Three Thousand Miles of Xishuangbanna, Mysterious Rainforests—Travels to Mojiang and Xishuangbanna, Yunnan

Number of days: 2 days
Time: July
Average cost: 1,000 yuan
With whom：parents and children
Updated: 2022.08.01

Mojiang Tropic of Cancer Landmark Park

Leaving Jianshui Ancient City, on the way to Xishuangbanna, I passed through Mojiang County and stopped by to visit the Tropic of Cancer Landmark Park. The Tropic of Cancer runs through four provinces in my country, one of which is Yunnan.

Tropic of Cancer Landmark Park Gate

Drive to the scenic area gate and exchange the e-ticket purchased on China-TravelNote for the staff at the ticket office. Tickets cost 40 yuan on site, but only 20 yuan on China-TravelNote. The staff told me to drive up the road to the left of the gate. The parking lot is above. After driving up the mountain and parking, I found another scenic area entrance. Entering the scenic area from the top means viewing it from above. The scenic area is full of man-made attractions. Because we were in a hurry, we only saw a few iconic buildings.

This towering building is accessed through a passage below. There's a bowl-sized hole in the top through which you can see the sky. On days when the sun passes over the Tropic of Cancer, you should be able to see the sun.

Nearby, several poles of varying lengths were erected on the ground to observe the changing length of shadows throughout the year.

Main Pavilion

This spiral-shaped building is the main pavilion. You can go up to the top and take in the surrounding scenery.

After leaving Mojiang, we stayed in Pu'er City for one night. Before checking in, we went to Pu'er People's Hospital for a nucleic acid test. This hospital provides 24-hour nucleic acid testing.

The next day we arrived in Xishuangbanna. As expected, there was an epidemic checkpoint when we exited the highway. Our health code, travel code, and nucleic acid test certificate were all complete, so we passed smoothly.

When we arrived in Xishuangbanna, we first went to the Tropical Botanical Garden of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which is the kingdom of tropical plants.

Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences Tropical Botanical Garden Entrance

The botanical garden is vast, divided into the West and East Zones. The East Zone is further divided into the Green Stone Forest Scenic Area and the Tropical Rainforest Scenic Area. The West Zone is the main scenic area, with the most attractions. Because the weather was sweltering and we didn't want to overdo it, we bought tickets for the sightseeing bus. There are two types of sightseeing buses: the West Zone bus costs NT$50, and the full-park bus costs NT$100. We took the full-park bus. Ticket Prices: The sightseeing bus is very convenient, as you board and disembark at designated locations. Some attractions are not visited by the sightseeing bus. You can also walk to a desired destination and then return to the boarding point, though this will require a significant amount of walking. The sightseeing bus tours in the West District primarily include the Hundred Flowers Garden, the Mengsheng Botanical Garden, the Aquatic Botanical Garden, the Celebrity and Famous Tree Garden, and the National Tree and Flower Garden. This flower is very common in scenic spots. Victoria amazonica

This Victoria amazonica grows in water, with huge leaves. In the distance, a child sits on the leaves to take photos, which is a paid activity.

This is a spectacular sight: the aerial roots of two banyan trees intertwined, forming a connected landscape.

In the west area, there is a lawn where you can take a hot air balloon ride to overlook the scenic area. The minimum adult fee is 298 yuan, and the ride lasts about 10 minutes. After visiting the West District, transfer to another bus at the transfer point to the Green Stone Forest Scenic Area in the East District. There's only one bus stop for the Green Stone Forest Scenic Area, so both boarding and alighting are in the same place. After getting off, you can explore the area on foot. There are seven main attractions. Strangler Fig, Tree Waterfall, Orchid Hill, and River Viewing Pavilion are relatively close to the stop. Other attractions, like the Big Root, require a bit of hiking, which is quite demanding.

Strangler fig

The strangler fig usually grows under the canopy of a large tree. It will grow aerial roots, which will grow more and more and become entangled with the roots of the large tree. Eventually, the tree will be deprived of nutrients and sunlight and die.

Tree waterfall

A tree waterfall is a banyan tree with dense aerial roots growing straight up, like a waterfall.

Big Plank Root

Big Plank Root is far from other attractions and requires a long hike up the mountain. It's hot and tiring, but if you don't want to go, you can skip it. You can also see Big Plank Root in the tropical rainforest area behind.

The next stop is the tropical rainforest area, where you'll board and disembark at the same location.

The tropical rainforest scenic area is densely wooded, and there are man-made paths on the ground for tourists to visit on foot.

Tropical Rainforest Scenic Area

Suspension Bridge

Here you'll find the same strangler figs and large plank roots you saw in the Green Stone Forest. There's also a suspension bridge. The tour takes about 40 minutes. Return to the bus stop and take the bus back to the scenic area exit.

Starlight Night Market

After leaving the botanical garden, we rested for a while at a nearby hotel. That evening, we drove to the Starlight Night Market in Jinghong. This night market has become a popular online attraction, gaining immense popularity in recent years. Located in a busy area, parking is notoriously difficult. We wandered around and found a parking lot with the last available spot.

The road near the night market is lined with many tropical fruit shops, where prices are cheaper than inland areas. Shwedagon Pagoda

The Starlight Night Market is located near the Shwedagon Pagoda Temple in Jinghong. Upon entering the Shwedagon Pagoda area, in addition to checking your health code, you'll also be subject to a clothing check. Some women wearing miniskirts or revealing clothing were not allowed in.

Enter the night market from the entrance behind the Shwedagon Pagoda Temple. You'll need to scan a QR code on your phone to make a free reservation. There are handicrafts and more food stalls at the night market.

Night Market BBQ

There's a river at the night market, where you can take a boat tour.

We returned to the hotel for the night. The next afternoon, we were scheduled to take the high-speed train to Kunming. We still had half a day left in the morning. We first visited the Xishuangbanna Zongfo Temple. This temple is adjacent to Manting Park. Admission is free, but admission to Manting Park is required.

Xishuangbanna Main Buddhist Temple

The Main Buddhist Temple is magnificent and splendid, and its style is very different from that of Han Chinese temples. After leaving the Main Buddhist Temple, we went to the Xishuangbanna National Museum. Xishuangbanna is a place where many ethnic groups live together. The museum introduces the history of Xishuangbanna and the conditions of each ethnic minority.