Trip Overview
Yunnan is a large province with persity of beautiful landscape, different ethnic groups & their culture.
Our tour will be starting with Luoping, a beautiful small town surounded with bright yellow rape flower in early spring. Then, we visit the world heritage Stone Forest en route to Yuanyang.
The terrace in Yuanyang is a perfect place for off the beaten travel. In Yuanyang, we can visit the local Hani people & experience their life.
This trip, is arranged to explore authentic Yunnan province, therefore, the accommodations in the countryside are not as good as in the cities or town.
Day 1 Kunming to Luoping
Fly to Kunming. Be greeted by our local guide and transfer to Luoping by car. It takes about 5 hours from Kunming to Luoping town. The road is quite well paved though mostly it is mountain road. Upon arrival Luoping, we drive to Jingji to shoot the countryside landscape in Jinji. In early spring, the rape blossoms are in bloom and it is the best time for photography over there. The rape seed fields are surrounded with the Karst landscape.
Overnight Jiulong Guest House (L, D)
Day 2 Luoping
This morning, we get up early to the Duoyi River and Lubuge Gorge. The confluence of the three rivers-Duoyi River, Bada River and Jige River was a very beautiful area but the dam of the hydro-power station made it so different now. And our focus this morning is Lubuge Gorge. We will spend this morning around that area, and visit some of the local villages of Yi people and Buyi people around here. In the afternoon, we drive to Jiulong waterfall to photo the waterfalls along the river. It is a beautiful area and quite many films shot here.
Overnight Jiulong Guest House (B, L, D)
Day 3 Luoping to Stone Forest
In the morning, we drive to the Stone Forest. The Stone Forest, A region of typical Karst formation, covers an area of more than three hundred square kilometers and a stunning place to visit. We enjoy the scenery of mysterious stone pinnacles rising abruptly from the ground resemble a huge, dense forest. There are 25 different ethnic minorities in Yunnan, making it the most culturally perse province in China. This multiplicity of cultures has endowed the province with a rich heritage that it shares with all who come to visit. We will try to catch up the time of the Stone Forest at dusk, with permission of weather.
Overnight Grand Shilin Hotel (B, L, D)
Day 4 Stone Forest to Jianshui
The drive from Stone Forest to Jianshui is about 4-5 hours. En drive, we will see the typical countryside landscape. Jianshui is a very nice town. In the afternoon, we will go to visit the Confucius Temple in Jianshui. This Confucius temple is one of the largest in China. The hotel we are going to stay is a very beautiful garden with long history. Before and after lunch, we explore around the garden itself.
Overnight Zhu Family Garden Hotel (B, L, D)
Day 5 Jianshui to Yuanyang
This morning, after breakfast in the hotel, we drive about 3-4 hours to Yuanyang. Out of Jianshui, we drive across the mountain and descend into the Red River Valley. Since the area is in subtropical and it is quit humid. After hotel check-in, we have lunch before depart for the terraces. The Rice terraced in Yuanyang has been a magnificent place for photography. This afternoon, after check into the hotel, we drive to Laohuzui (Tiger’s mouth) for sunset over the terraced and then drive back Yuanyang town for overnight.
Overnight Yuanyang Yunti Hotel (B, L, D)
Day 6 Yuanyang to Jianshui
By the terraces, there scattered some villages of the Hani people. Duoyishu is one of them and the shooting site near Duoyishu is appraised as the best spot to shoot the terraces. Early this morning, we drive to Duoyishu for the sunrise over the terrace. The sunshine, the light fog and the bright light reflected by the water in the terraces, with the villages nestle by will the greatest shot through the entire trip. After then, we come to visit Hani people in their thatched Mushroom houses. The Hani ethnic group is one of the many unique tribes in Yunnan Province. With a population of 1.25 million, they are mainly distributed over the mountain areas between the Red River and the Lancang River in Yunnan Province. If possible, we could arrange the ladies to wear traditional costumes for your photo taking. In the afternoon, we drive to Jianshui and have a relax walk in the town.
Overnight Zhu Family Garden Hotel (B, L, D)
Day 7 Jianshui to Kunming & Departure
After breakfast, we drive 4-5 hours back Kunming to see the black-headed gull around Dianchi lake. It is an important ecological phenomenon that more than ten thousand wintering black-headed gull(Larus ridibundus)daily poured into the Kunming city zone for feeding and returned to the lake for nights, in the region of Lake Dianchi, Southwest China, which became a key public focus for the close relationship between human and the gulls. Then we drive to the airport with tour guide and private car for your pm flight to your next destination or back home.
Trip ends. (B, L)
