Sunshine and Rain, May Joy and Love Always Be by Your Side (A Guide to the Colorful Yunnan Ancient Dian名城 Resort in Kunming)

📍 Kunming · 👁 2957 reads · ❤️ 23 likes

We say we want to change the world, but the world changes us.

If you forget the dream in your heart when you set out that year, that day,

feel free to go back to the beginning and search for it.

No one has had it easy, but we've all made it this far.

Let's just see what fate has in store.

1. Ancient Dian Resort Hotel

At the end of 2021, I returned to this familiar land again. The vast Dianchi Lake, five hundred li wide, unfolds before my eyes. With cape and cap askew, I delight in the boundless openness. Nestled against Liangwang Mountain, the Colorful Yunnan Ancient Dian Mingcheng Tourism and Health Resort includes the Ancient Dian Vitality Town (Ancient Dian Resort Hotel), Ancient Dian Hot Spring Villa, Ancient Dian Mid-Hill Hot Spring Hotel, Ancient Dian Dora Pet Paradise, Ancient Dian Museum, Ancient Dian Premium Wetland Park, Ancient Dian Yihai Grand Pier, Colorful Yunnan·Joy World, Crowne Plaza Kunming Ancient Dian Town, and Colorful Yunnan Lifestyle Center—covering health and wellness, amusement parks, hotels, zoos, museums, shopping malls, commercial real estate, and more.

The Ancient Dian Resort Hotel is an apartment-style managed hotel located within Ancient Dian Vitality Town, ideal for family trips. After checking in at the Vitality Town reception, hotel electric carts will take guests to their designated building. The rooms feature a two-bedroom, one-living-room layout that can accommodate the whole family. Gas stove, gas water heater, refrigerator, washing machine, air conditioner, LCD TV, and Wi-Fi make your travel life as comfortable as home. The bathroom is equipped not only with an electric toilet and a heating lamp but also with safety seats and handrails for the elderly, making showering and using the toilet easier.

Toiletries are from the French brand GELLÉ FRÈRES travel set. From serving the delicate skin of nobility in the past to modern consumers' tender skin, GELLÉ FRÈRES advocates the brand philosophy of "specializing in rare plants, caring for delicate skin," providing excellent products and services to customers in every era. As far as I know, GELLÉ FRÈRES products are extracted from natural plants, with core ingredients derived from natural essential oils and active extracts from flowers, herbs, and fruits. The craftsmanship is exquisite and the effects remarkable. Yunnan's diverse terrain and climate have nurtured a rich variety of plant resources, making it an important part of GELLÉ FRÈRES' global ecological supply chain and one of its Asian production bases. The actual experience of using this travel set can be summed up in two words: "truly fragrant." The fragrance comes from two aspects: the tactile fragrance on the skin and the olfactory fragrance on the body.

The overall room decoration is in a simple and elegant Chinese style, appealing to guests of all ages. Bed linens are from the Carnation brand, standard in five-star domestic hotels, and the zero-pressure mattresses are suitable for all ages, ensuring a comfortable sleep no matter how you lie. Unlike the central air conditioning in five-star hotels, the apartment-style guest rooms at Ancient Dian Resort Hotel have wall-mounted air conditioners in each room, catering to the actual needs of guests of different ages.

In addition to several apartment-style managed hotel buildings, Ancient Dian Vitality Town also has a food court, senior cafeteria, Kangyue Hospital, Noshang Life Supermarket, tea house, fitness center, and even a branch of the University for the Third Age. The buffet breakfast includes a full range of Chinese hot dishes, Western pastries, staples, fruits, desserts, and drinks. The steaming hot braised pork rice noodles will help you shake off the winter chill and start your vibrant Ancient Dian journey.

2. Ancient Dian Hot Spring Villa

Speaking of vibrant journeys, from the Ancient Dian Resort Hotel, a 5-minute walk will take you to the Ancient Dian Hot Spring Villa across Huanhu South Road. Quickly change and put on a bathrobe to head to the outdoor mountain forest hidden pool area. The entire villa has 72 hot spring pools, half belonging to the Mid-Hill Hot Spring Hotel and half being public pools. They are divided into four themed areas: Ancient Dian Secret Realm, Cloud Fragrance Flower Path, Tea Zen Mind, and Qiongtai Jade Trough. Each area offers different atmospheres and effects, with varying water temperatures and fragrances.

Soak however you like, for as long as you want, but don't forget to reach the infinity pool on the hilltop before sunset. As the sun sets over Dianchi Lake, bathing in rosy clouds, the grandeur of the scene is indescribable. Sunset in winter is around 6:30 PM.

The Mutai Restaurant on the hilltop is a great place to relax after soaking. Recommended are the local Yunnan cuisine and exquisite afternoon tea snacks. Personally, I prefer to enjoy the sunset and then head to the Mantanghua Buffet Restaurant on the second floor of the Ancient Dian Hot Spring Villa for dinner. After all, soaking in hot springs is quite energy-consuming, so I need a hearty feast to recover. The buffet offers a rich variety of dishes—seafood, barbecue, desserts, and specialty Yunnan dishes are all well-prepared, and popular items are replenished promptly. The restaurant closes at 8 PM, and the hot springs are open until 10 PM.

For non-driving visitors exploring the Ancient Dian Mingcheng Resort, taking the red double-decker bus—the free resort shuttle—is convenient.

3. Colorful Yunnan·Joy World

To fully experience the Ancient Dian Mingcheng Resort, the highlight is certainly Colorful Yunnan·Joy World. This is an amusement park built by Yunnan people themselves. Created by the well-known Yunnan enterprise Kunming Norshida Group, the park reportedly invested 3 billion yuan and covers over 600 mu (about 40 hectares). The park is centered on three cultural themes: "Ancient Dian Culture," "Ethnic Culture," and "Regional Culture," and creatively plans seven themed zones: Dian Army Camp, Fantasy Dianqi Domain, Child Dream World, Vientiane Tribe, Primeval Secret Realm, Frost Moon Cold Continent, and Four Seasons Flower Sea, plus a dedicated children's entertainment center—Baby Paradise.

The park has 81 rides, featuring top global amusement equipment. Mega rides such as the Snow Eagle Wide Wing Roller Coaster, Elephant Play Dragon Roller Coaster, Tiger Leaping Gorge Flume Ride, Twin Tower Space Shuttle, Vientiane Mine Train, and the giant Ferris wheel "Dianchi Eye" perfectly blend Yunnan's regional cultural characteristics with modern high-tech.

With Yunnan's beautiful mountains and waters, diverse ethnic groups, and simple folk customs, the park has ingeniously created many special performances: the flying theater "Fly Over Colorful Yunnan," water show "Peacock Princess," multimedia interactive experiences, the ethnic grand theater "Colorful Yunnan," Ancient Dian stunt theater "Ancient Dian Chronicles," and the Ancient Dian Joy Parade. These integrate ethnic culture with sound, light, electricity, and audiovisual touch, making it a theme park for all ages that truly belongs to Yunnan people. It has consistently set the benchmark for Yunnan's amusement park projects. Having three roller coasters alone makes it embarrassing for a certain well-known similar amusement park in the same city. Another feature I appreciate is the park's aerial sightseeing train—the Colorful Special Train—placed along the park's traffic route. This small train is convenient for the elderly, children, and tired young people, offering a different perspective of the park or a quick way to the next ride or performance. Anyone who has been to similar parks knows how expensive the electric cart rentals are.

Other recommended rides: Primeval Stone Hammer, Rainforest Adventure, High-altitude Flying.

When you come to Colorful Yunnan·Joy World, how can you miss authentic Yunnan cuisine or local snacks? After personal testing, I recommend Yi Family Restaurant near the Twin Tower Space Shuttle and Dian King's Kitchen near the Ancient Dian Stunt Theater. The beef soup pot at Yi Family Restaurant is pure and delicious; the rice noodles and noodles are generous, with rich beef flavor, oily but not greasy. At Dian King's Kitchen, I ordered a full table of good dishes: Sour Soup Red Bean Braised Pig Trotters, Stir-fried Pork from the Family Butcher Feast, Xuanwei Potato and Chili Chicken, Ancient Dian Spicy Chicken Feet, Stir-fried Cabbage with Osmanthus, Mushroom and Baby Cabbage Soup, rice, and mango juice. These are typical Yunnan dishes with fresh ingredients and authentic preparation, showing the chef's expertise in Yunnan cuisine. I reckon ordering other dishes randomly would not disappoint. By the way, this table cost about 50 yuan per person—pretty reasonable, right?

Although the weather on the day of the visit was unpredictable, and it even drizzled during the Ancient Dian Joy Parade led by the park's seven mascots—Qiyi Tiger, Elephant God, Tiger God, Eagle God, Flower Spirit, Stone Spirit, and Phoenix Spirit—the rain could not dampen the enthusiasm of visitors and staff. Though the evening fireworks show was not grand, you could still feel every visitor's fantasy for the park. Whether it's children's innocent fairy-tale dreams, teenagers' thrilling adventure dreams, or adults' relaxation dreams for inner joy, this is a paradise where you can freely pursue your dreams.

At the end of 2021, I visited the Colorful Yunnan Ancient Dian Mingcheng Resort with my family, gaining joy and family bonds by my side—it was a worthwhile trip.

Address: Huanhu South Road, Jinning District, Kunming

1. About 35 km from downtown Kunming, about 20 km from Kunming South Station, about 38 km from Kunming Station, and about 60 km from Kunming Changshui International Airport.

2. Ancient Dian Mingcheng Resort free shuttle:

Joy World ↔ Colorful Yunnan·First City (Chenggong District)

Departure times: 10:30, 11:30 (weekends)

Joy World ↔ South Asia Style·First City (downtown Kunming)

Departure times: 10:00, 11:00 (weekends)

Return times: 18:00 (weekends), 20 minutes after park closing

3. Bus routes: K31, K38

4. Joy World regular opening hours: 10:00-19:30. Recommended play time: full day

5. Joy World adult ticket: from 198 yuan

6. Shuttle bus operating hours: 09:30-20:00. Frequency: 60 minutes on weekdays, 30 minutes on holidays

I am an invited photographer for AirAsia, Malaysia Tourism, Thailand Tourism, and the Canadian Embassy in China; a financial writer; multimedia professional; contracted travel writer; contracted photographer; winner of Yunnan News Awards (Online Commentary Award, Innovative News Award).