Yangshuo, a place known as the most beautiful area in Guilin, is a place full of charming scenic spots. Aside from those famous places like West street, Moon hill and Sliver Cave, we also have many other places which haven’t been developed into scenic spots.
As a local person, I would like to tell you some secret things that only the local people know and rarely recommended by those travel agencies.
Food & drinks
Gongcheng oil tea
Though the most famous oil tea is from the county nearby called Gongcheng, there are also some very good Gongcheng oil tea restaurants in Yangshuo. When the local people say that we are going to have the oil tea, it doesn’t means that we only eat the oil tea. There are also many other special dishes which you can only find in Gongcheng oil tea restaurant.
Rice Cooked in Farmer’s Way (Dingguo Rice)
Dingguo Rice is a kind of rice which is cooked in a iron pot. You can only find it in some certain farmer’s restaurants in the countryside of Yangshuo. Normally in the restaurant where you can find Dingguo Rice, you can also view a very good countryside scenery.
Yunnan Arabica coffee 云南小粒咖啡
I guess many people can’t survive without coffee. Though Yangshuo is not the place grows coffee, you can still find a very good Yunnan Arabica café in Yangshuo. They roast coffee beans by themselves and make very fresh and delicate coffee.
Tourist attractions
Xingping
Xingping to Yangdi is considered as the most beautiful part along Li river. You can hike from Xingping to Yangdi, or enjoy the view on a bamboo raft. You can see the background mountain of 20 RMB, the nine horses mountain along the river.
Jiuxian
Jiuxian is an old town where Yangshuo government located in 4 years ago ( Ming dynasty). It’s a culture heritage along Yulong river which has been developed by the government.
Fuli
Fuli Town has a history of more than 1,000 years. Many traditional houses, pagodas and temples can be still seen on the ancient streets.
Fuli town is probably the best place to buy painted paper fans in China. Paper fans here are comparatively cheap and of good quality.
Prices range from several dollars to several hundred dollars according to size and level of detail. Shops that make and sell paper fans can be seen everywhere when you stroll on the ancient streets.
You can also visit the Fuli local market, where you can see many local food, customs and ways of selling things.
TV Tower
TV tower is a place where the tourists probably never discover if they are not lead by a local person. It will be a shame if you don’t see the sunrise and sunset on the TV tower.
Yulong Bridge and Fuli Bridge
The scenery along Yulong river is as impressive as Li river. A new walking street along the river bank was just completed. You can cycle, hike along the river, or enjoy the view on a bamboo raft. Yulong Bridge and Fuli Bridge are two best places for taking photos along the river.
Cultural activities
Calligraphy lessons
Calligraphy is a essential part in Chinese culture. Join a calligraphy lesson and learn some basic strokes with the brush will help you understand our culture deeper.
Chinese painting lessons
Learning how to paint things like fish, birds and chicken with a brush and ink should be quite different from painting the western oil painting. In the ancient town Fuli, when is famous for making the traditional fans, is very easy to find a Chinese painting teacher there.
Mandarin Courses
Different from learning Mandarin in big cities, in Yangshuo you can choose to take Mandarin courses in a school or with a private teacher, seating in a classroom, by the riverside or in a café.
Chinese cooking lessons
In China, we have Eight cuisines. Normaly, cooking teachers in yangshuo can speak English very well. They will show you the local market and teach you to cook four or five Chinese dishes in about four hours.
Tai Ji lessons
Now people come to Yangshuo to learn Tai Ji is increasing. If you want to learn Taiji, you can book Tai Ji courses in a school. You can also go to Yangshuo park to play Tai Ji with some local masters, who play Tai Ji there from 7:00am to 8:00am everyday. Anybody is welcome to join them, it’s free.
Tea ceremony
Kongfu Tea is a special art in Chinese culture. You can go to tea shop to join a tea ceremony and learn more knowledge about the Chinese tea.
Outdoor activities
Cycling
From the perspective of a person from here, I think cycling is the best way to travel in Yangshuo.
There are three very good circle cycling rutes here:
A. Yangshuo downtown—Chaoyang pier—Xiatang pier—Yulong Bridge—Fuli Bridge—Jiu Xian—
Yangshuo downtown
B. Yangshuo downtown—Giggling tree— Gongnong Bridge— the Moon hill— Yangshuo downtown
C. Yangshuo downtown—Light show—Snow lion mountain—Fuli ancient town—Yangshuo
Bridge—Yangshuo downtown
Climbing
Yangshuo is also known as a place where you can meet foreigners anywhere. More than half of those foreigners who stay here for a long time come for rock climbing. There are many good places for rock climbing, like Swiss cheese and Jiuping mountain.
Kayaking
Liugong to Jinlong bridge is the place for Kayaking. No cruises on this part of Li River, you can enjoy the scenery on both sides of Li Liver or stop for a while and take a nape in the middle of the river.
