17 Days Cross Yunnan Tour

Arrive Kunming, be picked up at Kunming Airport or railway station, transferred to 4* New Era Hotel. Enjoy the rest of the day on your own arrangement.

Our guide would pick you up at the lobby of your hotel at around 08:00am. (We prefer depart a bit early because there is 3 – 3.5 hours driving distance from Kunming City to Dongchuan). We drive you around 3 hours to Dongchuan Red Land. Upon your arrival, we would bring you to visit Shuipingzi Rice Terrance firstly, then we'll have lunch at local restaurant. Check in in the hotel. You can enjoy 1 or 2 hours leisure time in the hotel. And then drive you to visit Huagou Thousand years of Nagarjuna — Red Soil Grand Sight. Enjoy the sunset at Luoxiagou. Stay overnight at Dongchuan.
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Get up early at around 06:50am, drive to Damakan to appreciate the sunrise. Take photo there. Then drive back to hotel to have breakfast. Continue to visit Qicai Slope (colorful slope), Jinxiuyuan, and Yuepuao — Luoshi Bay. Then we drive another 3.5 hours to Shilin. Afternoon visit Stone Forest to see the stunning unusual rock formations, and stay overnight at Shilin County.

Stay overnight at 4* Days Inn & Suites Tongce Hotel.

Remark:

1)    The best time to visit Dongchuan Red Land is May (The flower of potatoes will bloom), Sep (The ripe of wheat) and Oct (The booming of white rape flower).

2)    The Dongchuan red soil is rich in iron and aluminum so it becomes the second largest red land in the world. But the color is getting light these years, so you' better come and visit as soon as possible.

Morning depart from hotel at 08:00am, through 3.5 hours driving, we would arrive Jianshui Ancient Town at 11:00am. Visit Shuanglong Bridge firslty, stay there and take around 30 mins for photos. Then we drive to Jianshui Ancient Town for lunch. We would arrange lunch at Xiang Man Lou Restaurant with nice taste, environment but in moderate price. After lunch, we would drive you to visit Zhu Family Garden. It's a large garden of a wealthy merchant family with lots of rooms, courtyards and nooks. Lastly we drive around 2.5 hours to Yuanyang Rice Terrace Field for staying. Upon your arrival in  Yuanyang Rice Terrace Field Scenic Spot where is a masterpiece of the ingenuity of the Hani people for generations, you would be firstly driven to Laohuzui Scenic Spot to appreciate the sunset. You would stay at the Jianyue Hotel near Duoyishu Scenic Spot which is the best point to appreciate the sunrise.

Get up early at around 0630am and walk to the viewing platform to appreciate the sunrise at Duoyishu Scenic Spot. You would get a better shooting angle if you get up earlier. It would help you to catch breathtaking sunrise scenery of the first light reflecting on paddy field water with the background of thick mist. Then back to hotel at around 08:30am, have breakfast, after that we would drive you to visit the other scenic spots for more paddy rice terrace field view like Bada, Malizhai, Shangmadian, Quanfuzhuang. Continue to stay one more night in Yuanyang.

Morning start from Yuanyang Rice Terrace Field Scenic Spot around 0900am and drive around 6 hours to Puer City. On the way if you are lucky, you would see the Shengcun Market which is around half an hour driving from Yuanyang. The Yi and Hani minorities come from the whole region will come and paticipate in the market, exchange or buy various kinds of fresh products, animals and trifles. It's one of the most interesting ethnic group markets in China. You would spend 1 or 2 hours on exploring the market, then we continue to drive around 7 hours to Puer City. Stay overnight at 4* Huangnongli Hotel.

Depart from hotel at 0800am and drive 3 hours to Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden which is the largest tropical botanical garden in China with more than 3000 species of tropical plants covering an area of 900 hectares, some of them are rare plants. Then we drive you 1 hour to Jinghong City at around 1400pm. We would arrange lunch at local restaurant. Then we would drive you to visit Jingzhen Octagonal Pavilion which represents the superb craftsmanship of the Dai Minority in both construction and decoration with over 300 years history. Then we drive back to Jinghong City. Check in in the 4* Yunshangpin Hotel. Evening you can take a taxi to Gaozhuang Night Market. As it's a tourists place which we do not recommend it to you. But if you have nothing to do in the evening, and if you still have energy in the evening, you can go and take a look of this night market.

Depart from hotel at around 08:30am and drive around 2 hours to Huimin Town. We would firstly drive you to visit Bolian Tea Garden, learning about how to make tea inside the garden, your guide would also introduce the tea planning history and other relative tea knowledges in Jingmai for you. Then drive to visit Wengji Bulang Ethnic Village and Nuogan Dai Ethnic Village. The Ancient Tea Plantations of Jingmai Mountain are a special cultural landscape with the thousand-years-old domesticated-cultivated ancient tea plantations as the core, including elements such as forest ecosystem closely related to the growth of ancient tea trees, native ethnic villages and rich folk cultures. Tonight you would stay one night at the guesthouse on top of Jingmai Mountain. Breath the fresh air, enjoy the sunset and sunrise, listen to the bird's singing. And the star sky on top of the mountain is quite charming in the dark evening as well.

Get up early and you might have fortune to see the clouds on top of the mountain. The Jingmai Mountains is one of the six Chinese mountains known for their tea. Each year, tourists from around the country come here to enjoy the gorgeous sunrise and sea of clouds. But it still not a famous tourist destination in China, only parts of the people know this nice place. The famous hotel group Aman had contracted with the whole hilltop of Mangyun Mountain which locate in the opposite of Jingmai Mountain with 95 hectares tea field and their 6 hotels in China is under construction now. After simple breakfasts on the guesthouse, we would drive you to visit an Aini Ethnic Village, on the way visit a Wa Ethnic Vilage. Then we finally visit Laodabao Lahu Ethnic Village and watch their singing and dancing show there. The several performers are the inheritors of Lahu Music. They often invited by China Central TV to perform their local singing and dancing show as Lahu is a very small ethnic group in China only with 480,000.00 people. And Lahu is also one of the oldest ethnic groups in China as well. After lunch served at Laodabao at local family house, we drive you for another 4 hours to Ximeng County. Ximeng is only a passby city as there is no much to see here. It's a very small Wa Autonomous County. But as it's a newly build town, so it looks clean, tidy and their architectures on the sides of the main street is full of their own ethnic characters. Stay overnight at local best Qiansheng Hotel (around 3* plus)

Today we would spend around 6 hours drive to Lincang City. Today without much more to see which is just for connection. We would arrange staying at 4* Yueshang Hotel. Lincang is also a passby city, even normal than Ximeng County. But it's the only way to get to Dali Ancient Town for our next trip plan.

Morning depart from hotel at around 08:00am, we start 5 hours trip from Lincang to Weibaoshan Mountain. Including the time stopping for lunch on the way, we would arrive Weibaoshan Mountain at around 2pm. Weibaoshan Mountain is one of China's most famous Daoist holy mountains. Taoism is an ancient tradition of philosophy and religious belief that is deeply rooted in Chinese customs and worldview. And the whole Weibaoshan Mountain Park with lots of the old trees and traditional Taoist temples, the Mural of Dancing in the Wenchan Hall, situated on the mountain, is the only ancient Daoist mural in Yunnan Province preserved. Then we drive around 30 mins to Weishan Ancient Town. Weishan Ancient Town is quite similar like Dali Ancient Town which is smaller than it but less touristic. You can enjoy your free time to explore the old town in the evening. Overnight stay at Old Town Inn (around 3 star plus standard).

Morning depart from hotel at 08:30am and drive 40 mins to East Lotus Hui Village. Hui People is mostly inhabited in northwest of China so you rarely see it in southern part of China. Whole village built around one of the largest muslim mosque in Yunnan Province. This branch of Hui People is moved from north China since 13th century and prosperous because of the caravan-trade on the tea road. And Hui people are good at doing business in all ethnic groups in China. So they can build beautiful houses after making money. You would spend around 1.5 hours in visiting this Hui (Muslim) Village and then continue to drive to Dali Ancient Town. It would takes around 1.5 hours to arrive Dali Ancient Town. Then we would drive you to visit Xizhou Ancient Town, historically it was an industrial and commercial town. We come here in order to see the Bai minority people's architecture. Many buildings are predominantly white with ornate colourful entrances and decoration with traditional patterns on the walls. And then we would go to appreciate the sunset on Erhai Lake. Erhai Lake is the seventh-largest freshwater lake in China covers 250 sq km. The road along the lake is good for bike ride. Then we drive to Yanyuan Mountain Retreat Hotel.

Morning visit Xizhou Morning Market firstly, here is a place for local people trading daily supplies, including fresh vegetable, fruits, meats, and many kinds of food and daily necessities. It is a great opportunity for getting close to local living conditions. Then we drive you to visit Three Pagodas in Chongsheng Temple with 1,800 years history which is also the symbol of the history of Dali City. Then drive 2.5 hours from Dali to Shizhongshan Grottoes to visit the thousand-year old cave carvings. It exhibits some of the most original, unique, and expressive Buddhist sculpture in China. Despite that, the surroundings of the mountains and forests, and general lack of tourists help to further enhance the ambience. Then we would drive you to Lijiang Ancient Town for another 2 hours. Stay overnight at Xilu Xiaoxie Inn.

Morning depart from hotel at around 08:15am and we would arrive Blue Moon Valley at around 09:15am. The best time to shoot the photos is around 10am. The sun will be behind your most scenic view. Blue moon valley is a beautiful valley down the Yulong Snow mountain with some of the artificial reform. The water color is unique and beautiful, a shade of blue with a hint of green. We would drive you to a point to take picture of Jade Snow Mountain but not take cable way to visit it. As taking the picture from far distance is better than walking closer to it. Jade Snow Mountain is too famous in China so many tourists but the view on top of it just so so. Then we would give you free time to explore Lijiang Ancient Town. You can consider take bicycling with your guide to visit the old town. But it would be an optional activity which depends on your interest. You can discuss the price with your local guide. Or you just take a rest in the hotel.

Today we would drive you from Lijiang to Shangri-la, it takes around 3.5 hours with a stop at Tiger Leaping Gorge (around 1 hour sightseeing). The steps down are easy but the climb up afterwards can be tiresome - over 1000 steps. Still the view of the rapids at the bottom of the gorge is spectacular and you certainly get to see what is advertised as the deepest gorge in the world. Then we would stop for a while to have view of The First Bend of Yangtze River, please do not hold great expectation for this view but just treat it as a short break stop. Because it requests nice weather and higher viewing point so that you can have higher evaluation but weather is out of our control and we'd like to put more time for you to explore Shangri-la Town. Upon your arrival, you would check in at The Blue Moon on the mountains Inn. Enjoy leisure time own upon your arrival in Dukezong Ancient Town. You can appreciate the local Tibetan people dancing in the central square of Dukezong Ancient Town in the evening, it would be a nice experience, please remember that you should be there at 7pm.

Morning depart from hotel at 08:30am, drive 40 mins to visit Potatso National Park. It is the first national park in China. It is located in the centre of Three Parllel Rivers, and is the World Natural Heritage. It is a beautiful park surrounded with coniferous forests. In the middle of the park, Shudu Lake, with its blue water under the clear blue sky, is a beauty of Mother's Nature. The reflection of the white clouds onto the blue water is an amazing beauty of its own. Chipmunks and small adorable birds contributed to the joy of our walk from the start to the endpoint. If walking is not a problem, walk and soak into the park's natural beauty is a better choice than taking a boat across the lake to cut down walking time. Then we drive you to have lunch. After lunch, you would visit Sumtsaling Monastery which is a really stunning Tibetan temple with multiple layers tower above the lake. Monks wander around in their robes, incense drifts, the sound of chanting, prayer wheels and prayer drums permeates the place. On the way drive back to your hotel, we would arrange a Tibetan family visiting for you to get close to Tibetan people.

Transfer to the airport and take flight to leave from Shangri-la. There are flights from Shangri—la to Kunming, Lhasa, Chengdu. So you can choose one city for transferring and go to next stop.