5 Days Guilin Hiking & Cycling Tour

Day-by-day Itinerary

1. Day 1: Guilin
   Reed Flute Cave, Elephant Trunk Hill, Seven Star Park (Lunch)

   AM: Upon your arrival at Guilin airport / train station, our English speaking tour guide and driver will be picking you up from the exit gate by holding a welcome board with your name.

   Your exploration begins with the amazing Reed Flute Cave. The cave got its name because there were reeds at its entrance and people can make flutes by using the reeds. Walking into the cave, you will be surrounded by all kinds of stalactites, stalagmites, stone columns, flowers, and curtains created by water erosion and carbonate deposition day after day and year after year.

   Noon: Lunch in local restaurant.

   PM: After the relaxing sightseeing in this fairy-tale world, move on to another top attraction in Guilin - Elephant Trunk Hill. This interesting site is composed of limestone that accumulated on the sea floor 360 million years ago. Our tour guide will show you around some spots well worth visiting such as Water Moon Cave, Elephant Eye Rock, Facing Sun Pavilion, and Puxian Pagoda. You can totally relax yourself here embracing nature.

   Afterwords, walking around the Seven Star Park to indulge yourself in the natural and cultural beauty of Guilin. The park is called Guilin’s green lung and has become the epitome of Guilin’s landscape and culture integrating mountains, water, caves, stones, courtyards, buildings, and cultural relics.

   Last, transfer to your hotel for checking-in. Have a good rest for tomorrow!

   

2. Day 2: Guilin
   Longji Rice Terraces (Lunch)

   AM: After breakfast, drive to the painting-like Longji Rice Terraces, which has thousands of years’ history. It is hard to believe that the minority people were able to bring the remote mountains under cultivation by the slash-and-burn method over 2,000 years ago. Now the rice terraces not only feed the local people but also provide the people around the world a retreat from everyday life.

   Arrive at Longji Terraces Scenic Area, you will enjoy the one-of-a-kind Long Hair Show performed by Yao Minority women in Huangluo village, which was awarded the “World’s Longest Hair Village” by Guinness World Records. Famous for their long and shiny hair, the women of Huangluo cut their hair only once in their lives upon turning 18. In addition to that, you can also have a glimpse of the Zhuang and Yao minority people’s lifestyle through this visit.

   Noon:Lunch in local restaurant.

   PM: After enjoying the spectacular rice terraces, the fragrant bamboo-tube-cooked rice will be waiting for you. The soaked rice is put inside a fresh bamboo tube, and the mouth of the tube is plugged with fresh leaves. The rice will be ready after cooking over a fire for about half an hour. When you cut open the bamboo tube by using a knife, the delicate fragrance will greet your nostrils.

   

3. Day 3: Guilin - Yangshuo
   Li River, Yangshuo West Street (Lunch)

   AM: Today is the highlight of your Guilin tour as you will embark on a ship to cruise down the picturesque Li River!

   Taking the cruise on the Li River, you will admire the picturesque scenery of this land with a harmonious combination of the green hills, rivers, lakes and fields. But its beauty is not like a still painting, it’s alive when vivid – brisk bamboo rafts leaving wrinkles on the water and cormorants hovering under the working fishermen… Our guide will uncover the hidden history and culture behind the natural screen before you during your cruise. You will learn from the local expert about how the city formed and developed and how local people manage their life along the famous Li River.

   Friendly Tips: The Li River Cruise takes around 4 hours, and you will be staying on the boat to enjoy the scenery for most time, so 3-star boat as included would be  adequate according to most tourists’ experience. Besides, you are suggested to have a good breakfast at your hotel and take some snack as there will be only simple box lunch be provided on the boat.

   Noon:Lunch in local restaurant.

   

   PM: After the 4 hours’ cruise, you will disembark at Yangshuo. Follow your guide to explore the famous Yangshuo West Street to admire the antique buildings and local crafts, hanging out in bars and coffee shops, and try some delicious local snacks.

   Last, transfer to Yangshuo local hotel for overnight.

   Optional night activity: If you are looking for a worth-to-visit activity tonight, the wonderful Impression Show of Liu Sanjie will be waiting for you! The stage is set on the Li River, most of 600 performers are fishermen from nearby villages. Through this amazing show, you will know the legendary Sanjie Liu and learn something about Zhuang people's culture.

   

4. Day 4: Yangshuo
   Yangshuo, Yulong River (Lunch)

   AM: Yangshuo is truly a backpacker's paradise. The scenery here is just out of the world! Today you will jump on a bike and cycle around the lovely countryside of Yangshuo. Just follow your guide to breathe the fresh air, ride through the limestone mountains towering on two sides, take in the charming scenery coming into your sight, get very close contact with nature, and encounter local people laboring in their fields.

   Biking Route: Yangshuo - Gongnong Bridge - Yulong River - Yangshuo.

   Duration: around 2 hours

   Noon: Lunch in local restaurant.

   PM: Except the wonderful biking experience, you will also have another exciting activity -Bamboo Rafting on Yulong River. Taking a bamboo raft to drift on the fairyland-like Yulong River, you can just idle the time on the bamboo raft in the crystal clear water and watch the hills and farm lands pass by.

   Friendly Tips: Each bamboo raft can only take 2 adults with normal weight to ensure safety. You will be provided with a life jacket.

   

5. Day 5: Yangshuo - Guilin Departure (No meal)

   Enjoy your free morning time in Yangshuo.

   At confirmed time, our driver will pick you up from the hotel lobby and transfer to Guilin airport / train station for your departure.