Ethnic Tour of South and West China

Itinerary

• Day 1: Arrival in Guilin

  Open an exotic tour full of natural scenery and ethnic folklore in Guilin, a well-known gateway of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in the south of China.

  Meet your guide at Guilin airport or the railway station, take a comfortable private transfer to your hotel and relax.

  • Guilin

• Day 2: Guilin - Yangshuo, Li River Cruise & Night Show

  Today, a four-hour cruise will bring you to take in the otherworldly beauty of the Li River, fringed by verdant hills in all shapes and alive villages with distinctive characters. Disembark in Yangshuo early afternoon, followed by a quick stroll through West Street, and then have some leisure time in your hotel.

  Light the evening with a spectacular folklore performance backdropped with striking pinnacles on Li River and featured beautiful singing and ethnic dances of local minorities.

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  • Yangshuo

• Day 3: Idyllic Countryside Life

  Start the morning with leisurely biking through the idyllic country of Yangshuo, relishing in green hills, rice paddies and orchids with sweet aromas, or cooling your feet in the crystal water at an unsung dock.

  In the afternoon, you can choose one of the following: bamboo rafting, kayaking, calligraphy lesson, or cooking class, to enjoy more of its natural beauty, immerse in historical Chinese culture, or taste authentic local food.

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  • Yangshuo

• Day 4: Yangshuo - Zhaoxing, The Village of Drum Towers

  Get to Guilin railway station with your guide for a high-speed train to Congjiang. On arrival, change a private vehicle to visit Zhaoxing Dong Village, the largest one of the Dong minority in southeast Guizhou. Famed as "the village of drum towers", it boasts five stunning drum towers -a real triumph of Dong architecture- built without any nail and representing the five Dong groups here.

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  • Zhaoxing

• Day 5: Miao and Dong Villages

  Another day to delve more into the peculiar culture and life of local ethnic groups, with the first stop at Basha Miao Village, the last Chinese tribe with its men carrying guns legally. The next is Zhanli Dong Village, a place attracting many who come to seek its mysterious prescription to balance the genders of the newborn. Followed by Xiaohuang Dong Village famous for the UNESCO-listed Dong Chorus Singing and the less known Huanggang Dong Village which better retains its original appearance and lifestyle.

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  • Zhaoxing

• Day 6: Zhaoxing - Guiyang, Terrace Filed Hiking

  In the mountainous ethnic area, industrious farms don't like to waste any inch of arable land, so cascading terrace fields, in all sizes and shapes, have become one of the most distinctive landscapes in such area.

  Spend two to three hours in the morning hiking from Tang'an Village to enjoy the painting-like terrace field scenery and then get to Congjiang railway station for a high-speed train to Guiyang. Upon arrival, be welcomed by the local guide.

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  • Guiyang

• Day 7: Special and Ancient Towns in Anshun

  As the majority in China, most Han people have almost lost their national identity in dressing completely, however, in Anshun, only about 1.5 hours from Guiyang by drive, there is a branch of Han people who have kept their traditional dress and custom over 600 years. That's Tianlong Tunbao ancient town - your main destination today. Another place you will visit today is Qingyan Ancient Town, famous for its well-planned architecture dating to 1378 and home to 11 ethnic groups.

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  • Guiyang

• Day 8: Guiyang - Dali, Explore the Old Town at Your Pace

  Board a high-speed train for Dali, the scenic and romantic autonomous prefecture of Bai people, a minority who favors the color white.

  Arrive in 4.5 hours, and meet your local guide for the transfer to your hotel. The rest of the day is yours to wander through the old town and explore the city gate, busy streets, old temples, and colorful shops and bars.

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  • Dali

• Day 9: Village of Bai People & Boat Cruise on Erhai Lake

  Head to Xizhou and explore a local village of Bai people in the morning. Stroll around its morning market to see people of different minorities trading local products, visit an old house of a distinguished family and enjoy the hospitality of the Bai people. Later on, an hour's horse carriage ride will take you to Haishe Wetland Park to take in the natural beauty of Erhai Lake and the surrounding countryside. What's following is a relaxing cruise on the lake.

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  • Dali

• Day 10: Dali - Jianchuan - Lijiang, Shaxi Old Town

  Shaxi Old Town is a historical trading hub, probably the most intact one, on ancient Tea Horse Road, along which caravans in southwest China transferred tea and other goods through the mountains of Sichuan, Yunnan, and Tibet. Today, on the four hours land journey to Lijiang, you will stop at the old town and explore Sideng market square on the World Monument Watch List of 100 Most Endangered Sites.

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  • Lijiang

• Day 11: Old Town of Lijiang & Naxi Culture

  Lijiang is the main inhabiting area of Naxi people, a minority with its own language and well-known to the world with its historical poetry, painting, music and dance.

  Explore the old town of Lijiang in the morning, discovering the Mufu Palace, the splendid mansion of the chieftain family of Lijiang in old times, capturing a panoramic view of the whole town from the Lion Hill, and enjoying the well-preserved Naxi ancient music. Outside the old town, at the Museum of Naxi Dongba Culture, get a deeper insight into attractive Naxi culture and Dongba religion.

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  • Lijiang

• Day 12: Free Day in Lijiang

  It is a free day for you to explore more in Lijiang. You may like to visit a Naxi family out of the city, communicate with them and get involved in their daily life; or explore the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain park and visit Baisha Old Town nestled at the mountain foot. There are also many other choices. Please just tell us what you like most.

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  • Lijiang

• Day 13: Lijiang - Lhasa

  Board a morning flight departing Lijiang and touch down on the Tibetan Plateau, the Roof of the World. Meet your Tibetan guide at Lhasa Gonggar airport, take the private transfer to your hotel, and relax to get adapted to the high altitude over 3,600 meters.

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  • Lhasa

• Day 14: Significant Landmarks of Lhasa

  Spend the day ticking off the significant landmarks in the city. The first stop is, of course, the Potala Palace, initially built in the 7th century and rebuilt in the 17th as the political serving as the winter palace of the Dalai Lamas until the mid of the 20th century. Today it is an art palace to appreciate Tibetan artistic treasures. Followed by the most sacred Jokhang Temple, with rising smoke of the incense, blinking better lamps, and devoting pilgrims taking you into a different world. Outside the temple, the Barkhor Street well preserves the original appearance of the old town and the essence of traditional Tibetan life. Finally, at the Sera Monastery, you will see lamas debating on Buddhist scripture.

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  • Lhasa

• Day 15: Lhasa - Shigatse, Yamdrok Lake

  About 70 kilometers southwest of Lhasa, the Yamdrok is one of the three largest holy lakes in Tibet and the largest inland lake in the northern foothills of the Himalayas. Drive out of Lhasa this morning to relish in the overwhelming beauty of the lake with sapphire water mirroring the surrounded snow-capped mountains. Afterward, continue to Shigatse - the second largest city in Tibet - and enjoy a distance view of Karuola Glacier on the way.

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  • Shigatse

• Day 16: Shigatse - Lhasa, Tashilhunpo Monastery

  Get a glimpse into local life by exploring the bustling Free Market in Shigatse before visiting the magnificent Tashilhunpo Monastery, the traditional monastic seat of Pnachen Lamas and the largest functioning religious institution in Tibet. Spend some time exploring the massive religious complex, glancing at the routine life of the monks, and catching some historical clues about Tibetan Buddhism.

  Later on, drive about seven hours back to Lhasa. It may be a long and tough journey, however, the beautiful scenery along the way will relieve your fatigue.

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  • Lhasa

• Day 17: Lhasa - Departure

  Bid farewell to Lhasa, conclude the psychological tour to rural China and board your flight home.

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