Xishuangbanna Travel Guide

Basic information Telephone area code: 0691 Yunnan Provincial Tourism Bureau: 0871-64608315 Xishuangbanna Tourism Bureau: 0691-96927 Menghai County Tourism Bureau: 0691-5120144 Mengla County Tourism Bureau: 0691-8121436 Travel Tips Xishuangbanna is a place with a lot of products. It is recommended not […]

Basic information

Telephone area code: 0691
Yunnan Provincial Tourism Bureau: 0871-64608315
Xishuangbanna Tourism Bureau: 0691-96927
Menghai County Tourism Bureau: 0691-5120144
Mengla County Tourism Bureau: 0691-8121436

Travel Tips

Xishuangbanna is a place with a lot of products. It is recommended not to buy powdered food in bulk. The inspection is very strict, and all powdered items are forbidden.
When eating Dai food, pay attention to its freshness.
Xishuangbanna’s ultraviolet rays during the day are very strong. If you don’t want to be sunburned, be sure to bring body lotion and sunscreen. A wide-brimmed hat is also a must-have.

Medical Treatment

Jinghong City People’s Hospital
Address: No. 48, Lanlan Middle Road, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture
Arrival method: Take the 3 bus to Shawan West Central Station
Phone: 0691-2146801

Jinghong City Agricultural Reclamation Hospital
Address: No.43, Minjiang Road, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture
Arrival method: Take the 2 bus to the farmer’s hospital station

Xishuangbanna Maternal and Child Health Hospital
Address: No.1, Safety Lane, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture
Arrival method: Take the 3 bus to the city water conservancy bureau
Phone: 0691-2123915

Destination overview

Destination sketch

It is in the south of Yunnan, near the Thai, Laos, Vietnamese and Burmese borders. The ethnic groups and the local languages in this area are more Southeast Asian than Chinese.
The region is a very popular destination for Chinese tourists. It offers most of the attractions of Thailand — warm climate, tropical fruits and flowers, elephants, prostitutes (legal in Thailand, illegal in China), jungle treks and a reasonably well-established tourist industry — without the complications of a border and different currency.

For other tourists, especially backpackers, the region serves as stop on the Banana Pancake Trail; it is on a major route between China and Southeast Asia.

Local life

Dai Nationality

The Dai ethnic minority, which numbers 1,158,989, is distributed throughout the Dai Autonomous Region and the Dehong Dai-Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture in Xishuangbanna in the southern part of Yunnan Province. In the past, they were called ‘Baiyue’, meaning a vast living area. Therefore, they have established a close relationship with ethnic groups like the Zhuang, Dong, Shui, Bouyei and Li, who are said to be the descendants of the Dai people.

Beliefs and taboos

Their religion is Southern Buddhism, which was adopted in the 6th to 8th century and had a profound influence on their politics, economy, culture and arts. Religious activities are so common that most 8 to 10-year-old boys, in particular in Xishuangbanna, are sent to temples where they learn sutras for one to five years. They then leave the temple and spend their lives as secularized monks.

Local festival

Water-splashing Festival

Water-splashing Festival is the most characteristics festival of the Dai ethnic . It is the New Year festival in Dai calendar in the period of June 6 to July 6. It is said that there was a devil in Xishuangbanna many years ago, he is the public scourge. Devil’s head rolled to here and there, where the fire broke out. Only until girls held to it, it will be put out. Girls shift every year and in very shift, the girl was given water to wash blood, land on her feet, show gratitude and pay tribute. Devil’s head was finally reduced to ashes, and people keep the habitude as a festival. People worship Buddha on this day, girls welcome home for the Buddha as splashing water on them, and then water on each other to express good wish. At first they use hands and bowl, then later use pots and barrels, while singing songs. During Water Splashing Festival, people paddle dragon boats, let rise, flying lights and perform a variety of recreational activities such as traditional song and dance show.

Best Travel season

The weather in this region is a combination of continental and oceanic climates with an annual average temperature of 18-22℃ (64.4-71.6℉). The coldest November is similar to the middle of summer in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River; thereby, Xishuangbanna is reputed as a happy land without winter. Generally, there are only two seasons. May to October is the rainy season and November to April is the dry season. Although it is an all-year-round tourist destination, the weather is most favourable from November to April. However since the roads conditions are excellent, this place is also a popular destination during the rainy season.

Practical information

Manting Park Visitor Service Center
Address: 35, Manting Road, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Manting Park Gate

Lancangjiang Ropeway Visitor Center
Address: Impression of Mekong River, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture
Phone: 0691-2221555

Intercity traffic

Aircraft

Xishuangbanna International Airpor, JHG
Xishuangbanna Airport is 5 kilometers away from Jinghong City. From the airport to Jinghong City, you can take a taxi to the city. The fare is no more than 20 yuan. You can also take the bus No.1, but you need to take the airport to the right for about 500 meters to take the bus at the entrance of Jinghong Vocational Middle School. The first bus leaves at 6am every morning, and the last bus at 10pm, one shift every 15 minutes. The fare is 2 yuan per person.
Address: Chishao Town, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture
Tel: 0691-2159129, 0691-2159130

Long-distance bus

Jinghong Bus Terminal
Address: No. 14, Jingyu Avenue, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture
Arrival method: Take 2 roads to the farmers market station
Phone: 0691-2136288

Xishuangbanna Bus Terminal
Address: No. 3, Civil Aviation Road, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture
Arrival method: take 2 roads to Banna Bus Terminal
Phone: 0691-2124427

Jinghong Passenger Transport South Station
Address: No. 77, Bohai Road, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture
Arrival mode: Take the 3rd road to Manjinglan Village Station
Phone: 0691-2137105

Water transport

Jinghong Port
Ticket office: Xuanwei Avenue, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, near the local maritime bureau
Arrival method: Take 1 road to Man Dou Folk Activity Village Station
Phone: 0691-2211899

Traffic in the city

Bus

From Jinghong City to all the tourist attractions and parks in the whole city, you can buy tickets at the bus station.

Taxi

The taxi fare in the urban area starts at 7 yuan, but most of the taxis going to the scenic spot do not hit the watch. You can talk about the price before getting on the bus. Generally, the scenic spot is about 10 to 20 yuan.

Attractions

Manting Park

Situated 2 km from downtown of Jinghong City, Manting Park owns 65.8 acres with 500 old India ironwoods, other plantation and ethnic cultural landscapes. Manting Park dates back to 1300 years ago when it was imperial garden of Dai royal family. Its beautiful scenery once captured the attention of a queen of Dai nationality, thus it got the name of Chunyuan Park, meaning ”Park of Soul”. Manting Park is the carrier of Dai culture. It is the main place to hold grand ceremonies of Dai nationality. It was listed as a national 4A scenic spot in the year of 2009.

Manting Park is loaded with things to do. Here you are able to see hospitable minority people, mystical ethnic culture, taste hearty Dai cuisine, unique barbeque and fascinating wine, what’s more, enjoy the performances and bonfire evening party accompanied by dancing and singing. Scenic spots within the park include: Ethnic Culture Square, Liana Plantation Area, Tropical Orchid Nursery, Peafowl zoo, Buddhist Culture Zone, Tree-planting Commemoration Area, Tea Garden, and Free Life Lake.
Address: No. 35, Manting Road, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, less than 2 km from Jinghong City
Arrival mode: Take the 3rd road to the Mann Park gate station
Opening hours: 8:00-17:30
Tickets: 40 yuan, 480 yuan for VIP tickets in the evening, 380 yuan for VIP seats, 200 yuan for ordinary tickets

Mengle Buddhist Temple

Mengle Buddhist Temple is built on the imperial temple of Dai ethnic minority – ”Jingpiao Buddhist Temple”, which was constructed by a king in honor of his queen in Dai history. Legend has it that because the queen believed in Buddhism, the King held a grand Buddhist ceremony on every festival to commemorate his queen and spread Buddhism. Historical records indicate that Jingpiao Buddhist Temple was built in Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and was ravaged in a war happened in 1848. The restoration started in 2005 when a grand dedication ceremony was held in the temple and a multitude of silver coins, boxes and stuffs used for dharma events were dug out.
Address: Lower section of Bodhi Avenue, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture
Arrival method: Take the 4th road to the Dafo Temple Station
Opening hours: 8:00-17:30, “Bath Buddha” activities two times a day 14:00, 16:00
Tickets: 120 yuan, tour bus 40 yuan one way, round trip 60 yuan

Mange Buddhist Temple

Mange Buddhist temple in Dai language is called ”Wa Man Ge”, literally meaning the central Buddhist temple of Xishuangbanna. Being the oldest Buddhist temple in Jinghong City, the Mange Buddhist Temple is situated on the bank of Lancang River, the Mange Buddhist Temple is magnificent and elegant surrounded by bambusa multiplexes, banyans, mango trees, areca palms, trumpet flowers and other plants.

Daluo River

Daluo River, a branch of Lancang River with a width of more than 30 meters, divides the Daluo Town into two parts, and then gently flows into Mekong River which eventually empties into Pacific Ocean. It nourishes people along it. There are five big villages in Daluo Town. Five villages are: Mengbang, Manchan, Manzhang, Longli and Daluo. Buddhist Temples can be found in every village.
Daluo Town, a frontier town and an open port along Daluo River, is located in the south tip of Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture and borders Burma. It is 133 kilometers from Jinghong City and 70 kilometers from Menghai County. It is small, though, lives a number of people of minority nationalities such as Dai, Blang, Hani, offering a strong sense of ethnic atmosphere. Tropical plants flourishingly grow in and near the villages, to see nothing of the One Tree Forest.

White Stupa

Located at 70 kilometers southwest of Jinghong City in Xishuangbanna, 3 kilometers from Damenglong Township, it is a cluster of Buddhist stupas with white bodies and gilded spires, just like bamboo shoots from the ground. Thus, it is also called Bamboo Shoots Pagodas. White Stupas is more often called Manfeilong Pagodas or Manfeilong Stupas by its location. Legend says that it was constructed 800 years ago and designed by three India monks. The Manfeilong White Stupa complex is dedicated to Theravada that is mainly popular in Southeast Asia. It has a high standing among Buddhists in Xishuangbanna, Burma, Thailand and Laos. Every year, there are many disciples from Southeast Asia come here to worship the Buddha. Perhaps that’s a part of why it was listed into the list of National Key Historical Relics Protection Units. In recent years, local government constructed a road and a stairway, a hill gate, a high Buddha, sculptures of white elephants to enhance the beauty of the Manfeilong Pagodas. Not only is it a time-honored sacred place, but a landmark of the region.

Ganlanba

Ganlanba is located in the lower reaches of Lancang River, 40 kilometers from Jinghong City. In Dai language, it is called Menghan. There are hundreds of Dai households living in Ganlanba. Ganlanba is only 530 meters above sea level, being the lowest and hottest place in Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture. Hot and humid weather brings in abundant products for Ganlanla such as a great variety of tropical fruits and plentiful candied fruits.

There is a Dai Minority Park in Ganlanba, which contains five Dai villages. A local saying goes that ”if Xishuangbanna is a beautiful green peacock, Ganlanba is its tale and Dai Park is the most eye-catching feather of Ganlanba”. Charming tropical rural scenery along with primitive ethnic culture makes Ganbala an increasingly popular tourist destination. It is not exaggerated to say that Ganlanba is the NO.1 eco-village in China.

Wild Elephant Valley

The Wild Elephant Valley covers a total area of 3.7 square kilometers, a water area of 8000 kilometers with an elevation of 747-1055 meters. Apart from the most eye catching rainforest and wild elephants to view, the park has been established with several scenic zones to serve tourists, such as Tree houses, Butterfly Park, Snake Park, Orchid Garden and the Bainiao Garden (where a hundred of rare birds perch in).
Address: at the western of 213 National Road, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province.
Opening time: 09:00-17:00 (3 to 4 hours for a visit)
Ticket: CNY 65, CNY 50 for one-way cableway and CNY 70 for round trip.
Best time for visit: during dry season of Xishuangbanna, October-April next year
Arrival method: Take an airplane or sleeper bus or high-speed bus from Kunming to Jionghong, and then take a bus at any bus station of Jinghong to the Wild Elephant Valley, which runs every half an hour.
The wild elephants are more likely to appear at drawn or dusk.
-Elephant shows are given everyday at 11:00, 13:30 and 15:30. Taking photos with elephants charges at least CNY 10 once.
-It is better to prepare some mosquito products and sun block in case of insects and sunlight.
-Keep a distance with the wild elephants to avoid attack.
-Respect the local customs of Dai and other minorities.

Jinuo Village

Deep within this forest live the Jinuo people, largely unknown to the outside world until 1979 when they became the country’s last officially recognized ethnic minority.

Octagonal Pavilion

Jingzhen Octagonal Pavilion is located at the summit of Jingzhen Mountain, 14 kilometers west of Menghai County and 67 kilometers away from Jionghong City of Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture. Originally a component of a local Hinayana temple which has been destroyed, Jingzhen Octagonal Pavilion was built in 1701, the fourth year of Reign of Emperor Kangxi (1661-1722) in Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), for the purpose of Buddhists chanting sutras and holding religious affairs. Octagonal Pavilion is a valuable Buddhist building in honor of Sakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism. The pavilion is an imitation of Sakyamuni’s hat. Octagonal Pavilion was included into National Cultural Relic Protection Units by China’s State Council in 1988.

Single-Tree Forest

A tree does not make a forest. But a nine hundred year old banyan in Daluo Town here is exception. It covers an area of 120 square meters (143.6 square yards) with over thirty stand roots. This 70-meter-high (230-feet-tall) banyan is an attractive and marvelous forest in itself.

Food

Nanmi

“Nanmi” in the Dai language means sauce. “Nanmi” actually is a general name for crab sauce, bamboo sauce and other sauces on the basis of main materials. The process of making the tomato sauce goes very simple: bake some tomatoes over the fire and then peel them, finally mix them with scallion, onion, coriander, vanilla, wild pepper, chili and salt. It is even more tasteful when it is served with fried foods and local cranberries.

Bamboo Rice

Dai people are particular about glutinous rice. They can make glutinous rice into different snacks, among which Bamboo Rice is most favored by visitors.

Bamboo Rice is cooked inside fragrant local bamboo. Cut down a part of bamboo keeping two knots and dig a hole at one joint to put in clean glutinous rice and add some water, then bake it on the charcoal fire after bunging the hole with bamboo leaves. When water is dried out, delicious bamboo rice is ready for you.

If you have the courage to try insects, you can order an insect feast to taste grasshopper, scorpion, bamboo worms and bee larva and other insects.

Shopping

tea, coffee, tropical fruit, herbs, Yunnan tobacco

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