Biking

Rent a bike downtown, e.g. at Ali Baba's near Mao Zedong's statue, and see the sights. Ali Baba's will give you a handmade map of smaller surrounding towns that capture the quaint styles of Lijiang without the heavy tourism and the tacky souvenir shops. There are at least three towns, ranging from converted hippy communes to remote farming villages. There is a beautiful remote Buddhist monastery at Puji Mountain which is worth the 30 minute hike. There is also a Tibetan village labeled on the map but is hard to find, so ask Ali Baba for directions. Most of the terrain around Lijiang is level and the roads have only light traffic. These small, non-touristy towns and other sightseeing destinations can be reached within a 20-minute ride.

Price: About ¥40 per day including a map

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Listing from Wikivoyage: Lijiang, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Updated 28 Sept 2026. Something wrong? Tell us.

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More in Lijiang

Do
Naxi Concert Hall
纳西古乐会
Enjoy the traditional Naxi music Culture Show performed by the Naxi Orchestra, which includes some 70-90 year old men. The music itself is a combination of traditional Chinese music dating back to the Tang dynasty and local instruments and flavours. The music is well performed, however be prepared for long explanations of its musical history in Mandarin between each piece and the sometimes self-serving comments of Xuan Ke the Director. While the Naxi Ancient Music group of Lijiang is famous and well promoted, there are other excellent classical Chinese music groups playing in Lijiang's parks (for ¥10) or at weddings or housewarmings all over Yunnan.
Closed · opens 8 pm¥120-160
Do Not mapped
Cloud Fir Meadow
Yunshanping
From the reception centre which is next to Impression Lijiang on the Lijiang-Daju road a fleet of buses transports visitors to a cable car. Both bus transfer and cable car costs a total of ¥110 for a return trip. From the upper terminus of the cable car a vehicle takes you to the Cloud Fir Meadow for ¥50. The view is not very spectacular which makes this trip highly overpriced.
Do Not mapped
Dry Sea Meadow
Ganhaizi
The closest chair lift up the mountain to Lijiang. It transports visitors to a large meadow located at 3050 m.
¥160 return
Do Not mapped
Float styrofoam boats
Along the main streams are girls selling candles that float on delicate flower-shaped styrofoam boats. Tourists can purchase one, make a wish, and send their candle down the waterways. Late in the evening after groups have had significant amounts of alcohol you can see many floating candles sailing down the waterways. If you are environmentally conscious and have reservations about sending styrofoam downstream do not worry. There is a net, far down the waterway, that catches the boats. The girls just go down, pick the boats up, and re-sell them the next night.
¥10 (September 2010)