Day 01 Arrive in Guilin (Meals: -/-/-)
Upon your arrival in Guilin, be met at the airport by our Discoverchinatours guide, and driven to the hotel. Have a walking tour along the Four Lake and the Banyan Tree Lake in Guilin after dinner.Day 02 Guilin-Yanghshuo-Guilin (Meals: B/L/-)
Sightseeing: Li River Cruise, West Street
Depart from your hotel in the morning to have Li River Cruise to Yangshuo. Li River is by far the main reason to visit Guilin. Double-decker and triple-decker river boats which weigh anchor from a pier at Zhujiang, about 40 minutes from Guilin by bus, and meander through the sleepy countryside are relaxing way to enjoy the superlative river scenery and life along its banks. In contrast to the burgeoning cities of the north, it is quiet here; the rural scenery is magnificent. You will enjoy the picturesque mountains, peaceful green fields, farms and villages with water buffalo, cows wondering around on both sides of the river bank.
After about 4.5 hours, the one-thousand-year-old town--Yangshuo, the disembarking point, comes into sight. It is well-worth browsing around this quaint town and its environs. Have a short exploration to the old town before be transferred back to Guilin.Day 03 Guilin
Kunming (Meals: B/L/-)
Sightseeing: Guilin - Elephant Trunk Hill / Reed Flute Cave
Have private city tours to the Elephant Trunk Hill. It is located on the west bank of the Li River by a small branch called Peach blossom River, the hill resembles a huge elephant standing on the bank of the river, sucking up water with its long trunk. The trunk is particularly striking and lifelike when viewed either nearby or afar. A circular foot cave called Shui Yue Dong (Moon-In-the Water Cave) separates the trunk and the body. A 3-story Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 A.D) brick pagoda rises from the top of hill.
Then visit the Reed Flute Cave. Aside ten minutes drive (half hour bike ride) from downtown, the cave is one of the largest known examples of what each tropical karst cone conceals within it. The script writers and set designers for Star Trek would have a field day in this cavernous underground stalactite/stalagmite maze-style theater. This cave was called "The Art Gallery of Mother Nature". Colored fluorescent lights which cast shadows and illumine.
Take afternoon flight to Kunming in the afternoon. Be met and transferred to your hotel.
Day 04 Kunming (Meals: B/L/-)
Sightseeing: Stone Forest
Depart from your hotel in the morning. Be transferred to visit the Stone Forest. Located in Lunan Yi Nationality Autonomous County, the Stone Forest is about 120 kilometers (75 miles) from Kunming. It covers an area of 400 square kilometers (96,000 acres). It has long been one of the most famous scenic spots in China, at least since the Ming Dynasty, 1368-1644 A.D. The Stone Forest is divided into several scenic areas with names like Greater Stone Forest, Lesser Stone forest, Outer Stone Forest, Underground Stone Forest, Stone Forest Lake, and Da Dieshui Fall. The Stone Forest was formed by karst two million to thirty million years ago. It contains peaks, pillars, stalagmites, depressions, underground rivers, and caves. The fantastic stone pinnacles rising abruptly from the ground resemble a huge, dense forest.
Be transferred back to the city in the afternoon.
Day 05 Kunming
Sightseeing: Transfer to airport for flight to Dali, be picked up at airport go to hotel check in and have a rest. After lunch visit the Dali Old Town.
The Dali Old Town, which was set up in 1382 A.D during the Ming Dynasty as the capital of the Dali kingdom. At present, only the south and north gate towers remain standing. There are well-preserved traditional houses of the Bai Ethnic Group people. Walking in the city, you will enjoy many historical relics, ancient buildings and rich minority customs, such as the "Foreigners Street", the ancient Yuxi School, tea houses, antique shops, Chinese and Western restaurants.
Day 06 Dali (Meals: B/L/-)
Sightseeing: Cangshang Mountain / Erhai Lake / Butterfly Spring / Three Pagodas
Depart from your hotel after breakfast. To be transferred outside city to visit the Cangshan Mountain. It is the backdrop of Dali City. With an average height of 4000 meters, it has a cluster of 19 soaring peaks for sightseeing, mountaineering, skiing, exploration, scientific research and taking holiday. Take cable car up and down to enjoy its beauties.
Then have a cruise on the Erhai Lake. It is a fresh water lake, and in the middle of it, there are islets and sandbars. Covering 250 square kilometers, the blue, rippling lake and the snow-covered Mt. Cangshan add radiance and beauty to each other. The scene is, therefore, described as "Silver Cangshan and Jade Erhai".
After lunch at a local restaurant, visit the Butterfly Spring and Three Pagodas. Situated at the foot of Yunlong Peak of the Cangshan Mountain, 27 km south of the Dali Old Town, Butterfly Spring is surrounded by ancient camphor trees. In spring when the trees put forth fragrant flowers, thousands of different types of butterflies flutter among the branches and over the spring water forming a dazzling "Kingdom of Butterflies".
The Three Pagodas consist of one big pagoda and two small ones. They arise on the Mt. Cangshan slope overlooking the Erhai Lake, known as Chongsheng San Ta in Chinese, meaning the Three Pagodas of Saintly Worship.
Day 07 Dali- Lijiang via private car or coach (Meals: B/L/-)
Sightseeing: Lijiang Old Town / Black Dragon Pool
Be transferred to Lijiang by private car or coach. Arrive at Lijiang. Visit the Black Dragon Pool. With a history of more than 800 years, covering an area of 3.8 square kilometers, the Old Town of Lijiang, also named Dayan (Big Ink Slab in Chinese) Town, is a well-preserved old city. As a result of the combination of the multinational brilliant culture and the progress of Naxi ethnic minority, the buildings in the town incorporate the best parts of the architectural traits of Han, Bai, and Tibet into a unique Naxi style. In 1997, this old town was put on the list of the world cultural heritages.
Day 08 Lijiang (Meals: B/L/-)
Sightseeing: Baisha Frescoes / Jade Dragon Snow Mountain / Naxi Ancient Music
Depart from your hotel after breakfast. To be transferred outside city to visit the Dragon Snow Mountain. 15km north of Lijiang city with an altitude of 5600 meters (18,400 feet) above sea level, is the highest mountain on the southern bank of the Yangtze River. It is a holy mountain for the local Naxi people and now is a famous scenic spot for sightseeing, mountaineering, skiing, exploration, scientific research and taking holiday.
After lunch at a local restaurant, you will visit Baisha Frescoes. These frescoes paintings are very special and reflect the different religious cultures and artistic forms of Buddhism, Lamaism, Taoism and the Naxi Dongba religion. They are the artistic representations of economic development, mutual acculturation of multinational culture, and the growth of religions.
Then enjoy a wonderful Naxi Ancient Music concert in the evening. Naxi (also spelt Nakhi and Nahi) Ancient Music is a traditional Naxi Ethnic Group classical music. It is also regarded as the "living fossil of Chinese music."
Day 09 Lijiang
Sightseeing: Guangzhou - Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall / Chen Family Temple
Be transferred to the airport in the morning for the flight to Kunming. Then transmit flight to Guangzhou. Arrive at Guangzhou, be met & transferred to have city tours to Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, which is the most symbolized building of Guangzhou, and a key venue for the large-scale meetings and performances as well.
Then visit the Chen Family Temple. Also known as Guangdong Folk Art Museum, it was built in the 1890s. The decoration combines wood carving, brick carving, stone carving, clay sculpture, ash sculpture, brass and iron foundry, grotto, etc. The special historical, artistic, and scientific aspects of the temple have made it an important attraction in Guangzhou.
Day 10 Guangzhou- Hong Kong via morning train (Meals: B/-/-)
Free at leisure until to be transferred to the train station for express train to Hong Kong.
End of Service!
