Limestone peaks, slow green rivers and rice fields, best seen from a boat, a bamboo raft or a bicycle.
Limestone peaks, slow green rivers and rice fields, best seen from a boat, a bamboo raft or a bicycle.
Guilin's symbol, a hill with an arch over the Li River that looks like an elephant drinking. Entry has been free since 2022; scan the QR code at the gate for a free e-ticket.
A limestone cave about 6 km northwest of the center, lit in colored lights along a short loop. Tickets cost ¥90 at the gate and less online.
Boats sail downstream from piers south of Guilin to Yangshuo in about 4–4.5 hours; the stretch between Yangdi and Xingping, shown on the ¥20 note, is the best. Three-star boats leave from Mopanshan Pier, four-star boats from Zhujiang Pier, all in the morning.
Flat lanes between karst peaks, villages and rice fields, easiest on a rented bike or e-bike along the Yulong River valley.
Two-person rafts poled over small weirs on a quiet Li River tributary, on fixed sections of 30–70 minutes. Rafts are booked by section and checked against your passport.
Hillsides terraced by Zhuang and Yao villages, about 2–2.5 hours by road from Guilin. Ping'an village is the easier day trip; Dazhai is larger, with a cable car to the top viewpoint.
The local breakfast: round rice noodles tossed with crispy pork, braised beef and peanuts, with broth on the side.
Yangshuo's signature: river fish fried with its scales on, then braised in local beer, usually priced by weight.
River snails stuffed with seasoned minced meat and braised, one of several Guilin stuffed dishes along with tofu, eggplant and bitter melon.
Alternating slices of pork belly and local taro, fried and then steamed until soft.
A bitter, gingery tea of stir-fried tea leaves, drunk with puffed rice, peanuts and scallions.
Guilin and Yangshuo, in Guangxi in China’s far south, are about one kind of landscape: hundreds of steep limestone peaks rising out of flat rice fields and slow green rivers. Guilin is the city, with the airport and the main stations. Yangshuo, downriver at the end of the cruise, is a small town in open countryside, and most visitors find it the more pleasant base.
This is the scenery stop on a first trip to China, and it suits people who prefer boats, bikes and easy walks to museums. It pairs well with Chengdu, about five hours away by high-speed train, and with Hong Kong or Guangzhou, about three hours away. From Beijing, Shanghai or Xi’an, fly.
Three days is a comfortable minimum. Arrive in Guilin, see Elephant Trunk Hill and Reed Flute Cave, and sleep in town before the next morning’s Li River cruise. The boat lands in Yangshuo in the early afternoon, leaving the rest of the day for West Street and the riverbank.
Give the next day to the countryside: rent a bike or e-bike, ride out along the Yulong River and take a bamboo raft for one section. A fourth day buys the Longji terraces, a long day trip from Guilin or better as one night in Ping’an village. To move on, Yangshuo station is about an hour from town, with direct trains to Guangzhou and Chengdu; our high-speed trains guide covers booking. Piers, raft docks and noodle shops all take QR-code payment, so set it up first with paying in China, and check the entry rules for your passport in visa-free entry.
Checked on 29 October 2026. Opening times and ticket rules change; confirm on the official site before you go.
Tell us your dates and which cities you have in mind. A host replies within 24 hours with a day-by-day plan that fits Guilin in, and a price.
Plan your trip