8 Days Guilin Guizhou Tour: Karst Landscapes and Miao & Dong Culture

Ni Hao! Welcome to breathtaking Guilin. On arrival at Guilin airport or train station, meet your guide and driver and begin exploring Guilin’s top attractions.

Visit Elephant Trunk Hill, Guilin’s signature landmark. Carved by natural erosion, this limestone hill looks like a giant elephant drinking at the confluence of Li River and Peach Blossom River. See ancient Tang‑Song poetic carvings inside Water‑Moon Cave. This site gave rise to the famous saying that “Guilin’s scenery is the best under heaven”.

Then tour Reed Flute Cave — Nature’s Art Palace. Wander through a huge underground cave full of fantastically shaped stalactites and stalagmites lit by colourful lights. Don’t skip Crystal Palace with its magical water reflections and the Water‑Curtain Movie showing cave‑formation geology.

✈️ Flights: Guilin Lijiang Airport connects Beijing, Xi’an, Shanghai, Chengdu, Chongqing, Hangzhou and other main cities.

This morning drive 77 km (2 hours) from Guilin to Longji Terraces Scenic Area (300‑1,100 m elevation). Created 2,300 years ago by Zhuang and Yao minorities, Longji Rice Terraces offer stunning mountain farm scenery.

First visit Huangluo Yao Village — “World’s Longest‑Hair Village”. More than 70 Red Yao women have hair over 1 metre long (max 2.72 m, Guinness‑recorded). Watch an optional 45‑minute folk performance featuring folk songs, drum dances, wedding rituals and long‑hair‑combing shows. Learn traditional rice‑water shampoo hair‑care wisdom from local ladies.

Head to Ping’an Village for lunch at a local family restaurant. Taste rice wine, bamboo‑tube rice, bamboo chicken and smoked pork.

In the afternoon, hike Ping’an Rice Terraces. A Globally Important Agricultural Cultural Heritage site, Longji is among the world’s most beautiful terraced fields.

Reach key viewpoints: Seven Stars Accompany the Moon (sunrise spot) and Nine Dragons and Five Tigers (sunset viewpoint, origin of “Dragon Backbone” name).

Walk inside Ping’an Zhuang village. See traditional Diaojiaolou stilt‑houses, local hand‑woven costumes, and try special Zhuang oil‑tea. Capture plenty of photos of the rolling layered terrace scenery.

After hiking, transfer back to Guilin.

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“East or west, Guilin landscape is the best.” After breakfast, travel to Mopanshan Pier (1‑hour drive) for your 4‑hour Li River cruise to Yangshuo. Listed among National Geographic’s top 10 watery wonders, the 83‑km route delivers classic karst scenery. See Nine‑Horse Mural Hill, Yellow Cloth Shoal and the famous 20‑yuan‑note landscape, plus riverside Xingping Town.

After breakfast, transfer to Yangshuo Railway Station and take the 1.5‑hour high‑speed train to Congjiang.

Your Guizhou guide will meet you and drive to Zhaoxing Dong Village — “No.1 Dong Village of China”, one of the largest, best‑preserved Dong villages nationwide.

The village is famous for its five drum‑tower complexes. Local residents of the Lu surname are split into five clans named after traditional Confucian virtues. Each clan has its own drum tower, wind‑and‑rain bridge and opera stage. Wander the five quarters, appreciate Dong architectural genius, walk the wind‑and‑rain bridges, and climb the village‑gate overlook for full‑village panoramic views.

✨ Optional: Enjoy a Dong Grand Song performance. This UNESCO intangible‑heritage polyphonic folk singing is performed without instruments, creating pure, mesmerising harmonies.

After breakfast, drive about 1 hour to Biasha Miao Village — “China’s Last Gunman Tribe”.

Biasha men wear traditional indigo‑blue outfits, carry flintlock guns and machetes, and keep the special Hugun topknot: most hair is shaved off with sickles, leaving only a central bun symbolising harmony of heaven‑earth‑humanity. This custom originates from the ancient Chiyou tribal legacy. The villagers hold deep tree‑worshipping traditions: one tree is planted at birth and later used for one’s coffin at death. Watch the unique sickle‑hair‑shaving folk performance to experience the tribe’s fearless culture.

Next visit tranquil Zhanli Dong Village. Local legend tells of the mysterious “Huanhua Grass”, a secret herbal formula said to help families maintain one‑son‑one‑daughter households. This herbal knowledge is reserved for villagers only. Stroll by Zhanli Bridge and find the symbolic Male Well and Female Well, and soak up the gentle riverside rural atmosphere.

Conclude the day and spend the night in Congjiang.

This morning drive toward Kaili. On the way, visit Langde Upper Miao Village — “Hometown of Chinese Folk Song and Dance”. Nestled amid mountains and terraces, it keeps authentic Miao culture with little commercialisation.

Experience the spectacular Twelve‑Cup Road‑Blocking Rice‑Wine welcome ritual, the Miao’s highest guest‑honouring etiquette, served in ox‑horn cups. Then enjoy a lively folk performance of toast songs, Miao flying songs and Lusheng dances at the village square. Stroll through hillside Diaojiaolou stilt‑houses. This is home to the Long‑Skirt Miao, admired for their splendid traditional long‑skirt costumes.

Continue to Matang Gejia Village. The Gejia trace their origin to Hou Yi, the mythical archer. Their distinctive festival outfits include bow‑and‑arrow‑shaped headdresses, weapon‑styled ornaments, batik and bright red embroidery, recalling the legend of the heroic warrior‑wife. Observe locals practising traditional beeswax batik, with nature‑inspired patterns of animals and plants.

Complete your sightseeing and ride roughly 2.5 hours to Guiyang for hotel check‑in.

After breakfast, drive 2.5 hours to Anshun to visit Huangguoshu Waterfall — Asia’s largest waterfall. Its thunderous roar can be heard from 1 km away.

This scenic spot was made famous by ancient geographer Xu Xiake’s travel writings.

• Doupotang: Wide 105‑metre waterfall, famous filming location for Journey to the West. Powerful rushing waters boom during wet‑season months.

• Tianxingqiao: Rich karst landscape of caves, stone forests and water features. Don’t miss Silver‑Chain Falling‑Pool Waterfall, where streams fan across circular rock formations before plunging into the pool.

• Huangguoshu Main Waterfall: 77.8 m high, 101 m wide. Massive flood‑season flow creates spectacular multi‑layer cascades. Walk through the 134‑metre Water‑Curtain Cave behind the falling water; escalator available for easier access.

After sightseeing, drive back to Guiyang for overnight accommodation.

Then, it is time to end your 8-day Guilin Guizhou Tour. Your guide will escort you to the airport/train station for your flight or high-speed train to your next destination.