Culture & old towns
Villages, old towns, architecture, crafts and festivals.
Bai courtyards, Naxi paper, Dai temples and Hani villages, salt towns and caravan stops, and the festivals worth planning around. Where to go, and how locals do it.
Notes
95 notes
The plane-tree walk: East Pagoda to Xunjin Street
Old center, Kunming
Weishan: breakfast noodles, then a slow walk through a Ming grid town
Weishan, about 1 hour south of Xiaguan
Snow peaks without the cable car: Baisha, Hutuwo and Yuhu in one day
Foot of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, Lijiang
Cizhong Church: a Tibetan Catholic church and vineyard on the Lancang
Cizhong village, Yanmen, Deqin County
Manting Park and Zongfo Temple in the mid-afternoon
Central Jinghong
Walk Jianshui west to east so you pass every sight once
Jianshui old town
Half-billion-year-old fossils at the Chengjiang museum, free with booking
Chengjiang, near Fuxian Lake
Sleep in Heshun, not Tengchong city, and give it two or three nights
Heshun, Tengchong
Huize old town: the guildhalls of Yunnan's copper boom
Huize County, north Qujing
Take the dawn slow train from Kunming to Heijing
Kunming Station to Heijing
Drink tea with a Bulang family in Wengji
Wengji, Jingmai Mountain
Take a boat through Puzhehei's lotus, early or late, never at noon
Puzhehei lakes, Qiubei
Munao Zongge: dance with thousands of Jingpo around the Lantern Festival
Mangshi and Longchuan
Doushaguan: the Qin-era Five-Foot Road and cliff hanging coffins
Yanjin County, north of Zhaotong city
Wengding Wa village: time your visit for the wooden-drum ceremony
Mengjiao, Cangyuan County
Spend a night in Laomudeng, a Nu village high above the canyon
Pihe, Fugong county
Jianchuan Old Town: Ming streets, painted couplets and a Sunday market
Jianchuan, about 2 hours north of Dali
Watch the old town light up from Wenchang Palace on Lion Hill
Lion Hill, Lijiang Old Town
Songzanlin Monastery in the morning, before the groups
North of Shangri-La town
Jianshui Confucian Temple, one of the largest in China
Jianshui old town
Heshun's west walk: five giant camphor trees and the Cun Clan Hall
West side of Heshun, Tengchong
Ximen old streets: an evening walk through Qujing's 600-year-old core
Ximen old streets, Qilin District, Qujing city
Heijing's combined ticket: Wu Family Compound, Dalong Temple, salt workshop
Heijing, Lufeng
Mojiang's black-face festival in early May: wear clothes you'll throw away
Mojiang county town
Flower Face Festival at Puzhehei: black ash on your face for luck
Puzhehei, Qiubei county
One Village, Two Countries in Ruili: a half-hour stop, not a destination
Yinjing, Ruili
Cangyuan cliff paintings: 3,000-year-old hunters in morning light
Menglai, north of Cangyuan town
Walk into Wuli village on the Tea Horse Road from Chaohong Bridge
Near Bingzhongluo, Gongshan county
Yu Garden roses: a Republican-era garden in Daguan Park, late April–mid-May
South Garden, Daguan Park, Xishan District, Kunming
Shibaoshan Grottoes: Nanzhao kings carved in red sandstone
Shibaoshan, between Shaxi and Jianchuan
Market day in Shigu, the old trading town at the First Bend of the Yangtze
Shigu, Yulong county, Lijiang
Tangdui village: watch Nixi black pottery being shaped by hand
Tangdui village, Nixi township, Shangri-La
Water-Splashing Festival in Jinghong, mid-April: what happens each day
Jinghong
Ride Jianshui's old narrow-gauge train to Tuanshan village
Lin'an station, Jianshui
Xiushan, Tonghai's temple hill of old trees and carved plaques
South edge of Tonghai town, Tonghai County
Tengchong volcano park: climb a crater, and catch the balloons in the morning
Volcano Geopark, north of Tengchong
Buyi Sanyuesan at Duoyi River: water fights on the 3rd of the 3rd lunar month
Duoyi River, Lubuge township, Luoping County
Yi Ancient Town: skip the daytime, come back for the night dance
Chuxiong city
Nakeli: an hour on the old Tea Horse Road, not a whole day
Ning'er, north of Pu'er city
Bamei: reach a Zhuang valley by boat through a cave
Bamei, Guangnan county
Longshi Ancestral Hall, Governor Long Yun's family shrine outside town
Bojiwan village, Yongfeng town, Zhaoyang District
Moni Hei in Cangyuan: the Wa carnival where nobody stays clean
Cangyuan county town
Chongding Church and Puhua Temple: two faiths, one morning
Bingzhongluo, Gongshan county
Make your own indigo tie-dye in a Zhoucheng workshop
Zhoucheng village, a few kilometers north of Xizhou
Make a sheet of Dongba paper in a Naxi courtyard on Wuyi Street
Wangjiazhuang Lane, Wuyi Street, Lijiang Old Town
Join the evening circle dance on Sifang Street in Dukezong old town
Sifang Street, Dukezong old town, Shangri-La
Manfeilong's nine white stupas in Menglong, best in afternoon light
Manfeilong village, Menglong, Jinghong
Azheke, a Hani village of thatched mushroom houses
Near Aichun, Yuanyang
Huayao Dai Flower Street day in Mosha, 13th day of the first lunar month
Mosha Town, Xinping County
Tengchong's WWII museum and Guoshang Cemetery, on the old China–Burma front
Tengchong city
Yi embroidery and costumes at the free Chuxiong Prefecture Museum
Chuxiong city
Simao Old Street and Daijia Lane: Qing-era courtyards in late-afternoon light
Simao old town, Pu'er city
Tuogu Mosque, a 1730 timber mosque that came through the Ludian quake
Tuogu village, Taoyuan Hui township, Ludian County
Guangyun Temple: Dai Buddhism in a Han-style wooden hall
Cangyuan county town
The Nu Fairy Festival in Bingzhongluo, on the 15th of the third lunar month
Bingzhongluo and Pengdang, Gongshan county
Longweiguan: Xiaguan's last old gate and the lanes behind it
Longweiguan, Xiaguan, Dali city
Sanduo Festival: Naxi rites at Baisha's Beiyue Temple each spring
Beiyue Temple, Baisha, Yulong county, Lijiang
Dongzhulin Monastery: a G214 stop with masked dances in the 8th Tibetan month
Shusong village, Benzilan, Deqin County
Manlongle Saturday market: a Dai village market in the Mengla rainforest
Manlongle village, outside Mengla town, Mengla County
Double Dragon Bridge at sunset, with light pouring through 17 arches
Baijiaying, Xizhuang, about 5 km west of Jianshui old town
Xingmeng: Yunnan's only Mongol township, west of Tonghai
Xingmeng, Tonghai County
Jiangdong Ginkgo Village: gold for a couple of weeks around late November
Gudong, north of Tengchong
Shiyang, a quiet salt town with a huge Qing bronze Confucius
Dayao county, north of Chuxiong city
Wanding Bridge: where the WWII Burma Road crossed into China
Wanding, Ruili
Eat Dai sapie in Mengding, a lowland town on the Myanmar border
Mengding, Gengma County
Join Kuoshi, the Lisu New Year, on Liuku's riverfront from 20 December
Nujiang West Bank, Liuku, Lushui
Third Month Street on lunar market days, a locals' market by the old town
Third Month Street (Guanyin Road), opposite the west gate of Dali Old Town
Mosuo Mountain Festival at Lugu Lake on the 25th of the 7th lunar month
Gemu Mountain, Yongning, Ninglang county, Lijiang
Baishuitai: white travertine terraces at a Naxi holy site below Haba
Baidi village, Sanba Naxi township, Shangri-La
Mengjinglai: Dai sugar-making and weaving on the Myanmar border
Near Daluo, Menghai County
Bisezhai: the 1909 French-built station where two railway gauges met
Bisezhai, Caoba, Mengzi
Songshan: walk the trenches of the 1944 Burma Road battle
Lameng, Longling County
Leizhuangxiang: Ruili's oldest temple, with gold and white stupas on a hill
Mangyue village, Jiexiang, Ruili
Wa New Rice Festival in Cangyuan: harvest rites in the 8th lunar month
Gourd Town (葫芦小镇) and Wengding, Cangyuan County
Friday is market day in Gongshan town and in Pihe below Laomudeng
Cikai (Gongshan town), and Pihe, Fugong county
Jingzhen Octagonal Pavilion: a 1701 Dai temple hall studded with mirrors
Jingzhen village, Mengzhe, Menghai County
Catch Shengcun's market, held every fourth day by the animal calendar
Shengcun, Xinjie, Yuanyang
Manhena: a 1,200-year-old Dai village ten minutes from central Jinghong
Manhena, Mannongfeng Subdistrict, Jinghong
Read above the terraces at the new Avant-Garde bookstore in Hani Town
Hani Town (哈尼小镇), near Qingkou, Xinjie, Yuanyang
Ruili's Zongfo Temple and Dai Palace: free hilltop sunset over Myanmar
Guanghehan hill, Mengmao, Ruili
Baihe's Monday market, spread along a working century-old railway
Baihe, Pingbian
Walk the stone path from Qingkou to Bada through the terraces
Qingkou to Bada via Quanfuzhuang, Xinjie, Yuanyang
- SeeTuzhuchao: artist Luo Xu's red-brick 'nests', by reservation onlyGuandu District, Kunming, off the Kunming–Shilin road→
- SeeManyuan: a lived-in Dai village for a quiet morningMenghan (Ganlanba), Jinghong→
- DoQinghua Street's Saturday market inside Yuxi's old porcelain worksHongta Avenue, Hongta District→
- DoWalk Zhaotong old town: Dou Street, the guildhalls and the Qing gatesOld town, Zhaoyang District→
- DoBinwu Street market day: Mangshi's village market, every five daysBinwu Street, Mangshi→
- DoChudonggua: taste De'ang sour tea in China's only De'ang townshipChudonggua village, Santaishan, Mangshi→
- DoLaodabao: the Lahu village that sings, with shows mainly on public holidaysLaodabao, Menggen village, Jiujing township, Lancang County→
- SeeChuxiong's Torch Festival: fire ceremony and circle dances in July or AugustChuxiong city→
- DoLancang's Sunday market: 2,000-plus stalls by the Nanlang RiverNanlang River, Lancang county town→
- DoXinhua: walk a Bai silversmiths' village, away from the tour showroomsXinhua village, Caohai town, Heqing county, south of Lijiang→
- DoXinzhuang: scoop your own sheet of bark paper at the Gaoligong Paper MuseumLongshang hamlet, Xinzhuang village, Jietou township, northern Tengchong→
- SeeZhiju's Yi costume contest at the Lantern Festival, deep in YongrenZhiju, Zhonghe town, Yongren county→
- DoMangxiang: shape a pot with Dai potters who still fire in the openMangxiang village, Xuangang, Mangshi→
Local experiences
Experiences →
In a local home · Bai villages around Erhai (Dali) · Full day, or overnight
A day with a village family
Spend an ordinary working day with a rural family: the morning market or feeding the animals, whatever the season needs doing in the fields or courtyard, a long lunch, and tea on the doorstep in the afternoon.
Ask to arrange this →
Everyday life · Kunming (Green Lake Park 翠湖公园) · 2–3 hours from about 7 a.m.
Dawn tai chi and a morning in the park
Chinese city parks are busiest before 9 a.m.
Ask to arrange this →
Everyday life · Kunming · 1–1.5 hours, after dinner
Evening square dancing with the aunties
After dinner, groups of mostly retired women set up a speaker in a square or park and dance set routines to Chinese pop, folk songs and whatever is trending.
Ask to arrange this →
Everyday life · Kunming · 2–3 hours
Learn mahjong over an evening
Mahjong is how much of Yunnan spends its evenings and weekends, in living rooms, teahouses and card rooms, to the clatter of shuffled tiles.
Ask to arrange this →
Crafts & arts · Kunming · About 2 hours
Calligraphy with a local teacher
A calligraphy teacher shows you how to hold the brush upright, grind ink and build a character stroke by stroke in the right order, then helps you write your name or a lucky phrase to take home.
Ask to arrange this →
Crafts & arts · Zhoucheng village · Half day
Bai tie-dye in Zhoucheng
Zhoucheng, the largest Bai village in China, is the heartland of Bai tie-dye, a technique on China's national intangible-heritage list since 2006.
Ask to arrange this →
Crafts & arts · Jianshui old town and Wanyao village 碗窑村 · Half day
Jianshui purple pottery and tile cats
Jianshui purple pottery, counted among China's four famous potteries, is made from the area's iron-rich local clay, carved with calligraphy or painting, inlaid with clay of another color, fired without glaze and polished by hand until it gleams like stone; Yunnan's classic steam pot comes from here.
Ask to arrange this →
Crafts & arts · Lijiang: old town · About 2 hours
Write your name in Naxi Dongba script
Dongba, the script of Naxi priests, is often described as the world's last living pictographic writing, and its manuscripts have been on UNESCO's Memory of the World register since 2003.
Ask to arrange this →
Routes that fit
All routes →
Classic route · 8 days · Kunming
Classic Yunnan in 8 days
The classic first-timer's route, climbing step by step from 1,900 m in Kunming to 3,200 m in Shangri-La.
Free · Mar–May, Oct–Nov
Classic route · 6 days · Kunming
Southeast Yunnan: terraces and old towns in 6 days
A walled town where dinner is grilled tofu counted in corn kernels, then sunrise over the Hani terraces, far from the Dali–Lijiang crowds.
Free · Nov–Apr; best Jan–Mar
