Top Yunnan Tourist Attractions

Yunnan is famous for its beautiful landscapes, and in the past, everyone mostly participated in tour groups, but in recent years, the rise of independent travel in Yunnan has attracted more young and fashionable travelers to go in the form of chartered buses, and they will design more diverse, flexible and convenient itineraries of Yunnan tourist attractions according to their personal preferences. However, without the "care" of the tour guide, there are many places to pay attention to when traveling to Yunnan. Whether it is the best season and weather for Yunnan tourism, the high altitude, the transportation from Hong Kong to Yunnan, the religion and culture, or the eating habits, it is worth researching before you travel. If you don't want to hit the nail on the first Yunnan free trip, you must familiarize yourself with this Yunnan travel experience!

Yunnan Tourist Attractions Recommendation

There are 4 major cities in Yunnan that are inseparable from Shangri-La, namely Lijiang, Dali, Kunming, and Diqing. These cities are developed tourist cities, and there is absolutely no shortage of hotels, restaurants, and shopping streets. Most of the attractions are well-equipped to preserve the natural scenery and be very convenient for travelers. The most popular tourist attractions in Yunnan include Lijiang Old Town, Lugu Lake, Tiger Leaping Gorge, Blue Moon Valley, and Jade Dragon Snow Mountain.

The Old Town of Lijiang

The old area of Lijiang City, which has been listed as a world cultural heritage, is the only ancient town without city walls in Chinese history, which retains the historical features since the Song and Yuan dynasties and completely shows the essence of the Naxi culture of ethnic minorities.

Lugu Lake

Lugu Lake, located between Yunnan Province and Sichuan Province, is the mysterious land for Mosuo people. Diverse experience and fun are waiting for you in the “Kingdom of Women”.

Jade Dragon Snow Mountain

Jade Dragon Snow Mountain is the southernmost mountain in China and famous for its chaming sightseeing, excellent Impression Lijiang show, Dongba culture, etc.

Tiger Leaping Gorge

Tiger Leaping Gorge is one of the deepest gorges in the world, making it a world-famous hiking destination. It consists of Upper, Middle and Lower Gorge.

Lashi Lake

About 13km in the west of Lijiang Old Town, Lashi Lake is a natural wonderland to trace the Ancient Tea and Horse Road with exciting horse riding experience.

Transportation from Hong Kong to Yunnan

Taking a plane from Hong Kong to Yunnan, except for Kunming, the other three cities do not have direct flights to Hong Kong. Generally, it is to Kunming for transit, followed by Chengdu or Shanghai. If you don't need to fly, you can also take the high-speed train. Departing from Hong Kong's West Kowloon High Speed Rail Station, it takes about 7 hours to reach Kunming. Once in Kunming, transfer to another city by train, plane or passenger bus.

The best season to visit in Yunnan

Yunnan has its own characteristics in all four seasons, but the most comfortable and pleasant times are spring and autumn. Avoiding the rainy season and harsh winters, April to October is the best time to visit. Yunnan is full of flowers in spring, the scenery is the most colorful, and the small animals in the national park are also ready to feed, so there is the greatest chance to see Yunnan's unique wildlife in spring, and there are also many ethnic minority festivals held in spring. In autumn, you can see the most beautiful scenery of the plateau, the field turns into a sea of fiery red flowers, and the plateau is full of red leaves, surrounded by a strong autumn feeling.

Yunnan has different scenery in four seasons

Although Yunnan's beautiful scenery attracts many tourists throughout the year, the Lunar New Year holiday, Golden Week and summer vacation are the peak tourist seasons every year, and many scenic spots are crowded. Choose to go in the off-season to enjoy the quiet and pleasant scenery of Yunnan.

The weather in Yunnan is all year round

The terrain of Yunnan is very complex, with high mountains, deep valleys and plateaus, which makes the climate of Yunnan have obvious differences, and it is common to experience four seasons in Yunnan in one day. The temperature difference can vary greatly depending on the day and night and the region, especially in the snowy mountains, where the temperature can drop sharply to a few degrees or below zero, so it is best to pack a warm puffer jacket.

How to adapt to the altitude change in Yunnan?

Most of the scenic spots in Yunnan are high-altitude areas, so the following two points should be paid special attention to. The first is mountain sickness. With the exception of Kunming, the rest of the cities are more than 2,000 meters above sea level, and the snow-capped mountains can reach more than 4,000 meters above sea level, so not everyone is used to it. Symptoms are mostly headache, loss of appetite, insomnia, vomiting, dizziness, etc. It is recommended to rest for 1 to 2 days after arriving in Po and avoid physical exertion to adapt to the high altitude.

Plan your Yunnan Tour

Yunnan is an earthly paradise which is worth visiting for many days. Usually, travelers would spend 4~11 days visiting the popular destinations, such as Kunming, Lijiang, Shangri-La, Dali as well as Yuanyang and Jianshui. If you have 4~5 days, you can choose your favored two destinations for one go, like Lijiang-Shangri-La tour, Kunming Lijiang tour, etc. If you have about 6 days, you can add three destinations into your travel list, like Lijiang Shangri-La Kunming tour, Kumming Dali Lijiang tour, etc. If you have about 8 days, you can put the four hot destinations - Kunming Dali Lijiang Shangri-La in one trip. If you want to cover all the highlights of Yunnan, arrange 10 days or longer will be great for the in-depth exploration.

Travel with Travel Tour China

We have helped many global travelers enjoy their memorable trips to Yunnan for the past few years. Among them Mr. Elie & his wife from Belgium had 15 great days in Yunnan during their 69 days China trip customized with us and shared us their special travel story. Travel with Travel Tour China to create your wonderful Yunnan trip memories!