7 Days Tiger Leaping Gorge Hiking Tour with Extension to

Shangri-la

Upon your arrival, our guide will pick you up in Lijiang Airport and escort you to the comfortable hotel in Lijiang. Then you will enjoy free time. You can strool around the enchanting Lijiang Old Town to experience local peaceful and distinctive lifestyle. It is a unique experience to walk on the stone pavement and listen to the vaguely Naxi music from folk house on either side of the street. It feels like you have passed through thousands of years. At last, the busy Square Street appears in front of you. You can join in local ethnic people to sing antiphonal songs with them. And then place a lantern on the water to make a wish. Of course, don't miss the pub. Maybe you will have a sweet meeting here. Tonight you will stay at the hotel in Lijiang.

After breakfast, we will drive you to the spectacular Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, which is the largest snow mountain in the Northern Hemisphere. You will first enjoy the beautiful landscape at the Baishui River (White Water River). It flows at the foot of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. The riverbed is made up of white marble and lime stones and the river looks white, hence the name of White River (Baishui).

Then proceed to Jade Water Village - a sacred palce of Dongba people. where you will visit a local Naxi family to get a close touch to the daily life of Naxi Minority.

Then visit the Jade Summit Lamasery, a famous Tibetan Temple with ancient forests clustering around . In its northern countyard you can enjoy the treasure of the temple - the giant Camellia Tree, which is more than 500 years old. Because its blossoming period lasts more than 100 days a year, and produces more than 20,000 flowers in 20 groups, it is renowned as "Ten-thousand-flower Camellia".

Afterwards catch a cable car  to the summit of the Yak Meadow, one of 13 peaks of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. The landscape rises and falls on the meadow. In spring and summer, you can find yaks with black and white skin wandering in grass and all kinds of flowers. In autumn and winter, you will wonder at the sharp contrast between the mild edge of the meadow and the peaks of the snow mountain. The view is unforgettable. Looking down at Ganhaizi and continuous mountains, you will find that the snow mountain is so close to you. Cool wind gently blows on your face. All the things here are so beautiful and peaceful.

At late afternoon you enjoy the famous movie director Zhang Yimou's musical show "Impression Lijiang". Tonight you will stay at the hotel in Lijiang.

Thrilling Tiger Leaping Gorge hiking start! On this day you will hike from Qiaotou to Halfway Guesthouse. After breakfast, you will be driven to Qiaotou Town, and start trekking through high trail. Today you will hike about 17 kilometers and approximately seven hours in total. First hike 2 hours to Naxi Family Guest house where you will have lunch break and get close touch with local people. Then continue hiking another 2 hours up the steep 28-bends before the next break, which is a real challenge. The amazing landscapes will feast your eyes. After another 2 hours' hiking, you will arrive at the half-way guest house which has a great view of Yulong Snow Mountain and overlooks the Jinsha River Valley. Sitting out on a deck, you will wonder at the magnificent scenery in front of you. Tonight you will stay in Half-way guest house. While your trekking, your driver will take your luggage to Tina's Inn.

In the morning, continue your trekking to reach Tina's Inn. On the way you will pass through some pretty waterfalls and canyons. After lunch break, walking for 1 hour down the steep cliff to the bank of Jinsha River to worship the dangerous shoal of "Starriness" and could see the "One Line Sky". It is the most narrow part of the gorge, where a tiger can easily jump over the Jinsha River.  Spending one more hour to climb up the gorge. Then continue hiking to the Walnut Grove. You can enjoy the wild, isolated nature along the treking way. Stay overnight at Woody Guesthouse.

After breakfast, you get on your coach and drive round the Haba Snow Mountain to reach Baishui Terrace (White Water Terrace), which is the largest area of sinter terrace in China, and is called 'a field left by fairie' by local people. After lunch, you will spend 2 hours in exploring this mystirous terrace. Amid the Haba Snow Mountain you will find a stretch of crystal terrace. In addition to the spectacular view itself, it is the place where the Naxi Culture originated, and now the holy place for Naxi ceremonies. You can also learn about the ethnic Naxi minority and folklore in the nearby Baidi village. Afterwards, transfer to Shangri-La (Zhongdian). Tonight you will stay at the hotel in Zhongdian.

In the morning you will take 2 hours to visit the fascinating Napahai Lake, the largest grassland in Zhongdian. Napahai is in fact a seasonal lake. When summer comes, snow on the adjacent mountains melts and flows down into about ten rivers forming a vast lake. You will appreciate a grand area of peaceful lake surrounded by snow mountains. In the dry season, Napahai becomes a boundless green grassland where you will find flocks of yaks, horses and sheep. Also you have chance to see the precious Black-necked cranes, of which only 6,000 remain in the world. During the dry season, this grassland is an ideal place for horse-back trekking. You can hire a horse from local people with a reasonable fare.

After lunch visit the ancient Songzanlin Monastery, which is the largest and most important Tibetan Buddhist monastery in southwest China. In the main hall you will appreciate a series of precious Buddhism-related objects like scriptures written on palm leaves, the Shakyamuni statues, etc. Standing on the roof of the temple, you will amaze at the magnificent landscape of front meadow and the town. The blue sky is so close to you as if you can reach it with your hand. Downhill along the hill slop, you will find smaller temples and monk's residences where about 700 monks live. If you want to deeply experience the Buddhists' life, you can join in the morning class or evening class. You will have a peacefull mind and remain in deep thought.

On the way back, explore a local village and be a guest in a Tibetan family with a taste of Tibetan specialities such as yak butter tea, yogurt & Tibetan barley. Then you head for the ancient Gyalthang Town, which was established in Tang Dynasty. Though it is small, the old town is quite different form others in Yunnan. You can find many Tibetan cultural facts such as Buddhist paintings and Tibetan residences side by side. A peaceful cobble path guide you to the Daguishan Hill where you can turn the biggest praying wheel in the world and take a birds-eye view of Shangri-la.  Tonight you will stay at the hotel in Zhongdian.