EXOTIC ESCAPES

Yunnan, Kunming to Shangri-La

Kunming, Dali and Lijiang, a glacier cableway, and the Tibetan plateau at Shangri-La.

8 Days / 7 NightsKunming, Dali, Lijiang, Shangri-La

FROM$1,077per person

The trip

Kunming, Dali and Lijiang, a glacier cableway, and the Tibetan plateau at Shangri-La.

Yunnan is the corner of China that does not look like the rest of it. This week starts in Kunming, where the markets are subtropical and the old street is still standing, then moves west to Dali on the shore of Erhai Lake, and north to Lijiang, whose old town is a UNESCO site best seen after dark. From there you go up: the sightseeing train to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, the glacier cableway, and Blue Moon Valley beneath it. The last stretch crosses Tiger Leaping Gorge to Shangri-La on the edge of the Tibetan plateau, with the Ganden Sumtseling monastery and the prayer flags above Napa Lake, before the fast train back to Kunming. The guide is private and English-speaking, the vehicle is your own, and the supplier states that all thirteen set lunches and dinners are halal.

Day by day

Every day, already considered.

Prayer, dining, and where you rest, planned into each day, so you are never caught out.

01
DESTINATION
Arrive in Kunming
You land at Kunming Changshui and are driven to the hotel, about thirty minutes. Dinner is included, and the rest of the evening is yours to get over the flight. Overnight in Kunming.
02
DESTINATION
Kunming's markets, then the road west to Dali
The morning is Zhuanxin market, which is the best hour in the city for seeing how Kunming actually eats, then Kunming Old Street and the Wine Cup Tower. In the afternoon you drive west to Dali, roughly four and a half hours, arriving for dinner. Overnight in Dali.
03
DESTINATION
Dali Ancient Town and the shore of Erhai Lake
A morning walking Dali Ancient Town, then out to the lake: refreshments looking across Erhai, and the S-bend at Panxi, which is the stretch of shoreline everyone photographs. Overnight in Dali.
04
DESTINATION
Bai villages, then Lijiang after dark
Xizhou first, for Bai architecture and the three-course tea ceremony performed the way the Bai have always done it. Then two hours north to Lijiang: the Black Dragon Pool, with the snow mountain behind it on a clear day, and Zhongyi market. The old town is kept for the evening, which is when to see it. Overnight in Lijiang.
05
DESTINATION
Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and the glacier cableway
Shuhe Ancient Town early, then the snow mountain sightseeing train one way, thirty-five minutes past meadows and old towns. At Jade Dragon Snow Mountain you take the glacier cableway and spend a couple of hours at altitude, then drop to Blue Moon Valley and the Ganhai grassland below it. Overnight in Lijiang.
06
DESTINATION
Tiger Leaping Gorge, and up to Shangri-La
North towards the Tibetan plateau, stopping at Tiger Leaping Gorge, where the Jinsha river runs through one of the deepest gorges in the world. Then Shangri-La itself and the old town of Dukezong, with a Tibetan chieftain feast in the evening. Overnight in Shangri-La.
07
DESTINATION
The monastery, the prayer flags, and the train back
Ganden Sumtseling, the largest Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Yunnan, then the great prayer flags and Napa Lake, where a Tibetan costume is included if you want the photograph. In the afternoon the high-speed train back to Kunming. Overnight in Kunming.
08
DESTINATION
Free time, then the airport
Breakfast, some free time in Kunming, and the transfer to the airport or station for your onward journey.