Yunnan
Lijiang old town, Tiger Leaping Gorge and the road to Shangri-La
Yunnan is the province travelers come home talking about. Kunming is the mild gateway city; four hours west, the old town of Lijiang is a UNESCO maze of stone lanes, canals and Naxi courtyards beneath Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. Further north the road climbs onto the Tibetan plateau to Zhongdian, better known as Shangri-La.
Between them are Bai villages on the shore of Erhai Lake, the two-day high trail through Tiger Leaping Gorge, and the Yuanyang rice terraces, which fill with water and mirror the sky between December and March.
We use local Bai and Naxi guides, and we build in the homestays, markets and cooking that make the province worth the extra days.
Places to see in Yunnan
The highlights we build into almost every Yunnan itinerary. Your own list can be longer, shorter, or somewhere else entirely.
Lijiang Old Town
UNESCO-listed Naxi town of stone lanes and canals, under Jade Dragon Snow Mountain.
Tiger Leaping Gorge
One of the deepest gorges on earth, walked in two days on the high trail.
Dali and Erhai Lake
Bai villages, a walled old town and a lake ringed by the Cangshan mountains.
Shangri-La (Zhongdian)
The Tibetan plateau at 3,200 meters — Songzanlin Monastery and Pudacuo National Park.
Yuanyang Rice Terraces
Entire mountainsides cut into terraces, best flooded between December and March.
Stone Forest, Kunming
A karst forest of limestone blades a short drive from the city.
Jade Dragon Snow Mountain
The glacier-backed peak above Lijiang, reached by cable car.
Xishuangbanna
Yunnan's tropical south — Dai temples, rainforests and night markets.
Kunming Green Lake
Where the city goes to walk, sing and watch winter seagulls.
Heshun, Tengchong
A Ming-era lakeside town of returned overseas Chinese.
More places in China
Tell us what you want to see in Yunnan
We do not publish fixed packages or prices, because almost nothing about a good trip to China is fixed. Send us your dates and interests and a specialist will design an itinerary around them — with a clear, itemized quotation.
- Your own English-speaking guide and private vehicle
- Hotels chosen for location, not for commission
- Tickets and permits booked on your behalf, including timed entries
- Free revisions until the trip is right
We reply to every inquiry within one business day.