Early September, Dali and Lijiang are also so beautiful in the off-season!

Number of days: 4 days
Time: September
Average cost: 3200 yuan
With whom: and friends
Updated: 2024.09.10

Day 1: Dali Ancient Town

Day 1

Both Dali and Lijiang have airports, but flights are infrequent and the prices aren't great. We first flew to Kunming and then took a train to Dali.

We arrived in Dali at 3:00 PM on our first day. If you have time, don't miss the half-hour walk north of the train station to Erhai Park. It's uncrowded, with almost no tourists, and you can get a first glimpse of Erhai Lake from a vantage point. We didn't have any plans for the first day, so we took advantage of the sun to stroll along the south coast of Erhai Lake before sunset. Sitting on the south coast, with Cangshan Mountain to my left and Erhai Lake in front of me, the gentle breeze instantly brightened my mood. The roadside flowers in Yunnan are truly magnificent.

If you're staying in a hotel, the south coast is the only one with hotels. The other popular destinations in Haixi Ancient Town and Haidong Shuanglang are all B&Bs. Of course, if you want floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the sea, the price is different, hahaha. The B&B we stayed in, called "Monica," is located in a village in Haixi. Its advantages are that it's in the village (quiet, with roosters crowing in the morning), but its disadvantages are that it's also in the village (getting around requires taxis and a half-hour walk to the seaside promenade). Choose a B&B that suits you. We were pressed for time, having to leave for Lijiang the next afternoon, so after checking into the hotel, we planned to explore Dali Ancient Town that evening. There are plenty of electric bikes here, so the confident can swipe one for 20 yuan for two hours. The village lacks streetlights, and the roads aren't great, but who can compare to the feeling of speeding down Cang'er Boulevard at night? Since it was off-season, the Dali Ancient Town Night Market was also deserted. Needless to say, it's unique, but not overly repetitive, and the shops aren't overly repetitive. It's worth a visit.

The next day

In the morning, I continued to ride an electric scooter and check in the popular Cang'er Avenue. It is indeed more beautiful during the day than at night, but the road is dangerous, so it is not recommended to stay too long. Then we went to circle Erhai Lake. We both said shamelessly at the beginning that we wanted to circle it. You have to know that Erhai Lake is about 120 kilometers long, and it is generally impossible to circle it completely. The planned ecological corridor is in Haixi, which is on the ancient city side. The rest of the corridor has to be ridden on the national highway. The corridor is about 40 kilometers long. The starting point is said to be near the Maternal and Child Health Hospital, and the end point is in Xizhou. Of course, you can also ride a part in the middle. We passed through the village where the guesthouse is and entered the corridor, which is about 7 kilometers. Electric bikes and bicycles from outside aren't allowed in the corridors; you can only ride within them. There are two-wheeled, one-seat bikes, two-wheeled, two-seat bikes, three-wheeled, two-seat bikes, and four-wheeled, four-seat bikes (golf carts). It's worth noting that different bikes have different limits for riding, and they automatically shut down once you leave their designated areas. I almost laughed when I found out; this is such a gimmick. The two-wheeled, one-seat bikes can basically be ridden the entire route, while the two-wheeled, two-seat bikes, like motorcycles, can only go a little over 20 kilometers before being restricted. I'm not sure exactly how far the golf carts can go, but we ended up parking them around the 26-kilometer mark.

How do we know this so well? We rode from about 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., covering only about 20 kilometers. You can judge for yourself. Of course, we took lots of photos along the way, so I'm sure you'll get some great photos.

Arrived in Lijiang that evening!

Day 3

Yulong Snow Mountain is divided into several scenic spots: the main cable car to Yulong Snow Mountain, the smaller cable cars to Yaoniuping, Yunshanping, and Blue Moon Valley. Tickets for the main cable car are highly sought after, with tickets going on sale at 8 PM the night before. Don't worry about getting tickets during peak season, but don't worry about getting them during off-season. Tickets for the other smaller cable cars are generally available at any time.

Early morning on the third day, we boarded bus No. 101 at Zhongyi Market, the starting point, to the Yulong Snow Mountain Scenic Area. Bus No. 101 is a dedicated bus that runs from 7 AM to 6 PM. The journey takes about 40 minutes. Entry fees are 100 RMB per person.

The weather is crucial to visit Yulong Snow Mountain, otherwise you'll only see half of it. Why do I say half? If it rains, you can only see the nearby mountains from the Yulong Snow Mountain Observation Deck. At Yunshanping, you can only see the fir trees and not the distant snow-capped mountains. If it rains heavily, you can't even see Blue Moon Valley (the water is muddy). Fortunately, the rain cleared up that day after a light rain, and we were able to see Blue Moon Valley (it's truly that blue, no filter). As for the oxygen tank and altitude sickness, you will have a slight headache if you stay there for a long time, but shock is very rare, so you should do it according to your ability. Overall, Yulong Snow Mountain is worth visiting. I have some regrets, but I would like to see its true appearance next time.

We had dinner in Shuhe Ancient Town

Taste:

Every dish was delicious, not a single one was disappointing

The Dai-style steamed mushrooms were very delicious, with the original flavor. The addition of lemongrass and green peppercorns made them more greasy.

The Dai-style lemon chicken feet had a very refreshing lemon flavor and canned pineapple. The Lijiang Baba (sweet and salty) is worth a try.

The Lover's Plum Braised Spare Ribs had a sweet and sour taste, and the ribs were very crispy and delicious. The coconut-flavored Ruda coconut milk and coconut nut soaked dry bread slices were delicious and not greasy.

Environment:

There are plenty of seats and the environment is also very good, with both indoor and outdoor dining

Value for money:

The price is not expensive in Shuhe. I think it is worth a try considering the taste and price.

Day 4

Next, a few rants about Lijiang Old Town. I had originally planned to spend my last day exploring the Old Town, but after an hour, I lost interest. There was so much overlap in shops. Take flower cakes, for example, there were 20 or 30 shops covering every street. I'm assuming these are all pre-made. Freshly baked ones are baked in-store, likely from several factories with different brands. I saw Jiahua making their own cakes. They might be trying to emulate the "Luxi River" style, but the price is quite high, and the quality is indeed higher. If you want to buy souvenirs, I suggest you go to the local market. You can compare the prices of the same product in the ancient city and the market and you will know how much water there is.