The place closest to heaven is of course Shangri-La

Number of days：5 days
Time: September
Average cost: 4500 yuan
With whom: and friends
Updated: 2022.10.02

Shangri-La - the sun and moon in my heart. This phrase, mentioned in so many travelogues, has filled me with longing for this place. Now, I've finally arrived at this sacred place.

Since our itinerary was five days long and some attractions were quite far away, we simply rented a car. We booked the car in advance through a certain app, and the airport pickup and return were convenient.

After landing in Shangri-La and picking up our car, we headed to Dukezong Ancient Town, Shangri-La's most famous ancient town. It was a little after 6 p.m., still light outside. We strolled around the town and then had a meal. We chose the "Tibetan Eight Treasures Special Hot Pot", which has a pretty rich variety of dishes.

We had the yak hot pot. The hot pot portion was quite generous, with lettuce, duck blood, and other ingredients added. The price-performance ratio was incredible. It cost about 130 RMB for two people. The most important thing is that we were very full. This shop also has homemade yogurt, which is said to taste good. But I'm not very willing to eat homemade fermented things like this. I can't recommend it directly.

The architecture of Dukezong Ancient Town is very classical, and the night view here is also very beautiful.

Day 2 A day of running around

The second day's itinerary was really a day of running around. We checked in at many attractions, such as Songzanlin Temple, Napa Lake, the Ancient Tea Horse Road Museum, etc. There are several attractions in Dukezong Ancient Town.

Songzanlin Temple is a must-see attraction, which is also the most famous attraction in Shangri-La. The ticket price is 90 RMB, which includes the guide's explanation. The guide also interacted with us during the explanation, which I personally thought was quite enthusiastic and nice.

We spent about an hour at Songzanlin Temple. The last itinerary was to visit the Buddha statue, but you don't have to go there; it's just a place to collect money.

After that, we went to Napa Lake, which is very famous. In winter, many birds come to the lake to feed. It was no longer the rainy season when we arrived, so the roads here were not flooded.

I never expected that a lake would become my greatest love for Shangri-La. After leaving Napahai, we went directly to Dukezong Ancient Town. There are also several attractions in the ancient town worth visiting. We first visited the Ancient Tea Horse Road Museum. I learned about the Ancient Tea Horse Road from history studies as a child, but that was all I knew. This visit to the museum, on the other hand, gave me a much deeper understanding of this important route.

The details of Ma Zhucai's life are incredibly detailed. I personally recommend a visit; it's truly informative.

The important thing to note is that the Ancient Tea Horse Road Museum is a private museum owned by an elderly man. Perhaps it's open to the public to help more people learn about the ancient Tea Horse Road, which is why it's free.

Then we headed to Guishan Park. Guishan Park is a beautiful place, with stunning night views.

Day 3 Pudacuo National Park

The third day's itinerary focused on Pudacuo National Forest Park. The entrance fee is a reasonable 68 RMB. However, if you want to take the sightseeing bus, you'll have to pay an additional 70 RMB. (You absolutely have to pay, as the route is quite long.)

The scenery inside Pudacuo National Park is stunning. The pine forests are particularly beautiful, the grasslands are particularly vast, and the lakes are very clean. The so-called place closest to heaven, in the mountains, on the grasslands, by the lakes, you will feel this way.

Look at this lake. The dam here creates small waterfalls. From a distance, you can hear the rumbling sound of flowing water. My bestie and I even said, let's just pretend we saw a waterfall.

We left the national park around 4:00 p.m. Afterwards, we drove back to the ancient city. On the fourth day, we embarked on the most exhilarating part of the trip. We went to Abugi Co, where we were mainly hiking.

When hiking, you'll need to prepare non-slip shoes, raincoats, umbrellas, and other things, as it rains frequently here. The most important thing is, when you get to the top of the mountain, you'll find that the temperature is really cold. In short, it's about 10 degrees lower than at the foot of the mountain, so you should wear more clothes.

The river we encountered during the hike. There are so many rocks here, and the river flows over them, making a magnificent sound. The splashes of water from the rocks also reveal that the water here is exceptionally clear. Some rocks are covered in moss, and feel very smooth to the touch. Stones like these have likely been washed by water for tens of thousands of years. Walking along one path, I came across a lake. The lake was an emerald green, perfectly blending in with the surroundings. The mountains in the distance were cleverly hidden by the sea of clouds, their peaks appearing white. Even higher peaks were practically invisible.

Wild mushrooms on the roadside. As we all know, people in Yunnan always eat some mushrooms. But because I'd been educated on the idea that mushrooms are poisonous, and with the Yunnanese people's annual "Catch the Little Man" joke, every mushroom I saw seemed poisonous.

So, we just looked at them along the roadside. They say the mushrooms in Yunnan are beautiful, and they're indeed. Red, purple, absolutely stunning.

There were also some wild fruits here. The saddest thing was that no locals told me what I could and couldn't eat. Because of this, I didn't eat a single thing, which was a bit of a shame. After all, even if you shop online, you can still find a lot of wild fruits for sale, and they're incredibly expensive.

We started the hike around 9:00 AM, and by the time we got back to the hotel, it was already past 4:00 PM. We'd been walking like crazy the entire time. By the time we got back to the inn, I was practically exhausted.

Note: This mountain is quite high, so it's important to pace yourself at the beginning of the hike. Don't crouch down during the entire hike, or you might find yourself in complete darkness when you stand up.

If you feel tired or overwhelmed while walking, you can ask a guide for help. Guides are usually experienced people.

The guide said that the best time to visit is in July, because the flowers covering the mountain are absolutely beautiful. After returning to the scenic area after hiking, I felt much more relaxed. Especially when I lay down on the bed, it felt like all the fatigue of the day had disappeared. The next day, we drove around the ancient city for a long time. We stopped whenever we saw a scene we liked, walked around, ran around, and took a few photos. We were very relaxed that day.