>\n

Do you have a story to share?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@Metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The city is crammed with high-rise buildings (Picture: Alamy Stock Photo) If you\u2019re claustrophobic, you might want to think twice before visiting Yanjin. Located on the banks of the Heng River in a valley between two steep mountains, it\u2019s widely thought to be the narrowest city in the world.\u00a0 At its narrowest, Yanjin, in China\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1388,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1386","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1386","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1386"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1386\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1393,"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1386\/revisions\/1393"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1388"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1386"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1386"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.mugfoundry.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1386"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}