Jingmai Mountain

Some places make you want to see everything. Jingmai Mountain makes you want to slow down.

Wake up to a sea of clouds, wander through old villages and find a small café to settle into. Spend the afternoon making something by hand in a tiny workshop, then watch the sun slip behind the village rooftops. Along the way you may well be invited in for a cup of tea: tea has been grown on the mountain for over a thousand years, and in 2023 its old tea forests and villages were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage cultural landscape.

There's no need to rush here. Even the breeze seems to take its time.

Where it is

Jingmai Mountain sits in Lancang County, Pu'er, in the far south-west of Yunnan near the Myanmar border. The villages of the Bulang and Dai people are scattered through old tea forests that grow at about 1,250–1,600 m, so the air is mild and the nights are cool.

• From Kunming by air: about an hour and 20 minutes to Lancang Jingmai Airport, then about two hours by car (roughly 75 km of mountain road) up to the villages. There are only a few flights a day, so we plan the travel day around them.
• From Pu'er or Xishuangbanna by road: about three to three and a half hours by car on mountain roads. There are trains from Kunming to Pu'er, and Jinghong, the main city of Xishuangbanna, has more flights than Lancang.
• Getting around: the mountain is a protected area with a security checkpoint, so bring your passport. Inside, visitors use the shuttle service or a local driver; we arrange the car and a guide who knows the villages.

Suggested itinerary

1. Day 1Fly or drive in, check into a guesthouse in Nuogang or Wengji village, evening tea with the hosts.
2. Day 2Dawn sea of clouds, walk the old tea forest and the village lanes, lunch in a Bulang home, afternoon craft workshop, sunset from the ridge.
3. Day 3Slow morning, a last pot of tea, then the drive back towards Pu'er or the airport.

Good to know

• The village lanes are paved with uneven stone, and most guesthouses have stairs. This is usually fine after dental work or a checkup, but tell us if you need a ground-floor room or shorter walking days.
• The mountain roads are winding; if you get carsick, sit in the front and we will plan breaks.
• The dry season (October to April) gives the clearest mornings and the best chance of seeing the sea of clouds.
• Tea is served everywhere; if you need to avoid caffeine in the evening, ask for a lighter white tea or simply hot water; hosts are happy to serve either.

The video at the top of this page is our own footage from a day on Jingmai Mountain.