11 Days Kunming Dali Lijiang ShangriLa and Meili Snow Mountain Pilgrimage Tour

Tour Overview

During this tour, you will not only visit Kunming Stone Forest, Dali Old Town, Lijiang Old Town, Lijiang Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, Tiger Leaping Gorge, and Shangri-La Songzanlin Monastery,...

Code of Tour: CDT0000000878

Length of Travel: 11 Day

Destinations of Tour: Kunming-Dali-Lijiang-Shangri-La-Deqin-Shangri La-kunming

Departure City: Kunming

Price of Tour: Request

Type of Tour: Private

Features of Tour: Minority Sunrise Sunset Landscape Winter

More Map & Picture

During this tour, you will not only visit Kunming Stone Forest, Dali Old Town, Lijiang Old Town, Lijiang Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, Tiger Leaping Gorge, and Shangri-La Songzanlin Monastery, but also explore the Yis, Naxis, Bais, Lisus, Mosuos and Tibetan minorities. Besides, you will also appreciate the splendid scenery of Tiger Leaping Gorge and the First Bend of the Yangtze River as well as the Meili Snow Mountain.

Brief Itinerary

• Day 1: Kunming Arrival
• Day 2: Kunming-Stone Forest-Kunming
• Day 3: Kunming-Dali by air
• Day 4: Dali-Lijiang by private car
• Day 5: Lijiang-Jade Dragon Snow Mountain-Lijiang
• Day 6: Lijiang-Tiger Leaping Gorge-Shangri La
• Day 7: Shangri La
• Day 8: Shangri La – Deqin
• Day 9: Lancang-Mekong Grand Canyon
• Day 10: Deqin – Shangri La
• Day 11: Shangri La-Kunming

Google Map

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1 Kunming Arrival

Sightseeing and Activities: the Green Lake, Kunming City Tour
Accommodation:
Meals:

Begin your journey to the diverse and captivating province of Yunnan from the capital city, Kunming. Upon arrival at the Kunming International Airport, meet the local guide and transfer to the hotel.

Take a leisurely stroll along the Green Lake, a charming area of teahouses and small boutiques selling handicrafts and beautiful local paintings. If time permits, have a Kunming city tour.

— Kunming is the capital of southwest China’s Yunnan province, a primarily agricultural province of 45 million. Kunming has a population of five million and is located in one of the world’s most geographically, ethnically, biologically and linguistically diverse regions. Situated at 1,900 meters (6,233nft) above sea level and 25° north of the Equator it has a rather unique and pleasant climate for a Chinese city.

Day 3 Kunming-Dali by air

Sightseeing and Activities: the Three-pagodas in Chongshen Temple, Erhai Lake Cruise,Dali Ancient Town, City Wall, the Foreigner Street
Accommodation:
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Take the morning flight to Dali, which is a famous historically and culturally city of China, is renowned for her historical interest and Bai ethnic culture. After landing, visit the Three Pagodas in Chongshen Monastery which has a history of over 1,800 years and located at the foot of Cangshan Mountain facing to the Erhai Lake. Three Pagodas are made of three ancient independent pagodas forming a symmetrical triangle.

After lunch, cruise in Erhai Lake by the small boat to the Jinsuo Islet in the east Erhai Lake. There are 200 Bai ethnic families around 1000 people in Jinsuo Island. During Erhai Lake cruise, enjoy the green Cangshan Mountain and the Three Pagodas from a far as well as lots of birds and seagulls flying over the lake.

At last, visit the Dali Ancient Town, walk around the Foreigner Street and enjoy the relax time with local people. After climbing up to the City Wall of Dali, you will have panoramic view of the Erhai Lake.

Day 4 Dali-Lijiang by private car

Sightseeing and Activities: Xizhou Town, Zhoucheng Village, Shaping Monday Bazaar, Black Dragon Pool, Dongba Museum, Lijiang Ancient Town
Accommodation:
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Head to Xizhou Old Town to fully appreciate Bai-style traditional architectural courtyards, taste their fragrant Three-Course Tea and explore their distinctive culture. Visit Zhoucheng Village and the Bai people’s Tie-dying cloth workshop where you can take some special souvenir with the Bai ethnic style.

Move on to visit the Shaping Bazaar happened every Monday in Shangguan Town. Shaping market is ratified by the government of Yunnan province to trade cultural relics inferior to the third class. Multitudinous curios, jade article, embroider are sold there, alluring many tourists around the country and abroad. Therefore, it got the reputation of “the foreigners’ street”.

Drive about 180KM to Lijiang with the beautiful farmlands and ethnic villages on the way. Lunch at NO.8 Restaurant at the back of Black Dragon Pool, after lunch, head for the scenic Black Dragon Pool and the Dongba Museum to explore the rich Naxi minority culture.

In the late afternoon, explore Lijiang Old Town, which has a history more than 800 years, it was listed as the World Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO 1997. Here you will see the wonderful wooden architecture of Naxi ethnic people.

Day 5 Lijiang-Jade Dragon Snow Mountain-Lijiang

Sightseeing and Activities: Yulong Snow Mountain,Spruce Meadow, Baisha Old Town and Murals,Baishui River and Terraces
Accommodation:
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Enjoy the sunrise of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and Lijiang Ancient Town in the morning, drive about 30KM to Ganhaizi Meadow(3100M), take the sightseeing bus for a short visiting through the Baishuihe River, then take the chairlift up to visit Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. The cableway will be arranged according to the condition of the mountain. hike around 1 hours in the original forest in Spruce Meadow (3200M).

After lunch, enjoy the Impression Lijang Ethnic Show directed in by Zhang Yimou. It’s a cultural show which demonstrating the traditions and lifestyles of the Naxi, Yi and Bai peoples of the area. The show takes place inside Jade Dragon Snow Mountain Park at 3500m in an outdoor theater specifically designed to showcase the mountain which is used as a backdrop.

In the afternoon, stroll through Baisha Old Town, which is an enchanting traditional Yunnan village. Visit the Baisha Mural, which is one part of the World Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO 1997.

Day 6 Lijiang-Tiger Leaping Gorge-Shangri La

Sightseeing and Activities: Shigu Ancient Town, the Iron Chain Bridge, Stone Drum,Tiger Leaping Gorge
Accommodation:
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

From Lijiang, drive about 60 KM to the First Bend of Yangtze River with imposing gorge scenery, visit the Iron Chain Bridge, the Red Army’s Long March Memorial Monument in the Shigu town. The town of Stone Drum got its name from a large, cylindrical, marble tablet shaped like a drum. The scenery is magnificent as the road running through the Lijiang valley which is filled with wheat fields and drying haystacks.

Then visit the Tiger Leaping Gorge, which is the deepest gorge in the world. With 34 rapids of the Yangtze River, it is called the Jinsha in this area because you can find gold in the river. Afternoon, head to Shangri-La, the former Zhongdian which is wellknown as the paradise destination for every tourist. Upon arrival in Shangri-La, entered the Tibetan cultural area to appreciate a landscape of barley fields and yaks scattered in the valleys. Walk around Dukezong Ancient Town, which is an important town of the Ancient Tea-horse Trade Caravan from Yunnan to Tibet and India.

Day 7 Shangri La

Sightseeing and Activities: Sogzanlin Monastery, the Bita Lake & Shudu Lake, Dukezong Ancient Town, the largest Prayer Wheel
Accommodation:
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

In the morning, visit the Ganden Sumtseling Monastery, the largest Tibetan monastery in Yunnan. Songzanlin Monastery has another alias – ‘the little Potala Palace ‘, so named because the whole monastery is in the traditional style with mysterious atmosphere. And afterwards visit the Pudacuo National Park which is located in one of the most biologically-diverse regions of the world. While the region comprises only 0.7 percent of China’s land area, it contains more than 20 percent of the country’s plant species, about one-third of its mammal and bird species and almost 100 endangered species.

Move on to Dukezong Ancient Town in the late afternoon, climb up to the top of Guishan Hill or tortoise Hill to see the largest Prayer Wheel of the world and have a panoramic view of shangrila county.

Day 9 Lancang-Mekong Grand Canyon

Sightseeing and Activities: the sunrise of Meili Snow Mountain, Lancang-Mekong Grand Canyon, Mingyong Glacier Park,Mingyong Village
Accommodation:
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Get up early in the morning, enjoy the magic sunrise of Meili Snow Mountain. Then drive another 1.5 hours to Mingyong village, where you will walk on the trails for about 4 km to Mingyong Glaciers of Meili Snow Mountain. After Mingyong Glacier in Mingyong Village, do some trekking along the Lancang River Grand Canyon as well as some Tibetan villages. This will be the most impressive part of your trip to Yunnan. Try to trek back to Feilaisi from the Lancang-Mekong River with a nice view of Meili Snow Mountain and Baima Snow Mountain.

Service Excluded:

• Admission fees for all of the sightseeing spots listed in the itinerary;
• Meals as listed in the itinerary;
• Hotels as listed in the itinerary;
• Private English-speaking tour guide;
• Private vehicle for transfers & sightseeing with skilled driver;
• Service charge & government taxes;
• Luggage transfers between airports and hotels;
• Domestic train tickets of soft sleeper.

Service Excluded:

• Any arrival and departure international airfares or train tickets;
• Chinese visa fees;
• Excess baggage charged by Airlines;
• Single room supplement;
• Tips to guides and drivers;
• Personal expenses and gratuities to service staff;
• Personal travel accident insurance;
• All optional programs.