Take the flight to Lijiang, explore Lijiang Old Town.Lijiang Old Town has a history more than 800 years; it was listed as the World Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO 1997. Here you will see the wonderful wooden architecture of Naxi ethnic people. 

--Lijiang Ancient Town is a largely Naxi settlement first built 800years agao, located at the foot of the Lion Hill and completely surrounded by the new city of Lijiang.In December 1986, the State Council designated it a famous ancient historical and cultural city of national caliber. In 1997, UNESCO made Lijiang a World Cultural Heritage Site. Most of the dwellings, scattered at the foot of a mountain or by the river, are brick-and-tile structures with carved doors and painted windows. Traffic across the river is facilitated by a large number of tiny stone bridges. The town is similar to the Zhouzhuang Water Town in the south of the Yangtze River.

Enjoy the sunrise of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and Lijiang Ancient Town in the morning, drive about 30KM to Ganhaizi Meadow(3100M), you will take the sightseeig bus for a short visiting through the Baishuihe River, take the chairlift up to visit Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. The cableway will be arranged according to the condition of the mountain. You will hike around1 hours in the original forest in Spruce Meadow (3200M).


After lunch, you will enjoy the Impression Lijang Ethnic Show directed in Ganhaizi Meadow(3100M). A cultural show demonstrating the traditions and lifestyles of the Naxi, Yi and Bai peoples of the area. The show takes place inside Jade Dragon Snow Mountain Park at 3500m in an outdoor theater specifically designed to showcase the mountain which is used as a backdrop. The production itself was designed by Zhang Yimou, Fan Yue and Wang Chaoge, a cast of over 500 people, and a number of horses. In the afternoon, you'll stroll through Baisha Village, which is an enchanting traditional Yunnan village.  Visit the Baisha Mural about 600 years old, which is one part of the World Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO 1997.


--Jade Dragon Snow Mountain stretches a length of 35 kilometers (22 miles) and a width of 20 kilometers (13 miles). Looking from Lijiang Old Town in the south which is 15 kilometers (nine miles) away, the snow-covered and fog-enlaced mountain resembles a jade dragon lying in the clouds, hence, the name Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. The highest peak named Fan Peak (Shanzidou in Chinese) which is about 5596 meters above sea level. There are three cablecars in the mountain, the fist to the Glacier Park(4500M),the second to Spruce Meadow(3200M),the third to Yak Meadow(3700M).

From Lijiang, you'll drive about 60KM to the First Bend on the Yangtze River with imposing gorge scenery, and the Iron Chain Bridge in the Stone Drum town. The town of Stone Drum got its name from a large, cylindrical, marble tablet shaped like a drum. The scenery is magnificent as the road running through the Lijiang valley which is filled with wheat fields and drying haystacks. 
 
Visit the Tiger Leaping Gorge, the deepest gorge in the world. With 34 rapids of the Yangtze River, it is called the Jinsha in this area because you can find gold in the river. Afternoon, you'll head for Shangri La, the former Zhongdian which is welknown as the paradise destination for every tourist. Upon arrival in Shangri La, you will have entered the Tibetan cultural area and a landscape of barley fields and yaks scattered in the valleys. Walk around Dukezong Ancient Town, an important town of the Ancient Tea-horse Trade Caravan from Yunnan to Tibet and India.

-- Tiger Leaping Gorge is on the Jinsha River of the upper reaches of the Yangtze, located 105 kilometers south of Shangrila County. The gorge is 17 kilometers long with a drop of 213 meters. Tiger Leaping Gorge is divided into three sections: Upper, Middle and Lower Hutiao. At the narrowest spot the river is only 30 meters wide. The mouth of the gorge is 1,800 meters above sea level. The river is flanked by Yulong and Haba snow mountains, with a height difference of 3,900 meters. It is one of the deepest gorges in the world.

In the morning, visit the Ganden Sumtseling Monastery, the largest Tibetan monastery in Yunnan. Songzanlin Monastery has another alias - 'the little Potala Palace ', so named because the whole monastery is in the traditional style with mysterious atmosphere. 

And afterwards you'll visit the tranquil Bita Lake & Shudu Lake in Pudacuo National Park Pudacuo National Park is located in one of the most biologically-diverse regions of the world. While the region comprises only 0.7 percent of China's land area, it contains more than 20 percent of the country's plant species, about one-third of its mammal and bird species and almost 100 endangered species.

Visit Dukezong Tibetan Ancient Town in the late afternoon, climb up to the top of Guishan Hill or tortoise Hill, you will see the largest Prayer Wheel of the world and have a panoramic view of shangrila county and Dukezong Ancient Town.

In the morning, drive 6 to 7 hours to Deqin County (3400m altitude) which is 187km away from Zhongdian through Baimang Snow Mountain Nature Reserve, you will be able to view Baimang Snow Mountain if the weather is clear, pass the top part of today at 4292m altitude at 156km. 
 
After traversing mountain ranges, you will make a short stop and have lunch at Benzilan town, take some shots on the first bend of Jinsha(Yangtze) River, Dongzhulin monastery and Baima (white horse) Snow Mountain. The view along the way is fantastic with different kinds of trees, streams down the valley, prayer flags and stupas, and Tibetan villages.

Stay at Feilaisi
----Meili Snow Mountain (Meili Xueshan), also called Kawakarpo, is a UNESCO nature site located in Deqin County dividing Yunnan from Tibet, a wonderful place to hike and explore both nature and Tibetan culture.Rising between the Salween River and the Mekong River  in the extreme edge of Northwest Yunnan, the Meili Snow Mt. region is part of Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan Protected Areas.Legend says that the Meili Snow Mountain is a god guarding Tibetan Buddhism. With 13 peaks over 6000m in the range, the main peak Kawakarpo ("Kawagebo" in Chinese) is a sharp snow mountain with an altitude of 6740m,which has never been conquered yet.

Early in the morning, you will enjoy the magnificent sunrise view of Meili Snow Mountain from Feilaisi, then drive to Mingyong Village. Hike from Mingyong village to Mingyong Glacier (2600m) which is the low altitude glacier of the lowest latitude in the world.

After lunch in Mingyong Village, you will trek down directly to the edge of Meikong River(2,050m/6,724ft) . Walk along the Mekong Grand Canyon and arrive in Xidang Village(2,200m/7,216ft) where you can visit some scattered Tibetan houses in the village. Drive to along the Lancang-Mekong River to Cizhong Village in Yanmen Town.

Drive south along the Mekong Grand Canyon to Cizhong Village in Yanmen Town with some Tibatan villages en route, here you can see the different hoses from Shangri-la. Visit the Tibetan Catholic Church built by French missionaries in 1867, the church is used by Tibetan, Naxi and Lisu people. They still have the grapes planted by missionaries and old the traditional way of making wine.

--Lancang River is the longest river flowing from north to south in China. It takes its source from the Zhaqu of the Guangguori Peak of Tanggula Mountain Range in Qinghai Province, China. It is called the Lancang River after it reaches Changdu. The river runs south until it leaves China at the Nanla Bay out of Yunnan Province and therefrom changes its name from the Lancang River to the Mekong River. The Grand Canyon of the Lancang River is famous for not only its deep and long vale, but also the rushing water. The river water is limpid and rushing in winter, but turbid and onrushing in summer. As the river becoming narrow in the Grand Canyon, high waves are striking against the banks and making a sound like thunder. What a fantastic spectacle! Such steep mountains, deep valley and miraculous geographic structure are seldom seen all over the world.

Drive further south along the Mekong gorge to Weideng Township, you will drive through these Lisu and Naxi ethnic towns with Badi Town,Yezhi Town ,Baohe Town in Weixi LisuAutonomous County of Diqing Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, and finally arrive in Tacheng Town for one night stay. All of these towns are located at the bank of Lancang River with a wonderful view on the driving.
Enjoy the landscape of the Mekong with mountains, terraces, villages on the both sides of the valley, and we will make stops to visit Naxi and Lisu villages and a church en route, people here live in the traditional houses built with wooden walls and tile roofs. As the road construction work is going on here, we may need to wait sometimes.

Arrive in Tacheng Town in the late afternoon and pay a visit to Tacheng Black Snub-Nosed Monkey National Park of Weixi County. Overnight at the guesthouse in Tacheng Town.

--As a national park integrating primitive ecology, Neolithic sites, religious pilgrimage place, paradise of black snub-nosed monkey and multi-national style, the scenic area is particularly distinguished with the religious culture and temple scenic sports such as the dense forest, valuable and rare animals and Patriarch Bodhidharma's Cave as well as “Re Ba” of Tibetans and customs of Lisu Nationality. Samage Nature Reserve has hundreds of black snub-nosed monkeys, a national Grade I protection animal.

As a national park integrating primitive ecology, Neolithic sites, religious pilgrimage place, paradise of black snub-nosed monkey and multi-national style, the scenic area is particularly distinguished with the religious culture and temple scenic sports such as the dense forest, valuable and rare animals and Patriarch Bodhidharma's Cave as well as “Re Ba” of Tibetans and customs of Lisu Nationality. Samage Nature Reserve has hundreds of black snub-nosed monkeys, a national Grade I protection animal.

In the morning, you will drive along the Yangtze River to Shigu Ancient Town. Visit the Stone Drum, the Iron Chain Bridge which is the relic of the Ancient Tea-horse Road from Yunnan to Tibet and India. On the mountain at the river's bend stands Stone Drum (Shigu) Town. This ancient town is named after a drum-shaped marble plaque. Built during the Jiaqing era (1548-1561) of the Ming Dynasty, the stone drum is a monument commemorating the victory of Lijiang's Naxi ruler over an invading Tibetan army. It is one point five meters (five feet) in diameter and zero point five meters (two feet) in thickness. The stone drum has an obvious vestige of what appears to be a "rip" in it. It is said that the stone drum would rupture prior to any war and then fold when peace returned.

After lunch, you will have a chance to float in the Yangtze River from Shigu Town to Longpan Town. After one hour floating, you will meet your driver and come back to Lijiang. Visit Lijiang Ancient Town and enjoy the night life.

--The First Bend of the Yangtze River is located on the north side of the highway leading from Dali to Lijiang, about 70 km. from lijiang Town. The upper reaches of the Yangtze River is named the Jinsha River, which originates from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. The Jinsha River flowed southward along the Hengduan Mountain ranges and was forced to the turn to north because of the Alpine movements which caused changes in the earth's physiognomy. When the river reaches Shigu Township, it makes an abrupt turn and flows further northward, forming the rare V-shape bend.

Transfer to Lijiang International Airport for returning.
Service ends.