Shangri-La's Sun and Moon New Year's Eve Self-Driving Tour

Number of days: 4 days
Time: December
Average cost: 3500 yuan
With whom: and friends
Updated: 2022.01.29

Where to go for New Year's Eve? My bestie and I discussed this issue in November, and Shangri-La was our first choice. We decided at that time: as long as there is no epidemic in Shangri-La during New Year's Eve, we will go to Shangri-La. Fortunately, there was really no epidemic in Shangri-La during New Year's Eve, and at the same time, there was no epidemic here. This self-driving tour was perfectly realized.

Because we only had four days, we always had to improve efficiency. So, we booked a car in advance from a certain service. After arriving at Shangri-La Airport, we picked up the car directly. The store is in the airport parking lot, which is very convenient to find. We rented a Rongfang this time. The car is very new and the interior is super clean.

BTW, when I was renting a car, I discovered they were selling used cars, and the prices were pretty reasonable. I think I might be able to buy a car this year, haha.

About attractions:

You can visit a lot of attractions in Shangri-La in 3 days, and you can have a very relaxing 9 days. In short, you can have fun for any length of time.

Although we only had four days, we still visited Feilai Temple, Dukezong Ancient Town, Songzanlin Temple, Pudacuo Forest Park, and many other attractions in Shangri-La.

About accommodation:

There are many inns in Shangri-La, and they are generally well-decorated. However, don't trust online photos of inns that cost 50 or 60 yuan a night; they have nothing to do with the actual situation. Even if the room looks spacious, it's actually just a photo taken from a different angle.

Due to the pandemic, you can get a very nice room for around 200 yuan now. It's important to check whether the inn has an elevator and is located on the roadside. Some inns are located at high altitudes, and you have to walk up a long flight of stairs to get in, which can be very tiring.

Shangri-La Daily Report

On the way to Feilai Temple, we passed Baima Snow Mountain. From afar, the snow-capped mountains are particularly beautiful. From this vantage point, we can see two roads winding through the mountains. The title of infrastructure maniac is well-deserved. Although there are many peaks here, the roads still extend very far. We encountered so many beautiful scenery along the way, for example, the Jinsha River was right under our feet. For example, the Shika, Baima, and Meili Snow Mountains I saw along the way were all incredibly beautiful. No wonder so many people are drawn to climbing them. My favorite, though, was the Jinsha River, which I'd only seen in textbooks. Finally, it was there. We stayed directly near Feilai Temple one day. The reason we chose this place was because of the great view and the beautiful sunrise we could see in the morning. If you're not sure about the sunrise time, you can ask the staff. The sunrise here is relatively late. For example, it was around 8 o'clock on our day. If it were inland, the sun would have already risen to noon.

Please note that when visiting Songzanlin Temple, you will be required to show your health code and itinerary code. If the itinerary code has an asterisk, you will need a negative nucleic acid test result within 48 hours. Therefore, before you set off, be sure to understand the epidemic prevention and control policies of each attraction in advance.

There are not many people in Songzanlin Temple and Dukezong Ancient Town. I guess the epidemic has indeed restricted the activities of many people.

When we arrived at Songzanlin Temple, we found a tour guide to help us explain. The guides here are really patient. They even taught us where the best spots for taking photos are and gave us a detailed introduction to the history of Songzanlin Temple. Listening to these explanations, I had a clearer understanding of Shangri-La and Songzanlin Temple.

Pudacuo National Park is a very famous park in Lijiang. The park has a wonderful ecological environment. Not only can you see herds of cattle and sheep, but you can also spot black pigs at any time, as well as a variety of birds whose names I can't even name. Many of these birds have incredibly beautiful feathers, which are truly stunning.

We originally thought we would only spend an hour in Pudacuo Forest Park, but we ended up spending nearly three hours there.

The most fortunate thing about this trip to Shangri-La was seeing the super beautiful sunrise over Golden Mountain. The innkeeper said that this only happens about thirty times a year, so we were very lucky.

During our drive to Napahai Wetland Park, we saw beautiful scenery along the way. The roads here are quite narrow, so be careful when driving. The path we took also faced a large inland sea, where migratory birds often flew over. There were also quite a few seagulls, but they were generally quite timid. We fed them and placed them aside, then stood quite far away.

While immersing ourselves in the tranquil natural environment, we encountered another thrilling experience: a section of road submerged in the sea. Although shallow, the water was visible, reaching the road surface, reminiscent of a rainy day. After this section, we encountered another section of road, about 500 meters deep, with a depth of about 10 centimeters. Since we rented an SUV, we felt quite comfortable driving.

As we drove along, the beauty of Napa Lake was etched in our minds. Yunnan, like Tibet, offers stunning scenery everywhere.

We encountered yaks along the way. The yaks here are truly bold and completely unafraid of people. They stood by the roadside, watching us from our car.

In Shangri-La, I also thought the Shika Snow Mountain and the White Pagoda were beautiful. The White Pagoda here is especially stunning. It's all red, with a few golden birds on the roof. I'm not sure what they are, but the photos show how delicate they are. Yak beef rice noodles and butter tea are common here. At first, I felt a bit awkward trying the butter tea, but after my second try, I got used to it and even fell in love with it. They also offer delicious barley cakes. On our way back, we bought some barley cakes to take back. You do need to be careful when driving, as there are many signs along the way indicating areas with falling rocks and asking you to drive with caution. Also, the peaks and rocks here are truly bizarrely shaped. The more signs there are, the more frightened I get. It feels like every rock is about to fall.

Tiger Leaping Gorge in Lijiang is also a well-known attraction. It was reportedly closed for a while due to the pandemic. Anyway, it was open when we visited this time. It's a very famous attraction, and before the pandemic, many people from abroad would come here to visit.

There are also some restaurants near Tiger Leaping Gorge. We found a restaurant to eat boiled fish. The most interesting thing is that this time we ate by the Jinsha River. It was very satisfying.