Guilin and Yangshuo Trip in July 2016

Planned itinerary for Guilin and Yangshuo in 2016:

21st: D2803 train 08:00-10:30, lasting 2 hours 22 minutes.

Planned activities: Elephant Trunk Hill Scenic Area, Guilin Museum, Li Zongren's Former Residence, Two Rivers and Four Lakes Night Cruise.

22nd: Around 8 AM, half-day trip to Gudong Waterfall.

Afternoon: Solitary Beauty Peak and Royal City Scenic Area.

23rd: 7 AM, Yangdi to Nine Horse Fresco Hill bamboo raft drift day trip.

24th: Yangshuo cycling along Ten Mile Gallery.

25th: Longjing River rafting, Yangshuo Park.

26th: Return to Guilin, then back to Guiyang.

D2838 19:35-22:09, lasting 2 hours 34 minutes.

Actual itinerary:

On the morning of July 21st, because the alarm was set for 5:30 the previous day, our family of three left home at 6:10. We took a taxi from our doorstep to North Railway Station for 26 yuan, and by 6:50 we were already eating bread breakfast in waiting room 15. An hour later, at 7:56, we boarded car 6, and the D2803 train departed on time at 8:08. Along the way, the train stopped at three stations: Congjiang, Sanjiang South, and Guilin West. The train accelerated quickly; in less than 5 minutes, the speed reached 190 km/h, with a top speed of 248 km/h. The scenery outside blurred past, and my ears felt stuffy. My son fell asleep as soon as we boarded. I kept watching the speed display. It was my first time on a high-speed train, and I wasn't overly excited, but it felt different from a regular train. There was no obvious deceleration, and no other trains appeared outside the window. The progress of technology is amazing.

At 9:35, we arrived at Congjiang Station, 2 minutes early.

At 9:59, we arrived at Sanjiang South Station, 1 minute late.

At 10:32, we arrived at Guilin West Station, 2 minutes late. Guilin West Station was not yet fully built. Compared to Guiyang North Station, it was far inferior, not comparable at all. The road into the city was not finished, full of potholes and uneven terrain. I suggest friends visiting Guilin choose Guilin North Station.

At 10:46, we took Guilin Bus No. 22 to Guilin Station, which took 1 hour 10 minutes. From Guilin Station to Xingjin Xizhen—Mermaid Princess Love Family Fresh Two-Bedroom (268 yuan/night) required a 20-minute walk. About 500 meters from the hotel, we ate at Tonglai Rice Noodles, spending 20 yuan total for two bowls of three liang (150g) and one bowl of two liang (100g). Cheap!

At 12:40, we arrived at Mermaid Princess Love Family Fresh Two-Bedroom hotel. After a short rest, we took a taxi for 10 yuan to Gate 2 of Elephant Trunk Hill. We picked up tickets and entered the scenic area (45 yuan per person). Gate 2 is probably the most convenient entrance to view Elephant Trunk Hill. Once inside, the entire Elephant Trunk Hill came into view. After taking group photos, we walked 200 meters to the right, crossed a bridge, and arrived at the foot of the hill. We climbed the stairs to the top and descended on the other side to reach the elephant trunk area. Around 3:30 PM, we exited the scenic area and went to Guilin Central Plaza. The plaza resembled Guiyang's old People's Square, with two triangular cones, each with a door leading to the basement. The basement was spacious, with shops one after another, like the clothing stores on Guiyang's Shixi Road. It was quite cool down there. I had hoped there would be food stalls under the plaza, but was disappointed; we found a spicy seafood pot restaurant nearby and had a good meal. On the way, we also visited Li Zongren's Former Residence.

At 7:20 PM, we boarded a boat at Guilin Wenchang Pier for the Two Rivers and Four Lakes night cruise (ticket price 143 yuan per person). If Elephant Trunk Hill is the symbol of Guilin, then the Two Rivers and Four Lakes are Guilin's business card. The Li River, Peach Blossom River, Banyan Lake, Fir Lake, Osmanthus Lake, and Wooden Dragon Lake form Guilin's ring water system. Attractions along the way include Sun and Moon Twin Pagodas, Glass Bridge, Big Banyan Tree, Old Man Hill, Wooden Dragon Pagoda, and Wave-Subduing Hill, totaling 36 spots. We disembarked at Guilin Liberation Bridge Pier at 9 PM. A notable impression was that the lake level is higher than the river level by about 4 meters, so there is a lift similar to the Three Gorges Dam. All the scenic spots were brilliantly illuminated at night, shining and complementing each other, a feast for the eyes. We returned to the hostel at 9:30 PM.

July 22: At 8:10 AM, we boarded a bus at Guilin Railway Station to Gudong Waterfall (90 yuan per person, included transfer). After an hour and a half, we arrived. The waterfall is divided into two sections. The first section is not climbable for children under 14 and people over 60. Before climbing, we had to buy a safety kit. There were two types: one with straw sandals, a helmet, and a waterproof phone case for 10 yuan; the other with the above plus a raincoat for 15 yuan (I suggest future visitors buy the raincoat, otherwise your clothes and pants will get completely wet). Except for the helmet which had to be returned after climbing, the rest could be kept. Although the attraction is called Gudong Waterfall, it is essentially a mountain stream flowing down. Two large rock formations had steps carved for climbing. It took about 40 minutes to climb the entire water channel. At the top, there was a suspension bridge with a limited number of people crossing at a time; it shook violently. After crossing, we spent 20 yuan on a zip line ride, then descended via brick-paved steps. Each brick had a phrase carved, teaching visitors Guilin dialect: the pronunciation and meaning. It was interesting. The whole trip took about three and a half hours.

We returned to Guilin nearly at 2 PM and hurried to Solitary Beauty Peak and Royal City Scenic Area (ticket 55 yuan per person). Except for the impressive climb to the peak, the entire attraction felt like a scam, trying to trick tourists into buying so-called birth-year Tai Sui rubbings. Speechless.

In the evening, we had wild fish and spicy crab at a street stall near the hotel.

July 23: At 7:30 AM, we boarded a bus to Yangshuo. Originally we planned to go by ourselves, but since Yangdi is halfway between Guilin and Yangshuo, we thought it was more convenient to join a tour. So we booked online a Li River, Yangdi-Nine Horse Fresco Hill bamboo raft, and Silver Cave all-in-one pure play day tour (555 yuan per person). However, due to a raft worker strike at Yangdi Pier, the travel agency adjusted the itinerary, changing the bamboo raft drift to Yangshuo's Shutong Hill Pier, so we missed the most beautiful section of the Li River. The Li River scenery lives up to its reputation. Sitting on the bamboo raft and admiring the beautiful landscapes on both banks was enchanting. We queued for about 30 minutes before boarding; there were many people. Coming to Guilin without taking a bamboo raft is like coming in vain. Only Shutong Hill Pier on the Guilin-Yangshuo section was operating, so it was packed. At 10:30, we went to Xingping Ancient Town and the 20-yuan note scenery spot. For lunch, we paid extra at a farmhouse restaurant. Xingping Ancient Town is very small, less than one-tenth the size of Qingyan Ancient Town, let alone Dali Ancient Town. Then we went to Silver Cave, named after a wall of sparkling stalactites. It was well developed, with occasional warm reminder signs like "Watch your step" and "Mind your head." The guide was professional. The cave has a maximum drop of 48 meters, and we unknowingly ascended 48 meters in 50 minutes. After the tour ended, we stayed in Yangshuo. We had booked on Tujia.com the Yangshuo West Street Waiting for Flowers to Bloom Inn family room (three nights, 674 yuan). The room was clean and fresh. The innkeeper was a painter and gave guests some handmade postcards.

For dinner, we had Yangshuo's most famous Xie Sanjie beer fish and Lipu taro braised pork. After eating, we strolled through West Street. At first it was manageable, but then it got very crowded. Since we still had time to come back, we returned to the inn early.

July 24: Since today only had cycling along Ten Mile Gallery, we started later. At 9 AM, we had breakfast and rented three bicycles for 40 yuan (I rented a 20-yuan mountain bike, usable all day). There are many cycling routes in Yangshuo. We set off according to our pre-planned route. The weather was extremely hot. After cycling about 5 kilometers, my wife began to feel unwell, so we cycled with frequent stops. After two and a half hours, we finally arrived at Big Banyan Tree Scenic Area. Then my son rested with his mother while I cycled the rest of Ten Mile Gallery alone, then turned back to meet them and returned to the city and the inn. The whole trip took about three and a half hours. Under the scorching sun, we finished three 1.5L bottles and two 500ml bottles of water. After resting for three hours, we went out again to West Street.

July 25: At 8:30 AM, we arrived at Yangshuo Bus Station, a 5-minute walk from the inn. We boarded a direct bus to Longjing River (159 yuan per person, including pickup and drop-off). Departing on time at 9 AM, we arrived at the Longjing River gate after nearly 50 minutes. Then we took an electric cart for 10 minutes to the top of the mountain rafting point. The feeling of rafting down from the mountaintop was something you can't experience in Guizhou: thrilling and exciting. When encountering sections that couldn't be rafted, there were artificial slides with large drops. The rafting lasted an hour. It was extremely exciting!

Back in Yangshuo, we visited Xu Beihong's Former Residence (under renovation), Sun Yat-sen Memorial Statue, and Yangshuo Li River Pier.

During the three days in Yangshuo, we ate a famous local beer fish each day: on the 23rd, Xie Sanjie beer fish (swordbone fish); on the 24th, Master Chef beer fish (sesame sword); on the 25th, Fisherman beer fish (carp).

July 26: We set off at noon back to Guilin. When we arrived at Guilin Museum, we found it was being relocated, so we had to leave regretfully. It was too hot, and since there was no better place to go in Guilin, we went to Guilin West Station. After sitting at Guilin West Station for 3 hours, we finally boarded the return trip. At 10:09 PM, we arrived on time at Guiyang North Station. We went straight to Bus No. 261 stop, caught the last bus at 10:30 PM, and returned home after six days away.

Overall, park tickets in Guilin are generally too expensive, probably set for out-of-town tourists. Elephant Trunk Hill is Guilin's city symbol, so it's a must-see. The Two Rivers and Four Lakes night cruise includes a guide on the boat; the illuminated sights are dazzling. You can also walk, but you can't cover all of Two Rivers and Four Lakes. Personally, I think just visiting Fir Lake and Banyan Lake is enough. Solitary Beauty Peak and Royal City are not worth visiting; the palace is off-limits, and they take you to a cave claiming it has 60 Tai Sui portraits from the Ming Dynasty prince. They find your zodiac Tai Sui, then lock you in a room to buy portraits or ornaments, just like in Sanya. Gudong Waterfall was fun. Humans naturally like going upstream. Climbing the waterfall, feeling the water hit you, needing to step carefully and hold tight—it's a test of skill. The Li River rafting truly made me feel the meaning of "Guilin's landscape is the best under heaven"—beautiful mountains and clear water. Xingping Ancient Town is tiny, less than one-tenth of Qingyan, and not worth visiting. However, if you didn't get a photo of the 20-yuan note scene from the boat, you might consider going. Silver Cave is different from Guizhou's caves; Guizhou caves are long, while Silver Cave unexpectedly takes you 48 meters upward, and when you look back, the previous sights are below. There are multiple route options for Ten Mile Gallery cycling. If visiting in July or August, just cycle the section from Yangshuo to Moon Hill, otherwise you'll get heatstroke. Yangshuo West Street is a bustling pedestrian street, a shopping paradise, and a drinking haven for young people. Longjing River's Warrior rafting is thrilling; you can't imagine a 240-meter drop from the mountain top to the foot. Yangshuo Park is free and feels like a leisure plaza. Xu Beihong's Former Residence is under renovation; Sun Yat-sen Memorial Statue is just a statue. Guilin Museum is said to have rich collections online, but it's being relocated, so I didn't get to see them. Yangshuo has a high-speed rail station with tourist buses to West Street, so I suggest going directly to Yangshuo.

The commercial atmosphere in Guilin and Yangshuo attractions is too heavy—this was my takeaway from this trip.

Written in August 2016