15 days yunnan classic tour

includes: kunming, lijiang, lugu lake, weixi, cizong & zhongdian

d1 arrive in kunming, the capital city of yunnan province, meet at airport and transfer to a 4 star hotel. kunming is known as the springcity in china with a history of more than 2000 years.

d2 take a morning flight to lijiang, a well-kept old town dates back to ming dynasty, it has been listed into the world culture heritage. check into a 4 star hotel, then go to sightseeing in this fascinating old town.

d3 drive 6 hours to lugulake which is called a queendom because the mosoes living there still keep their traditional customs that ladies made decision and men just followed. their "walking marriage" is also very unique. you will stay at a lake-side cottage. after dinner, participate in a bonfire party.

d4 take a small boat cruise on the clear blue lake, sightseeing in the island in the middle of the lake, and visit moso villages on the other side of the lake. stay in the same cottage.

d5 after breakfast, drive back to lijiang and relax in the old town. after dinner, enjoy a naxi classical music performance. stay at a 4 star hotel.

d6 drive 200 km to weixi, a tranquil town by the side of mekong river, en route, sightseeing in the first bend of yangtze river. stay at a 2 star hotel.

d7 drive 150 km along the mekong to cizhong, a pretty village with a large catholic church which was built in 1909 by french missionary, after lunch, visit the well-kept church which survived the culture revolution, and a lisu ethnic village. stay in a local guesthouse.

d8 drive 90 km along the mekong to deqen, a border town with tibet, on the way, visit a tibetan village. stay in a 3 star hotel.

d9 get up in the early morning, drive to the high grand view pavilion, wait to see the magnificent sight of the golden sunlight put on the summit of the meili snow mt.(6740m), it really looks like a golden pyramid. after taking pictures, we will drive down to the foot of the sacred mountain, then trek 5 km up the slope to mingyong village, after lunch, sightseeing in the glacier whose lowest end is only 2700m above sea level, and visit a lamasery high above the glacier. stay in the village guesthouse.

d10 trek down the mountain to the mekong river, then drive 200 km to zhongdian, the center town of the shangri-la area. en route, we will cross a mountain pass of 4300m high, and sightseeing in the white horse snow mt.(5430m) which is a national level nature reserve. also stop at the dongzulin monastery which was built at the top of a sheer cliff. stay in a 4 star hotel.

d11 today is a day of relax, you will sightseeing in the napa lake which is a nature reserve for rare birds, including the black-necked cranes. after lunch, go to visit the songzanlin monastery which is the largest tibetan-style yellow hat temple in yunnan with more than 800 monks and 3 living buddhas. stay in the same 4 star hotel.

d12 drive 2 hours from zhongdian to tiger-leaping gorge, sightseeing at the tiger-leaping rock where is the narrowest spot of the gorge, then drive to walnut grove, a pretty village in the middle part of the gorge, after lunch, trek 12 km to daju, a town at the end of the gorge, en route you will take a boat cross yangtze river. stay in a local guesthouse.

d13 drive 3 hours from daju to lijiang, check into a 4 star hotel and relax in the old town.

d14 take a morning flight back to kunming, sightseeing in the dragon gate which consist of some grottoes cut out of the vertical cliff face of the western hill, from there, you will enjoy a bird's eye view of the kunming city and the large lake at the foot of the hill. in the afternoon, relax in the flower & bird market in the old part of the city. stay at a 4 star hotel.

d15 after a relaxed breakfast in your hotel, we will transfer you to the airport and see you off.