I can finally spare time to share my self-driving trip in Yunnan with my Ctrip partners. I have had two self-driving experiences before, but it is a pity that I did not record them in graphic form to share with you. Although every time I drive by myself, it seems particularly hard, but I am very happy to spend this self-driving time with my family. I will briefly describe this self-driving trip in Yunnan to my partners in the form of pictures and texts.
The original travel plan was to rent a car and drive after arriving in Kunming on August 11. As a result, due to the impact of Typhoon "Lekima", all trains departing from Wenzhou South on the morning of August 10 were suspended, so they had to be canceled on the evening of August 8. train ticket.
Later, I decided to drive directly to Xiangtan City, Hunan Province, and then take a bullet train from Xiangtan City to Kunming City, Yunnan Province. The weather forecast has issued a typhoon warning and will make landfall in Wenzhou and Taizhou at 9:00 am on August 10th. We finally chose to set off at 14:00 pm on August 9th.
When we set off, it was already windy and rainy. We went through Shenhai Expressway-Wenli Expressway-Shanghai-Kunming Expressway and stayed in Xiangtan City, Hunan Province for one night.
At 3:40 am on August 10th we arrived in Xiangtan City, Hunan Province. After arriving in Xiangtan, we discussed and decided to drive directly to Yunnan. We rested in Xiangtan City for a few hours, and continued to the next resting place, Guiyang City, Guizhou Province at 14:30 in the afternoon. At 22:30 that night, we arrived at the second stop, Guiyang City, and stayed in Guiyang for one night .
At 16:00 on the afternoon of August 11, we finally arrived at the self-driving destination Kunming, Yunnan Province. We started from Zhejiang Province and passed through Jiangxi Province, Hunan Province, and Guizhou Province. The mileage was 2,500 kilometers and it took 26 hours. The moment they arrived in Kunming, the whole family was very excited. Because our plan to drive to Sanya, Hainan in the Spring Festival of 2018 finally ended in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, which is a bit regrettable. Being able to complete a longer distance self-driving this time is considered a success. At the same time, our friends arrived at Kunming Changshui International Airport at 15:40 on August 11th. After the rendezvous, we will officially start our parent-child self-driving tour in Yunnan.
Our self-driving tour officially started on August 11.
DAY.1 (August 11th)
On the first day, our itinerary was to go to Nanping Pedestrian Street in Kunming, and we chose to stay at Xiu Hotel (Kunming Shanchafang). Considering the problem of parking on the pedestrian street, we took the subway at Tuodong Stadium Station (Metro Line 3) across the road from the hotel and got off at Wuyi Road Station. From Wuyi Station, we came to Nanping Pedestrian Street. We ate a bowl of Crossing Bridge Rice Noodles at the Lady’s Love Original Yunnan Crossing Bridge Rice Noodles in Baida Xintiandi. Of course, we couldn’t escape the fate of queuing. At night, we came to Nanqiang Street. If Nanping Street is a modern pedestrian street, then Nanqiang Street is an old street with the significance of the times. It has a long history, and there are all kinds of online celebrity shops gathered here, so you might as well explore it with your friends.
DAY.2 (August 12)
After driving 90 kilometers, we came to Chuxiong Lufeng World Dinosaur Valley Heritage Park, which is very suitable for parent-child travel. Let the children better understand that Lufeng Dinosaur Valley plays a pivotal role in the world's dinosaur fossil sites. It is recommended that parents with children can choose a sightseeing car without taking a ride, so that children can learn more about dinosaur fossils in a limited time.
After visiting the Dinosaur Valley Ruins Park, we began to rush to the next stop, Chuxiong Yiren Ancient Town. The park is nearly 90 kilometers away from the ancient town on a high-speed road. Follow the Baidu map or Gaode map to get off the high-speed road and you will find the ancient town. The location of the ancient town is very close to the exit of the high-speed road. We booked a folk custom in the ancient town - Jimo Jiujianfang Inn through Ctrip. It is a courtyard inn, and it feels very comfortable. The ancient town is open and there is no need to pay any fees. In the evening, we went to a restaurant opened by Tibetan compatriots to have a meal of Tibetan special yak hotpot. The Tibetan owner introduced to us that the restaurant has been in operation for more than 20 years, and the taste is very good. It is worth tasting. After dinner, we strolled along the busiest part of the ancient town to the square of the ancient town. There were not many foreign tourists on the way. Mainly local and surrounding tourists. Therefore, the roads in the ancient town are not particularly crowded. The center of the ancient town square will hold an open-air performance at 20:00 in the evening, and you can dance the Yi nationality dance with the local uncles and aunts.
DAY.3 (August 13)
The ancient town was very quiet in the early morning. We ate a bowl of authentic noodles under the guidance of the person in charge of the inn. The portion was large and the price was cheap. Next, we will go to Dali, which we have always longed for, because there is the romantic love of the ancient city of Dali, the majesty of Cangshan Mountain and the vastness and serenity of Erhai Lake. It is 300 kilometers from the ancient town of Yi people in Chuxiong to the ancient city of Dali. After leaving Chuxiong, it was obvious that the altitude was rising, and the road was climbing for a long time, so friends must pay attention to safety when driving, keep a distance, and control the speed of the car. In the event of a traffic accident, it will bring shadow and displeasure to the entire self-driving tour. At 13:00 in the afternoon, we arrived at a Bai restaurant near the ancient city of Dali and had a meal of authentic Bai dishes, but I felt very ordinary. After lunch, we went to SM Shimo Art Designer Wanghong Homestay not far from the restaurant. After driving all morning, we took a rest in the room. In the evening, we set off for the ancient city of Dali. Try not to drive to the ancient city, because it is very troublesome to find a location. So we chose to take a small four-wheel drive. The money must be earned by the driver of the small four-wheel drive, mainly because we still have a few children with us.
DAY.4 (August 14th)
Today I will start to drive around the Erhai Lake. I feel very good when I stand close to the Erhai Lake for the first time. We follow the road around the Erhai Lake in front of Dali Ancient City - Shunhe Ancient Town - Shuanglang Ancient Town. There are many hotels next to Erhai Lake, and the stores line up long tables, glass balls, and various rented clothes at the entrance. For tourists to take pictures, at this moment, I feel that the photos of Internet celebrities are all deceptions, which are greatly discounted. The first stop came to Xizhou Ancient Town and called a carriage. But if you find that the groom here is pulling you to the shopping point, and you let him take you to the place you want to go, they will look unhappy. With a long sigh, the commercialization of Dali has completely changed our group's beautiful fantasy of Dali. We soon left Xizhou Ancient Town and rushed to Shuanglang Ancient Town, planning to stay in Shuanglang Ancient Town for another night. When we drove through Shuanglang Ancient Town, it was really crowded. Coupled with the inflated hotel prices, we chose to leave Dali on the same day.
In the afternoon we continued to drive to Baoshan City. Many people would ask why we didn’t choose to go to Lijiang or Shangri-La. Because we are with children, we are worried that the children will have high reactions, so we chose to go south to Baoshan City, because there are more attractions suitable for children. The expressway from Dali City to Baoshan City is mostly built on the side of the mountain or in the valley, so the speed of the vehicle must be strictly controlled, and safety comes first. In the evening we had dinner at a restaurant in Baoshan City. At the dinner table, I looked at the weather in Tengchong and found that there was rain in the past three days, so as not to affect the travel plan of Tengchong. We continued to go south to Mangshi, Dehong, and it was already 22:00 in the evening when we arrived in Mangshi. We booked the Haizhou Hotel in Mangshi in advance.
DAY.5 (August 15th)
In cloudy weather, we drove to the Best food court in Mangshi. The square is small but there is a famous Menghuan old milk cold drink shop inside. We ordered the cold drink Baoluda. You must drink the freshly squeezed juice in Mangshi, and you will earn money if you drink it. During lunch, I thought the weather was good so I arranged to go to Heishan Laopo in the afternoon. Heishan Laopo is in the deep mountains and is a very small scenic spot. When going to the old slope of Heishan, I passed the famous Shubao Tower scenic spot in Mangshi (free visit). After passing a section of flat ground road, we started to move into the mountains. On the way, I saw the traces left by the landslide for the first time. The more we drove up the mountain, the worse the weather was. Fog surrounded the top of the mountain and it began to rain lightly. When you arrive at the parking lot of the scenic spot, there is an old slope restaurant, which is very original. In order to be able to go back as soon as possible, I ordered a big pot of noodles in the store, and we were the only ones that day. Due to the heavy fog, it is very regrettable that we cannot overlook the beautiful scenery in the distance in the scenic area. The rain started to get heavier, so we quickly finished our noodles and returned to Mangshi. Before night fell, we arrived at the Shwedagon Pagoda scenic spot in Mangshi.
DAY.6 (August 16)
It was sunny and cloudy. Today, we went to Ruili, a beautiful small border town. The first time we got to know Ruili was through a travel program, which was about Ruili’s stone gambling and Taobao Valley. Later, during college, I met Ruili's Dai students. After arriving in Ruili, go straight to the first scenic spot, Yizhai and Two Countries, which happens to be another customs clearance port. People from northern Myanmar go to work in China every day. There is nothing special about the scenic spots, just go in and feel the eternal friendship between countries. At noon, we chose a Burmese restaurant, Backgammon Cold Drink Shop, which is very authentic. Many Burmese people work there. The proprietress is Burmese but can speak fluent Chinese. During lunch, I looked up various scenic spots in Ruili, thought of Taobao Valley, and contacted my classmates to ask him about Taobao Ancient, but he suggested that we not go. Because it has been open for many years, and the mosquitoes in the valley and the water quality of the river will affect human skin, we finally decided to go to the next stop Tengchong City after dinner. This time, we chose to take the Tenglong Highway because we did not do a good job. I encountered three border inspections along the way, which greatly affected the time. When accepting the inspection, you should roll down the window in advance, prepare your driver's license or ID card, and answer the questions of the border guards politely. Basically, you will not ask too many questions with children, mainly because the queue time is too long. Passengers on the bus need to get off the bus to be inspected, which reflects the arduous work and sense of responsibility of the frontier defense, and the frontier guards are armed with live ammunition and ready to fight. Salute to you! ! Arrived in Tengchong at 18:00 in the evening. I wanted to go to Shunhe Ancient Town for dinner, but was stopped and said that there would be a fee. Very speechless, I directly gave up the scenic spot here. Later, after consulting the information, I found out that it was a routine. There was no need to buy a ticket to go to the ancient town. The ticket was only needed for a few scenic spots. Then I found a quaint restaurant, Qiaoxiangzhai. After dinner, I drove to Tengchong Ginkgo Village Dudu Inn. The inn is in a ginkgo village that is still under development. The inn is a small courtyard transformed from the houses of two amiable retired teachers. There are several large ginkgo trees in the courtyard. If autumn passes, the scenery will be even more beautiful, especially suitable for photography lovers.
DAY.7 (August 17)
The weather is fine, today we arrange to take a volcano hot air balloon ride. The opening of the hot air balloon needs to be based on the weather of the day, and it is only open in the morning. The price is a little expensive, since you are here, you can't miss it. The main thing is to let the children see the beautiful scenery of the Tengchong crater on the hot air balloon, and it takes about 10 minutes to go up and down. Then hike up a small extinct volcano and look at the pits of the extinct crater up close. After the tour, we took the children to visit the Tengchong Anti-Japanese War Memorial Hall, so that the children could learn about that sad history. The first time the Chinese Expeditionary Force entered Burma was defeated and retreated to Yeren Mountain and returned to China. Tens of thousands of Chinese people died in foreign countries for the cause of the Anti-Japanese War. Good patriotic education. At noon, we found a hot pot restaurant nearby and had a delicious meal of Sichuan style hot pot. In the afternoon, we are going to go to Tengchong Hot Sea Scenic Area, a pure natural sulfur hot spring. At the same time, I saw one of the Eighteen Monsters in Yunnan selling eggs on a skewer. Buy a string of eggs and steam them in a big hot pot at the highest point of the scenic spot. Eating good eggs means soaking in hot springs. After that, we arrived at a very cost-effective Zuoike hotel.
DAY.8 (August 18)
The weather is fine, and the tour in Tengchong is over. We start from Tengchong early in the morning and take the highway to the beautiful Xishuangbanna. To go to Xishuangbanna, choose to take the surface road to go to Wengding, the last primitive part of China. I have been driving on the road all day, and arrived in the small town of Mengding in the evening. When we went through the border inspection in Mengding, we consulted a beautiful lady at the border inspection. She recommended a very authentic Dai restaurant--Zaiyi Shaodai Manor. The manor is a large yard with many trees. Covered from the sunlight, it has a special flavor. After dinner, we drove to Mengding Town and stayed at Gengma Hongbo International Hotel, which is the best hotel in the town.
DAY.9 (August 19)
Cloudy, after breakfast. We were about to set off, and downstairs we met a military doctor who had come from Kunming, the provincial capital, to carry out his mission. After understanding, they returned to Kunming after performing the border patrol mission, and the children looked in awe when they saw Uncle Jun. We are about to go to Wengding, the last primitive tribe in China. Due to the rainy weather in summer, the road is not easy to walk, and the traces left by various landslides and mudslides on the mountain road have not been repaired, but we are particularly lucky that the road is not tight. OK. The distance from Mengding to Wengding is only 100 kilometers, and we drove for nearly 4 hours to reach the destination. When we arrived in Wengding, the new ticket hall and parking lot were under construction, and it is estimated that they will be commercialized soon. The construction of a new settlement in the village is completed, and the old village will become a national protected scenic spot open to tourists. The entrance fee is 50 yuan per person, and children do not charge entrance fees. At the entrance of the tribe, the Wa compatriots stood on both sides and sang the welcome ceremony. Originally planned to live in a hotel in the department, but the owner of the store was doing a spiritual ritual and closed down. We ate a big pot of noodles elsewhere, and then toured the village. Visited the Wa Palace (hereditary system)/head pile and bought a lot of local herbs. After the tour, we continued to head to Lancang Hailan Hotel. Around 22:00 in the evening, we arrived at the hotel and had a barbecue at the roadside stall in front of the hotel.
DAY.10 (August 20)
The weather was fine and we had breakfast. Set off to the beautiful Xishuangbanna, the next few days are relatively leisurely. We drove 165 kilometers along the West Scenery Line for 4 hours, and finally arrived at the beautiful Gaozhuang in Xishuangbanna. At noon, we found a special restaurant in Gaozhuang-Nepal restaurant. After lunch, we checked into a special hotel - Xishuangbanna Tadong 36 Resort Hotel. There is a small swimming pool downstairs. After checking in, we went back to our rooms to rest, and then took the children downstairs to swim together. In the evening, we went to Thai Xiangli Thai restaurant to eat Thai food. Before eating, I bought Laos iced coffee recommended by Internet celebrities. The coffee was placed in a plastic bag and tasted really good. After we sent the children back to the room, we went out and found a foot bath shop - Ai Ni Zu, which is super cost-effective and the service is very good. A pleasant day, ended after a pedicure.
DAY.11 (August 21st)
The weather is fine. We took the children to Xishuangbanna Primitive Forest Park, we must remember to take the children as much as possible to take a tour bus. Entering the scenic spot, the first viewing point is the large-scale outdoor performance in the courtyard. The performance can also be watched after the tour, which is very exciting. Then take a tour bus. After arriving, we passed a forest trail, but we must pay special attention to wearing long trousers. It is inevitable that there will be small reptiles in the virgin forest. We saw a snake in the creek by the trail. Everyone was so scared that they ran forward and continued to walk inside, and we came to the jungle leap. This activity must let children participate, expand outdoor sports, and feel the power of nature. All the equipment and facilities are connected between trees, which can improve children's self-confidence and courage. We adults took pictures of them as souvenirs, and they had a great time. After the tour, we went to the Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which is very suitable for children to learn popular science. We must live in the Wanglian Hotel in the botanical garden. You can drive in from the east gate when you stay in the hotel, and you can save tickets for the scenic spot. The purpose is to visit the plants and feel the grand gathering of insects at night. Only hotel tourists have this treatment, because the scenic spot is closed at night. There are no lights in the park, and it is so dark that you need to use a mobile phone or a flashlight to illuminate it. After dark, the children were particularly excited when they saw the fireflies, geckos, praying mantises, millipedes, snails and other small reptiles can be seen everywhere on the walls of the hotel. The scenic spot is divided into the east area and the west area. The west area is where the hotel is located and is artificially developed. The East District is the most primitive place, undeveloped and original. It was a pity as we only stayed for one night.
DAY12. (August 22nd)
The weather was fine, and I reluctantly left the botanical garden. We went back to the city to go to the Wild Elephant Valley. It is a pity that the Asian wild elephants only go back down the mountain to the valley during the rutting period in February every year, so we have no way to see the wild elephants. However, we saw the poisonous arrowwood that the children had been looking forward to. The leaves of the poisonous arrowwood were covered with many large black caterpillars, which looked particularly terrifying. When we came to the place where the elephant was performing, we let the children ride an elephant to take pictures. Soon we ended our visit to Wild Elephant Valley and returned to Gaozhuang in Xishuangbanna, where we ate an authentic roast chicken - Manfeilong roast chicken. Ordering a set meal was the same as hand pilaf. After eating, we went back to the hotel to rest. For midnight snack, we went to eat street barbecue. We were really disappointed, it was salty and unpalatable.
DAY13. (August 23rd)
The weather is fine, today we will leave Xishuangbanna and return to Kunming. Before returning to Kunming, we went to Mange Market, a fruit market in Xishuangbanna. The market wholesales all kinds of tropical fruits, which are cheap and delicious. We bought Thai pomelo, peaches (the peaches in Yunnan are especially delicious), Musang King durian, and Thai mango. Along the way, I went to Kunming while eating fruit. We originally planned to stay at the Panda Manor in Pu’er for one night, but after seeing the animals and plants, we canceled the trip. However, we didn’t drive directly to downtown Kunming, but stayed at the Fuxian Lake Ramada Plaza Hotel. one night. Its purpose is to have a special steamed fish meal. There is a fish boss (30-year-old shop) next to the hotel, which is really delicious and cheap. After dinner, we rested in the room early, and our tour will be coming to an end.
DAY14. (August 24th)
The weather is fine, leave the hotel. We are about to draw a successful conclusion to this self-driving tour. In order to let the children review the ethnic minority compatriots we saw during this trip, we came to Yunnan Minority Village. We visited a total of 17 ethnic minorities in the scenic area. Humanistic style and unique housing structure. Watched a large-scale national stage play and tasted the special food of the national snack street. After the tour, we left the scenic spot and went to the Zhuanxin Farmer’s Market in Kunming. Next was the women’s home. They bought fruits, fresh chestnuts, and today’s protagonist matsutake. It took 3 hours for one operation. Really tired, the children are eating while walking. After leaving the vegetable market, our family will bid farewell to our friends. In the evening, I booked an airport hotel for them, and we will take a flight back tomorrow morning, and we will leave for home tomorrow morning.
Finally, I will make a simple route summary for this self-driving parent-child tour:
Kunming (Xiu Hotel, Nanping Pedestrian Street)--Chuxiong (Moji Jiujianfang Inn, World Dinosaur Valley Heritage Park/Yi Nationality Ancient Town)--Dali (SM Shimo Art Designer Net Red B&B, Dali Ancient Town/Xizhou Ancient Town) --Mangshi (Haizhou Hotel, Heishan Old Slope/Swedish Golden Pagoda/Shubao Pagoda) --Ruili (Ruili Port/two villages) --Tengchong (Ginkgo Village Dudu Inn/Zuoyou Inn, Heshun Ancient Town/Volcano Geothermal National Geological Park/Atami Scenic Area/National War Cemetery/Angsana Hot Spring Village)--Gengma (Hongbo International Hotel)--Lincang (Wengding Primitive Tribe)--Lancang (Hailan Hotel)-- Xishuangbanna (Wanglian Hotel)
I hope this self-driving travel guide can bring joy to friends who are going to Yunnan for free travel!