Enchanting Guilin | Classic 4-Day Guilin + Longji Rice Terraces + Yangshuo + Elephant Trunk Hill Tour (Li River Cruise + Yulong River Bamboo Raft)

Welcome to Guilin. Our guide will greet you at the airport/train station exit and escort you to a downtown hotel for check-in. You can arrange the remaining time freely. If you are tired, you can rest at the hotel to recharge. If it is still early, you can also stroll around the area. You can refer to the free-time suggestions below or ask the guide for travel advice. Free-time suggestions 1. Prince Jingjiang's Palace: Prince Jingjiang's Palace is the longest-existing and best-preserved Ming Dynasty princely mansion site in China. Here, you can admire exquisite ancient architecture and picturesque garden design, visit precious historical relics, learn about Guilin's history and culture, and climb Solitary Beauty Peak to enjoy a magnificent panoramic view of Guilin. 2. East-West Lane: East-West Lane is the only remaining historical street area from the Ming and Qing dynasties, witnessing nearly 1,400 years of the rise and fall of Guilin since the city was established during the Wude period of the Tang Dynasty. Strolling leisurely through it, you can admire quaint historical buildings and cultural relics, taste the most authentic local food and snacks, browse specialty handmade art shops, and experience Guilin's intangible cultural heritage, such as round fans and sandstone paintings. 3. Two Rivers and Four Lakes cruise: The Two Rivers and Four Lakes are an important part of Guilin's landscape beauty, and a cruise on the Two Rivers and Four Lakes is the best way to enjoy Guilin's landscape and urban night views. You can tour Guilin's core scenic belt and experience the ring-city water system comparable to Venice, lasting about 1-1.5 hours. Suggested ways to arrive 1. By plane: Guilin Liangjiang International Airport (KWL) has many direct domestic routes, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an, Chengdu, Chongqing, Hangzhou, etc., making transportation extremely convenient. 2. By train: Guilin has 3 train stations in total. You can take high-speed rail to Guilin from cities such as Changsha (2.5-3h), Hong Kong (4h), Chengdu (5.5-6h), Chongqing (4.5-5h), Guangzhou (3h), and Zhangjiajie (7h).

This morning, you will travel about 77 km (2 hours) from Guilin to [Longji Rice Terraces Scenic Area]. Longji Rice Terraces (Longsheng Rice Terraces) is one of the world's ten most beautiful rice terraces, with a history of about two thousand years, and is known as the "birthplace of the world's rice terraces." It consists of three parts: Jinkeng Dazhai Red Yao Rice Terraces, Ping'an Zhuang Rice Terraces, and Longji Ancient Zhuang Village Rice Terraces. After arriving at the scenic area, first visit Huangluo Yao Village, known as the "First Long Hair Village in the World." Huangluo Yao Village is the only Yao village among the Thirteen Villages of Longji and is inhabited entirely by Red Yao people. The women here have the traditional custom of growing long hair, with the longest reaching 2.72 meters, once breaking the Guinness World Record. Here, you can watch local specialty folk performances (45 minutes, optional), such as mountain songs, long hair performances, long stick dances, and umbrella dances, and also learn about the history and traditional lifestyle of the Red Yao people, such as spinning and weaving. If interested, you can also talk with local people about how to care for long hair and how to make rice water shampoo. After that, go to Ping'an Village for lunch. You can taste local specialties such as rice wine, bamboo tube rice, bamboo tube chicken, and cured meat. If interested, you can also learn to cook these popular specialty dishes. In the afternoon, you will visit the Ping'an Zhuang Rice Terraces near Ping'an Village. This is the earliest-opened rice terrace area in Longji and is famous for its beautiful scenery and unique Zhuang customs. You can hike through the rice terraces and immersively enjoy the magnificent beauty of the terraces. You can also climb to the Nine Dragons and Five Tigers (980 meters, sunset viewing point) and Seven Stars Accompanying the Moon (880 meters, sunrise viewing point) observation decks to admire the most magical natural landscapes. If you are lucky, you can also capture the stunning sunset at the Nine Dragons and Five Tigers observation deck. In addition, you can also stroll through Ping'an Village. The people here wear traditional Zhuang clothing: men wear hand-woven short robes, while women wear white tops and black trousers with brightly colored floral headscarves. Here, you can immersively experience the unique folk customs of the Zhuang people, view Zhuang-style stilted buildings up close, gain an in-depth understanding of the splendid Zhuang culture, and taste the most authentic Zhuang cuisine. After the hike, return to Guilin.

After breakfast, you will drive about 1 hour from the hotel to Mopanshan Pier and take the [Li River Cruise] (about 83 km, 4 hours) to tour the Guilin landscape that is the finest under heaven, explore the most essential Li River scenery from Guilin to Yangshuo, and admire the magnificent karst landforms, picturesque karst landscape, colorful rural countryside, and quaint ethnic villages, experiencing the wonderful feeling of "sailing on emerald waves, traveling within a painting." Along the way, attractions such as Immortal Pushing the Mill, Nine Horses Mural Hill, Yellow Cloth Reflection, Xingping Ancient Town, and the background image of the 20-yuan RMB note are worth observing carefully. Li River cruise tips 1. Lunch upgrade: Our agency has carefully prepared a Western lunch for you, with freshly cooked dishes that morning. 2. If you prefer a four-star Li River cruise, please inform your travel consultant. 3. During peak tourist season, Li River cruise seats are in high demand, so it is recommended to book 1–3 days in advance. After arriving in Yangshuo, our driver will meet you at the pier and drive you to your Yangshuo hotel for check-in. After a short rest, you can fully explore [Yangshuo countryside] and enjoy Guilin's most outstanding pastoral landscape. You can choose the following ways to explore: (1) driving plus walking, (2) cycling, (3) riding a motorcycle (additional fee may apply). Whichever way you choose, you can travel along country roads and enjoy the beautiful scenery along the way, including karst mountains, rice fields, villages, and rivers, and you may also see scenes of people working in the fields, children playing by the river, and cattle grazing in the fields. Afterward, head to the Yulong River bamboo raft boarding point and begin the classic [Yulong River bamboo raft] drifting journey, experiencing the fun of a manually operated bamboo raft going over dams. You can also relax on the raft and enjoy the beautiful pastoral scenery on both banks: villages scattered along the riverbanks, crisscrossing fields, green grass, lush bamboo, dense shade trees, emerald and translucent river water with fish and shrimp swimming in it, and gentle breezes rippling the water—truly beautiful. Along the way, you will also pass ancient bridges, where you can make a brief stop to photograph the beautiful scene formed by the ancient bridge and Guilin's beautiful karst mountains. In the evening, head to explore Yangshuo's busiest district—[West Street]. This is a street that perfectly combines Eastern and Western elements and is also the best place to experience Yangshuo's nightlife. Whether you want to taste some local food or find a small shop to order a drink, relax, and enjoy a rare leisurely time, it can satisfy your needs. Recommended evening activity (optional): If you are interested in the folk customs of Guangxi's ethnic minorities, you can watch "Impression Liu Sanjie," a live landscape performance directed by the famous director Zhang Yimou and set against the Li River landscape. The performance lasts 1 hour.

After breakfast, you will take a car from Yangshuo back to Guilin. Upon arrival in Guilin, you can spend some time visiting [Elephant Trunk Hill], known as the "soul of Guilin's landscape." It is the city emblem of Guilin, Guangxi, China, and one of Guilin's landmark attractions, named for its shape resembling a giant elephant drinking water. This uniquely shaped mountain and the clear river water around it form a spectacular scenic line. No matter from which angle you appreciate it, Elephant Trunk Hill is impressive. Among them, Water Moon Cave and Elephant Eye Rock are worth seeing. After the tour, head to [Reed Flute Cave], known as the "art palace of nature." The stalactites, stalagmites, stone pillars, stone curtains, and stone flowers inside are uniquely shaped and highly transparent, breathtaking, forming various natural wonders such as Lion Ridge Morning Glow, Red Silk Treasure Tent, Coiled Dragon Pagoda, Primeval Forest, Crystal Palace, and Flower and Fruit Mountain, which are amazing. Under the colorful lighting, it feels like stepping into a vivid underground fairyland, extremely dreamy. Among them, the Crystal Palace is the most gorgeous and one of the most famous attractions in Reed Flute Cave. The stalactites shine like crystals under the light, worth stopping to admire. After the visit, this unforgettable Guilin tour will come to an end. Our guide will take you back to your accommodation or to the airport/train station. If you wish to extend this trip and explore more destinations in China, such as Beijing, Harbin, Shanghai, Yunnan, Xi'an, Zhangjiajie, Chengdu, Tibet, Xinjiang, etc., you can also contact our customer service to arrange it for you.