Route 01 · Kunming | From the land, into a way of life
From a piece of land, into a way of life.
Kunming · Stone Forest · Mile · Jianshui · Fuxian Lake | 7 days · 6 nights
Mountains shape the land. The land sustains life.
Around Kunming, different landscapes, climates and histories have nurtured different communities, each with its own way of living.
This journey begins in a city where everyday life is unfolding. It travels through the karst landscape of the Stone Forest, into the songs and dances of Mile, pauses among the old streets and purple pottery of Jianshui, then leaves room to breathe beside Fuxian Lake. Along the way, you encounter not only scenery, but the traces people have left through living on this land.
Not simply passing through a place, but finding an opportunity to meet the people who call it home.
The route
The way through
01Kunming | The arrival
Daily life / tea / markets / flowers / peopleKunming · The arrival
Begin in a city where people really live, rather than heading straight to the sights.
On your first day, let yourself feel that you have arrived somewhere lived-in. Streets, markets, breakfast, tea, flowers and unhurried passers-by are the city’s first offerings. There is no need to rush onwards. Keep this day for settling in—and for a cup of tea that may last a very long time.
Five places between city and lake
05 places
Green Lake
Kunming’s shared living room: red-billed gulls fill the lake in winter, and lotus flowers in summer.
Photo: N509FZ · CC BY-SA 4.0
Haigeng Dam
Dianchi Lake opens out before you; the Western Hills lie along its shore like a sleeping beauty.
Photo: Ngguls · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dragon Gate, Western Hills
A cliffside walkway cut into the rock, one chisel stroke at a time.
Photo: Colin W · CC BY-SA 3.0
Golden Horse & Jade Rooster Archways
Lights come on at dusk as people drift through the old streets.
Photo: 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Guandu Old Town
The Vajra Pagoda stands in the square, with people lingering beneath it.
Photo: Zhangmoon618 · CC BY-SA 3.0Tea that lasts, and flowers sold by weight
02 stories
A cup of tea that can last all morning
An old teahouse at dawn: bamboo chairs, porcelain mugs, boiling water and steam. Older regulars play chess, bring their birds and talk about yesterday, refilling their tea again and again. Sit down, and the city’s rhythm is finally placed in your hands.
Photo: Steve Evans · CC BY 3.0
A city where flowers are sold by weight
Dounan is described in the itinerary as Asia’s largest fresh-cut flower market. Roses, lilies and lisianthus form rivers of bundled flowers. Growers carry flowers through the aisles while buyers compare prices by torchlight. Here, flowers are not just gifts: they are part of everyday life.
Photo: drnan tu from Shenzhen, China · CC BY-SA 2.0Three tastes of Kunming
03 tastes
Crossing-the-bridge rice noodles
A bowl of piping-hot broth arrives, and thin slices of meat, tofu skin, chives and rice noodles are cooked in sequence. A layer of oil keeps the heat in. For many Kunming locals, the day begins with this bowl.
Photo: Baycrest · CC BY-SA 2.5
Rose pastries
A delicate, flaky crust encloses edible local roses, with sweetness and a light floral fragrance. Fresh from the oven and cooled, they offer two quite different pleasures.
Photo: Hyuki · CC0
Grilled erkuai rice cake
White rice cake is grilled over charcoal until it puffs slightly, brushed with sweet or spicy sauce and wrapped around a fried dough stick. Made in a few minutes at a street-corner stall, it is one of Kunming’s everyday street flavours.
Photo: 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0Wutong Zouyin · Silver-inlaid black copper
The craftsperson engraves patterns into a black-copper body and fills the grooves with molten silver. Cooling, polishing and oxidisation reveal silver-white flowers and birds against the dark ground. The copper grows darker with handling while the silver shines through polishing; a single piece can take months to make.
The craft dates to the Yongzheng reign of the Qing dynasty. The source itinerary pairs it with Beijing cloisonné as two outstanding Chinese copper crafts.
Jinning, Kunming · Added to the third national intangible cultural heritage list in 2011 · Traditional craftsmanship; only a few families still preserve the complete process.The first day
Day 1 Arrive in Kunming
- Plan
- Airport collection and hotel check-in; light city activities or rest can be arranged.
- Transport
- Seven-seat business vehicle for airport collection. Airport-to-hotel timing depends on the flight and hotel area.
- Stay
- Kunming: Cuihu Hotel, Mengjing · Wangyue Courtyard, or Yifangju.
02Stone Forest | The land speaks
Land / legends / people and environmentShilin · The land speaks
For the first time on this journey, the land itself takes centre stage.
An ancient sea receded, leaving a forest of standing stone. The Stone Forest is more than karst geology: the Sani people who have long lived here have sung and made their lives among the pillars, leaving the legend of Ashima, embroidery and dance in this landscape. Beyond the grand views, look for the traces of people living with the land.
Stone that has stood for two hundred million years
05 places
Wangfeng Pavilion
The high point of the Stone Forest, where countless pinnacles resemble a sea frozen in place.
Photo: YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission
Jianfeng Pool, Greater Stone Forest
Sword-like stone peaks reflected in clear green water.
Photo: 江上清风1961 · CC BY 3.0
Lesser Stone Forest
From another angle, a pinnacle resembles a young woman standing with a basket on her back.
Photo: 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Naigu Stone Forest
“Black stone” in the Sani language: a dark and rugged landscape.
Photo: ogwen · CC BY-SA 3.0Walking between the pillars
In a narrow rock passage, only a strip of sky remains overhead.
Photo: CEphoto, Uwe Aranas · CC BY-SA 3.0Sani stitches and dance steps
02 stories
Red flowers stitched on black cloth
Sani embroiderers work without a drawn template: goat horns, flames, suns and eight-petalled flowers are carried in memory and passed on by teaching and practice. Girls learn from their mothers; wedding clothes, baby carriers and headdresses are stitched by hand. Bright threads on black cloth are a memory worn on the body.
Photo: 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0
When the big sanxian starts, feet follow
A Sani saying suggests that a life without dancing to the strings is a life not fully lived. At the Torch Festival and harvest celebrations, men take up large three-stringed lutes while women join hands to dance, their steps quickening with the music. This is not merely a staged performance, but the way joy takes shape.
Photo: Dmitry Shakura · Public domainFlavours growing between the stones
02 tastes
Shilin milk curd
Fresh goat’s milk is soured and pressed into a traditional cheese. Slices are fried golden on both sides, lightly crisp outside and soft within, then paired with ham for a rich milky flavour.
Photo: adifromusa · CC BY-SA 2.0
Yi mutton hot pot
Skin-on mutton and offal simmer until the broth turns pale. Roasted chilli and mint accompany the bowl. A familiar dish at markets, festivals and gatherings, its steam draws everyone around the table.
Photo: Auongkinghe · CC BY-SA 4.0
Sani embroidery
Against black, white and red, Sani embroidery uses cross-stitch, embroidery, appliqué and inlay to carry mountains, sun and moon, cattle and sheep, and ancestral stories into cloth. A wedding outfit may take one or two years to complete; its stitches hold the history of a people.
Sani embroidery and the orally transmitted epic Ashima are both included in national intangible cultural heritage protection.
Shilin Yi Autonomous County, Kunming · Yi (Sani) embroidery · Ashima is listed as national folk literature.The second day
Day 2 Kunming → Stone Forest → Mile
- Plan
- The Stone Forest is the main visit of the day. Continue to Mile afterwards and check in.
- Transport
- Kunming to Stone Forest: approximately 1 hour 20 minutes. Stone Forest to Mile: approximately 1 hour.
- Stay
- Mile: Huquan Hotel.
03Mile | Life has its songs
Songs / relationships / community / warmthMile · Life has its songs
From the land and its people, to the ways people turn life into song.
Mile is a small city softened by hot springs, grapes, song and dance. Axi oral epics, music and communal life offer a way into this stop. Sitting together, eating, singing, working and teasing one another—these warm relationships reveal more than costume alone can tell. The pace of the day can be very slow.
Red brick, hot springs and a smiling Buddha
04 places
Dongfengyun
A kaleidoscope of red-brick architecture, described in the source as built without reinforcing steel.
Photo: Ping an Chang · CC BY-SA 4.0
Huquan Hillside Hot Springs
Forest pools looking towards the valley lights.
Photo: YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permissionJinping Mountain
1,999 steps lead towards a 20-metre-high Maitreya Buddha.
Keyi Village
An Axi village in the wooded hills.
Bonfires, sanxian and a shared table
02 storiesMoon-dancing is what happiness looks like
The Axi have danced Axi Tiaoyue for centuries. When a fire is lit, sanxian, suona and applause come together; women and men dance facing one another, clapping and changing feet at a heartbeat pace. The songs speak of work, love and everyday life. The dance still takes place in the village open spaces of Keyi.
A meal, a song
At dusk, a family and a few neighbours gather to eat. An elder plays the sanxian while children circle close by. The food is simple and the conversation plentiful. Axi history is not only held in books: it lives in the songs sung after dinner.
Braised chicken and highland red wine
02 tastesMile braised chicken
Zhuyuan’s chicken is especially well known. A seasoned master broth with dozens of spices gives the skin an amber glow and cooks the meat until tender. Chopped chicken, braising juices and a bowl of chicken rice noodles are a generous Mile welcome.
Yunnan Red
Highland sunshine and grapes have given Mile its own red wine. Sit in a winery vineyard towards evening with a glass of wine and a rose pastry, while fruit-scented air moves through the vines.
Axi Tiaoyue · Moon-dancing
A collective dance of the Yi Axi community, named for dancing beside a fire or under moonlight. Clapping, stamping and changing feet follow the sanxian and suona. Movements grow out of everyday tasks such as cutting firewood, fighting fires and ploughing.
Axi Tiaoyue and the oral epic Axi Xianji are both protected as national intangible cultural heritage.
Mile, Honghe Prefecture · Yi sanxian dance (Axi Tiaoyue) · Axi Xianji is listed as national folk literature.The third day
Day 3 An unhurried day in Mile
- Plan
- Explore Dongfengyun, hot springs and local leisure at a relaxed pace.
- Transport
- Local short-distance journeys; detailed timings to be arranged.
- Stay
- MGallery in the Dongfengyun area, or Dongfengyun Hot Spring Villas.
04Jianshui | Time made into daily life
Time / craftsmanship / everyday useJianshui · Time made into daily life
Culture is not a display piece. It is something still used every day.
Once the Lin’an prefectural seat of southern Yunnan, Jianshui carries 1,200 years of town history and more than 500 historic buildings, as described in the original itinerary. Old streets, courtyards, purple pottery and local food make time feel expansive. Look beyond a finished object to the clay, hands, tools, engraving and polishing—and to how a pot finally reaches a dining table or holds tea. After arrival, begin with a gentle walk through the old town.
A living old Lin’an town
05 places
Chaoyang Tower
Built in 1389, 28 years before Beijing’s Tiananmen, according to the source itinerary.
Photo: YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission
Zhu Family Garden
A late-Qing residence with 214 rooms and 42 courtyards.
Photo: YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission
Jianshui Confucius Temple
Seven successive courtyards; the source describes its scale as second only to Qufu.
Photo: Anja Disseldorp · CC BY 2.0
Double Dragon Bridge
Seventeen arches form a chain across the water.
Photo: User:Vmenkov · CC BY-SA 3.0
The narrow-gauge train
A slow ride through the rice fields.
Photo: YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permissionPurple clay, well water and tofu makers
02 stories
Clay turning in the hands, words staying on a pot
Jianshui pottery blends five local coloured clays. Calligraphy and painting are engraved into the body, filled with pale clay and polished without glaze, leaving a jade-like warmth to the touch. These are not only antiques: teapots and steam pots are still being made and used today.
Photo: Matthieu Lelievre · CC BY-SA 2.0
A well that sustains half a town
The clear, sweet water of Ximen Daban Well has flowed for centuries. Neighbours queue with buckets early in the morning. Beside the well, tofu workshops use the same water to set their curd. In Jianshui, the quality of tofu begins with the water.
Photo: 源義信 · CC BY 4.0Three flavours served from purple pottery
03 tastes
Steam-pot chicken
A purple-clay steam pot holds chicken and a little seasoning, with no added water. Steam gradually condenses into clear broth, leaving tender chicken and a soup that is a favourite for hosting guests.
Photo: tak.wing · CC BY-SA 2.0
Jianshui grilled tofu
Small tofu pieces puff on the charcoal grill as diners gather around. The seller counts each piece with a corn kernel. Lightly crisp outside and soft within, they are dipped in fermented tofu and fresh chilli.
Photo: YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission
Caoya rice noodles
Ivory-white aquatic shoots grow in muddy rice fields. Crisp and gently sweet, they are cut into a bowl of hot rice noodles for a distinctly clean freshness.
Photo: 源義信 · CC BY 4.0
Jianshui purple-clay pottery
Alongside the ceramics of Yixing, Qinzhou and Rongchang, Jianshui pottery is known as one of China’s four celebrated pottery traditions. Five local coloured clays pass through more than seventy processes, from preparation and throwing to calligraphy, engraving, clay inlay, firing and polishing without glaze.
Engraving and clay filling, followed by unglazed polishing, define its character. For over three hundred years, it has remained part of local life in teapots and steam pots.
Jianshui County, Honghe Prefecture · Jianshui purple-clay pottery firing techniques · National intangible cultural heritage.The fourth day
Day 4 Mile → Jianshui
- Plan
- After arrival, enjoy light activities in Jianshui Old Town.
- Transport
- Mile to Jianshui: approximately 2 hours 20 minutes.
- Stay
- Jianshui hotel to be confirmed by the local team or supplier.
05Fuxian Lake | Return to the water
Water / letting go / reflectionFuxian Lake · Return to the water
Here, the whole journey finally loosens its grip.
Fuxian Lake is one of China’s deepest highland freshwater lakes. Its clear water can reveal plants and pebbles metres below the surface. Water, the open lake and evening light give the land, people and crafts encountered so far a moment to breathe. The point is not just how beautiful the lake is, but whether you are willing to sit down and watch quietly. After arrival, lakeside leisure needs no checklist.
Four ways of seeing the lake
04 places
An empty chair by the lake
Leave it for evening light and doing nothing.
Photo: N509FZ · CC BY-SA 4.0
Bijia Mountain above Luchong
A high view over a vast expanse of clear water.
Photo: Zhangmoon618 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Gushan Island
A green oasis afloat in the lake.
Photo: Zhangmoon618 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Hongshanzui
A bay edged with pink sand.
Photo: YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permissionFishing caves, water wheels and the people who keep them
02 storiesMore than a hundred fishing caves in the cliffs
Over more than three hundred years, Mingxing villagers have cut fishing caves into the hillside and used mountain springs to fish. Water flows down channels into the lake; kanglang fish follow it upstream into bamboo traps. Fishers still keep this old practice alive at the cave entrances.
Pedalling an old water wheel, waiting for fish
Water-wheel fishing is a distinctive Fuxian Lake method. Fishers pedal a wooden wheel to lift spring water into channels, placing large woven bamboo traps at the outlet. Fish follow the water into the traps without nets or bait: the method relies on understanding water and fish.
Two copper-pot dishes by the lake
02 tastesCopper-pot fish
Fresh lake fish is cooked in water in a copper pot until the broth becomes milky, with mint and a dip of fermented tofu and chilli. Tender fish and fresh soup are a lakeside signature, familiar in the fishing villages.
Copper-pot potato rice
Potatoes, diced ham and rice cook together in a copper pot, forming a golden crust underneath. Soft potatoes, savoury ham and toasted rice are especially comforting with a bowl of fish soup.
Water-wheel fishing
This old fishing method follows the kanglang fish’s habit of swimming upstream to spawn: caves cut into the hillside, spring water lifted by a wheel, and woven bamboo traps. Passed down for more than three centuries, it borrows the force of water rather than competing with fish.
The weaving of the large fish traps is also protected as intangible cultural heritage.
Mingxing Village, Chengjiang, Yuxi · Water-wheel fishing: provincial heritage · Large fish-trap weaving: municipal heritage.The fifth day
Day 5 Jianshui → Chengjiang · Fuxian Lake
- Plan
- Settle into lakeside leisure after arrival, leaving a generous stretch of unplanned time.
- Transport
- Jianshui to Fuxian Lake: approximately 2 hours.
- Stay
- Chengjiang · Fuxian Lake: Baoliwan.
06Back to Kunming | Seeing again
Return / looking back / afterglow
The road back, and the land seen anew.
Back where you began, but no longer with the same eyes.
With the land, people, time and water encountered along the way, the city carries a different weight. Before leaving, a thought may stay with you, even unspoken: Yunnan is not only scenery.
Day 6 Fuxian Lake → Kunming
- Plan
- Travel first to Chenggong, then continue to your hotel for the city finale.
- Transport
- Fuxian Lake to Chenggong: approximately 1 hour 20 minutes. Additional urban transfer time to the hotel is calculated separately.
- Stay
- Kunming: Hualuxe or InterContinental.
Day 7 Kunming airport departure
- Plan
- Check-out and departure are planned backwards from your return flight. The journey concludes.
- Transport
- Airport drop-off in the seven-seat business vehicle; timing depends on flight and hotel area.
- Stay
- No overnight stay is arranged for this day.
Why this journey
Four things to take with you
01 Follow the clues of the land
From red hills to karst pinnacles, see how a landscape is lived in, used and remembered, and how it becomes a distinctive local culture.
02 Meet a culture still in use
Jianshui’s old town, purple-pottery workshops and local tables: culture here is living daily life, not an exhibit behind glass.
03 Pause beside the lake
At Fuxian Lake, leave a whole stretch of time without a checklist. Simply sit and watch, allowing the journey to loosen.
04 Meet the people who live here
Morning teahouses, busy markets and shared meals with song. The memories that last are often connections between people.
What is included
Costs & inclusions
A tailored quotation for your group
Pricing is calculated according to your travel dates, group size and hotel selection. Please enquire for an itemised proposal.
Included
- A comfortable seven-seat business vehicle throughout, with a driver familiar with the route, fuel and road tolls.
- Six nights in the listed hotels or comparable guesthouses, according to the confirmed proposal.
- Airport and railway-station transfers specified in the itinerary.
- Journey planning and local coordination throughout.
Not included
- Flights or train tickets to and from Kunming.
- Meals throughout, except breakfasts included by the hotel.
- Attraction admission tickets and in-attraction experiences.
- Personal spending, optional activities and single-room supplements.
- Any expense not expressly listed under Included.
This is an outline of the cost structure. Final inclusions, prices, change and cancellation terms are subject to the itinerary and contract confirmed by both parties.
Before you go
A few things to know
Your vehicle
One seven-seat business vehicle throughout. Journey times are indicative and subject to road conditions, weather and actual fleet arrangements.
Your accommodation
Hotels are comparable candidates, subject to availability at booking. The Day 4 hotel in Jianshui has not yet been selected and will be updated after confirmation.
Your pace
The itinerary can be adjusted to fitness and interests, without rushing through a sightseeing checklist. Bring comfortable walking shoes, sun protection and a warm outer layer.
Not just a journey. A way into life.
Step into the life of this land
Every place has its own way.
Photography credits & licenses
Real photographs, resized and cropped for this page. Each adapted photograph remains under its indicated license. Travel descriptions are retained where no verified matching photograph is available.
- Southwest part of Cuihu Park, Kunming (20240214121712).jpg — N509FZ · CC BY-SA 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- The Dragon Gate, built on the cliff of Western Hill, Kunming - panoramio.jpg — Colin W · CC BY-SA 3.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Guandu Old Town 01.jpg — Zhangmoon618 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Crossing the Bridge Noodle at Qian Xiang Yuan.jpg — Baycrest · CC BY-SA 2.5 · resized / displayed with crop
- 云南玫瑰鲜花饼-2164122.jpg — Hyuki · CC0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 昆明英凤烧饵块.jpg — 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- China Jianshui - Confucius Temple - 5421272982.jpg — Anja Disseldorp · CC BY 2.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Jianshui - Double Dragon Bridge - P1370304.JPG — User:Vmenkov · CC BY-SA 3.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Jianshui purple pottery - 45981422681.jpg — Matthieu Lelievre · CC BY-SA 2.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Making Jianshui purple pottery - 45932211912.jpg — Matthieu Lelievre · CC BY-SA 2.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 汽锅鸡 - 5059256289.jpg — tak.wing · CC BY-SA 2.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Fuxian Lake and Luchong Scenic Resort.jpg — Zhangmoon618 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Sunset at Fuxian Lake (20210318185138).jpg — N509FZ · CC BY-SA 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Gushan in Fuxian Lake.jpg — Zhangmoon618 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Shilin Yunnan China Shilin-Stone-Forest-03.jpg — CEphoto, Uwe Aranas · CC BY-SA 3.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Naigu Stone Forrest - panoramio.jpg — ogwen · CC BY-SA 3.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 東方韻特色小鎮 20191224155438 01.jpg — Ping an Chang · CC BY-SA 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 20260222 Kunming Dianchi Lake.jpg — Ngguls · CC BY-SA 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 金马坊 - 2025-05-16 01.jpg — 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 2025-02-07 Pubo Spring (Daban Well), Jianshui 建水溥博泉（大板井） 01.jpg — 源義信 · CC BY 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- Chaoyang Tower in Jianshui.webp — YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission · resized / displayed with crop
- Jianshui narrow-gauge sightseeing train.webp — YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission · resized / displayed with crop
- Tofu preparation in Jianshui.webp — YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission · resized / displayed with crop
- Zhu Family Garden courtyard in Jianshui.webp — YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission · resized / displayed with crop
- Huquan outdoor hot springs in Mile.webp — YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission · resized / displayed with crop
- Pink shoreline at Fuxian Lake.webp — YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission · resized / displayed with crop
- Kunming city skyline at night.webp — YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission · resized / displayed with crop
- Shilin karst landscape and pavilion.webp — YunLore-authorized photography · Used with permission · resized / displayed with crop
- Tea market in Kunming, China.jpg — Steve Evans · CC BY 3.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 昆明斗南花卉市场 (8512714254).jpg — drnan tu from Shenzhen, China · CC BY-SA 2.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 2025-02-06 Rice Noodles in Zitao Street, Jianshui 建水紫陶街草芽米線.jpg — 源義信 · CC BY 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- YisDance.JPG — Dmitry Shakura · Public domain · resized / displayed with crop
- 大理乳饼.jpg — adifromusa · CC BY-SA 2.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 石林彝族撒尼人01.jpg — 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 石林彝族撒尼人03.jpg — 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 石林风光-剑峰 - panoramio.jpg — 江上清风1961 · CC BY 3.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 石林风景名胜区 - 阿诗玛像 - 2023-06-16.jpg — 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop
- 羊肉炖萝卜 20251203.jpg — Auongkinghe · CC BY-SA 4.0 · resized / displayed with crop