Kunming, Yuanyang, Dali & Lijiang: Ten Winter Days in Yunnan

1. Flights

Fares from Google Flights on 5 Sep 2026. Scoot is a low-cost carrier: bags, meals and seats cost extra; one 20 kg checked bag each is enough. For the 03:00 return, book a room at the Ji Hotel inside Kunming T1 and sleep until 00:30 before walking down to check in.

2. Day by Day

Thu 24 Dec

Departure

Overnight flight

• 18:00Straight from the office to Changi T1 (Scoot counters, rows 5–7); TR160 departs 22:00, counter closes 21:00.
• Before boarding, set up the China apps: 12306, Trip.com/Ctrip, Amap, WeChat Pay or Alipay linked to a Singapore card with one test payment, plus the “丽江旅游集团” mini-program, the only place the Jade Dragon cable-car tickets are sold.
• Singapore passports get 30 days visa-free; no visa for this 10-day trip.

PlacesChangi Airport T1Kunming Changshui International Airport

Fri 25 Dec

Land before dawn, gulls on Dianchi Lake

InterContinental Kunming · night 1 (book from the 24th)

• 02:00Land at Changshui Airport; after immigration a taxi covers the 27 km to Dianchi Road in about 40 min for around S$17 (¥90) (slightly more at night). Metro line 6 only starts at 06:20. Book the room from the night of the 24th so you can walk straight in at 03:30.
• 10:00Sleep in, breakfast at the hotel. Around 11 walk 1.4 km through the Haigeng Auditorium grounds to the Haigeng Dam (海埂大坝): black-headed gulls winter in Kunming from mid-November to March, peaking December–February, and a bag of gull feed from a stall (a few yuan) has them eating from your hand.
• 13:00Back into town for crossing-the-bridge rice noodles (过桥米线) at Qiaoxiangyuan or Jianxinyuan, then Green Lake Park (翠湖) in the afternoon: more gulls, a pavilion on the water, bamboo and old Kunming's teahouse pace.
• 17:30A loop of the Jinma Biji archways and Nanping Street, early dinner, early night: red-eye behind you, a 06:40 start ahead.
• Wet-weather swap: Yunnan Provincial Museum (free, Tue–Sun 09:00–17:00; 25 Dec is a Friday) for the bronze bull-and-tiger table of the Dian kingdom and the Dali kingdom's golden garuda.

PlacesKunming Changshui International AirportInterContinental KunmingHaigeng DamGreen Lake ParkJinma Biji ArchwaysYunnan Provincial Museum

Sat 26 Dec

High-speed rail south to the old town of Jianshui

Langshe Courtyard Inn, Chaoyang Tower branch · night 1

• 06:40Taxi to Kunming South station in Chenggong, about 40 min. 07:53C577 Kunming South → Jianshui (建水), arr 09:47, second class S$10 (¥51)Sep 2026 timetable; confirm when 12306 releases tickets. Backup C552, 08:23 → 10:39.
• 10:15The high-speed station is about 7 km from the old town, 20 min and S$6 (¥30) by taxi. Langshe is 550 m from Chaoyang Tower; drop the bags.
• 10:45Chaoyang Tower (朝阳楼, S$4 (¥20)): climb it for the “雄镇东南” plaque, then walk Lin'an Road into the old town. Lunch is Jianshui's grilled tofu with steam-pot chicken.
• 13:00Zhu Family Garden (朱家花园, S$7 (¥35), the “Grand View Garden of the south”) and the Confucian Temple (建水文庙, S$8 (¥40), China's third largest).
• 14:30Board the century-old metre-gauge heritage train at Lin'an station for Shuanglong Bridge and the walled village of Tuanshan: soft seat S$28 (¥150), departures 09:00 and 14:30, about 3 hours round trip. The seventeen-arch Shuanglong Bridge (双龙桥) is the stop worth getting off for.
• 18:30Back to the old town, browse the purple-clay pottery on Zitao Street, early night: mountain roads tomorrow.

PlacesKunming South StationLangshe Courtyard Inn, Chaoyang TowerChaoyang TowerZhu Family GardenJianshui Confucian TempleLin'an Station (heritage train)

Sun 27 Dec

Private car into Yuanyang, sunset at Bada

Shengtian Manshanlai guesthouse, Duoyishu · night 1

• 08:30Private car Jianshui → Duoyishu (多依树) in Yuanyang: 165 km of mountain road, about 3 h, roughly S$113 (¥600)estimate for an MPV. Have the inn book it; the drivers know the bends. Take motion-sickness tablets first if you need them.
• 12:00Check in at Duoyishu. The guesthouse sits 570 m from the viewing platform with balconies facing the terraces. Buy the Yuanyang terraces combined ticket: S$19 (¥100) covering Qingkou village, Laohuzui, Bada and Duoyishuverified.
• 14:00Qingkou Hani village (箐口): mushroom-roofed houses and the water channels that explain how these terraces have been farmed for 1,300 years.
• 16:30Sunset at Bada (坝达, open 08:00–19:30). Late-December sunset is about 18:30 (worked out from the latitude and longitude), and the flooded terraces turn gold and then pink, tier by tier.
• December to February is the flooding season: no rice in the fields, just water, mirroring the sky on clear days, and the best odds of a sea of clouds. That is the whole reason Yuanyang anchors this winter route.

PlacesShengtian Manshanlai, DuoyishuDuoyishu TerracesQingkou Hani VillageBada Terraces

Mon 28 Dec

Sunrise at Duoyishu, sunset at Laohuzui

Shengtian Manshanlai · night 2

• 06:45Head-torch on, walk to the Duoyishu viewpoint; sunrise is about 07:50, so be in place by 07:15 to watch the sky turn from slate to gold. Backlight burns off the mist layer by layer. “Sunrise at Duoyishu, sunset at Laohuzui” is the local rule.
• 09:00Back for breakfast and a nap. Late morning, wander the Huangcaoling and Aichun villages, where the famous blue terraces lie.
• 15:30Hire a local car (about S$56 (¥300)/dayestimate) to Laohuzui (老虎嘴, Tiger's Mouth): closed by a landslide in 2018, rebuilt and reopened in April 2023, open 08:00–19:00verified. The steepest, densest terraces and the grandest sunset.
• Two sunrises and two sunsets over two days is the margin for fog: Yuanyang is weather-dependent and any single session can vanish into cloud.

PlacesDuoyishu ViewpointHuangcaolingAichun Blue TerracesLaohuzui Terraces

Tue 29 Dec

The long transfer: Yuanyang → Kunming South → Dali

Hilton Dali Resort & Spa · night 1

• 07:30Get up for one more sunrise if you like, but be on the road by 08:30. Private car Yuanyang → Kunming South station, 322 km on expressway, about 4.5 h, roughly S$226 (¥1200)estimate. (The electric coach to Kunming, S$15 (¥79) a head, leaves at 11:00 and reaches the Luosiwan bus station mid-afternoon: too slow for today.)
• 13:30At Kunming South, a bowl of crossing-the-bridge noodles at Qiaoxiangyuan outside the east exit before going through security.
• 14:52D3945 Kunming South → Dali (大理), arr 17:17, second class S$29 (¥155)Sep 2026 timetable; backup D3949, 15:30 → 17:54. 12306 sells 15 days ahead counting departure day, so tickets appear on 15 Dec.
• 17:40Dali station to the Hilton is about 20 min, S$9 (¥50). The resort sits at the foot of Cangshan looking over Erhai, with a 28 °C heated pool.
• 19:30Taxi 6 km to the south gate of Dali Old Town (大理古城): dinner on Renmin Road and the lanterns after dark.

PlacesKunming South StationQiaoxiangyuan, Kunming SouthDali StationHilton Dali Resort & SpaDali Old Town

Wed 30 Dec

A day around Erhai: Three Pagodas, Xizhou, Shuanglang

Hilton · night 2

• 09:00Car for the day (about S$75 (¥400)estimate). Start with the Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple (崇圣寺三塔): S$14 (¥75), shuttle inside the grounds S$7 (¥35)verified. Shoot them in the reflecting pool with Cangshan behind.
• 11:0018 km north to Xizhou (喜洲): Bai courtyard houses of the “three wings and a screen wall” kind, the Yan family compound at S$6 (¥30), and Xizhou baba flatbread at S$1 (¥5) apiece: one sweet, one savoury.
• 13:30Cycle the Erhai ecological corridor from Xizhou to Haishe Park (electric scooters are banned on parts of it); an hour is about right.
• 15:00Round to Shuanglang (双廊) on the east shore for coffee at the water's edge and the sun going down behind Cangshan. Erhai is at its bluest and quietest in winter.
• 18:30Sour-and-spicy fish in the old town, back to the hotel by 21:00: a 6 am start tomorrow.

PlacesThree Pagodas of Chongsheng TempleXizhouYan Family CompoundHaishe ParkShuanglangDali Old Town

Thu 31 Dec

Train to Lijiang, New Year's Eve in the old town

Hotel Indigo Lijiang Ancient Town · night 1

• 06:15Check out and go to Dali station. 07:00C323 Dali → Lijiang (丽江), arr 08:36, second class S$15 (¥80)Sep 2026 timetable; backup C985, 07:46 → 09:35.
• 09:00Lijiang station to Hotel Indigo at the old town's south gate is about 20 min. Naxi-style courtyards, and Sifang Street is a walk away.
• 10:30Black Dragon Pool (黑龙潭): on a clear day Jade Dragon Snow Mountain reflects in the pond. Independent travellers pay the old-town maintenance fee of S$9 (¥50) only here (valid a year, rules from Aug 2025)verified; the old town itself is free to enter.
• 13:00Lunch in the old town, then an unhurried afternoon along Sifang Street, Dashi Bridge and Wuyi Street, and up Lion Hill for the view over the tiled roofs.
• 18:00New Year's Eve: the bar street is lively but there is no need to linger. Tomorrow is a 06:30 start for 4,500 m of altitude, so no alcohol and an early night: that is the biggest lever against altitude sickness. Lijiang's January nights average −0.5 °C, so have the down jacket ready.

PlacesDali StationLijiang StationHotel Indigo Lijiang Ancient TownBlack Dragon PoolSifang StreetLion Hill (Wangu Tower)

Fri 1 Jan

Jade Dragon Snow Mountain glacier park, Blue Moon Valley, Shuhe

Hotel Indigo · night 2

• 06:30Private car to Ganhaizi at the foot of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (玉龙雪山), about 30 km / 40 min, roughly S$56 (¥300)estimate return. The big cable-car ticket is sold only in the “丽江旅游集团” mini-program, released 7 days ahead at 20:00, so log in at 20:00 on 25 Dec and grab the earliest slot on 1 Janverified.
• Costs: park entry S$19 (¥100) + eco-bus S$4 (¥20) + Glacier Park cableway S$26 (¥140)verified. Oxygen canisters rent for about S$15 (¥80) at the base, down jackets too.
• 08:30The cableway tops out at 4,506 m and a boardwalk climbs to the 4,680 m viewpoint. Walk slowly, drink water, and if your head swims use the oxygen and go down: no heroics. 1–3 Jan is a public holiday in China, so the first cable-car slots are the quietest of the day.
• 11:00Down to Blue Moon Valley (蓝月谷, included in the entry fee), at its bluest in winter. 13:20Optional: the outdoor show Impression Lijiang, standard seat S$37 (¥199)2022 price, to confirm, low-season shows 13:20 and 14:50.
• 15:30Stop at Shuhe old town (束河, free) on the way back: quieter than Dayan, with the worn flagstones of the Tea Horse Road.
• Swap rule with 31 Dec: check the two-day forecast, do the mountain on the clear day and the old town on the other. If the big cableway sells out, fall back to the Spruce Meadow cableway (云杉坪, 3,240 m, S$8 (¥40)) for the face-on view of the peak.

PlacesGanhaizi, Jade Dragon Snow MountainGlacier Park CablewayBlue Moon ValleyImpression Lijiang TheatreShuhe Old TownSpruce Meadow Cableway

Sat 2 Jan

Baisha village, train back to Kunming, night at the airport

Ji Hotel, Kunming Changshui Airport T1 terminal · night 1

• 09:00Sleep in, then optionally Baisha (白沙, free, 10 km): an older Naxi village with its Ming-era murals, rawer than Shuhe. Check out by 11:30.
• 13:01C456 Lijiang → Kunming station, arr 17:01, second class S$36 (¥190)Sep 2026 timetable; tickets out 19 Dec. Backup C460, 16:52 → 20:57.
• 17:15With luggage, just taxi to Changshui Airport: about 45 min and S$17 (¥90). The metro alternative is line 1 to Huancheng South Road, line 2 to Tangzixiang, then line 6 to Airport Centre: two changes, about an hour, S$1 (¥6).
• 18:30The Ji Hotel is on level F2 of Terminal 1 (lift opposite Gate 1). Dinner at the hotel restaurant or in the terminal, lights out before 20:00.
• The last afternoon in Kunming is left open on purpose: another look at Green Lake or snacks in Guandu old town both work. The airport hotel is there so the way home is unhurried.

PlacesBaisha VillageLijiang StationKunming StationGuandu Old TownKunming Changshui International AirportJi Hotel, Changshui Airport T1

Sun 3 Jan

Home to Singapore before dawn

Home by mid-morning

• 00:30Up and downstairs to check in; Scoot closes the counter 60 min before departure.
• 03:00Scoot Kunming → Singapore, landing at Changi 07:20. Sleep as much of the 4 hours as you can: neck pillow and eye mask.
• Sunday to recover, work as usual on Monday 4 Jan. If the Scoot flight is cancelled, China Eastern's 07:20 nonstop is the same-day fallback.

PlacesJi Hotel, Changshui Airport T1Kunming Changshui International AirportChangi Airport

3. Hotels

25 Dec–3 Jan is China's peak travel window; the three-day New Year holiday (1–3 Jan) squeezes Lijiang hardest, and the good Yuanyang guesthouses have only a dozen rooms. Lock all six now on free-cancellation rates, and book the InterContinental from the night of 24 Dec or there will be no room at 03:30.

4. Tickets and Booking Rules

Prices converted at 1 CNY = 0.1883 SGD on 2026-09-05; the yuan price in brackets is what you pay on the ground. Park prices are the 2025 published rates; rail fares are the floating prices Ctrip showed in September 2026, and 12306 has the final word when December tickets are released. Singapore passports get 30 days visa-free, so no visa is needed for this 10-day trip.

5. Booking Timeline

6. Gear List (Kunming 3–17 °C, Lijiang near zero at night, sub-zero and windy on the mountain)

7. Risks and Backups

8. Budget (two sharing a room, per person)

About S$2,946 per person, S$5,891 for two. Carry ¥500 (S$94) cash each as a float, not counted above.

Flights (S$1,167) and hotels (S$838) are 68% of the per-person total. Savings in order: swap Hotel Indigo for a boutique inn inside Lijiang's old town (¥500 tier) and save about S$169 per person; swap the Hilton for the Linden Centre or an old-town inn and save about S$94 more; taking the 11:00 electric coach from Yuanyang (¥79 a head) instead of the car saves about S$98 per person but misses the same-day train to Dali and costs an extra Kunming night, so it does not pay. Rate 2026-09-05, 1 CNY = 0.1883 SGD.