Yunnan China (life, cost, place, people)

[JakeinChina]

I've been to Dali like 10 years ago but I'd like to bring the family to somewhere nice in Yunnan province. I have a young daughter so 5 hours on a bus from LiJiang to Dali does not sound appealing. Direct flights from Guangzhou go to Kunming and LiJiang only. I'm not going to visit LiJiang because I've heard it's a huge tourist trap. Dali is more our speed with less people and to relax and enjoy the nature and beauty of the mountains. Does anyone know of another area that is nice, but would be more accessible from Kunming or Lijiang? Say maybe a 2 hour bus ride? Thanks for your time.

Yunnan Province goes against some of the false stereotypes of mainland China. Yunnan Province is really unspoiled, pristine, and lacks the pollution problem of Beijing area some Northeastern Chinese provinces. Actually, a significant amount of China is not too polluted compared with Beijing. And the current deforestation rate of China is one of the lowest in the entire World. Not quite an ecological disaster some people expect when they think of China, and they are improving.

Yunnan Province is quite relaxing, and deserves a ton of worthwhile attention. Kunming, technically a major massive Chinese city, ranks high on quality of life. You shouldn't ever skip Dali or Lijiang. Why travel this far away on an even longer airplane ride, and not ride on a bus 5 hours, and take in the landscape of a crowded mountain resort town? They are popular in Yunnan for a reason. Lijiang Old Town, and Dali Ancient City are incredible. Stone Forest of Limestone Karsts is essential, including around Kunming city limits. The rice terrace fields of Yunnan are out of this world. Shangri-La of Deqen is another rational imperative of travel there on the opposite side of the World.

Without a doubt, Yunnan is one of my favorite province regional areas of China.

[guawazi]

The town of Lijiang itself is pretty touristy, but some of the surrounding areas are pretty unique and worth a visit in my opinion. Lugu Lake, which is 5 hours away, was awesome. Took part in some festival with some of the locals and ended up being tossed up and down in the air by a bunch of 15 year old girls. Some lady from National Geographic was there too. I also went to Tiger Leaping Gorge which was interesting. Yeah, there was a lot of tourists, but it was still a sight to see.

The town of Shangrila, or Zhongdian, has a similar theme to Lijiang, but not nearly as extravagant. I went in the Winter, so it was cold and the surrounding fields weren't as nice. Randomly decided to make a trip further North to Deqin to see a mountain called Meili Xueshan for the sunrise. Yep, a 5 hour trip to see the sunrise come over the mountains. Froze half to death from inadequate clothing, and slept on a floor with 3 other strangers in a heated blanket that stopped working in the middle of the night. Rode in the very back of a van on a snowy mountain pass on the way back while the driver blasted Tibetan dance music. Would do it all over again. I heard there are many other areas off of Deqin for the adventurous.

I definitely liked the feel of Dali though, being right next to the mountains. I remember paying some guy 10 rmb to drive a group of us to a hole in the wall at the top of the ancient city of Dali so we could jump over and get in before the sun went down. Definitely worth the illegal act.

I'd recommend the Stone Forest as well, 2 hours away from Kunming. But again, it's a tourist trap. You'll have to dig a bit to find a place that is both off the beaten path, yet not too strenuous for someone bringing their family.

[philmar]

Lijiang is touristy for good reason - it is beautiful

[botticelli]

There is nothing too wrong about being touristy, and being touristy doesn't mean it is not worth seeing.

Are Venice, Florence, Prague touristy? Extremely so.

Yunnan is a gem of China. I hope it can be more developed without suffering all the severe environmental problems elsewhere in China. I wouldn't hesitate to retire there in the future.

Originally Posted by guawazi

The town of Lijiang itself is pretty touristy, but some of the surrounding areas are pretty unique and worth a visit in my opinion. Lugu Lake, which is 5 hours away, was awesome. Took part in some festival with some of the locals and ended up being tossed up and down in the air by a bunch of 15 year old girls. Some lady from National Geographic was there too. I also went to Tiger Leaping Gorge which was interesting. Yeah, there was a lot of tourists, but it was still a sight to see.

The town of Shangrila, or Zhongdian, has a similar theme to Lijiang, but not nearly as extravagant. I went in the Winter, so it was cold and the surrounding fields weren't as nice. Randomly decided to make a trip further North to Deqin to see a mountain called Meili Xueshan for the sunrise. Yep, a 5 hour trip to see the sunrise come over the mountains. Froze half to death from inadequate clothing, and slept on a floor with 3 other strangers in a heated blanket that stopped working in the middle of the night. Rode in the very back of a van on a snowy mountain pass on the way back while the driver blasted Tibetan dance music. Would do it all over again. I heard there are many other areas off of Deqin for the adventurous.

I definitely liked the feel of Dali though, being right next to the mountains. I remember paying some guy 10 rmb to drive a group of us to a hole in the wall at the top of the ancient city of Dali so we could jump over and get in before the sun went down. Definitely worth the illegal act.

I'd recommend the Stone Forest as well, 2 hours away from Kunming. But again, it's a tourist trap. You'll have to dig a bit to find a place that is both off the beaten path, yet not too strenuous for someone bringing their family.

A spiritual traditional culture occurs around Yunnan Province. Ultra adventurous, and rustic around lots areas of Yunnan outside of Kunming, yet worth the time.

Other than Kunming, Stone Forest Limestone Karsts, Lijiang(Old Town), Dali(Ancient City), Shangri-La of Deqen, there is tons of high mountain sites all over Yunnan representing how some areas of mainland China is actually very pristine, and not touched with endless urbanity. There is also Xishuangbanna, Licang, and Dehong ultra exotic off the stereotypical tourist path zones on Yunnan land.

Immerse with the culture instead of anything overly Western. One travel tip, I try to avoid any tacky chain stores at all costs. Planet Earth is infinitely better without tons of them wreaking havoc and leaching out the local soul such as parasites.

Remarkable geographic surprise rarely known, Yunnan Province of China has the same amount or even more high mountains than Austria.

Didn't realize Yunnan Province isn't economically on the same boat compared with the wealthiest Chinese province areas & special administrative zones (Zhejiang, Tianjin, Beijing, Shanghai, Macau, Hong Kong), and one of the poorest. Doesn't seem this way with how pleasant Yunnan is atmosphere wise.

Originally Posted by botticelli

There is nothing too wrong about being touristy, and being touristy doesn't mean it is not worth seeing.

Are Venice, Florence, Prague touristy? Extremely so.

Yunnan is a gem of China. I hope it can be more developed without suffering all the severe environmental problems elsewhere in China. I wouldn't hesitate to retire there in the future.

Touristy is a rewarding outstanding merit a vast majority of the time. Lots of rational reason why some areas end up popular with foreigners, and domestic people.

There is a recognizable extremely mixed situation on Yunnan. Relaxing, Culturally wealthy, Traditional, and Environmentally Sound, yet economically poor, and on the potential verge of increased urbanization without enough careful preservation of the natural, historic original version of the land. Yunnan must maintain the unique character without too much contaminated forms of typical cliche oriented Westernization.