Beyong Guangzhou and Guilin, lies a lesser visited area of natural and cultural bounty. Explore these beautiful backwaters of South-west China with us, through the UNESCO listed Wulinguan Scenic Area, were we have a full day to take in the "Chinese Painting" scenery of craggy peaks and towering rock columns.
For culture connoisers, the ancient settlements of Fenghuang and Chengyang await with their cornnocupia of "old world" living minority folks and sky-reaching rice terraces. Travel will not be easy through this rugged hinterland, but at least at the end of the trip, we have Yangshuo, a favourite place of retreat for backpackers in the know, to rest and recuperate before our journey home.
We hire buses or vans in some places and take public buses for longer journeys. We stay in a mix of 2-3 star hotels in major towns and small family-run guesthouses up in Chengyang and the Rice Terraces. Most of the rooms will have private bath except for the guesthouse up in Dazhai in the Rice Terraces. The highlights are the Dong villages of Chengyang, Dragon Backbone Rice Terraces and the karst landscapes of Yangshuo. As usual, you pay for your own meals, entrance fees, bicycle
hire and other activities.
Day 1 KLIA to Guilin:
Fly CZ366 KUL/Guangzhou 0820/1200hr to connect with CZ3292 Guangzhou/Guilin 1725/1815hr. Check in hotel and walk to nearby Binjiang Night Market. Overnight (ON) Guilin.
Day 2 Guilin to Chengyang: We travel by public bus to Sanjiang 5hr, the center of the Dong minority in Guangxi. From the bus station we transfer to small 7-seater vans for the journey to Chengyang 22km 35min. This is a quaint little Dong Village set by a river in a gorgeous hilly countryside. ON Guesthouse in Chengyang.
Day 3 Local markets & village walks:
We travel by the local small vans to another local village to visit the mornng market. Then we walk back to Chengyang passing through ricefields and several even smaller villages. In the afternoon, we'll 'lepak' at the century-old Wind & Rain Bridge and shop for local handicrafts or simply relax at the guesthouse balcony. At night, we enjoy a song & dance performance by the locals that work the fields during the day. ON Chengyang.
Day 4 Dragon Backbone Rice Terraces: We hire a bus to take us first to Longsheng town bus station 2hr to deposit our excess luggage. We then go to Ping'an 25km located on the rice terraces. There are many viewpoints to be visited in the vicinity. ON Ping'an Guest House.
Day trek Longsheng Rice Terraces/ Dazhai Guest House
Day 5 Walk Rice Terraces: Its a beautiful 3-4hr walk from Ping'an to Dazhai, passing through the Rice Terraces and a small Zhuang minority village on the way. The end of the trail is the Jinkeng Rice Terraces, the highest and most expansive rice terrace views. This area is home to the Yao Minority, famous for their pink embroidered costumes, heavy silverware and meter-long hair. ON Dazhai Guest House. (Note: We paid the local porters about Rm15 to carry our bags for the day.)
Day 6 Yangshuo: Its an hour walk down to Dazhai Bus Station where we hire a bus to take us out to Longsheng. We then board a public bus to take us first to Guilin 68km 2hr, then on to Yangshuo 70km 1.5hr. In the evening enjoy shopping and eating in the backpacker's area of West Street. ON Yangshuo.
Day 7 Yangshuo: Bicycling is a very popular activity here and just on the outskirts of Guilin, one finds farms and rice fields flanked by the famous limestone karst hill. We spent a morning doing this and in the afternoon, we hire vans to take us to Moon Hill area. A trek up to the top is rewarded by great views of Yangshuo and the surrounding hills. We move on to Xingping to take a 2hr boat cruise along the Li River. ON Yangshuo.
Day 8 Guilin: We spend a relaxing morning. Around lunchtime, we take the express bus to Guilin 1.5hr. That should leave the group with ample time for browsing the shopping malls in Guilin.
Day 9 Go Home:
We have a free morning until our flight CZ3916 Guilin/Guangzhou 1340/1440hr to connect with CZ365 Guangzhou/KUL 1700/2040hr.
