Yunnan | Seven-day Roaming in Lijiang, Lugu Lake, and Dali
In July 2017, I had a brief one-day stopover in Kunming for business, with only half a day free to visit the Yunnan Nationalities Village. Unfortunately, it was raining, so all outdoor performances were canceled. I just wandered around inside and listened to explanations about ethnic customs. After returning, I always wanted to visit Lijiang and Dali, as I had heard the weather there is spring-like year-round and the scenery is picturesque. It wasn't until August this year that I finally made the trip. Now, more than ten days since returning from Dali, it feels like a distant memory. So I thought I'd write it down—at least to help my poor memory.
Before going, I roughly planned the route: three nights in Lijiang for Lashi Lake, Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, Lijiang Eternal Love, Mu Residence, Lijiang Old Town, Shuhe Ancient Town, and Black Dragon Pool Park; one night in Lugu Lake; then heading to Dali to see Cangshan Mountain and Erhai Lake. In the end, I only accomplished the following:
8/25: Horseback riding at Lashi Lake, exploring the old town at night
8/26: Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, Blue Moon Valley, exploring the old town at night
8/27: Mu Residence, Lijiang Eternal Love, wandering around the old town again at night
8/28: Lugu Lake
8/29: Lugu Lake, Dali Old Town
8/30: Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple, cycling around Erhai Lake, Xizhou
On the night of 8/24, I flew from Shanghai to Lijiang. I only booked a guesthouse in Lijiang Old Town for three nights in advance, planning to arrange the rest upon arrival. Since it was a free independent trip, I decided to go with the flow. At the accommodation, I rested a bit and had some tea brewed by the owner. Coincidentally, a few other guests were joining a group to go horseback riding at Lashi Lake, so we signed up and went along.
8/25 Horseback Riding at Lashi Lake
It is said that every local family owns a horse, likely because they used to run horse caravans. Later, as tourism developed, the whole village pooled resources and established a horse ranch along the Ancient Tea Horse Road. Watching the horses carry us up and down the mountains, I felt it was truly not easy for them.
The weather was perfect that day—blue skies and white clouds. But because it was so sunny, it was scorching hot. My legs felt burning hot while riding. So after arriving at Lashi Lake, nobody wanted to take the boat ride included in the package. Instead, we had afternoon tea in a tea pavilion and chatted while waiting for our companions who were queuing to take photos at the internet-famous spot.
8/26 Jade Dragon Snow Mountain + Blue Moon Valley
Jade Dragon Snow Mountain has three cable car routes: large, medium, and small. Since the large cable car was closed for maintenance, we couldn't go to the Glacier Park or the 4680-meter high point. Following the guesthouse owner's advice, we took the small cable car to Yunshan Ping (Spruce Meadow) to enjoy the view. At that moment, I thought it would be amazing to have a horse and gallop across the meadow.
After descending the mountain, we took an electric cart to Blue Moon Valley. The water was incredibly clear.
8/27 Lijiang Old Town + Mu Residence
During our three-night stay in Lijiang from the 25th to the 27th, we wandered through the old town every night, taking different alleyways back to the guesthouse each time. I never managed to memorize the route and return the same way.
The old town is filled with guesthouses, restaurants, and bars. A golden retriever is almost a standard feature of every guesthouse. In the morning, the streets are nearly empty, but at night, they are crowded: restaurants, bars, alleyways, and the bonfire party at Sifang Street, which was surrounded by several circles of people.
On the flight back, I saw a magazine article that described it like this: "Lijiang is associated with youthful vitality. This place, gathering wandering artists and folk singers, constantly interprets the freedom, romance, madness, and restlessness of youth. Countless people come here seeking answers about being young." Thinking about what I actually experienced in the old town, this description couldn't be more fitting.
Mu Residence has a light show every night, seemingly performed every four or five minutes, each lasting about six minutes or so.
We actually entered Mu Residence on the morning of the 27th. After passing through the ticket gate, a guide led us for a free tour.
Standing on the upper floor of what seemed to be the Ten Thousand Volumes Building, we could see Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in the distance.
8/27 Lijiang Eternal Love
After visiting Mu Residence, we found a small restaurant at the gate and tried Lijiang baba (flatbread) and chicken pea jelly. In the afternoon, we headed to the Eternal Love show.
There's a free shuttle bus from the old town to Lijiang Eternal Love, running roughly every 10 minutes. Boarding at White Dragon Square, it only took about ten minutes to get there—very close. The seats we got were quite good; we could even feel the moisture during the performance.
The park's package ticket included all shows. The Lijiang Love Song performance was held only once a day. From around 2 PM to 7 PM, we went through all the programs in the park, then returned to the old town near Mu Residence for the long-planned cured pork rib hotpot.
One of the outdoor performances: Guozhuang Carnival
8/29 Lugu Lake
Lugu Lake is actually not far from the old town, but because the roads are all winding mountain roads, it took almost half a day—departing in the morning and arriving at noon. According to many online posts, Daluoshui is the most convenient area for transportation, so we booked a lake-view room there. The door opened right onto the lakeside. After checking in, we quickly walked along the lake to take a few photos, then rested a bit to prepare for a lakeside tour in the afternoon. Unfortunately, the weather turned at 2 PM. The blue sky and white clouds disappeared, and Lige Island looked dim in photos. Then it started raining, and we couldn't even get off the car. We went directly to a restaurant to taste the "women's wine" (only women can drink it), visit a local home to learn about the walking marriage culture, and after dinner, attend the bonfire party.
8/29 Lugu Lake
I set an alarm to watch the sunrise over Lugu Lake, but it was raining heavily, so I missed it. Fortunately, the rain stopped around 9 AM, and we could continue our lakeside tour.
We took a boat past Princess Island. It is said that the last princess once lived there, but we couldn't go ashore due to maintenance.
We went to the filming location of "Dear Inn," which was still operating. We couldn't enter, only peek from outside the fence.
Passing through the sea of flowers, the boatman said that due to the weather and lack of sunshine, the water lilies (xingcai) weren't blooming much. Otherwise, the entire area would be covered with them, looking very beautiful.
By the time we reached the Grass Sea and the Walking Marriage Bridge, the blue sky and white clouds appeared again. If it had been sunny earlier, we might have seen the lake surface full of flowers.
8/30 Dali
Around noon on the 29th, we returned from Lugu Lake to Lijiang, then took a bus to Dali. While checking in, we chatted with the owner about the itinerary. Due to the weather and time constraints, we gave up on Cangshan Mountain altogether. We asked the owner to rent an electric scooter for us and planned to cycle around Erhai Lake on the 30th. In the evening, we also took a stroll through Dali Old Town. Perhaps after the hustle and bustle of Lijiang Old Town, it didn't feel as impressive in comparison.
This cool little yellow duck sat on the handlebars, accompanying us from the old town to the Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple, along the Erhai Lake to Xizhou, from Xizhou to Caicun Pier, and then back to the old town, taking a detour to Dali University for a whole day.
Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple, overlooking Erhai Lake
Xizhou Ancient Town was highly recommended by the guesthouse owner as a must-visit. It preserves Bai-style residential houses very well, and you can see tie-dye products everywhere on the streets—very beautiful. We ate and shopped along the way. The Xizhou baba and jelly were delicious, and my companions bought quite a few clothes. I forgot to take photos. We spent much more time here than planned, so we didn't have time to visit the famous Shuanglang. We headed back to the city after 5 PM.
The sky was very overcast, with occasional drizzles. Returning from Xizhou to the old town, we made a detour to Caicun Pier. Standing on the pier, the wind was howling, cold enough to wear a down jacket.
During breakfast, we met an aunt who was accompanying her son and daughter-in-law (who was studying for a master's degree). She said Dali University was excellent—backed by Cangshan and facing Erhai. Curiosity sparked, we cycled in the rain to the university gate. It indeed looked majestic, with mist swirling around the mountain.
By then, the rain was quite heavy. We slowly rode back to the guesthouse holding umbrellas. Passing by the old town market, we went in to buy some pomegranates and grapes. It was rare to return to our accommodation before 8 PM, giving us time to brew tea, eat fruit, and watch TV. The heavy rain continued until we left Dali on the 31st. Fortunately, it didn't rain before, or we would have been stuck in the hotel. We were so lucky!
According to the owner, May is the most beautiful time on Cangshan, when flowers are in full bloom. Perhaps next time I'll choose May, go straight to Dali, and see the sea of flowers on Cangshan, the Erhai Lake at Shuanglang, and the sunrise and sunset over Erhai.
PS: 1. The ultraviolet rays there are extremely strong. The back of my hands, exposed to the sun, got tanned. More than ten days later, the tan is still very noticeable, with slight peeling. So sun protection is essential: the highest SPF sunscreen, sun-protective clothing, sunglasses, hat, and face masks are all must-haves. 2. Lijiang's tourism industry is very well-organized. Basically, as long as you book your first accommodation, you don't need to worry about the rest of the trip. There are pick-up and drop-off services around the old town.
