Yunnan Circuit: Kunming, Dali, Lijiang and Shangri-La by Train in 7 to 10 Days

Fly into Kunming, then go north by train: Kunming to Dali, Dali to Lijiang, Lijiang to Shangri-La. Every leg now has a train, including the last one, because the Lijiang–Shangri-La railway opened on 26 November 2023. For a 7-day trip, spend 1 night in Kunming, 2 in Dali, 2 in Lijiang and 2 in Shangri-La. That is 7 nights, and you leave on the morning of Day 8. At the end, either take one long direct train from Shangri-La back to Kunming, or a short train back to Lijiang and a flight from there, so you never sleep in the same place twice. Train tickets go on sale 15 days ahead, and Jade Dragon Snow Mountain tickets 7 days ahead. Those two dates set your booking calendar.

How the route works, and what to book when

The route climbs as it goes. Kunming city sits at about 1,891 m. Lijiang's town area is at 2,400 m. Jiantang Town, where Shangri-La's old town is, is at 3,300 m. Health officials say altitude sickness mostly happens above 2,500 m. Going north step by step means you reach that height only after several nights at lower stops, and your body gets time to adjust. This is the main reason we recommend Kunming first and Shangri-La last.

The second thing to know is that Kunming has two big railway stations, and you will probably use both. Kunming South (昆明南站, Kūnmíng Nán Zhàn) is out in the Chenggong district and is the main station for high-speed trains from Shanghai and for the trains to Laos. Kunming Station (昆明站, Kūnmíng Zhàn) is in the city, and it is where most trains to Lijiang and every direct train to Shangri-La start. Trains to Dali can be boarded at either one, but more of them call at Kunming Station. Always read the station name on your ticket, not just "Kunming".

Here is the booking calendar, counting back from your first day in Kunming:

• Before you leave home: set up 12306. China Railway's 12306 website and app accept a foreign passport, and the English version of 12306 takes foreign passports only. Your account must show the status "verified" before you can buy online; you can get verified by uploading a photo of your passport in the app, or by showing the passport at a station ticket window. Type your name in the same order as it appears on your passport, with a space between surname and given name. Our guide to booking China train tickets with a passport walks through it screen by screen. If you would rather not deal with 12306, you can also book with Trip.com (see the legs section below).
• Book hotels as soon as your dates are fixed. Old-town guesthouses in Dali and Lijiang are small, and the good ones fill first around holidays.
• 15 days before each train: buy it. The presale window is 15 days, including the travel day. Each station sets its own release time, and there is no single national time, so check the release time for your departure station in the app. Book Dali → Lijiang early: it has far fewer trains than Kunming → Dali. If you plan to leave by the direct train from Shangri-La to Kunming, book that as soon as its sales window opens, because there are only about 3 a day.
• 7 days before your mountain day: Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. The entry ticket opens 7 days ahead in the WeChat mini-program 玉龙雪山服务 ("Yulong Xueshan Fuwu"). The Glacier Park cable car, the Spruce Meadow cable car and the Impression Lijiang show also open 7 days ahead, in a different mini-program, 丽江旅游集团 ("Lijiang Tourism Group"), with real-name booking and a face check. Both mini-programs are in Chinese, so confirm early whether your passport goes through, and see Day 5 below for what to do if it does not.
• On travel days: allow time at the station. Passport holders go through the staffed gate, because the automatic gates do not read foreign passports. Our guide to getting through a Chinese train station with a passport shows the steps.

Where to sleep on each stop is simple. In Kunming, stay near the Green Lake area or near Kunming Station, since your next train most likely leaves from there. In Dali, stay inside or just outside Dali Old Town (大理古城, Dàlǐ Gǔchéng), not in Xiaguan (下关), the newer city around the railway station. In Lijiang, stay in or at the edge of the Dayan old town (大研古城, Dàyán Gǔchéng), or in Shuhe (束河) if you want it quieter. In Shangri-La, stay in or near Dukezong old town (独克宗古城, Dúkèzōng Gǔchéng); pick a place that advertises good heating if you go between November and March. You can compare guesthouses in all four towns on Booking.com. Foreign guests must be registered with the police, and hotels do this for you at check-in; our hotel booking and registration guide explains why a few small places turn foreigners away.

The legs, one by one: Kunming → Dali → Lijiang → Shangri-La

All train facts below come from 12306 searches for sample days in late October 2026. Train numbers, times and fares change with the timetable and the date, so check 12306 for your own travel date before you book.

Getting into Kunming

Most people fly into Kunming Changshui International Airport. Metro Line 6 runs from the airport (Airport Center station) to Tangziyang (塘子巷) in the city; when it opened, the first train from the airport was at 6:20 and the last at 23:00. A taxi or DiDi is easier with big bags or a late arrival, and our DiDi guide covers setting it up with a foreign card.

You can also arrive by high-speed train. On a sample day, 12306 showed 16 trains from Guangzhou South to Kunming South, the fastest taking 6 hours 40 minutes, and 4 from Shanghai Hongqiao, the fastest taking 9 hours 35 minutes. If you arrive at Kunming South, walk out through exits 1, 2 or 3 on the arrival level and you can transfer straight to Metro Lines 1 and 4 without a second security check.

Kunming → Dali: about 2 hours, many trains

This is the easy leg. A quick guide to train numbers: G and D trains are high-speed trains, C trains are fast short-distance trains, and Y trains are slower tourist trains; our train seat classes guide explains the seats. On the sample day there were about 56 trains a day from Kunming to Dali, and the fastest from Kunming Station took 1 hour 55 minutes. Many of these trains start at Kunming South, stop there first and then call at Kunming Station; from Kunming South the fastest took 2 hours 18 minutes. That means you should board at whichever station is closer to your hotel. The fastest, D8652 from Kunming Station, cost 109 yuan in second class, and G trains cost more (G2840 was 145 yuan). You will rarely struggle to get a seat outside holidays, but book anyway once the 15-day window opens.

Dali's railway station (大理站, Dàlǐ Zhàn) is in Xiaguan, not at the old town. City buses 4 and 8 and a tourist express bus all run from the railway station to the old town. A taxi or DiDi from the station rank is quicker if you have luggage.

Dali → Lijiang: under 2 hours, but few trains

This is the leg to book first. On the sample day, 12306 showed only 9 trains from Dali to Lijiang: 7 C trains and 2 slower Y tourist trains, leaving between 7:00 and 18:18. The fastest, C323, took 1 hour 36 minutes, and most C trains took 1:36 to 2:30, while the Y trains took about 3 to 4 hours. Second class on the C trains cost 80 yuan. Compare that with about 56 trains a day between Kunming and Dali, and you can see why this leg sells out first on busy weekends. If you only find seats on a Y train, take it; it is slower, not worse.

Lijiang Station (丽江站, Lìjiāng Zhàn) is outside the old town, so plan on a short taxi or DiDi ride. Lijiang's metered taxis start at 8 yuan for the first 2 km by day and charge 2.6 yuan per km after that. Taxis usually cannot drive into the old town lanes, so ask your guesthouse which gate or car park to set as your drop-off point, and whether someone can meet you there.

Lijiang → Shangri-La: the new railway, about 1 to 2 hours

Older guides tell you to take a 4-hour bus for this leg. That is out of date. The Lijiang–Shangri-La railway opened on 26 November 2023; it is about 139 km long and built for 140 km/h. On the sample day there were 10 trains from Lijiang Station to Shangri-La Station (香格里拉站, Xiānggélǐlā Zhàn), from 7:30 to 21:12. The fastest, C87, took 1 hour 10 minutes, and the typical train took about 1 hour 35 minutes. Second class on C87 cost 70 yuan, but this line uses flexible, discounted fares that differ by train and date, so check the fare on 12306 for your train.

Shangri-La Station is outside the old town. Take a taxi or DiDi to Dukezong; it is a short ride. Have the name of your guesthouse written in Chinese to show the driver.

Getting out: direct train to Kunming, or fly from Lijiang

You have three good ways to finish:

• Direct train from Shangri-La to Kunming. On the sample day there were 3 direct trains from Shangri-La to Kunming Station, the fastest (C88) taking 4 hours 39 minutes. These trains end at Kunming Station, not Kunming South. From there it is a metro or taxi ride to Line 6 and the airport.
• Train from Shangri-La to Lijiang, then fly out of Lijiang. Lijiang Sanyi International Airport is Yunnan's second-largest international airport and served more than 100 destinations. It is about 28 km from the city, with an airport bus and taxis.
• Fly out of Shangri-La. Diqing Shangri-La Airport has fewer routes than Lijiang; check flights for your date.

If you are going back to Kunming from Lijiang instead, there were 12 direct trains from Lijiang to Kunming on the sample day, the fastest (C88) taking 3 hours 23 minutes. The table below puts all the legs side by side, with fastest times, train counts and sample fares.

Fares on the table and on this page are for one sample date. You can buy all of these trains on 12306, or on Trip.com if you prefer an English booking site that takes your passport details.

The 7-day plan, day by day

This plan is 7 nights: Kunming 1, Dali 2, Lijiang 2, Shangri-La 2. You leave on the morning of Day 8. Each moving day uses a morning train, so you arrive with the afternoon free. For more on what to see in Dali and Lijiang beyond this plan, read our Dali and Lijiang guide.

Day 1: Arrive in Kunming

Land, get to your hotel, and keep the day light. If you arrive by early afternoon on any day except Monday, the Yunnan Provincial Museum is free and needs no ticket; it is open 9:00–17:00 with last entry at 16:30, and it is closed all day on Mondays except public holidays. Otherwise, walk around Green Lake (翠湖, Cuìhú) and eat a bowl of crossing-the-bridge rice noodles (过桥米线, guòqiáo mǐxiàn), where you add raw meat, vegetables and noodles to a bowl of very hot broth at the table. Go to bed early; tomorrow's train is in the morning.

Day 2: Train to Dali, afternoon in the old town

Take a morning train to Dali, which takes about 2 hours, and a bus or taxi to the old town. Drop your bags and walk the old town's grid of stone streets. In the late afternoon, go to the Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple (崇圣寺三塔, Chóngshèng Sì Sān Tǎ), just north of the old town at the foot of Cangshan. The prefecture government lists its hours as 7:30–18:30, but check the latest hours and ticket price before you go. Tickets are sold at the gate.

Day 3: Erhai Lake and Cangshan

Use this full day for the lake and the mountain, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Clear mornings are better for the mountain, so look at the sky when you wake up.

• Cangshan (苍山, Cāngshān). The Ximatan cable car (洗马潭索道) goes from the lower station at the Tianlong Babu film set, via a middle station, up to Ximatan at 3,966 m; the ride is 5,555 m long. That is high enough to feel the thin air, so walk slowly at the top. Check the current fare at the ticket office. A gentler option is the Jade Belt Road (玉带云游路), a walking path about 11 km long across the mountainside that links three cable cars.
• Erhai Lake (洱海, Ěrhǎi). Most visitors ride or walk a section of the lakeshore and stop in a village. Xizhou (喜洲) on the west shore has old Bai courtyard houses and a morning market; Shuanglang (双廊), on the northeast shore, is a former fishing village with small islands just offshore. The lakeshore has a protected ecological corridor. In 2025 Dali city announced action against unlicensed bike and e-bike rental on the corridor, and against motor vehicles and e-bikes driving onto it. Rent only from a proper shop, and ask the shop where you are allowed to ride; check the rules on the day, because they are enforced.

Boat trips on the lake are also sold; prices vary by route, so compare at the pier. In the evening, eat in the old town and pack, because tomorrow's train to Lijiang is one of the few on that line.

Day 4: Train to Lijiang, afternoon in the old town

Take the morning C train you booked 15 days ago; the fastest takes about 1 hour 36 minutes. Lijiang Old Town charges a maintenance fee of 50 yuan per person under rules in force since 1 August 2025 (Lijiang city government notice), which is valid for 365 days with unlimited entries. The fee covers the Dayan old town including Black Dragon Pool (黑龙潭, Hēilóng Tán), the Baisha village area and the Shuhe old town, so you pay once for all three. Children under 12 or under 1.2 m and people aged 60 or over are exempt; if you are 60 or over, carry your passport to show your age. Ask your guesthouse how and where to pay, and keep the receipt or e-ticket on your phone.

The centre of Dayan gets very crowded from late morning, so explore the quieter lanes toward the edges in the afternoon, then walk to Black Dragon Pool near closing time for the view of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain across the water if the sky is clear. Lijiang is at 2,400 m, and tomorrow you will go much higher, so skip heavy drinking tonight.

Day 5: Jade Dragon Snow Mountain

This is the day that needs the most planning. Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (玉龙雪山, Yùlóng Xuěshān) has a main peak at 5,596 m. Here is how the tickets fit together:

• Required for everyone: the entry ticket, 100 yuan, and the eco-bus inside the scenic area, 20 yuan, so 120 yuan in total, bought in advance.
• Glacier Park cable car (冰川公园索道), 120 yuan. This is the one most people come for. It climbs from 3,356 m to a viewing area at 4,506 m.
• Spruce Meadow cable car (云杉坪索道), 40 yuan. A short ride to an alpine meadow at 3,261 m. Choose it if you are worried about the altitude, or if the Glacier Park tickets for your date are gone.
• Yak Meadow cable car (牦牛坪索道): closed. It stopped carrying visitors on 4 March 2026 for rebuilding, and the new cable car is expected in 2028. Older guides still list it as one of three options.

Book the entry ticket in the 玉龙雪山服务 mini-program and the cable car in the 丽江旅游集团 mini-program, 7 days ahead. The cable car booking needs a face check, and the same ID can buy only once in 90 days. At least half of each day's cable car tickets are kept for independent visitors. The cable car company says it has not authorised any online platform to resell cable car tickets, so avoid third-party cable car offers. If the mini-programs will not accept your passport, the better fallback is to ask your Lijiang guesthouse to book for you. The ticket window at the new visitor centre in Baisha (白沙) sells entry tickets on site, but cable car tickets may not be sold there, so do not count on it for the cable car. The visitor hotlines are +86 888 513 1068 and +86 888 888 9999, likely Chinese only.

On the day:

• Start early. In the summer 2026 notice the scenic area was open 5:45–16:30, with no entry after 16:30, so check the current hours for your date. In summer traffic, the drive from Lijiang city to Ganhaizi (甘海子), the hub on the mountain, took about 80 minutes.
• Watch your cable car time. For the Glacier Park cable car, you must check in at the Xuechu restaurant (雪厨餐厅) stop within 30 minutes either side of the time on your ticket. Spruce Meadow check-in is at the Xuechuan visitor hub (雪川游客港), with a 90-minute window. If you do both cable cars on one day, leave at least 4 hours between the two time slots.
• Weather can stop the cable cars. Strong wind or heavy rain can stop or slow them at short notice. If the cable car is stopped, your fallback is a spare Lijiang day; the 7-day plan has none, so add one in the rainy season.
• Altitude help is on site. At Ganhaizi and the cable car stations there are free hot drinks and blood-oxygen checks, and oxygen canisters are sold from machines for 9.9–19.9 yuan. Walk slowly at the top, and turn back if you feel unwell.

Blue Moon Valley, the turquoise pools below the mountain, is on the way down and served by electric carts (10 yuan per section or 40 yuan for the whole loop). The open-air show Impression Lijiang (印象·丽江) is staged at Ganhaizi at 3,100 m, with standard seats at 280 yuan; book it in the same mini-program as the cable car if you want it. The Dali and Lijiang guide has the full ticket table for the mountain.

Day 6: Train to Shangri-La, a slow afternoon

Take a morning train; the fastest takes 1 hour 10 minutes. Shangri-La's town area is at 3,300 m, the highest place you will sleep on this route. Do very little today. Check in, drink water, eat a proper meal, and walk around Dukezong old town at an easy pace. Climb the steps to the big prayer wheel only if you feel fine. A mild headache on the first evening is common; see the altitude section below for when it is more than that.

Day 7: Pudacuo or Songzanlin, or both

You have two main sights, and with 2 nights here you can usually fit both into this day:

• Songzanlin Monastery (松赞林寺, Sōngzànlín Sì) is the big Tibetan Buddhist monastery on the northern edge of town, a short taxi ride from the old town. Go in the morning when the monks are active. Tickets are sold at the entrance.
• Pudacuo National Park (普达措国家公园, Pǔdácuò) is about 22 km east of town, with lakes, forest and meadows between 3,200 m and 4,159 m. Visitors ride the park's buses between boardwalk sections. Check the ticket and park-bus price at the gate or with your guesthouse.

If you are tired or have a headache, do only the monastery and spend the afternoon in the old town. The next morning, take the direct train to Kunming (about 4 hours 39 minutes at fastest) or the train back to Lijiang for a flight.

The 9–10-day version: Tiger Leaping Gorge, Shuhe, Shaxi and the Stone Forest

With 2 or 3 extra days, add these in order of how much they change the trip. The gorge matters most for active travellers; the Stone Forest is the easiest to slot in.

Tiger Leaping Gorge (+1 or 2 days, between Lijiang and Shangri-La)

Tiger Leaping Gorge (虎跳峡, Hǔtiào Xiá) is a deep river gorge on the far side of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain from Lijiang. It sits between Lijiang and Shangri-La, so it belongs between Day 5 and Day 6. There are two ways to see it:

• The lower road, as a day stop (+1 day, no extra night if you go on to Shangri-La the same evening). Visit the viewing platforms near the river on the Shangri-La side, then continue to Shangri-La that evening. Most travellers get there by road, with a hired car or a bus that your Lijiang guesthouse can usually arrange; check 12306 too, in case a train stop near the gorge suits your plan.
• The High Trail, as an overnight hike (+2 days, 1 extra night). The High Trail is a walking path above the north side of the gorge, usually done in 2 days with a night in a guesthouse on the trail. It is a real mountain walk with a long climb on the first day, so you need good shoes and some fitness. Most hikers start from Qiaotou (桥头), the town at the upper end of the gorge; confirm the trailhead, the current ticket price and which trail guesthouse to book with your Lijiang guesthouse.

The gorge has real rockfall risk in the rainy season. On 31 July 2026, after a night of heavy rain, the company that runs the Shangri-La side closed the scenic area until further notice; rockfalls were also reported nearby on 30 July and 1 September, outside the open visitor areas. In early September the city announced the scenic area was open as normal again. Before you go, check whether the scenic area is open; its hotlines are +86 887 880 6980 and +86 887 880 6982. From June to September, treat the gorge as weather-dependent and have a plan B.

Shuhe (+half a day, from Lijiang)

Shuhe (束河, Shùhé) is a smaller old town on the northern edge of Lijiang. It is quieter than Dayan, especially in the evening, and the Lijiang Old Town fee you already paid covers it. Add it as an afternoon on Day 4, or move your second Lijiang night there.

Shaxi (+1 day, between Dali and Lijiang)

Shaxi (沙溪, Shāxī) is a small old market town on the old tea-and-horse caravan route, in the hills between Dali and Lijiang. It is much less commercial than Dali or Lijiang and a good place to slow down for a night. There is no train to Shaxi, so you go by road; ask your Dali guesthouse about buses or a driver, then continue to Lijiang by road or by getting back to a train station. Because of the extra road time, give Shaxi a full day and one night.

The Stone Forest (+1 day, from Kunming)

The Stone Forest (石林, Shílín) is a field of tall limestone pillars east of Kunming. The fast train from Kunming South to Shilin West station takes about 24 minutes, with 9 such trains on the sample day; from Kunming Station there were 7, taking 47 minutes or more. Older guides call the station "Shilin South"; the station you want is Shilin West (石林西站). The ticket is 130 yuan and covers the Major and Minor Stone Forest and the karst geology museum. Spend a second night in Kunming and do it on Day 2, then go to Dali on Day 3.

Two sample longer plans

• 9 days, for hikers: Kunming 1 night, Dali 2, Lijiang 2, Tiger Leaping Gorge High Trail 1 night on the trail, Shangri-La 2, which is 8 nights; you leave on the morning of Day 9. The High Trail takes 2 hiking days: you start the hike on Day 6 and finish it on Day 7, arriving in Shangri-La that evening.
• 10 days, for a slower pace: Kunming 2 nights (Stone Forest day), Dali 2, Shaxi 1, Lijiang 2 (one in Shuhe), Shangri-La 2, then leave on Day 10. Add the gorge as a day stop on the way to Shangri-La if the weather allows.

For Xishuangbanna in the far south and the rest of the province, see our Yunnan travel guide.

Going in reverse, and flying in or out

You can run the route backwards, but think about the altitude first. If you fly into Lijiang (2,400 m) and go straight up to Shangri-La (3,300 m), you sleep high on your second or third night, without the gentle climb you get from Kunming. That is fine for most healthy travellers if you spend 2 nights in Lijiang first and take it slow on arrival in Shangri-La. It is not a good idea if you have a heart or lung condition.

The reverse plan we would use: fly into Lijiang, 2 nights in Lijiang (Jade Dragon on the second day), train to Shangri-La for 2 nights, then take the direct train from Shangri-La to Kunming Station, which takes about 4 hours 39 minutes at fastest, or go back through Lijiang to Dali by train. Check 12306 for through trains from Shangri-La to Dali on your date; if there are none, change at Lijiang. Finish with Dali and Kunming, and fly home from Kunming.

The one-way options, from best to worst for most people:

• Fly into Kunming, fly out of Lijiang. You never sleep in the same place twice; the way back is a short train from Shangri-La to Lijiang and then a flight. Lijiang Sanyi Airport served more than 100 destinations, so flights to China's big hubs are easy to find.
• Fly into Kunming, train back to Kunming from Shangri-La. The simplest ticket setup if your international flight is a return to Kunming. The direct trains run from Kunming Station, so allow time to cross the city to the airport.
• Fly out of Shangri-La. Diqing Shangri-La Airport has fewer routes than Lijiang; check flights for your date, and remember that weather at a high-altitude airport can cause delays.

If you are adding the far south, Yunnan has in-province flights linking Xishuangbanna with Lijiang and with Dali, which saves going back through Kunming. Compare flights on Trip.com, and if you enter on the 240-hour policy, remember the Diqing limit in the warning at the top of this page.

Seasons and altitude

Altitude: what to expect and what to do

The altitude gain is the main health issue on this route. The Sichuan Provincial Health Commission's advice is a useful guide: altitude sickness mostly appears above 2,500 m, and mild symptoms usually start within a few hours of arriving. Typical signs are a tight chest, shortness of breath, headache, dizziness, poor sleep, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. On this route, Shangri-La town (3,300 m), the top of the Glacier Park cable car (4,506 m) and the high parts of Pudacuo (up to 4,159 m) are all above that level.

What to do:

• Go up in steps, as this route does, and keep the first afternoon at each new height easy.
• Drink water, eat normally and skip alcohol on your first night in Lijiang and in Shangri-La.
• Do not go higher if your symptoms are getting worse. Rest, and go down if they do not improve.
• Severe headache, sudden forceful vomiting, unsteady walking or loss of balance are danger signs; stop going up and get medical help quickly.
• The same advice says people with severe COPD, asthma, interstitial lung disease, congenital heart disease or pulmonary hypertension should not travel to high altitude. If you have any heart or lung condition, talk to your doctor before you book Shangri-La.

The Glacier Park cable car is the highest point most people reach, but you only spend an hour or two up there and come back down to Lijiang to sleep. Sleeping height matters more than a short visit, which is why Shangri-La comes last.

Seasons: rain, cold and crowds

Yunnan's weather changes more with height than with the calendar. These are long-term averages of the daily high and low:

• Rainy season (roughly June to September). Kunming gets about 216.6 mm of rain in an average July. Rain usually comes in afternoon downpours, and clouds often hide Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. The bigger risk is in the mountains: the Tiger Leaping Gorge closure and rockfalls described above all happened in July–September, and storms can stop the Jade Dragon cable cars. Keep a spare day in Lijiang.
• Wild mushroom season (from about May). Every year Yunnan sees poisonings from wild mushrooms; the provincial health commission says not to pick, buy or eat ones you do not know, and to go to the nearest hospital if you feel dizzy, sick or see things after eating them. Restaurant mushroom hot pot is popular; eat it only at busy, established places, and make sure it is fully cooked.
• Winter (December to February). Kunming, Dali and Lijiang are dry and sunny with cold nights, and the mountain views are often at their clearest. Shangri-La is properly cold, with average January lows of -9.8°C. Bring a warm down jacket, hat and gloves, and book a place with good heating. Our packing by season guide helps with layers.
• Spring (March to May) and autumn (October to November) are the easiest seasons for this route: mostly dry, mild in the lower towns and clear in the mountains. Avoid the first week of October if you can, when the National Day holiday fills trains and old towns; our Golden Week survival guide helps if you cannot.

Budget: what the trip costs

The table lists the main train fares and tickets on this route. Train fares are sample second-class fares from 12306 for one date in late October 2026, so check 12306 for your own date.

For the 7-day plan, the three northbound trains come to 259 yuan in second class (109 + 80 + 70), based on the sample fares, so check 12306 for yours. The fixed Jade Dragon and old-town costs come to 290 yuan with the Glacier Park cable car (120 + 120 + 50). Add your exit train or flight on top.

Several other things are paid at the gate: the Three Pagodas, the Cangshan cable cars, Erhai boat trips, Pudacuo National Park and its buses, Songzanlin Monastery and Tiger Leaping Gorge. Check prices at the ticket office or with your guesthouse, and set aside a few hundred yuan more for them if you plan to do most of them.

Hotels and food are where your budget really varies:

• Hotels. Dali and Lijiang have a very wide range, from hostel dorms to small boutique guesthouses in old courtyard houses. Prices rise sharply on Chinese holidays and summer weekends, and drop in winter. Shangri-La has fewer mid-range choices, so book it early, and in winter pay a little more for good heating.
• Food. Eating in Yunnan is good value. Noodle and rice-noodle shops, and simple local restaurants, are cheap everywhere; old-town cafés and restaurants on the main lanes charge noticeably more for the same dishes. Yak hot pot in Shangri-La and fish from Erhai-area restaurants are the meals worth spending a bit more on.
• Getting around in town. Taxis and DiDi are cheap for short trips. Lijiang's meter starts at 8 yuan. Pay with Alipay or WeChat Pay; our guide to using Alipay with a foreign card covers the setup.

FAQ

Summary

Go north: fly into Kunming, take the train to Dali, Lijiang and Shangri-La, and leave by the direct train to Kunming or a flight from Lijiang. Book trains when the 15-day window opens, starting with Dali → Lijiang because it has far fewer trains than Kunming → Dali, and the direct Shangri-La → Kunming train if you are leaving that way, and book Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and its cable car 7 days ahead in the two WeChat mini-programs. Check whether your train leaves from Kunming Station or Kunming South. Keep the first afternoon in Shangri-La easy, and stop going up if altitude symptoms get worse. If you use the 240-hour transit policy, remember that Shangri-La is outside the permitted area. Your next step: set up and verify your 12306 account, then count back 15 days from your Dali → Lijiang date.

Last updated: October 2026