9 Days Chengdu to Lijiang Shangri-La Tour

Welcome to Chengdu, the teahouse-hopping and Chilies in China. Upon arriving in Chengdu, our tour guide will meet you and escort you to the hotel for a rest. The rest of the day is your own leisure time.

Arrive in Lijiang, take you to visit the Lijiang Old Town, officially called "Dayan Town", "Dayan" literally means a "great ink stab", a graphic description of the town's location on a piece of rich flatland fed by a river and surrounded by green mountains. The Old Town is full of cobbled streets, crisscrossing canals, swaying willow trees and gaily hued blossoms. Every so often, a bridge stone, wooden, flat, arched, roofed-pops up and along it trundles local folk in traditional dress.

Continue our Lijiang highlights tour, after enjoying the delicious breakfast at the hotel, then we will be visiting the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain Yak Meadow, Located 25 kilometres north of Lijiang. It is the southernmost snow-capped mountain in China and the ocean-glacier nearest to the equator of all the snow mountains in Eurasia. Yak Meadow is an important part of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. Baisha Village, Wandering around the village, one can enjoy the slow lifestyle of the Naxi People and their friendly smiling faces. The Baisha Murals cannot be missed. These Murals are representative of Lijiang Murals and their creation took about three hundred years, from the early Ming Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty.

Thereafter we will head to the Black Dragon Pool Park, Somewhat idiosyncratically known as Black Dragon Pool, the Jade Spring Park to the north of Lijiang derives its name from the waters which sparkle like jade and are as clear as spring water. The entire park is green with grass and shaded by swaying willow trees. Under the Shuocui Bridge, a waterfall creates a constant roar as it cascades downstream.

After enjoying the nice buffet breakfast at the hotel, today our professional tour guide will bring you to head to visit the Stone Drum Town, First Bend of Yangtze, and then transfer to Shangrila.

First Bend of Yangtze River: The attraction is the Jinshajiang section of the Yangtze, with an elevation of over 1800 metres. The sight is one of the top attractions of Lijiang and the important hub linking the Tiger Leaping Gorge, Laojunshan and Meli Snow Mountain. The great Yangtze flows down from the world's roof - Tibet Plateau and enters into the Yunnan province from Batang (one Tibet County), the river mixes two other great rivers, Lancang River (Lantsang) and Nu River (the Angry River) here, and then the Three Parallel Rivers landscape is formed.

Tiger Leaping Gorge, known to be one of the deepest canyons of the world, with a depth of approximately 3800mt, the gorge is located 60km north of Lijiang. In the late afternoon, drive approximately 3.5hrs to Lijiang and transfer to hotel for check in. Rest of the day is free for your acclimatization.

Exploring Shangrila is like searching for treasures, where you can always find many surprises and dazzling sights. Today, after enjoying the delicious buffet breakfast at the hotel, our tour guide will bring you to visit the Dukezong Old Town, Sonzanlin Monastery, Napa Lake and the villages around.

Songzanlin Tibetan Monastery: Being the largest Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Yunnan, Songzanlin Monastery, also known as Guihua Monastery, is one of the famous monasteries in the Kang region. The monastery is located near Shangri-La County, at the foot of Foping Mountain. Construction of the monastery began in 1679 and was completed two years later. The monastery seems like a group of ancient castles and is composed of two lamaseries, Zhacang and Jikang.

Napa Lake: Napa Hai ("Lake behind the forest") Nature Reserve is a state-designated wetlands area situated some 8 kilometers north of Shangri-La County (aka Zhongdian County) on the Yunnan - Guizou Plateau in northwestern Yunnan Province. Not surprisingly, this wetlands area is a true paradise for all types of birds, most especially for waterfowl. In spring, the higher, drier parts of the reserve is a prairie landscape carpeted with flowers. Parts of this prairie are farmed, the main crop being highland barley.

A full day for you to appreciate the beauty of Shangri-la. The first stop that is certainly worthy to visit is Shangri-la Grand Canyon in Balagezong Scenic Area. The Birang River flows through the steep gorge and the splashing water from thestrong current immerses the entire gorge in mist. There are many rock paintings on the cliffs of the gorge. Much research was done on the paintings and it was determined that they were drawn by migrating ethnic groups in the ancient times. The gorge about 103 kilometers (64 miles) away is on the way from Shangri-La to Xiangcheng County (in Sichuan). In the morning, there are buses to Xiangcheng that will let you off at the mouth of the Gorge.

Then visit to traditional pottery making village Nixi Village. It is hidden in the mountain valley, villagers here are mostly engaged in the production of black pottery, tea pot, hot pot, pot, etc., 2000 years of pottery making craft, amous as its style of primitive simplicity and Tibetan culture characteristics.

Take the flight to Chengdu, upon arrival, you will dip into Kuan & Zhai Alley, a relatively well-preserved ancient street in Qing Dynasty. It is a famous commercial and cultural pedestrain street in China. There are many delicious food, and you can enjoy your lunch here. 

Then visit today's final site Renming Park. The park was built in 1911. It is now a relaxing place for locals. Enjoy the delicacy scenery and appreciate various flower shows. Drink tea is a must-do thing for you. Spend one afternoon, order a pot of tea and do nothing but relax.

Walkthrough the Jinli Old Street to admire the architecture and unique local fun. Enjoy Sichuan cuisine for dinner at a local restaurant this evening.

Get up early, after breakfast, you will hop in a car and explore Panda Base where 18km away from Dujiangyan. It is the only panda base in China. If you are animal lovers, this tour is an ideal one for you. You will have a chance to be a volunteer to feed and clean panda and oberve their behavior closely.

Be transferred to hotel and have a rest

Today you will say goodbye to Chengdu, be transferred based on your flight or train schedule. Wish you a pleasant journey home!