In-depth Travel Guide to Dali, Yunnan: Encounter the Slow Time of Wind, Flowers, Snow, and Moon

🚩 Core Route: Classic 5-Day In-Depth Tour Day 1: Ancient City Charm, First Encounter with Dali * Morning: Arrive in Dali, check into an ancient city guesthouse🏡 (Recommended: **Honglongjing/Heyu Road area**, peaceful yet lively) * Afternoon: Stroll along **Renmin Road** to find handmade crafts🎐, climb **Wenxian Tower** for a panoramic view of the ancient city, visit the **Catholic Church⛪** (a blend of Chinese and Western architecture) * Evening: Watch the sunset🌅 at the **South Gate City Wall**, relax at a café☕ on **Foreigner Street** * 🌙 Overnight in the ancient city: listen to folk songs🎸, try **roasted milk fan**🔥 (rose jam flavor is the best!) * **Day 2: West Erhai Lake, Pastoral Elegy🌾** * 🌄 Early morning: Watch the sunrise at **Longkan Pier** (arrive before 7:00, the glow dyes the water red!) * 🚴 Cycling: **Ecological Corridor** (Longkan → Caicun → S-bend, bike rental ￥15/hour) * 🐟 Lunch: Must-try **sour and spicy fish**🌶️ at a Bai restaurant in **Caicun** (Erhai crucian carp + local plums!) * Afternoon: Visit **Xizhou Ancient Town** to see **Yan Family Courtyard🏯** (ticket ￥18), take photos in the rice fields📸, experience **Jiama woodblock printing🖼️** * 🌇 Dusk: Visit **Haishi Park** for the silhouette of the couple trees🌳 (free, perfect light after 17:00!) * Overnight in **Xizhou**: Recommended **Jiyisi Inn** (renovated century-old house✨) * **Day 3: East Erhai Lake, Rippling Reflections💧** * 🚗 Private car tour around the lake (￥350-400/car, 9 hours): Xizhou → **Shuanglang** (stop 1.5 hours) → **Wase** → **Xiaoputuo** → **Wenbi Village** * 📸 Highlights: panoramic views of Erhai Lake from **Shuanglang Viewing Platform**🌊, stand on the shallows at **Wase Waterway**, feed the **Xiaoputuo black-headed gulls🕊️** (Nov-Mar only!) * 🥘 Dinner: Eat **copper ladle beef**🍖 at **Wase Fishing Port** (beef with skin + refreshing mint aroma!) * 🌌 Overnight in **Wenbi Village**: cliffside guesthouse to enjoy the starry sky✨ (like **Qianshanji**, floor-to-ceiling windows facing Erhai Lake💙) * **Day 4: Cangshan Mountain Secret Realm, Seeking Serenity and History⛰️** * Morning: Take the **Gantong Cableway🚠** up Cangshan (￥110 including cableway), hike the **Yudai Cloud Tour Trail** (gentle stone path) * 🌿 Explore: admire succulents at **Jizhao Nunnery**🌵 (20 yuan vegetarian meal requires reservation⏰), see the emerald pool at **Qingbi Stream**💚 * Afternoon: Visit **Chongsheng Temple and Three Pagodas🗼** (ticket ￥75), walk around the pagodas three times for blessings🙏, photograph the classic reflection at **Three Pagodas Reflection Park**🌅 * 🍜 Evening: Buy souvenirs at **Yangji Carved Plum** in the ancient city🎁, cool down with **Zai Huishou Cold Chicken Rice Noodles**❄️ * **Day 5: Cultural Immersion, Handmade Memories✂️** * 🧵 Morning class: Experience tie-dyeing at **Zhoucheng** (**Puzhen Museum** ￥120/person, make your own scarf!) * 🐎 Afternoon: Horse riding on the **Fengyangyi Tea Horse Ancient Road** (￥80/30 minutes), check in at the spot featured in **"Youfeng Courtyard"🍃** * 🚪 Before departure: Tea tasting at **Xiaguan Tuocha Museum🍵** (free), bring home **Weishan pork rice noodles** instant pack🍜 --- **🔥 Must-Try Snacks List🍽️** | **Snack** | **Recommended Shop** | **Price per Person** | **Highlights** | |----------------|--------------------------|----------|------------------------------| | 🧀 Milk Fan | Yangji Milk Fan (Fuxing Road) | ￥8 | Charcoal grilled with rose jam🌹, creamy and crispy! | | 🍙 Erkuai (Rice Cake) | Yingfeng Grilled Erkuai (chain) | ￥6 | Served with fried dough sticks and sausage🌭, choose your own sauce! | | 🐖 Shengpi (Pork Skin) | Longwei Street Shengpi Shop (Xiaguan) | ￥50 | Pork skin boiled half-cooked🔥, dipped in plum vinegar🍶! | | 🌯 Yangbi Rice Roll | Mobile stall at South Gate of Ancient City | ￥10 | Rice skin wrapped with walnut sauce🥜, cold and sour spicy🌶️! | | 🫖 Bai Three-Course Tea | Performance at Yan Family Courtyard | ￥30 | Tea ceremony of "bitter, sweet, aftertaste"🎎 | --- **🏡 Accommodation Guide** * **Ancient City Core Area**: **Dali No.1 Courtyard** (designer hotel, courtyard bamboo forest🎋) → peaceful yet lively * **Erhai Lakeside Area**: **Mingyue Songjian·Erhai** (Shuanglang lakeside platform, 270° lake view🌊) → lie back and watch the ripples * **Artistic Niche Area**: **Xizhou Tian Coffee Guesthouse** (in the middle of fields🌾, daily hand drip coffee experience☕) → ideal for escape * **Budget Recommendation**: **Dali Backpacker Ten Years Youth Hostel** (bed ￥60, rooftop with Cangshan view⛰️) → backpacker’s home --- **🚗 Transportation Tips** * ✈️ **Airport → Ancient City**: Airport shuttle ￥25/person (50 minutes), Didi ￥80 * 🌊 **Around Erhai Lake**: Private car > rental car (￥200/day) > electric scooter🛵 (￥60/day, ⚠️ remember sun protection!) * 🚌 **Ancient City → Xizhou**: Bus C2 ￥7, carpool ￥15/person * ❌ **Avoid**: Be cautious renting convertibles! Strong UV☀️ + prone to breakdowns🔧 --- **📸 Cultural Secrets** * 🎭 **Benzhu Temple Worship**: On the 1st and 15th of each lunar month, watch Bai singing and dancing worship in Zhoucheng Village🙏 * 🛍️ **Market Experience**: Shaba Street (every Monday), March Street (1st, 9th, 16th, 23rd of each month) → great time to buy local products! * ✨ **Intangible Cultural Heritage Handicrafts**: **Jianchuan Black Pottery** (experience in Shaxi Ancient Town), **Heqing Silverware💍** (Xinhua Village workshop) → bring culture home --- **💡 Travel Trivia** * 🏯 Bai residential screen walls have inscriptions hinting at surnames: “Qin He Jia Sheng” for Zhao, “Qing Lian Yi Feng” for Li🎨 * ⛰️ The top of Cangshan Ximatan Cableway is 3,966 meters above sea level! Prepare oxygen bottles before climbing💨 (pharmacy in ancient city ￥20) * ☔ Avoid rainy season (July-August🌧️), ✅ best travel seasons: March-May (flower sea💐), November-February (seagulls + snowy mountains❄️) --- > *“Wake up at Erhai Lake🌅, watch sunlight scatter like diamonds💎 on the water; at the foot of Cangshan Mountain⛰️, wait for a cloud☁️ to slowly pass over the ancient city.”* > *“The blue🔵 of tie-dye is a love letter from the sky to Erhai Lake💌, take a bite of crispy milk fan🧀, and the wind, flowers, snow, and moon melt on your tongue👅.”* **💰 Budget Reference** * 🎒 Economy: ￥800-1000/day (hostel + bus + snacks) * 🛋️ Comfort: ￥1500-2000/day (sea view room + private car + specialty meals) --- **🌬️ The wind has brought the pine waves of Cangshan, 🌙 the moon over Erhai Lake awaits to shine with you.** Keep this guide, the soft time of Dali only needs your decision to start!✈️🎒💖 --- > If this guide moves you, quickly bookmark⭐ ➕ share🔄! > Leave a comment telling me which experience you want most👇, and I’ll send you Dali’s anti-pit tips!🗺️🔐 **😍 See you in Dali!**