Dali Attractions

Dali Museum

Contains archeological exhibits relating to the history of the Dai and Bai people.

The Three Pagodas

Among the oldest architectural structures in SW China, the tallest was built in the 9th century and is some 70 meters in height - while the others are about 42 meters each. The nearby temple reflects typical traditional Yunnanese architecture.

Cangshan Mountain

Soaring 4,120 metres into the sky, with numerous streams cascade down its richly forested slopes, this snowy peak, also known as Diancang, creates a spectacular backdrop to the city, and is home to many rare plants and animals.

The Butterfly Spring

Swarms of brightly-coloured butterflies are attracted to this four-metre deep pool - located at the base of Yunlong Peak on Cangshan Mountain - when the ancient tree that shades it blossoms in the fourth lunar month.

Lake Erhai

The lake, 40 km long and 10 km wide, is best known for it trained fishing cormorants. Rings fixed around the birds necks prevent them from swallowing their catch.

Kunming Attractions

Bamboo Temple

Rebuilt after a fire in the 15th century, this Tang dynasty temple has been renovated several times since. It is best known for its 500 life-size surrealistic clay figures, including Buddha images in various positions, and all kinds of animals, built at the end of 19th century by the Chinese sculptor Li Guangxiu and his students.

Cuiho Park

Performances of Chinese operas and people watching make this park, near Yuantong Temple, a pleasant place to spend some time.

Golden Temple

Built during the Ming Dynasty, this Taoist temple is thought to contain 200 tons of pure copper in its roofs, pillars, doors, windows, altars and statues, held upon a white marble base. Located in a pine forest on Phoenix Song Mountain in Kunming's northern suburbs, it became the residence of a Chinese general in the 17th century.

Yunnan Ethnic Villages

Featuring authentic reconstructions of village life of Yunnan's many ethnic minorities, performances of ethnic songs and dances, and displays of waxworks, culture and customs.

Lake Dian

Covering 300 square km and extending 40 km from north to south, the lake is dotted with sail boats and has many scenic spots and picnic sites along its shores. It is best viewed from Kumning's Western Hills Forest Reserve.

Jindian (Golden Temple) Park

This national forest reserve, 7km northeast of Kunming, is home to the 6.7 metres high, 7.8 metres wide Golden Temple, cast from 250 tons of solid bronze.

Stone Forest

This rare geological phenomenon, 86km from Kunming, was formed many millions of years ago by movements of the earth's crust.

This bizarre forest of limestone pillars, some over 30 metres in height, spreads over an area of some 300 square km, but only 1.2 square km have been developed with ponds, pavilions, and small bridges for visitors.

Western Hills Forest Reserve

Richly endowed with trees and vegetation, this natural reserve is located on the west bank of Lake Dian and comprises the Huating, Taihua and Luohan mountains, averaging 2,500 meters above sea level. A chair lift up into the mountains affords spectacular views of the lake and surrounding areas.

Yuantong Temple

Although thought to be more than 1,000 years old, Kunming's largest Buddhist temple has undergone many renovations. A new building contains a statue of Sakyamuni, presented as a gift from the King of Thailand.

Lijiang Attractions

UNESCO World Heritage Site

Jade Dragon Snow Mountain

Mount Satseto, 15km north of Lijiang and known to locals as Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, is the highest among the Himalayan peaks, rising 5,600 metres above the plains.

It was first climbed in 1963, however access to the summit is now provided by cableway from the foot of the mountain to Yunshanping (Dragon Spruce Meadow).

Two cableways for skiers are currently under construction.

Tiger Leaping Gorge

One of the deepest chasms in the world, the Yangzi River flows 16km between the 3,900 metre tall mountains. Tiger Leaping Gorge can be reached on a two or three-day trek.

Stone Forest of Yunnan

Fascinating Limestone Karsts

The Stone Forest is a creation of prehistory. In the Permian period - roughly 270 million years ago - the earth flexed its muscles, caused an ocean to drain and the limestone seabed to rise up.

The wash of the receding waters, wind and acidic rains, all lent to the erosion of the limestone until only tall narrow karsts remained dotting the otherwise barren landscape.

Of course, Chinese legends have far more fanciful tales than this. One says that a young boy, seeking to create a dam to help his starving village, stole a magic whip with the power to move mountains from the tomb of the gods.

Unfortunately, the whip's powers failed with the rising sun and the mountains ceased their journey to the dam site - inadvertently creating the Stone Forest.

The young man was to have much worse luck for, finding their magic whip missing, the gods howled out of their tomb and found the boy still trying to move the mountains.

They extracted a merciless punishment and the cracks in the karsts are said to be the whip marks from the boy's flogging.

As with the karsts at Halong Bay, in Vietnam, the locals have given names to many of the rocks pillars - names that say a lot about how they see the rocks.

Mother and Son Going for a Walk, Rhinoceros Looking at the Moon, and Phoenix Preening its Wings are some of the more unusual titles given to the many karsts.

Xishuangbanna

Yunnan's Southernmost region

The local name for this prefecture, 750km south west of Kunming, is "Sip song pan na," which is Thai for "Twelve thousand rice fields." In fact, there are many connections between this area of southern China and its Lao and Thai neighbours.

More than 50% of Xishuangbanna's 650,000 population are ethnic Dai - close cousins to the Thai people to the south - while only 25% are Han Chinese.

Temples in this area have a distinctly Thai feel and look to them, complete with saffron-robed monks. The April Songkran water-throwing festival and the Isaan rocket festivals are also celebrated in Xishuangbanna.

Menglun Botanical Garden

Established in 1959 by the famous botanist Cai Xitao, this 860 hectare garden, on Hulu Island, 96km from Jinghong, is filled with thousands of native and imported tropical and subtropical plants, including many rare and unusual specimens.

Jinghong

surrounded by tropical vegetation, the district capital of Xishuangbanna is home to the Peacock Lake, Manting Park, Dai Nationality Cultures and Customs Garden, and the Tropical Botany Institute. Ethnic tribes inhabit the outlying areas of the prefecture, and several wildlife reserves have been established around the prefecture's border, offering the possibility of organised trekking in the future.

Ganlan (Olive) Basin

This area of rain forest and tall bamboos acquired its name from its shape and verdant greenery. 37km from Jinghong, 64 Dai villages are scattered throughout this peaceful part of Manghan.

Yexianggu

Known as Wild Elephants Valley, the 369 hectares of rolling hills and rain forests, 47km north of Jinghong, are inhabited by large numbers of wild Asian elephants, wild oxen, green peacocks, monkeys and many other species. The reserve is furnished with animal-watching facilities, an elephant training school, butterfly breeding centre, and an aviary of exotic birds.