We spent our honeymoon in Lijiang last week. I write down our experience here and list some practical tips what we learned from this trip. Hope it could be helpful to others who would like to travel Lijiang.

Since the direct flight from Shanghai to Lijiang had little discount, we booked a flight to Kunming, thought we would visit this Spring City first, then have a good rest before heading to Lijiang. Upon our arrival, we were told there is nothing really fascinating and worthy to drop a visit in Kunming, so we decided to rush to Lijiang directly by taking coach. That was a pretty hard ride, which took us around 8 hours on the road. We got so tired and frustrated, that my sweetie was suffered with slight altitude stress when we visited Jade Dragon Snow Mountain on the third day. SO, make sure you rest well upon arrival in the destination and have enough vigor and energy for your coming exploration.

Lijiang Old Town is commercialized severely nowadays. Walking on the street, you will encounter some locals from time to time, approach you and ask whether you need their help about where to visit and where to stay in Lijiang. This really annoyed us a lot. Some even said you could enter Jade Dragon Snow Mountain for free with their help. You cannot make an omelet without breaking eggs. Don't trust these persons, no matter how alluring you think. Government should do something about this, then vsitors who come here later can feel more serenity.

In the first two days, we ate inside the old town. The dishes were not in a big amount but very expensive. A plate of stir-fried greengrocery would cost15rmb and most of the meat course would cost over 20rmb. Later we knew that it would be much better to eat in the new town, like Seven Star Street.

In Lijiang, you can find many backpackers in the hostel. Chat with them to see whether you can charter a car and travel together, that would be more joyful and economical. My sweetie and I didn't know this and traveled everywhere by ourselves, cost a lot of money on transportation.

Because of the high altitude, it is very frozen on Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. Bring a thick coat with you as it is very expensive to rent a coat on the mountain. Also oxygen is needed if you don't feel well. My sweetie was very excited to see so much of the shining snow, jumped and ran constantly, after 10 minutes, she felt weak. That's a sign of the high altitude stress. Now you know what you should not do. ^_^

The shawls, handbags, cosmetic bags with ethnic flavor are very popular and enchanting. Very nice gift for friends and family members.

We stayed in two hostels in Lijiang, which are all very nice, worthy being recommended. One is called Free Life Hostel (in Chinese 自由生活驿栈). It is opened by two young people. They all like outdoor hiking, free style life. Their hostel rooms are very beautifully decorated and facilitied. The washroom is of glass design, very fit for honeymoon couples to stay. The other is call 嘲风驿栈 in Chinese. They own two dogs. I love them very much.

The sunshine in Lijiang is very comfortable. You don't need to go anywhere, just stay in the hostel, sit on the cane chair, have a cup of tea, chat with the host, expose yourself in the warm sunshine, that would be a great relaxation and enjoyment.

Lijiang,worthy of your visit. Trust me! Have a nice time!

Client's information:

Mr.will , China , 2008-4-21 17:13