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Indian Express
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Chinese hill painted white in botched attempt to mimic Mount Fuji sparks laughter
A tourist spot in China has gone viral for all the wrong reasons after painting a small hill white to look like Japan's famous Mount Fuji, South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported. Located in Hebei province, the attraction called Universe Fantasy Land has drawn widespread laughter online. The white-topped hill, nicknamed the 'snow cap matcha volcano' by some, charges visitors 98 yuan (around £11), with a discounted online price of 78 yuan. The site was designed as a fairy-tale escape for stressed-out city residents from Beijing. It includes a shiny lake, green grass, a white horse, and a cute wooden cottage, all meant to give a relaxing countryside feel, according to SCMP. There's a fake Mount Fuji at 宇宙思想乐园 (cosmic thought park) in Linqi Valley (林栖谷), Yongqing County (永清县), Langfang (廊坊), Heibei, near Beijing… left video: what you see in promo videos right pics and video: what you actually see there 😂😂😂 — Byron Wan (@Byron_Wan) May 2, 2025 But visitors quickly realised the 'mountain' was nothing more than a painted hill. 'Just a small hill with white paint on its top. It has nothing to do with Mount Fuji,' one tourist told SCMP. Another visitor added, 'You don't have to pay to see the real Mount Fuji, but here you're paying for a fake one.' The management team, from Linqigu Real Estate Company, even referred to the hill as a 'volcano', adding weekend 'eruptions' with pink smoke for effect. A staff member told SCMP in April that the site has been improved since its opening in September last year. Photos shared online show a staircase and a small door at the back of the hill, and a white horse is brought out for photo ops once a day. Despite the magical marketing, many tourists felt misled. 'Just another case of people being tricked by glamorous photos,' said one visitor. This is not the first time Hebei province has recreated famous landmarks. In the past, it has built replicas of the Eiffel Tower, the Great Sphinx, and even parts of the Great Wall.
Indian Express
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
China's tourist attraction creates fake Mount Fuji, sparks criticism: ‘Low-level parody'
A tourist attraction in northern China is making waves on the Internet for faking Japan's iconic Mount Fuji. It was later revealed that it was nothing more than a hilltop covered in white paint to give the impression of snow on the top. The attraction, Universe Fantasy Land, is located in Hebei province and has gone viral. According to the South China Morning Post, the site charges visitors 98 yuan (Rs 1,138, approximately) for entry, promising an 'enchanting', 'storybook-like escape' from everyday life. Promotional videos for the destination advertised a dreamlike landscape complete with a mountain, a lake, green meadows, a white horse, and a quaint wooden cottage. One particularly dramatic promo video even showed tourists watching artificial pink smoke puffing from the peak, simulating a volcanic eruption from the fake Fuji. But once on-site, visitors were met with a small hill with its summit crudely painted white to resemble snow. Social media users quickly began posting videos and photos of the hill, triggering backlash across platforms. Watch here: There's a fake Mount Fuji at 宇宙思想乐园 (cosmic thought park) in Linqi Valley (林栖谷), Yongqing County (永清县), Langfang (廊坊), Heibei, near Beijing… left video: what you see in promo videos right pics and video: what you actually see there 😂😂😂 — Byron Wan (@Byron_Wan) May 2, 2025 'Low level parody,' a user wrote. 'Everything in China is fake, because the Chinese culture takes great pride in cheating,' another user commented. 'That was clearly the result of some deep thought,' a third user said. According to SCMP, the incident has reignited criticism over Hebei province's trend of building replicas of world-famous landmarks. In the past, the province has made headlines for constructing imitations of the Eiffel Tower, the Great Sphinx of Giza, and even parts of China's own Great Wall, often attracting both amusement and criticism. Last week, a Chinese student was rescued, twice in a week, from Mount Fuji, after he returned to the challenging hike to recover his belongings, including his phone. According to the reports, he was first rescued from the Fujinomiya trail, located about 3,000 meters above sea level on the Shizuoka Prefecture side of the mountain, after getting into difficulty. Authorities had to airlift him to safety.
NDTV
03-05-2025
- Entertainment
- NDTV
Fake Mount Fuji In China With White-Paint Hilltop Scams Tourists
Quick Take Summary is AI generated, newsroom reviewed. A hill in China was painted white to mimic Mount Fuji, attracting tourists. Visitors pay 98 yuan for entry to the attraction named Universe Fantasy Land. The site gained popularity on social media through photos, videos posted online. In a bizarre incident, a tourist spot in China has become the centre of trolling after the summit of a small hill was painted white to mimic the iconic Mount Fuji. The faux Mount Fuji, dubbed the Universe Fantasy Land, is situated in the Hebei province of northern China, with visitors being charged Rs 1,138 (98 yuan) for each visit. According to a report in South China Morning Post, the tourist spot went viral on Chinese social media platforms after users posted videos and photos of the hill. The authorities responsible for the site sold it to prospective visitors as a fairy tale landscape, featuring a mountain, a lake, lush green grass, a white horse and a charming wooden cottage. The fantasy land was meant to be a getaway for urban dwellers from the capital city of Beijing who were eager to escape the mundane reality of life. One of the promotional videos of the location showed tourists nestled up in a nearby building as artificial pink smoke released from the hill -- designed as an "eruption" from the volcano hill. While many visitors were drawn by the clever promo material, they could not help but feel scammed as the mountain advertised turned out to be nothing more than a modest hilltop, painted white. "Just a small hill with white paint on its top. It has nothing to do with Mount Fuji," one visitor said, while another added: "Just another instance of how modern individuals are misled by glamorous photographs." A third commented: "You do not need to pay to capture photos with the real Mount Fuji, yet here you have to pay for the fake one." This is not the first instance when the Hebei province has gained headlines for its depiction of monuments and tourist attractions. Previously, the Eiffel Tower, the Great Sphinx of Giza, and even sections of the Great Wall have been replicated in the province, much to the amusement of the tourists. There's a fake Mount Fuji at 宇宙思想乐园 (cosmic thought park) in Linqi Valley (林栖谷), Yongqing County (永清县), Langfang (廊坊), Heibei, near Beijing… left video: what you see in promo videos right pics and video: what you actually see there 😂😂😂 — Byron Wan (@Byron_Wan) May 2, 2025 Chinese man rescued Earlier this week, a Chinese man had to be rescued twice from the slopes of Mount Fuji in the space of a week after he returned to the mountain peak to retrieve his phone. The man was airlifted the first time while on the Fujinomiya trail, about 3,000m above sea level, on the mountain's Shizuoka Prefecture side. However, he became the subject of a second search only four days later when he decided to recover his belongings that he had left behind, including his phone. It remains unclear if he had managed to retrieve the phone, but rescue officials soon recognised that he was the same man they had rescued a few days earlier.
