Dali's romantic scenery is the most romantic. Self-drive in Dali

Number of days：5 days
Time: May
Average cost: 3900 yuan
With whom: couple
Updated: 2024.06.05

Originally I was thinking of visiting Dali during the summer vacation, but I couldn't resist any more. So I decided to go to Dali during the May Day holiday and to Lijiang during the summer vacation. This way, I could have one more trip. It was wonderful. The weather in Dali in early May was so beautiful, not too cold or too hot, just perfect.

We flew to Kunming first, took the high-speed rail from Kunming to Dali, and then booked a car from a certain Hi store at the Dali High-speed Railway Station. Their pick-up point is very close to the high-speed railway station, less than 200 meters from the exit. Moreover, the staff is very professional, a young lady, and very enthusiastic.

Day 1 starts with a delicious meal

After picking up the car, we went to a restaurant. This is the restaurant I had been wanting to visit since I was making my travel guide. We went straight to Lao Shouyi Pickled Cabbage Beef (Economic Development Zone Branch). When we arrived, the restaurant was very crowded!

Ordering: Confirm your table number - choose your hot pot base (clear soup or hot and sour) - the waiter weighs your beef or offal - then you'll get a basket to weigh out your vegetables. The menu is extensive, with basic cooked and raw beef, and offal like tendons, intestines, tongue, and tripe! There are also standard staples like fried rice and fried steamed buns. For the hot and sour hot pot base, I recommend a slightly spicy option.

I recommend the cooked beef; the texture speaks volumes! Even after blanching the raw beef, it's still a bit tough... The offal, tendons, and tripe become even more tender and flavorful the longer they're cooked! I recommend the dried konjac for a side dish; it absorbs the broth perfectly! Potatoes, lettuce, and pumpkin are all options, depending on your preference! With a good soup base and delicious beef, you can't go wrong with anything. After dinner, we walked around for a while and then drove directly to the hotel. I searched online and found a cocktail bar nearby called "Backstage Bar," so I headed there. It's located on the ground floor of Binhai Junyuan. We went there that evening and had to sit at the bar, so we had to wait a few minutes...it was quite crowded...but the atmosphere was quite nice.

Recommendations: Berry Sour, Singapore Sling, Bergamot, and Dove. All four drinks were very fruity and light on the alcohol; I loved them! The Bergamot-flavored passion fruit drink is highly recommended and delicious! Free water was provided, and afterward, they thoughtfully offered chicken soup. Our four drinks totaled 240 yuan, which is pretty average—70 yuan per drink.

Day 2 Experience Dali Culture

I woke up around 10:00 AM and drove 20 minutes to the Longweiguan Ruins, a smaller ancient city area. It's not overwhelmed by the commercial atmosphere, but rather the local lifestyle, so I was able to explore it quickly. The UV rays here are quite strong, so I wore lots of sunscreen. There were plenty of cafes and snack shops, and people were selling vegetables and handmade ethnic clothing along the roadside. Bargaining is welcome.

At noon, I bought "Xiao Yang Liang Rice Noodles" on the roadside. They had a choice of rolled rice noodles for 7 yuan, or 10 yuan with raw skin. The portion was huge, and they had tons of meat hats! Overall, Dali isn't very expensive. It was definitely a bit cheaper than I expected. I don't know how to eat raw hide, so I didn't take it. I saw other people gave a lot of it! It has a sweet and sour taste, with more sweetness. Perfect for those who enjoy sweet, sour, and spicy flavors. The coffee shop I chose, "Xianjinghere," has three floors: the first floor is for the production area, the second floor is indoors and has a terrace, and the third floor is a pure terrace. The view from the third floor is stunning, with photos of Longwei Pass. I hope this ancient feel can be preserved. The terrace is truly photogenic. It's perfect for an afternoon of quiet time, chatting, enjoying the breeze, and taking photos. The drinks are also quite good, average price: 30 yuan per cup. They have a wide variety of coffee drinks. We chose the orange sparkling Americano and oatmeal latte.

The flowing water and the kittens by the roadside really made me feel relaxed. After coffee, we went to the Dali Museum. It's nearby. For me, my favorite part of any visit is visiting a museum! There are many halls, and the exhibits are quite rich. The most interesting ones are those dedicated to Dali's native people and ethnic minorities. The others are quite ordinary and might even seem a bit boring.

That's the whole point of visiting a museum, so be sure to listen to the explanations. Personally, I feel that the Dali Museum, while not a museum, feels more like a garden park. The garden-style buildings and courtyards are complete with ponds, trees, and grassy areas. You can even feed the fish. Afterwards, I highly recommend checking out Xingsheng Bridge (which is just across the street from the Dali Museum). It's a great place for photos! There were lots of old men swimming and diving by the water! Just checking in and taking a photo was great; it was a very sunny afternoon. It seems there aren't just old men from Tianjin, there are also old men from Dali, my friends. I took a picture of the old man swimming, the Xingsheng Bridge, and the red double-decker bus; I felt like I was stacking up. The first three stops ended around 3:30 pm. I wanted to go to Yunxiang Mountain to watch the sunset (5-6 pm), so I went back and took an afternoon nap before leaving around 5 pm. Yunxiang Mountain is a great place to take sunset photos. Many of the houses in Dali are not very tall, so climbing up the mountain gives you a bird's-eye view of Erhai Lake in the distance.

It feels like a semi-developed tourist attraction. There's a cafe upstairs (I didn't go) and a road trip (it looked like a go-kart to me). The hillside meadow overlooks Erhai Lake, and there were many people taking wedding photos, but not many tourists. It was really nice for photos! It was cloudy that day, so the clouds were thick. But that still made for beautiful photos.

There's a red chair, which is absolutely amazing for photo opportunities; it's absolutely stunning! If it were clear, you could see the sunset, but unfortunately, we didn't. It was very windy and a bit chilly up there, so remember to bring a thick jacket. ~For dinner, we randomly found a Bai ethnic minority restaurant and had tiger skin green peppers, seaweed and tofu soup, stir-fried chicken with sour papaya, and stir-fried kidney slices. It was pretty average.

Day 3 Strolling around the Ancient City

We got up and headed to the B&B for a roadside breakfast, where we discovered the best part of our Dali trip: the thin bean noodles. I absolutely loved them; they were so soft, and with the chili pickles the owner provided, the flavors were just right. It was so delicious that after just a few bites, I immediately ordered more. After breakfast, we wandered the alleys of the ancient city before heading back to the B&B to pack up and check out. We planned to stay two nights at the foot of Cangshan Mountain and two nights by Erhai Lake. On the way back, we had a bowl of mushroom rice noodles. I loved the fragrant pork lard scraps in the shop. The alleys were filled with beautiful scenery, and I loved the bougainvillea flowers growing upwards, clinging to these distinctive ethnic buildings. It was a beautiful sight.

Heading to Xizhou Ancient Town, we stopped by Longkan Wharf on the way. This is a popular check-in spot for many people visiting Dali, but we're not really interested in crowded places or popular online check-in spots. But as we were passing by, we decided to take a look. That's how we got so close to Erhai Lake for the first time. We spotted bees collecting nectar from the roses drying on the ground.

A major reason for visiting Xizhou Ancient Town was to experience the local tie-dyeing technique. It's very rewarding to do it yourself, and the finished product is beautiful.