2021 National Day Self-Drive Trip to Gannan & Jiuzhaigou (All Updated)

Chatting with a friend, I mentioned it had been ages since we last traveled.

My friend glared at me: "Weren't you away for over ten days during National Day? You had a blast, while we didn't even leave Guangdong Province!" 😝

I admit my mistake—no more excuses for slacking off. Time to hand in the travelogue!

You might find it odd—why did our car sit in Lanzhou for two months? Well... we originally planned a summer trip along the Silk Road to the Duku Highway in Xinjiang. Then the pandemic hit and everything was put on hold. But the car had already been shipped out, so it had to sit quietly in Lanzhou. And before we knew it, two months had passed. With no hope of going to Xinjiang, we decided to use the National Day holiday to drive the car back.

The moment we landed, we felt the bleakness of the northwest—bare mountains on both sides. We found our dusty Tiger car in a mountain hollow. Poor thing! Brother Dashu immediately got down to business and washed it from top to bottom.

After washing the car, we looked for a place to grab a bite nearby. Ma Da Huzi turned out to be a decent choice.

With the car clean and a bit of rest, we took advantage of the early evening to stroll along the Yellow River with Brother Dashu.

To avoid the hassle of parking, we two old-timers decided to go green. About fifteen minutes later, we reached the Yellow River. The scenic paths along the mother river in Lanzhou are really well done, completely changing my previous impression of the city as gray skies and dark roads.

Walking along the river, we noticed hardly anyone was cycling. By the time we reached Zhongshan Bridge, we were the only two lonely riders. Confused, I suddenly spotted a sign: "No bicycles." No wonder everyone had been giving us strange looks.

Zhongshan Bridge, the first bridge ever built over the Yellow River, is now preserved for pedestrians only. Under the evening lights, it has a special charm. After dark, we wandered to the nearby Zhangye Road pedestrian street, but like many pedestrian streets across China, it followed a cookie-cutter pattern and wasn't very appealing. So we found a place to eat. The hand-grabbed lamb chops at Ma Laoliu are worth recommending; the grilled meat at Yaozi Ge next door was just so-so.

Today's itinerary: Lanzhou – Labrang Monastery (250km) – Sangkog Grassland – Langmusi (180km)

The day before in Lanzhou was for recovery. Today, we officially kicked off our Gannan journey. As a key part of both the Silk Road and the ancient Tang-Tibet route, Gannan offers not only beautiful alpine grassland scenery but also a strong Tibetan Buddhist cultural atmosphere—a perfect blend of nature and culture.

**Labrang Monastery: Known as the "World Center of Tibetan Studies," it has the most complete Tibetan Buddhist system in China. The main hall was closed when we visited, so we could only walk around the outer corridor of the longest prayer wheel gallery. The monastery wasn't the golden, glittering Tibetan style I'd imagined; instead, the neat rows of monks' quarters gave it a tranquil feeling.

**Sangkog Grassland: Leaving Labrang Monastery, we entered a scenic grassland road that stretched for tens of kilometers. We had planned to find the so-called top ten luxury campsite (Norden Camp) to grab a coffee and strike a posh pose, but along the way, we got so captivated by the vast grassland and blue sky that we forgot all about playing the hipster 😂. What a shame! If you have time, you can still drop by for a look, but overnight stays are totally unnecessary—it's super expensive. When lunchtime came, we picked a spot by a stream, lit a fire, and cooked noodles, fulfilling our dream of a grassland picnic.

Along the way, there were some turnoffs leading travelers to so-called scenic spots that charged fees. We ignored them all—enjoying the scenery along the road was more than enough.

**Gahai Grassland: The last scenic area we passed before nightfall. Under the setting sun, golden waves of grass rippled gently, dotted with clusters of plump cattle and sheep—truly delicious! 😍 Remember, on this national-level scenic road, don't speed. The limit is 40–60 km/h, and we got slapped with a 6-point penalty...

In the high mountains, if the grassland is the highlight by day, then at night, the mountains take center stage. Not long after leaving Gahai Grassland, my head started pounding—altitude sickness hit! The scary part was I hadn't booked any accommodation!! First, we didn't know the road conditions that day or how far we'd get. Secondly, accommodation throughout Gannan is pretty basic, and during National Day, prices were sky-high. So we decided to play it by ear. We had gear in the car, after all; the worst-case scenario was camping.

By the time we neared Langmusi Town, it was pitch dark. Several campsites marked by Baidu didn't exist at all, and the small roadside inns were far from inviting. Thank goodness, just before my headache exploded, we found a so-called campsite. It was actually just a parking lot. A family of four was negotiating with the car wash owner to borrow water and electricity. We hit it off immediately. After paying the owner 40 yuan, we set up camp, using our two cars to enclose a spot beside a building, and immediately turned in. Man, it was freezing that night—only 4 or 5 degrees Celsius. Later, a stream of cars arrived, all saying nearby accommodation was fully booked.

The picture below shows our campsite. At least it was on concrete—pretty decent conditions, all things considered.

The next morning, we visited Langmusi Town, often dubbed the "Little Switzerland of the East." Maybe we visited in the wrong season, because no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't connect it to Switzerland. But Langmusi Monastery was much more lavish than Labrang—a sweeping view of gold everywhere. The weather meant I couldn't capture its luxury properly. 😜

Perhaps in spring or summer, with some greenery, it would be much prettier.

After touring Langmusi, we had a bowl of beef noodles—without any beef—on the town's main street, then set off for Jiuzhaigou. On the way, we ran into some sheep heading to work...

Gannan Grassland Travel Tips:

1. It's perfect for a self-drive trip. The roads are excellent—just drive, stop, and enjoy, but keep an eye on speed limit signs.

2. Accommodation throughout Gannan is very basic, mostly small inns even in towns. But to complete a loop, you'll need to stop for a night along the way. There are yurt-style guesthouses along the road, and near the Sichuan border, some starry-sky tent camps, but personally, I feel hygiene standards are poor. So bring your own sleeping bag. As for bathrooms... I won't go into detail. If you know, you know. 🤪

3. Apart from the grassland scenery, you can also enjoy the thrill of horseback riding. There are many riding places along the route—feel free to try. Unfortunately, Brother Dashu, being a bit of a neat freak, thought the stables were too dirty, so we skipped them all.

I don't need to describe the beauty of Jiuzhaigou—words would be superfluous anyway. Let me share some other interesting things instead.

For instance, visiting Jiuzhaigou during National Day was an extremely risky yet wise decision. Remember the family of four from Mianyang we camped with in Langmusi Town? When they heard we were heading to Jiuzhaigou, they shook their heads and said, "It's packed! A few years ago, the ticket office got mobbed!" We were sweating bullets but had no choice but to press on. In the end, it turned out to be another brilliant call. After the devastating earthquake four years ago, Jiuzhaigou had been undergoing renovation and recovery. This was the first time it fully reopened, and with a proper reservation system, it really wasn't all that crowded.

To get from Gannan to Jiuzhaigou, you first cross Zoige Grassland. The scenery along the way is spectacular, and the closer you get to Sichuan, the lusher the vegetation on both sides. If you have time, you can visit Huanglong first, then head to Jiuzhaigou. The roads are excellent, and it took us five or six hours to reach Jiuzhaigou County. Keep in mind! Jiuzhaigou County is still about half an hour's drive from the main entrance of the scenic area, so when booking accommodation, check the location carefully.

We arrived in the county after 5pm, checked in, and then strolled around. Maybe all the tourists were packed in the scenic area, but the streets were eerily quiet, with hardly anyone around. We ended up at the busiest restaurant on the street, "Tianyuan Yinxiang" (Pastoral Impressions). Not bad! We tasted some authentic local dishes—good flavor, fair price. Highly recommended.

Jiuzhaigou Travel Tips:

1. Try to allocate two days for Jiuzhaigou. The scenic spots are arranged in a Y-shape. Although there are shuttle buses, doing it all in one day is exhausting and only scratching the surface. By splitting it over two days, you don't have to line up at 5 or 6 a.m. We entered around 9 a.m. both days, and from the gate to boarding the bus, it took just 5 minutes—super easy. On the second day, we took the Long Lake route and finished by 2 p.m., leaving half a day free.

2. When booking a hotel, try to stay near the real park entrance, like the Sheraton or Atour, to save on commuting and parking time. The road from the county to the entrance is prone to landslides, and on our second day, we wasted over half an hour waiting for rocks to be cleared. We stayed at the InterContinental this time, thinking it was close, but it actually took about 20 minutes. The rooms are huge. We missed out on the so-called hot springs because we didn't bring swimsuits—you might want to check it out. At Luneng Hui, there's a nice-looking tent camp, but they don't allow personal tents, so we gave up.

3. Jiuzhaigou is now very well managed. There's only one visitor center for dining (Nuorilang Center), so there's no need to buy food online in advance—just choose once you're there. I must give a shout-out to fellow travelers: our sense of public responsibility has really improved. In such a huge scenic area, there's virtually no litter, and the restrooms are clean and tidy. Bravo!!!

We left Jiuzhaigou around 2 p.m. and headed straight for Chongqing. Wow, I'm not sure if it was Baidu Maps or us, but the national highway at the Gansu-Sichuan border was incredibly rough. We didn't hit the expressway until 7 p.m. I have to tip my hat to Brother Dashu for driving solo for five hours nonstop. Later, he recalled that the road was so bad, we tried our best to reach the expressway before dark, so he didn't dare stop—out there in the wilderness, you wouldn't know who to turn to for help. Finally, at 1 a.m., we arrived in the foggy city of Chongqing. Totally wiped out.

The next day, we slept in and then wandered around at noon, grabbing a meal at a popular hot pot spot in a converted air-raid shelter. In the evening, we had to hit the iconic Hongya Cave. It only looks good when the lights are on, so we killed time at a little café nearby.

But honestly, Hongya Cave is best admired from a distance—not up close. The shops inside are chaotic, mostly cheap stalls and snack stands that didn't interest us. After snapping a few photos, we bolted.

Heading south, after Chongqing, our last stop before returning to Guangdong was Guilin. Even though it was just a pass-through, we couldn't miss it. We chose to stay in a park right across from Elephant Trunk Hill, so at breakfast, we could also take in the classic Guilin landscape. This trip came to a perfect end. Thanks to Brother Dashu for the company all the way—let's plan another one next year.

Travelogue Contents: 1. First Arrival in Lanzhou 2. Strolling in Lanzhou 3. Into Gannan 4. Wandering the Grasslands 5. Enchanting Jiuzhaigou 6. Spicy Chongqing 7. Leisurely Guilin | Travel Info | Hotel Index | Guide Index | Flight Ticket Index | Website Navigation | Travel Index | Cruise Index | Corporate Travel Index | Franchise Cooperation | Distribution Alliance | Friendly Links | Corporate Gift Cards | Insurance Agency | Agent Cooperation | Hotel Franchise | Destination & Scenic Spot Cooperation | More Franchise Cooperation | About Trip.com | About Trip.com | Trip.com Hot Topics | Contact Us | Careers | User Agreement | Privacy Policy | Business License | Security Center | Trip.com Content Center | Intellectual Property | Trip.com Group Algorithm Public Notice