9-Day Yunnan Spring Tour | Kunming, Lijiang, Shangri-La & Dali

Your 9-day Yunnan spring tour starts with the following arrangements. Meet the confirmed local reception team at the Kunming airport or station specified in your booking and transfer to your hotel. Keep the rest of the day unhurried after travelling. Nearby walks and food suggestions are available for early arrivals, but independent exploration does not include an ongoing sightseeing vehicle or guide.

Travel to the Stone Forest for 3–3.5 hours of selected limestone paths, then retain 2–2.5 hours for Yiliang Cherry Blossom Valley before returning to Kunming. Different trees flower at different times, and rain or wind may change the display. Poor bloom is addressed through the agreed option of a shorter valley stop and more Stone Forest or a suitable Kunming park, not a guaranteed wall of blossom.

Stone Forest · Yiliang Cherry Blossom Valley

Take the booked second-class service from the confirmed Kunming station to Lijiang, allowing roughly 3.5–4.5 hours on the selected train plus local transfers. Meet the Lijiang team and explore the Old Town’s channels, courtyards and Sifang Street for about 2–3 hours when arrival permits. A seasonal Puji Temple visit may replace part of the free time only if its old Yunnan cherry trees are flowering and access is open.

Lijiang Old Town

Visit Jade Dragon Snow Mountain using the reserved scenic bus and cableway arrangement. The Glacier Park upper station is around 4,500 metres: stairs and thin air remain even after the lift. Choose the actual walking distance around individual condition and operating restrictions, without promising the highest boardwalk. Descend to Blue Moon Valley for its pools and limestone edges, allowing 1.5–2 hours there. The reserved Glacier Park circuit may reach higher boardwalk viewpoints only when conditions and personal fitness allow. A Black Dragon Pool stop on return is time-permitting, not a second compulsory mountain effort.

Jade Dragon Snow Mountain · Blue Moon Valley

Follow the road from Lijiang to the Upper Gorge for a 2–2.5-hour scenic-area visit beside the Jinsha River. Expect stairs and use only open public routes; this does not include the multi-day High Trail. Continue to Shangri-La and rest after reaching approximately 3,200 metres. Total road travel may take 4–5 hours plus breaks and the gorge visit, with no intensive evening sightseeing.

Tiger Leaping Gorge

Spend about 2–2.5 hours at Songzanlin and 1.5–2 hours in selected Dukezong lanes and the accessible Guishan area. Respect active religious spaces, photography rules and residents. Transfer to Shangri-La station for the booked second-class service to Dali, confirming actual running time and arrival reception. Keep the evening clear after check-in; costume photography is not added before the train.

Songzanlin Monastery · Dukezong Ancient Town

Visit the Three Pagodas for 1.5–2 hours, then Xizhou for about 2–2.5 hours among Bai courtyards and market lanes. View accessible farmland without entering crops, followed by the included 1–1.5-hour flower-cake introduction and a short designated Erhai shoreline walk. Crop colour and flower filling depend on planting and supply, not a fixed field or same-day-picked roses.

Chongsheng Temple and Three Pagodas · Xizhou Ancient Town · Erhai Lake

Walk Dali Old Town for 1.5–2 hours before transferring to Dali station for the booked second-class train to Kunming. Meet the local guide and driver and check in. The Golden Horse and Jade Rooster Archways and Nanping Street remain a time-permitting 1–1.5-hour city walk after an early arrival; a later train goes directly to the hotel without compressing rest or dinner.

Dali Ancient Town

Keep independent time near your Kunming hotel until the agreed pickup. The scheduled private transfer reaches the airport or railway station confirmed in your proposal, allowing for traffic, luggage and departure procedures. Additional visits or a different drop-off location require advance agreement rather than an assumed extension of the daily service.