Yangtze River Cruise Tour from with guilin

Welcome to Guilin! We will pick you up at the airport and then take you to your hotel. After checking in to your hotel, you can take a good rest in your hotel room. 

In the morning, we will drive you for about 50 minutes to the Mopanshan Wharf, which is located at the southeast of Guilin. The distance between them is about 35 kilometers. After you arrive at the Mopanshan Wharf, you will start the Li River Cruise from Guilin to Yangshuo. It will take you about 4 hours. During this period, you will see clear water and rolling hills along the Li River. If you will have lunch on board today. During the cruise, maybe you will get a glimpse of a vertical wall of a cliff along the Li River. The pattern of stone on the vertical wall is like a huge carp. The pattern is about 30 meters long and 3 meters wide. It’s said that this big carp was deeply attracted by the beautiful scenery of the Li River. To enjoy more scenery in this place, the carp leaped out of the water. However, there was a cliff near the Li River and a long stone was on the vertical wall of this cliff. When the carp leaped out, it was immediately hung up by the long stone. From then on, the carp could only enjoy the scenery of the Li River in this way. Thousands of years later, it gradually became a pattern of carp on the cliff. From this legend, we can imagine how beautiful the scenery is and even the carp is deeply attracted by its beauty.

In the afternoon, you will go to visit Yangshuo West Street. It is a famous pedestrian street in Yangshuo and is located in the center of the Yangshuo ancient town. The width of it is about 8 meters and its length is about 800 meters. As the oldest and busiest street in this place, Yangshuo West Street has a history of more than 1,400 years. There are many bars, stores, coffee shops, and restaurants in this place. Beer Fish is a kind of specialty in Yangshuo West Street. Local people always use the fresh fish that live in the Li River to make Beer Fish. You can try to eat it if you have time. After visiting Yangshuo West Street, we will drive you back to Guilin.

Yangshuo West Street

Li River Cruise

After breakfast, we will take you to the train station in Guilin, and you will take the estimated train D1864 10:52/15:49 to Chongqing. Your local guide will pick you up at the train station and then take you to the wharf to start your Yangtze River Cruise. Tonight, you will sleep on board.

This morning, you can follow your teacher to practice Tai Chi on the deck if you like. Tai Chi is a kind of Chinese martial art and it’s not difficult to learn Taichi. What you need to do is just to follow your teacher’s movements and feel the charm of Tai Chi. Many Chinese people like to practice it because of its slow actions and good benefits to health. It can make you have good digestion and have a flexible body. In addition, practicing Tai Chi is good for your heart, muscles, and lung.

After practicing Tai Chi, you will have a shore excursion to the “Ghost City” of Fengdu. It is an ancient city that was first built in the Han Dynasty (202 BC-220 AD). Ancient people believed that after they died, they would go to a ghost city that was a place under the earth. So they built a ghost city in Fengdu according to the Chinese netherworld in mythology. In this city, you will see Yama’s Palace. Yama means the King of Hell. It’s said that after people died, their souls would be judged by Yama. If they had done things good when they were alive, Yama would allow them to go to Heaven. If they had done things bad, he would punish them into hell. However, if they had done things neither good nor bad, he would allow them to get reincarnated. Besides, when you visit here, you will also see a stone in front of the Yama’s Palace. Local people believe that Yama used this stone to judge whether the souls were guilty or not. The souls should stand on this stone on one foot. If they couldn’t stand steadily, it meant that they were guilty. If you are interested in this mysterious place, this Yangtze River Cruise tour will be the best choice for you.

After lunch, a visit to Shibao Pagoda (Shibao means a precious stone in Chinese) will be arranged. This pagoda has 12 floors and is 52 meters high. Shibao Pagoda got its name because it was built on a huge stone. It’s said that a long time ago, the sky was broken. Then Nu Wa, the goddess in Chinese mythology, used some precious stones to patch the sky. But she didn’t use all of the stones and some of these stones were left. People believe that the huge stone under the Shibao Pagoda is one of them. That’s why it is called Shibao Pagoda.

In the evening, you will attend the captain welcoming party. At this party, you can make some new friends. Besides, you can admire excellent performance and taste delicious food. It will be a nice Yangtze river cruise night. 

"Ghost City" of Fengdu

Shibao Pagoda

In the morning, you can still practice Tai Chi on board. Then your ship will pass the Qutang Gorge. This gorge is only 8 kilometers long. You will see steep cliffs on both sides of this gorge. On the north side of the gorge, there is an ancient plank road built on a cliff. It is a very dangerous road. If people stand on this plank road and look down, they can only see the raging torrent. But in ancient times, it was the only road for businessmen and the army to pass this place. Besides, a deep cave is located near the old plank road. The cave is about 100 meters deep and has seven doors. Perhaps about hundreds of years ago, passersby always liked to have a rest in this cave. They might talk with their partners about their feelings when they came here and shared their food with their partners. 

Optional activity:

If you’re still interested in the Qutang Gorge, you can go ashore and pay a visit to White Emperor City. It got its name at the end of the Western Han Dynasty (202 BC-8 AD). A general, Gongsun Shu, once garrisoned here and wanted to found a state in this place. One day, he found a well, from which white fog always flew out and the shape of the fog was like a dragon. In the old days, the dragon symbolized the emperor. So he claimed that a white dragon was coming out from the well, which indicated that he would become an emperor in the future. Not soon, Gongsun Shu really claimed to be an emperor. After he died, local people called this place, where he claimed to be an emperor, White Emperor City to commemorate him.

In the afternoon, the ship will pass Wu Gorge. Its length is about 46 kilometers. There are three platforms in Wu Gorge, including the Chuyang Platform, the Teaching Platform, and the Dragon Beheaded Platform. The Chuyang Platform is located on Mount Gaodu. It’s said that the King of Chu State(Chu State is a state 2,400 years ago.) once had a date with a goddess in this platform. Another platform in the Wu Gorge is the Teaching Platform. It’s said that thousands of years ago, a dragon made serious floods. Yu, the person who led the people to build dikes to prevent floods, was faced with many difficulties at that time. Then a goddess came to this platform and taught him how to control the floods. So this platform is called “Teaching Platform”. The Dragon Beheaded Platform is also located in the Wu Gorge. Its shape is like a stone drum. Not far away from the Dragon Beheaded Platform, there is a stone pillar that is about 60 meters high. Local people believe that the pillar was used to tie a dragon and the dragon was killed by Yu on the Dragon Beheaded Platform.   

After visiting the Wu Gorge, you will see the Xiling Gorge that is about 76 kilometers long. There are many little interesting gorges in this place. For example, Niuganmafei Gorge is a special one (Niuganmafei means bovine liver and horse’s hung in Chinese). It gets its name because it has two yellow rocks that overlap each other. One is like a bovine liver and the other is like a horse’s lung. Besides, there is also a gorge called Baigou in the Xiling Gorge. Baigou means white dog in Chinese. The local people find the cliffs on both sides of the river are like dogs, hence its name. Bingshubaojian Gorge is another gorge in this place. Its name means a book on the art of war and a treasured sword in Chinese. People found a box in the crack of a stone in this place, as well as a huge stone that is like a sword. They guessed that there might be a book on the art of war in the box years ago. For the sword-like stone and their guessing, they called it Bingshubaojian Gorge.

Please pay attention that your itinerary may be changed due to your ship’s schedule and weather.

Qutang Gorge

Xiling Gorge

After breakfast, your guide will pick you up on board and drive you to a train station. Then you will take the estimated train K1473 12:58/17:54 to Zhangjiajie. After you get there, your local guide will meet you at the station and then escort you to the hotel.

After breakfast, we will drive you for about 2 hours and 20 minutes to Yuanjiajie which is situated 71 kilometers northwest of Zhangjiajie. After you get there, you will take the Bailong Elevator to the Yuanjiajie Scenic Area. The Bailong Elevator is the highest and fastest outdoor sightseeing elevator in the world. Its length is 335 meters and its speed is 3 meters per second. Before the Bailong Elevator was built, it took about 4 hours to get to the top. However, after it was built, it only needs 2 minutes to get to the top. 

The Yuanjiajie Scenic Area covers an area of about 12 square kilometers with many attractive attractions. When you arrive at the Yuanjiajie Scenic Area, you will visit the First Bridge Under the Sun first. This bridge is 357 meters high and two meters wide. It is so famous in China because it is not built by humans but formed by nature. Then you will see the Avatar Hallelujah Mountain. This mountain is the prototype of the suspension mountains in the movie Avatar. Its height is about 150 meters, and it is like a pillar that is made by God. In December 2008, a Hollywood photographer visited this place and was amazed by its beauty. Later the image of this mountain was used in the world-famous movie Avatar. If you take some photos here and post them on your Facebook, I am sure you will receive a lot of likes. 

Then you will take an environment-friendly bus to Tianzi Mountain. Its total area is about 67 square kilometers. This is a magic place. There are many magic peaks that have different shapes. Some are like dancing girls; some are like strong generals; and some are like towers. Besides, there is a magic palisades that is formed naturally. This palisades is more than 20 kilometers long, and there is a natural path on the palisades. People can enjoy the scenery in this place by walking on that path. 

Then you will visit Helong Park in Tianzi Mountain. Helong is a famous Chinese general who was born in 1896. He had made great achievements in many wars. So people built a park in memory of him. In this Helong Park, you will see a huge bronze statue of Helong. It is made in 1986 and is 6.5 meters high. It is also the largest bronze statue in China in the past century. Next, you will visit the Yubi Peak and other attractions in the Tianzi Mountian. Then you will take a cable car to go down the mountain. 

Then, you will go to visit the Ten Miles Gallery. Its area is about 14.68 square kilometers. There are many wonderful attractions in the Ten Miles Gallery. For instance, you will see a peak that is about 80 meters high. It is like an old man who is collecting Chinese medicinal herbs. The old man looks very thin and is walking with his bamboo basket, bending his back. There is a legend about him. A long time ago, when a king was about to die. Doctor Peng, an old man, tried his best to save him. He climbed up to a mountain to look for a herb that could save his King. After several days, he finally saw the herb that was on the top of a steep peak. Doctor Peng managed to climb up to its top, even though his fingers were wounded during this period. However, after he got the herb, he heard that the king had already passed away. Doctor Peng was so desperate and sad. Suddenly he lost his footing and fell down the peak. Later, other people went to look for him, but only found an old-man-shape peak. That’s the story of this old man. You will also visit other attractions in the Ten Miles Gallery, such as the Three Sisters Peak or the Couple Stone. 

Bailong Elevator

Yuanjiajie Scenic Area

Today, you are going to leave. Your guide will escort you to the airport. Then you can take your plane to go home. If you want to travel to China again, please don’t forget to tell us! 

Author: Xinli Zhang

Proofreader: Yan Liu