Short answer: You need two bookings, both in your own name. The park entry costs ¥100. The Glacier Park cable car, the one that takes you up to about 4,500 m, costs ¥140, and that ticket includes the ¥20 eco-bus. Cable-car tickets go on sale at 20:00, seven days ahead, in a WeChat mini program that is only in Chinese, and they sell out fast. One passport can buy it only once every 90 days, and the cable-car company says no online platform is authorized to resell its tickets. If the mini program doesn't work for you, we can book it for you.
Wondering whether the mountain is worth a day at all? Start with our honest guide to Jade Dragon. This page covers the tickets.
Tickets and prices
| Ticket | Price | Where to book | When it opens |
|---|---|---|---|
| Park entry | ¥100 | Mini program 玉龙雪山景区服务, or the visitor center in Baisha | Up to 7 days ahead |
| Eco-bus (compulsory) | ¥20, included in the Glacier Park cable-car ticket | With the entry ticket | With the entry ticket |
| Glacier Park cable car | ¥140, eco-bus included | Mini program 丽江旅游集团 | 20:00, 7 days ahead, until sold out |
| Spruce Meadow cable car | ¥40, plus the ¥20 eco-bus | Same mini program | 21:00, 7 days ahead, until sold out |
| Yak Meadow cable car | Closed | — | Being rebuilt since March 2026; reopening planned for 2028 |
Checked in October 2026. Prices, release times and quotas change; check the mini programs before you go.
A day without a cable car therefore costs ¥120, for entry and the eco-bus, which also takes you to Blue Moon Valley. With the Glacier Park cable car it comes to ¥240 per person, because the eco-bus is already in the ¥140 ticket. With the Spruce Meadow cable car instead, it's ¥160.
The booking rules
- Real name, real face. Every ticket is tied to an ID. Whoever books it, the cable-car gate checks the visitor's own face and passport, and if they don't match the booking, you can't board.
- One cable-car ticket per 90 days. The same account or ID number can buy the Glacier Park cable car only once in 90 days.
- Half the seats are for independent travelers. The park says at least 50% of each day's cable-car tickets are kept for people booking themselves rather than through tour groups.
- No walk-up sales at the gate. Since January 2026, the old southwest gate at Luomeiluo 裸美乐 only checks tickets. Sales and the staffed service windows moved to the new visitor center in Baisha 白沙.
- No same-day Glacier Park tickets at the window. The Baisha windows mainly handle a small number of tickets for older visitors, people with disabilities and other special groups. Independent travelers' Glacier Park tickets are sold online only, seven days ahead, with no regular same-day quota.
Booking with a foreign passport
The official booking channels are WeChat mini programs, in Chinese only. In principle a foreign passport works: you can register with it, enter your passport details, complete the face scan and buy. In practice many visitors get stuck, because every menu is in Chinese and passport recognition and the face scan often fail. You have three realistic ways in.
- Book it yourself in WeChat. In the mini program, add yourself as a traveler with your passport and complete the face scan a few days before the release, so you find out early whether it works. Have a working payment method ready before 20:00.
- Use the window in Baisha. The visitor center sells park entry on site, but don't count on a Glacier Park cable-car ticket there on the day.
- Ask your hotel, driver or guide to help. They can book in your passport name. At the gate, though, you scan your own face and show your own passport, so the booking only works for the person named on it.
You'll also see cable-car seats bundled into tours and packages on booking sites. The park says that tours including the cable car should come with a proper travel contract. Read what's included, and check the itinerary for shop stops; here's why we skip shopping-stop tours.
Beating the 20:00 release
- The Glacier Park cable car goes on sale at 20:00 Beijing time, seven days ahead, and the Spruce Meadow cable car at 21:00. Each sells until it's gone.
- Set an alarm for 19:55, and be logged in with your passport saved as a traveler and the face scan already done.
- Pick the earliest slot you can get. Every transfer on the mountain has a queue, and an early start leaves time for them.
- If it sells out, check again later that evening and over the following days: cancelled tickets can come back on sale.
- Book the park entry too. A cable-car ticket alone doesn't get you through the gate.
Closures, refunds and opening hours
- Annual maintenance, autumn 2026: the Glacier Park cable car is closed from 22 to 30 October and reopens on 31 October. The Spruce Meadow cable car closes from 31 October to 10 November and reopens on 11 November.
- Weather refunds: strong wind or snow can stop the cable cars at short notice. If that happens, apply for a refund in the 丽江旅游集团 mini program before 17:00 that day: the cable-car ticket is refunded in full, but the park entry isn't. After 17:00 you can't do it online; go to the staffed window at the scenic area.
- Off-season hours (November to March): the park usually opens at 07:00, entry stops at 16:00, and the cable cars stop and the park closes at 17:00. Strong wind can close the cable cars earlier; the park announces changes on the day. In the May Day holiday of 2026, the park opened at 06:00 and entry stopped at 16:30.
A sightseeing train runs from the Baisha visitor center to Ganhaizi 甘海子 inside the scenic area, a ride of about 30 minutes, for ¥50 one way or ¥80 return. The ¥100 park entry is bought separately.
Don't pay for a "guaranteed" seat
When cable-car seats run out, middlemen offer to "guarantee" one for a fee. The park discourages these services: you hand over your passport details, may lose your money, and still need your own face and passport to ride. We've written a short note on why to skip cable-car ticket touts.
If you can't get a cable car
- Spruce Meadow 云杉坪, reached by the smaller cable car, is a lower alternative with the cliffs rising straight above it, when it's running.
- Blue Moon Valley 蓝月谷 is included in the entry ticket and is at its best in sunshine.
- The villages at the foot of the mountain, such as Baisha and Yuhu, give you the view without any ticket at all.
Altitude is real at 4,500 m. If you're heading up, spend at least a night in Lijiang first, and read our altitude guide.
Sources
- Lijiang Tourism Group mini program and the Lijiang culture and tourism bureau: release times, passport booking and face checks, refunds, ticket prices, window sales and off-season hours, checked on 24 October 2026.
- Lijiang Yulong Snow Mountain Scenic Area notice on new tickets and the Baisha visitor center (Lijiang Net, 22 December 2025).
- Jade Dragon Snow Mountain scenic area travel notice for May Day: booking channels, 90-day rule, face scans, the 50% share for independent travelers, opening hours (via Beijing Daily, 27 April 2026).
- Scenic area price list and sightseeing train (Lijiang Net, 2 July 2026).
- Cable-car maintenance notice for October and November 2026 (Yunnan Information Daily, Lijiang edition, 10 October 2026).
