Dali, Yunnan | Three-Day Tour to Erhai Lake

Number of days：3 days
Time: June
Average cost: 4,000 yuan
With whom: husband and wife
Updated: 2022.06.10

After getting our marriage certificate on May 20th, I booked a travel photoshoot without a clue. I decided to go to Dali after the Dragon Boat Festival, completely forgetting that Dali is in the rainy season from May to October.

Chengdu (Shenzhen) - Kunming

June 6th: Kunming - Dali, afternoon tour of Dali Ancient Town

June 7th: Tour around Erhai Lake

June 8th: Jizhao Nunnery, Chongsheng Temple Three Pagodas Cultural Tourism Area

Kunming - Chengdu (Shenzhen)

Checked in to the hotel and rented a car

Arrived in Dali at 2:30 pm on the 6th. As soon as I left the station, it was stormy. It suddenly dawned on me that it was the rainy season! Here are the pictures directly, and feel the dark clouds (taken with Huawei's original camera, some in standard mode, a few in vivid mode, no retouching. Of course, the portraits were photoshopped a bit, haha)

Erhai Lake Dark clouds are pressing down on the city, and I have a feeling that my wedding photos are going to be a disaster. . .

The hotel I booked for the travel photo shoot is pretty good, the Hotel Indigo Dali Erhai, the filming location of the TV series "Sito". 140-degree sea view room, you can upgrade to a 180-degree high-rise sea view room by adding 100 at the hotel front desk.

It was in this place that Si Teng tasted drinks of various colors.

The hotel cakes were not tasty, they were sweet, greasy and hard!

I need to catch up on some work first. Even if I've taken time off, I still need to finish what needs to be done.

In Dali, most tourists probably choose to rent a car to drive around Erhai Lake. Even a novice driver (who hasn't driven much in a year after getting their license) is itching to get started. The car rental agency I'd looked at online was a bit far away, but I saw one a little over a kilometer from our hotel, so I decided to give it a try.

The boss is a nice guy (this is just my personal opinion), so I won’t blur the sign.

The road is full of potholes and is under repair! The boss sat in the passenger seat and watched us drive for a kilometer. He was a little nervous. When he parked, the car was shaking and he almost hit the pole in front. The big brother immediately told the boss to buy insurance. All kinds of insurance, higher insurance! The boss said in a very subtle way that he would help us call a designated driver for 150 a day. When I was confused and hesitant to explain, they made a decision. The boss helped to contact the designated driver and asked him to pick us up at the hotel at 9:30 tomorrow morning. When the road conditions are good, he will let me drive for a while and have fun!

Dali Ancient Town

It was already past 5pm when we arrived at Dali Ancient Town. It was drizzling, there were few people around, and most shops were still open. One umbrella for two people was too crowded, so we decided to buy one (10 yuan) and use our own! （PS: The big brother only uses the umbrella to protect himself from the rain, so）

The first sight of entering the ancient city through the right door is desolate

Dali Ancient City

Above

Dali Ancient Town

Dali Ancient Town Presidential Military Marshal's Mansion

Succulent lovers, I'm really jealous of Yunnan! Wuhua Tower: First built in Nanzhao (856 AD), it was the state guesthouse during the Nanzhao period. It was destroyed in the early Ming Dynasty. The existing one was rebuilt in 1999. Wuhua Building Tie-dyeing is ubiquitous in Yunnan, especially in Dali, where you can try it yourself. You can try it, it's not expensive. I don't like this taste, haha Dali Ancient Town Dali Ancient Town

Wuhua Tower, the highest point in the ancient city, overlooking the whole city.

Dali Ancient City

Dali Ancient Town

Dali Ancient Town Confucian Temple

The courtyard where the film "Sito" was filmed, Zhongheju, is located in the ancient city of Dali. It was too late to visit. Dali Ancient Town Foreigner Street

Dali Palace, hotel, tour guide with a group of aunts to check in and take pictures, holding up high to snap a picture, passing

Dali Ancient Town Dali Palace

The storm is coming, my stomach is growling with hunger, and I see "Master Duan" around the corner...

The rain is heavy, drifting in through the window, quickly close the window src="https://dimg04.c-ctrip.com/images/0105i120009is5nueA08F_R_800_10000_Q90.jpg?proc=autoorient" /> The service is thoughtful, the staff are all in ancient costumes, the food is okay, suitable for checking in and taking photos

Wuhua Building

After dinner, the rain stopped, and my brother took me to the bar street to experience the bustle of Dali. However, haha

The place where my brother and his colleagues drank alcohol and blacked out (it is said that they only drank two bottles of beer)

src="https://dimg04.c-ctrip.com/images/01022120009is5ktbE643_R_800_10000_Q90.jpg?proc=autoorient" /> I really don't like this frame

This alley is okay

Dali Ancient City Running so fast, it's amazing how long your legs are, but you still have to wait for me

Dali Ancient Town

9pm, call it a day.

Circumnavigating Erhai Lake

Circumnavigating Erhai Lake, first to the east and then to the west. The designated driver arrived on time at 9:30am.

Departing from the hotel, our first attraction in Haidong was Lanchuan Town. It was raining, so we didn't go there. We went to see Dali Santorini (Ideal State) which was highly recommended by a friend.

The driver dropped us directly at Ideal Plaza, and then we walked down to explore, which was more relaxing.

Erhai Lake

Ideal Plaza

There are a group of Scorpios around! Scorpio is looking at me

Pink, so cute

Succulent

Repairs are underway everywhere.

You need to pay to enter

On a sunny day, it is suitable to go in and have a cup of coffee or juice to rest your feet

Uh, in this weather, can I still take wedding photos tomorrow?

There is a door on the left. There is a toilet inside. Turn right from the toilet and you will reach this green staircase.

I'm taking photos diligently, so I might as well upload them.

Erhai Lake is gray and hazy

It's here. The arrow points to the toilet.

This road should be very congested during the peak tourist season

Standard fake smile

Next stop: overlooking Jinsuo Island (it was raining so hard, so we took two photos and left)

Jinsuo Island

The designated driver dropped us off here, thinking we would walk across the bridge, so he drove straight to the front to wait for us. Unexpectedly, the two lazy guys took a photo and left, then chased after the car, with the rain pouring down...

It's time for lunch at 12:00

This restaurant is good, next to the Luwoshan Ruins. The environment inside the restaurant is very good, suitable for a break, and the food is delicious. There were three of us and we ordered a lot. I recommend the fish, which is sour and goes well with rice.

Stir-fried bacon with mushrooms

Delicious

While waiting for the food to be served, my brother dragged me to take some photos. Erhai Lake Erhai Lake Luwoshan Ruins

The next stop was Shuanglang. The driver dropped us off and this time made it clear that he would wait for us at the next exit (tourist center)! Shuanglang Scenic Area Shuanglang Scenic Area Pink Mandala src="https://dimg04.c-ctrip.com/images/0104a120009isjynq0E98_R_800_10000_Q90.jpg?proc=autoorient" /> posing everywhere src="https://dimg04.c-ctrip.com/images/0100t120009isjyoa3563_R_800_10000_Q90.jpg?proc=autoorient" />

A winding path leads to Yang Liping's Sun Palace, located in the middle of the double corridors, extending towards Erhai Lake. It is so beautiful, even when there is no blue sky and white clouds, you can still imagine its beauty. However, the free entrance hours are from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM. If you want to visit at other times, you'll need to go in for a cup of coffee and some shopping. Because it was raining and the designated driver was waiting, I didn't go. I'll try again next time. The QR code is attached; please make an appointment in advance if you want to visit.

A small alley with only one person passing through, the road is slippery due to rain.

I love this area so much.

A guy from Northeast China who had already walked around a few times bumped into us twice and really liked my photography (he followed us and watched me pose for photos), so he asked me to take a few photos of him...

This pose is a qualified photographer.

src="https://dimg04.c-ctrip.com/images/0100k120009isjz3o51DA_R_800_10000_Q90.jpg?proc=autoorient" />

I wanted to go to the cave entrance, but the elder brother pulled me away, saying it was dangerous.

I was posing all the way and I started to lose my composure.

It’s still more than two kilometers to the exit (visitor center). My legs are exhausted.

Under maintenance

src="https://dimg04.c-ctrip.com/images/0102s120009isjkuvB7D8_R_800_10000_Q90.jpg?proc=autoorient" />

Other people's school, emo

It took only an hour and a half to finish exploring the alleys of Shuanglang. 300 for renting a car and 150 for a designated driver, it’s better to drive it yourself, after all, you paid for it.

These are the black and white and gray toned photos taken by my brother. Just take a look at them. He likes them very much.

We passed by a sea of flowers, which is still under construction. It should be a wetland park in the future. My legs were very tired, but I couldn’t resist my brother’s enthusiasm. I went down to take two pictures. The national highway was right behind us, and he didn’t feel at ease letting me continue driving! We don’t have the wind-blown wheat fields of Xizhou, but we do have some unknown flowers and plants.

We don’t have the wind-blown wheat fields of Xizhou, but we do have some unknown flowers and plants.

Passing by Xizhou, the designated driver asked if we wanted to go inside for a stroll. We both tacitly agreed to take a photo and leave!

Xizhou Town

Did you take any photos? Yes! Let's go!

At 4 o'clock, at the end of the day, my brother remembered the beauty of West Lake and suggested we go for a stroll...

Back at the hotel, I packed up and headed to the travel photography studio to sign the contract, choose my outfit, and shoot the scenic spots. I was most concerned about two things: the number of negatives, the number of retouches, and when the film would be delivered. The contract was revised again and again. Although I didn't care about the gifts, since I promised it, it should be written in the contract!

Have a good dinner. After all, we walked a lot today, haha (I left my parasol in a taxi, so sad)

Tastes good

A bit old

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Passing by Xingsheng Bridge on the way back

Cotton and linen clothes wrinkle easily, haha

Ji Zhao An

Woke up at 6am, packed up quickly, went downstairs for lunch, and then headed to the photoshoot. It was cloudy, so I canceled the photoshoot and went back to the hotel to sleep. Woke up at 10am, and the weather was starting to clear up. I asked the photoshoot if we could shoot in the afternoon, but to no avail, so I went out for a stroll.

Heading out early in the morning

Erhai Lake

At 7am, Erhai Lake was covered in thick clouds, and I didn't know when they would clear.

Going back to the room to catch up on some sleep

At 10 o'clock, I could see the blue sky. Sitting by the window, I felt the sun warming me.

My brother recommended going to Jizhao Temple for vegetarian food. Their company had been there once for team-building and said it was quite good. Jizhao Temple is located inside the Cangshan World Geopark in Dali. If you're just going to the temple, you don't need to buy a ticket. You can just go up the mountain from the Geopark ticket gate. You can take the stairs up. It says 5 minutes, but it's actually longer! You'll pass by Gantong Temple.

You can also choose to go up the wider mountain road. There are battery cars. It is a bit steep to carry two people. One person needs to get off and walk for a while in the steep part. It takes about 30 minutes to walk up the whole way. We went late, so in order to catch up with the meal, we chose to take the battery car. It cost 40 yuan for two people, but we still didn’t have vegetarian food. We only had noodles. Although they smelled delicious, it was mainly raining and there were too few places to sit. I didn’t want to squat to eat.

Too many succulents. The entire temple is surrounded by green pines and ancient cypresses, and hydrangeas are blooming all over the mountains in a variety of colors. It is like a fairyland on earth!

When we got there, not many people were taking pictures. They were all in a hurry to eat vegetarian food!

Those who had finished their meal or didn’t have a chance to eat started gathering to take photos.

Fake smile failed

Choose to take the stone stairs down the mountain and experience the ancient path. Part of it is a stone staircase, and part of it is a granular slope (not easy to walk on when it rains, it's slippery)

It's not easy to walk on, it's slippery, I almost fell several times, but fortunately I'm young and have a strong waist, so I can keep steady. src="https://dimg04.c-ctrip.com/images/0106d120009it0bg83BE1_R_800_10000_Q90.jpg?proc=autoorient" /> Could this be a path created by people trying to get a vegetarian meal when there were many people around?

If it were blue skies and white clouds today, we would be taking forest-style wedding photos by now ┭┮﹏┭┮

Thanks for the friendly photo shoot, the clothes are too wrinkled, I don’t want to edit them

White Hydrangea in Temple Corner

Go down further and you will reach the cable car at the entrance of the Geopark.

I recommend the fried potato cakes and potato dumplings here, they are delicious

At 1:30 in the afternoon, it was still early, so I decided to go to the Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple, next to the ancient city of Dali and 10 kilometers away from Cangshan Geopark.

Chongsheng Temple Three Pagodas Cultural Tourism Area

On the way to Chongsheng Temple, the blue sky and white clouds are perfect for taking wedding photos!

Buy tickets at the ticket office, plus a two-way battery car in the scenic area, the total cost is 100 yuan/person, which is more expensive than China-TravelNote.

Choose to take a battery car to the top of the mountain and the Main Hall. Each car will be accompanied by a guide walking down the mountain, explaining each hall along the way, and explaining the etiquette and process of offering incense.

Chongsheng Temple Three Pagodas Cultural Tourism Area

There are two plaques on the main hall, among which the "Buddha's Light Shining" is hung vertically. It is said that only the Forbidden City in Beijing and this one are hung vertically, indicating high rank.

Main Hall

Next to the Main Hall is the Hall of Eminent Monks, which contains the statues of nine emperors of Dali.

It is said that the one on the left is Duan Yu.

Going down from the Main Hall, there is the Guanyin Hall: in the middle of the hall is the eleven-sided Guanyin statue. When I went there (June 22), I happened to be gilding and maintaining the Guanyin statue, so I had no chance to see it. Next to it are the eight incarnations of Guanyin.

The pine cones are so big, there are squirrels on the road, and they are not afraid of people. Further down is the Maitreya Hall, the successor of Buddha. The statue of Wei Tuo is enshrined behind it.

Go further down to the Palace of Heavenly Kings, where the four heavenly kings are worshiped. In the middle is the god Mahakala. According to legend, when the plague was rampant in the past, Mahakala swallowed the plague into his stomach, causing his whole body to turn black. In order to thank him, the people worshiped him in the middle.

Directly in front of the Tianwang Hall is the gate of Chongsheng Temple. The door in the middle is closed all year round. It has only been opened 11 times since its establishment, 9 of which were when the 9 emperors of Dali became monks. To the right of the gate is the Medicine Master's Hall, where the epidemic will subside quickly. On the left is the Temple of Wealth, where wealth is pouring in.

Happy and healthy

Money is rolling in

Chongsheng Temple Three Pagodas Cultural Tourism Area

The "Chongsheng Temple" with gold characters and gold background is illuminated by the Buddha's light, so you don't need to go to the temple to pay your vows.

After leaving the temple, you can take a battery car to the side of the Three Pagodas.

Chongsheng Temple Three Pagodas Cultural Tourism Area

I saw this reflection on the way down the mountain by electric car. After arriving at the Three Pagodas, I walked back for a while and came to take pictures. There were tall pines and cypresses on the road, and there were many squirrels.

This small courtyard is so cozy. If you have a glass of juice, you can see the thousand-year-old ruins while sitting.

Chongsheng Temple Three Pagodas Cultural Tourism Area

The Three Chongsheng Temple Pagodas are also millennium cultural relics!

Qianxun Tower

Chongsheng Temple Three Pagodas Cultural Tourism Area This is the ticket entrance and the first place to take pictures of the Three Pagodas (the stone says "Best Photography Spot of the Three Pagodas")

After walking down the mountain at 4:30, my eldest brother received a notice to go back to work on the 9th. He hurriedly bought a high-speed rail ticket to Kunming and had a bunch of things waiting to be packed away.

It started to rain, and I had to do nucleic acid tests. There was a traffic jam. The road on the Erhai Lake was one-way traffic again during the rush hour. I returned to the hotel and packed my luggage. At 6 o'clock, my elder brother leisurely asked for a cup of coffee. He said that it only takes 20-30 minutes from the hotel to the high-speed rail station. However, there was a traffic jam, plus the teacher went the wrong way, and he was stuck on the Xingsheng Bridge. Haha, change the ticket!