Miao and Dong Charm | 5-Day Guizhou Guiyang + Kaili + Langde + Rongjiang + Congjiang + Zhaoxing Ethnic Culture Tour

Welcome to Guiyang, the cool and pleasant capital of Guizhou Province, China. Our driver will greet you at the exit of the airport/train station and escort you to a hotel in Guiyang to check in and rest! You can arrange the remaining time freely. Suggestions for free time 1. Qianling Mountain Park: Known as the "urban green lung," it is a leisure place loved by Guiyang locals. You can hike on Qianling Mountain and fully enjoy the charming natural and cultural scenery. Along the way, you may also encounter lively and interesting wild macaques. If you want to burn incense and pray, you can visit Hongfu Temple. 2. Jiaxiu Tower: One of Guiyang's famous historical and cultural landmarks, equally renowned as Yellow Crane Tower and Yueyang Tower, and one of the "Nine Famous Towers of China." You can stroll and admire its architectural wonders and cultural elegance, especially at night when the lights reflect on the Nanming River, creating the stunning scene of "a view in the mirror, a tower in the water." 3. Qingyun Market: Only about 1 kilometer from Jiaxiu Tower, it is an excellent place to experience authentic Guizhou cuisine and bustling nightlife, and is known as "Guiyang's late-night canteen." Suggested ways to arrive 1. By plane: Guiyang Longdongbao International Airport (KWE) is the only airport in Guiyang. It has many direct domestic routes, such as direct flights from Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shenzhen, Wuhan, Xiamen, and others, as well as direct international routes, such as Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, and Singapore. Transportation is very convenient. 2. By high-speed rail: Guiyang is an important railway hub in southwest China. Major cities such as Guangzhou, Kunming, Chengdu, Chongqing, and Guilin all have high-speed rail connections directly to Guiyang and other cities in Guizhou Province.

First stop, head to Shiqiao Village, known as the "Home of China's Ancient Papermaking". It is named after a natural stone arch bridge spanning the Nangao River. The village is surrounded by mountains on all sides, and the Nangao River winds through it in an S shape, making the scenery very beautiful. Shiqiao Village has also fully preserved the bark paper-making technique passed down from the Tang Dynasty to the present day. Using mulberry bark as raw material and entirely handmade, it is known as a "living fossil" of papermaking. You can stroll and admire the original village scenery, photograph the charming Miao architecture, and have the chance to witness the thousand-year-old papermaking process. Cultural experience: You will personally try making flower-and-leaf paper, embedding natural elements such as dried flowers and leaves into the paper pulp. Once it dries and takes shape, you will have a special souvenir. In the afternoon, you will visit Matang Gejia Village. Matang Gejia Village is a traditional village mainly inhabited by the Gejia people, with more than 400 residents. These Gejia people claim to be descendants of Houyi, the hero who shot down the suns in ancient mythology. Sun-shooting totems are commonly seen in their clothing and silver ornaments, and they have a unique language and customs. The village environment is quiet and pleasant, and it is known as "the hidden paradise of Houyi's descendants". In addition, in Matang Gejia Village everything from clothing to tablecloths is batik, as if you have fallen into a colorful world of batik. The women here learn batik from childhood. Common patterns include geometric designs (spiral patterns, sun patterns) and natural motifs (tigers, birds, fish, flowers and plants). The compositions are full and richly layered, very beautiful, and the village is known as the "Home of Batik Art". Cultural experience: You can immerse yourself in watching local villagers do handmade batik with beeswax (yellow wax), and you can also personally try the steps of wax drawing, dyeing and dewaxing to create your own batik work as a souvenir. After the tour, head to our carefully selected hotel in Kaili to check in and rest. Note: If you are interested in staying overnight in Xijiang Qianhu Miao Village to enjoy the stunning night views, please consult your travel advisor in advance.

In the morning, depart from Kaili and drive to Langde Miao Upper Village, a famous Chinese historical and cultural village. This is an ancient Miao village first built in the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties, with a history of more than 600 years. The stilted buildings in the village are built along the mountain, and cobblestone paths wind through them, blending with the surrounding green mountains and waters, and it is known as a "Shangri-La." Upon arrival, you will be welcomed with a grand ceremony. Local villagers will wear traditional long-skirt Miao festive attire and offer guests wine in ox-horn cups to express welcome and blessings to visitors from afar. Here you can experience the special 12-course gate-blocking wine ritual, the highest welcoming etiquette of the Miao people, with a very strong sense of ceremony. Afterward, you will walk along the stone-paved path to the lusheng ground (bronze drum square) in the center of the village to watch wonderful lusheng song and dance performances, such as the lusheng dance and golden pheasant dance, both intangible cultural heritage items, and feel the charm of the "hometown of Miao song and dance." In addition, Langde Miao Village still preserves ancient Miao embroidery techniques. The women's handmade embroidery patterns are exquisite, stitching their love for life and reverence for nature into their clothing thread by thread. You can stroll leisurely through Langde Miao Village, admire the traditional Miao stilted buildings, learn about the unique "long-skirt Miao" culture, and experience the original Miao customs and simple folkways. Afterward, you will drive about 1.5 hours from Langde to Rongjiang to visit [Dali Dong Village], known as a "pearl in the deep mountains" and a "Shangri-La." This is a well-preserved original Dong village, surrounded by mountains on all sides, with ancient towering trees, layered terraced fields, and a stream running through the village, very beautiful. You can stroll along the bluestone ancient path and feel the accumulation of history, and deeply explore ancient buildings such as the drum tower (the cultural center of the Dong people and the tallest wooden building in the village), wind and rain bridges (built in the Qing Dynasty, five in total, spanning Lidong Stream), and Dong-style courtyard wooden houses (one of the most distinctive ancient buildings, perfectly blending Dong stilted wooden houses with Han courtyard style, with Yang Xianzhou's residence being the most representative). You may also have the chance to experience intangible cultural heritage such as the Dong language, Dong brocade, and Dong grand song, and feel the authentic and original Dong customs and the simple, warm folkways. After the visit, go to a hotel in Rongjiang for check-in and rest.

After breakfast in Rongjiang, drive about 90 kilometers (about 2 hours) to Congjiang, known as the "Holy Land for Nourishing the Soul," to begin today's exploration. Upon arrival, first visit the mysterious 【Basha Miao Village】. This is China's "last gunner tribe," preserving customs such as sickle haircuts and tree worship, and is praised as one of the "21 most mysterious pristine tribes on Earth." Basha men are legally allowed to carry guns for life; firearms are a symbol of tribal identity and courage. Their "protecting bun" hairstyle is a major feature: they shave the hair around the head with a sickle, leaving only a bun on top. When Basha men turn 15, they complete this grand coming-of-age ceremony by worshipping the tree of life, receiving a sickle haircut, and being gifted a firearm. In addition, the Basha people regard trees as sacred. Every Basha person plants a "tree of life" at birth, and after death, a tree is used as a coffin, with an evergreen tree planted at the grave to continue life. Their clothing is also very distinctive, mainly black. Men wear traditional black cloth garments symbolizing tree bark, while women, on a black base, pair with some brightly colored accessories. It is worth mentioning that if the hem of a skirt is white, it indicates the woman is married; if black, she is unmarried. You can stroll through Basha Miao Village to deeply experience this unique and mysterious Miao culture and pristine ecology. You will also have the opportunity to watch the awe-inspiring gun salute and sickle haircut ceremony, as well as a wonderful lusheng performance. Afterward, continue to visit 【Zhanli Dong Village】, hailed as "China's No. 1 Population Culture Village." This is a Dong village famous for its mysterious "flower-changing grass" fertility custom and isolated pristine ecology. For hundreds of years, almost every family has had one boy and one girl, with no cases of extra births. You can explore the village's "Men's Well" and "Women's Well," said to influence the sex of a fetus after drinking, full of mystery. You can also stroll through the village and terraced fields, photograph the pastoral beauty of the Dong village blending with terraces, and check in on traditional crafts such as Dong cloth weaving and dyeing and bamboo weaving, experiencing the authentic Dong lifestyle and customs. After visiting the villages, drive about 1.5 hours to Zhaoxing and check in at the hotel to rest. Recommended free-time activities 1. Zhaoxing Dong Village night view: When night falls, the drum towers of Zhaoxing Dong Village shine like stars, as if entering the fantastical scene of Spirited Away. You can enjoy the "water drum tower" wonder from the viewing platform, or stroll through the ancient alleys and admire the glittering wind and rain bridges and stilted houses. 2. Grand Song of the Dong performance: A unique polyphonic a cappella chorus of China's Dong people, inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009. You can listen to this beautiful "world-class intangible cultural heritage sound of nature" in the drum tower or the heritage training center.

After breakfast, you will fully enjoy 【Zhaoxing Dong Village】, known as the "First Dong Village." This is one of the largest and best-preserved Dong villages in China, fully retaining traditional Dong architecture (drum towers, wind-and-rain bridges, stilted houses), intangible cultural heritage skills (Dong chorus, indigo dyeing), and folk activities (Yueye, Sama Festival). It is called the "Dong Culture Museum." The five drum towers in the village are named after "Benevolence, Righteousness, Propriety, Wisdom, and Trust," corresponding to the residential areas of the five major clans. The tallest reaches 28 meters, with an all-wood structure without nails or rivets, and upturned eaves carved with exquisite animal and plant patterns. In 2016, it was included in the Guinness World Records, making it a unique architectural wonder among China's Dong villages. You can climb to the viewing platform at the village entrance to overlook the magnificent panorama of the entire Dong village, or wander through the ancient alleys of the village and experience authentic Dong customs. After that, drive to Tang'an Dong Village for a visit. 【Tang'an Dong Village】 is surrounded by mountains on three sides, with layered terraced fields on one side. The scenery varies in all four seasons: like a mirror in spring, emerald green in summer, golden in autumn, and elegantly plain in winter. In addition, because the terraced fields are built of stacked stones, it is known as the "Terraced Field Great Wall." Relics such as drum towers, stilted houses, stone-paved roads, and ancient gourd wells in the village fully preserve the original appearance of the Dong people. You can stroll along the ancient stone-paved roads and admire the beautiful scene where terraced fields and the Dong village blend together; you can also chat with local residents and experience a different local culture. After the tour, you will be escorted to Congjiang Railway Station. If you want to extend your journey: From Congjiang Railway Station, you can take convenient high-speed rail to other popular destinations in China, such as Guilin (about 1 hour), Yangshuo (1 to 1.5 hours), Guangzhou (3.5 to 4 hours), Chengdu (about 5 hours), Chongqing (3.5 to 4 hours), or Kunming (about 3.5 hours). You can also choose to take high-speed rail back to Guiyang (about 2 hours).