Xishuangbanna
Palm trees, Dai villages and a night market by the Mekong. Warm, low-lying and an easy train ride from Kunming.
Xishuangbanna is Yunnan's tropical south, close to the borders with Laos and Myanmar. Its main town, Jinghong, sits on the Lancang River, the upper Mekong. This is the home of the Dai people, with their stilt houses, temples and sour, fresh-herb cooking.
It is also much lower than Kunming, at about 550 m above sea level, which makes it one of the easier trips to take while you are still in the middle of treatment, if your doctor agrees.
Suggested itinerary
- Day 1Train from Kunming, about three hours on the China–Laos railway. Evening at the Gaozhuang night market by the river.
- Day 2Manting Park and a Dai temple in the morning. A slow afternoon by the hotel pool.
- Day 3The Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden at Menglun, about 90 minutes by road.
- Day 4A Dai village visit in the morning, then the train back to Kunming.
Good to know
The dry months, roughly November to April, are the most comfortable. From May to October it is hot, humid and often rainy. The Water-Splashing Festival, the Dai New Year, is held in mid-April and gets very busy. Dai food can be spicy and sour, so ask for milder dishes if you are recovering from dental work.
