Trip to yunnan
Day 1 Kunming Arrival
Be met at the airport and transferred to hotel for check in. Balance of the day is at leisure
Day 2 Visit Stone Forest and drive to Jianshui Old Town
Journey to the south of Yunnan Province. Visit Stone Forest, it is about 90 km from Kunming City and requires only a 1.5-hour drive. It covers an area of 400 square kilometers and includes both large and small forest as well as many other scenic spots.
Day 3 Guided tour of Jianshui and drive to Yuanyang Rice Terraces
Enjoy a sightseeing tour of the Double-Dragon Bridge--3km west of Jianshui, the 17-Arch Bridge arches across the confluence of the Lujiang River and the Tachong River. Then go to Family Zhang's Courtyard Houses and take a look at its arts and values
Day 4 Explore Yuanyang paddy fields & ethnic villages and transfer to Kunming
In the early morning, view Sunrise and then visit Shengcun Village, where Yi and Hani minorities are the main local people. Pay a visit to the Rice Terraces at Duoyishu, enjoy time over picture taking and sightseeing. At last, go to Jingkou Hani Village, where you'll appreciate the best preserved folk culture of Yuanyang. Transfer back to Kunming by private car
Day 5 Take high speed train from Kunming to Dali and explore the Dali Old Town
Be picked up to take the high speed train to Dali. Meet your guide at the rail station and check in hotel. Then visit the Three Pagodas, an ensemble of three independent pagodas arranged on the corners of an equilateral triangle, near the town of Dali, dating from the time of the Nanzhao Kingdom and Kingdom of Dali (937-1253).
Later, take a walk in Dali Ancient Town with traditional Bai ethnic folk houses along the streets. Visit the Christian Church and view Cangshan Mt. from the top of Wuhua Tower. You can also take a coffee break at "Foreigner Street".
Day 6 Enjoy Xizhou and Erhai Lake, and transfer to visit Lijiang Old Town
Check out after breakfast in hotel, drive to Xizhou to visit the local morning market and visit the Bai people's Residential Houses at Xizhou, the typical town with Bai's characters, the houses here are decorated with woodcarvings, colored patterns, marbles and wash drawings, which represents the masterpieces of Bai's architecture. And then, take a boat cruise on Erhai Lake.
After lunch in local restaurant, drive 3hrs to Lijiang. Visit Black Dragon Pool Park, which has a famous pond offering a spectacular view on the region's tallest Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in the north of Lijiang. Later, wander around Lijiang Old Town, originally called Dayan, is a very well preserved old town built by Naxi people with unique cultural background.
Day7 shuhe old town
Shuhe is the earliest settlement of Naxi people in Lijiang when their ancestors first moved to this region. Compared with Lijiang, the town is less touristy and polished with more original characters.
Day 8 Drive to Shangrila, en route visit First Bend of Yangtze River & Tiger Leaping Gorge
Transfer to Zhongdian by private car. On the way, visit Shigu Village & the First Bend of Yangtze River. Then go to Tiger Leaping Gorge, a canyon on the upper reach of the Yangtze River, where offers a pleasant walk through spectacular scenery
Day 9 Guided tour of Zhongdian Old Town & Songzanlin Monastery
Enjoy a full day tour of 2 highlights: the first one is the Zhongdian Old Town, it brims over with Tibetan cultural facts such as Buddhist paintings and Tibetan residences side by side. The second one is the Songzanlin Monastery, covers an area of 33 hectares , it is the largest Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Yunnan province.
Day 10 Explore Pudacuo National Park & Nixi Pottery Village, and visit a Tibetan family
After breakfast, drive to explore Pudacuo National Park, notable as the first national park in China to meet International Union for Conservation of Nature standards. It incorporates the Bita Lake Nature Reserve and the Duhu Scenic Area in the Hongshan region. Then pay a visit to Nixi Pottery Village, a small Tibetan village nestling along the popular adventure route from Shangri-la to Deqin in Northwest Yunnan. End the day with the visit to a Tibetan family where you can get close to Tibetan people and their life
Day 11 Fly to Kunming and visit Western Hill, Dragon Gate & Qiongzhu Temple
Drive to the airport for the flight to Kunming. Upon arrival, be picked up to visit the Western Hill & Dragon Gate (with one-way cableway), a beautiful forest park located by Dian Lake, it features cliff-side grottos cut out of the sheer stonewalls. Later, go to the Qiongzhu Temple.
Day 12 Kunming Departure
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