11 Days Ethnic Odyssey in Tibet & Yunnan

Our guide will pick you up outside the arrival hall at Kunming Airport and transfer you to the hotel in downtown area. The remainder of the day is on your own to explore the city.

Your tour will begin with a visit to the Qiongzhu Temple, which is located on wooded Yu'an Mountain and surrounded by verdant plants. The temple is famous for exhibiting five hundreds painted arhat sculptures. Then, you will travel to the Stone Forest, a typical model of China's Karst landforms. Walking through the Stone Forest, you will be astonished by the extraordinary workmanship of nature. Stones in the figure of plants, animals and even humans can be found here, some elegant, some rugged.

Today, you will take an early morning flight to Dali. Our guide will pick you up at Dali airport and escort you to tour the Erhai Lake Park first, which is the best place to appreciate the beautiful Erhai Lake scenery. The lake is shaped like an ear, hence its name, which means ear shaped sea in Chinese. Afterwards, pay a visit to the Three Pagoda Temple that faces Erhai Lake. As its name implies, there are three ancient independent pagodas standing in a symmetrical triangle inside the temple.

With a history of more than 1,800 years, Three Pagodas have been symbolic constructions of the ancient Dali City. The last stop of the day is the primitive and tranquil Dali Ancient Town, where you will see limpid streams passing through the town and local people wearing their ethnic costumes. A street that goes through the South City Gate to the North City Gate is now a prosperous market street, selling marble, tie-dyeing and other souvenirs.

Today, escorted by our guide, you will travel from Dali to Lijiang, which is about three to four hours' drive. On the way to Lijiang, you will pay a visit to the Bai Minority Traditional Houses in Xizhou. The layout of these houses is distinctive with the features of wood and stone carvings and painting on lime powdered walls. Xizhou is the place where the best and most of Bai Minority Traditional Houses are preserved. Then you will go to nearby Zhoucheng to visit the traditional hand-made Tie Dyeing in the local people's home.

Upon arrival at Lijiang, you will first check in at the hotel in the old town. After a short rest, our guide will take you to visit the Square Street of Lijiang Old Town. The street is paved by the local bluestones, with numerous souvenir shops, unique bars and delicate restaurants scattered around. The most charming part of the street is at night. When red lanterns along the street are all lit up, all people here including tourists will enjoy a relaxing but exciting night life.

You will first explore the Baisha Village and visit a local Naxi family in the morning. Basha Village was once the political, economic and religious center of Lijiang. Nowadays, it is famous for the murals and the old town built about 600 years ago. A visit to a local Naxi family will help you know more about Naxi people's living habits and customs. Then, continue the trip to visit Baisha Murals. These murals, combining the Han, Tibet and Naxi culture together, are a wonderful art form of minorities in west Yunnan, and vividly unfold the life of the minority people to us.

Then, you will pay a visit to the Rock Joseph's Former Residence in Yuhu Village. Rock is the earliest foreign scholar who has introduced Lijiang to the western world most comprehensively. His former residence is also the former base of Yunnan Expedition of the National Geographic Society. We remain the whole afternoon free for you to stroll along Lijiang old town. The small bridges, running streams, cobbled streets, traditional fashion shops and some hand-made artwork stores make this small town a paradise for people who want to escape from the bustling cities.

Today, we will drive you from Lijiang to Shangri-La for about four to five hours. Along the way, you will visit one of China's deepest and most beautiful gorges, Tiger Leaping Gorge. The gorge has a reputation of being dangerous: one is the dangerous mountain with high peaks, steep cliffs, jagged rocks and winded gigantic old creepers; the other is dangerous water with a high drop, fast water current, numerous rocks, dangerous shoals and cascading waterfalls. All these form a rare spectacle in the world.

Then you will come to the First Bend of the Yangtze River. It is named so because a sudden V-shaped bend has been formed when the Yangtze River flowing by. The nearly 180-degree turn creates marvelous and astonishing views. The Stone Drum Town, the town where the First Bend of the Yangtze River located, is the last stop en route. There is a drum-shaped marble monument in this town, hence the name. The town has for long been an important town for Han and Tibetan people to do business transactions. Upon arrival at Shangri-La, you will check in at the hotel.

Today's tour will begin with a visit to the biggest Tibetan Buddhist Temple in Yunnan, Songzanlin Temple. This temple collects the elite of Tibetan religious culture and presents splendid architecture. Because of its similar appearance and layout to the Potala Palace in Lhasa, it is also reputed as 'small Potala Palace'. Then, you will travel to the Bitahai Lake.Fed by small streams from the snow-capped mountains encircled, the lake shapes just like a trumpet shell. In the color of azure with snowy mountains and trees reflecting in it, the gorgeous lake is a wonderland to appreciate the beauty of nature. There is also another lake of beauty and peacefulness, Shudu Lake. The plants around the lake are lush and the wild animals are various.

Take morning flight to Lhasa, our guide will welcome you with a warm Tibetan style greeting and present you with Hada (traditional Tibetan scarves). Then be escorted to your hotel in Lhasa city at the comfort of your own private vehicle. For most of the way, you follow the Kyichu River, you could see Tibetan homes with their trapezoid shaped windows and fluttering prayer flags, and Tibetans walking beside the roads wearing their distinctive national costumes.

Do have a comfort stop near Nietang Buddha where a giant statue of Buddha has been carved out of a stone cliff-face centuries ago. One of the first buildings you could see as you enter the city is the Potala Palace, sitting majestically on a hill dominating Lhasa. Stay at the hotel after arrival for adapting to the high attitude. It is helpful to take things easy for the first few days, and try to drink some water just and now.

After breakfast, we go to the Potala Palace, a golden feather upon the roof of the world, which Tibetans proudly claim to be the prime miracle since the creation of this world. It is visible from any distance, with the golden roof shinning in the sun, spend one hour wondering around the inside of this magnificent building exploring the rooms previously used by the Dalai Lama and the many Buddhist icons within.

In the afternoon we go inside of the Jokhang. The Jokhang, like most of the larger temple structures have numerous individual temples within it dedicated to specific enlightened beings, protectors, high lamas, or saints. Images, both sculpted and painted, are everywhere. Every inch of wall and ceiling is brightly painted with images of clouds, beings, mandalas, or decorative patterns. Colorful silk banners, three stories high, hang in various places. Color, pattern, and images crowd in around you. The central image inside the building is a 30-foot high gilded image of Maitreya Buddha. Then stroll around the back alleys of the Barkhor area of Old Lhasa. The streets smelled of yak butter and incense while hordes of pilgrims shuffled along the main Kora (circumambulations) around Jokhang Temple. If someone just walked at a normal pace, one kora would take about 15-20 minutes.

In the morning have a tour for Drepung, the ever largest monastery with more than 10 thousand monks, Buddhist debates often occur there. Seen from afar, its grand, white construction gives the monastery the appearance of a heap of rice. As such, it was given its name which, in the Tibetan language, means Monastery of Collecting-Rice. Learn about the lives of Tibetan monks there.

The afternoon is spent touring Sera Monastery, have a little hike for the beautiful valley scenery nearby and picnic there, in the afternoon, visit Sera monastery, which was created in 1419 and has always been an important Buddhist seminary. As rose are planted everywhere in the monastery, it is also called “the court of wild rose”. Today still 200 lamas live in there. Catch the famous debate session of the monks before returning back to Lhasa.

Free time at your disposal this morning, explore the bustling markets of the Barkhor to buy some souvenirs for your families and friends. After lunch, our guide will pick you up from the hotel and send you to the airport so that you can board the flight out after this pleasant tour. Alternatively, should you wish to stay on rather than return home right away, you could contact us and choose our other City Packages as an extension to your memorable adventure!