Karst hills and a village beside the Li River at sunrise in Yangshuo — Yangshuo, GuangxiAt sunrise the Li River bends past a village in Yangshuo.

Guilin & Yangshuo · 桂林 · Southwest

Guilin & Yangshuo

Karst hills, a slow river, and the version of China that made it into the paintings.

Best months: Apr–Oct
Days needed: 3–4
Airports: KWL
Difficulty: Low

Yangshuo in photographs

A distant climber on the underside of the Moon Hill limestone arch — Moon Hill, YangshuoA climber crosses the limestone arch at Moon Hill, with Yangshuo’s peaks beyond.

A row of bamboo rafts with boat operators below Yangshuo’s limestone hills. — Yangshuo, GuangxiRaft operators work along a row of bamboo rafts below Yangshuo’s karst peaks.

A fisherman and a cormorant on a bamboo raft on misty water — Li River, GuilinA fisherman and a cormorant share a bamboo raft on the Li River near Guilin.

Limestone peaks reflected in water as the sun goes down in Yangshuo — Yangshuo, GuangxiThe last light reflects beneath the karst peaks in Yangshuo.

Why go

The short version

The landscape here is the one on the back of the banknote. Limestone towers rising straight out of flat farmland, with a river running between them.

Base yourself in Yangshuo rather than Guilin city. The town is smaller, the river is closer, and the good light is a ten-minute bike ride away.

Three things nobody tells you

Guilin & Yangshuo through the year

March–May

Spring

Mist softens the edges of villages and peaks. From above, flooded paddies catch breaks in the morning light.

Sunlight catches flooded fields beside a karst hill in the morning mist near Yangshuo. — Guilin & YangshuoFrom a balloon over Yangshuo, the morning sun catches flooded fields at the foot of a karst hill.

June–August

Summer

The river valleys turn green. Check water and trail conditions after heavy rain.

Two small boats cross the green Li River beneath bamboo forest and tall limestone peaks. — Guilin & YangshuoTwo boats cross the Li River below bamboo forest and sunlit karst peaks in Yangshuo.

September–November

Autumn

For autumn colour, head to the Longji rice terraces in Longsheng, north of Guilin.

Golden rice terraces curve around wooden farmhouses against misty blue hills. — Guilin & YangshuoGolden rice folds around wooden farmhouses in the Longji terraces in Longsheng, Guilin.

December–February

Winter

The low clouds can hide the high viewpoints. Work close to the river when they do.

The Li River loops around fields and buildings beneath hazy karst peaks at Xingping. — Guilin & YangshuoThe Li River curls around Xingping beneath winter haze and the limestone peaks of Yangshuo.

Guides for this region

Read before you land

Booking a high-speed train in English

The official site works in English and takes a foreign passport. The hard part is not the booking, it is knowing which of the city's stations you just chose.

Paying in China with a foreign card

Alipay will take a Visa card issued abroad. What it won't tell you is which merchants still refuse it, and why your first payment sometimes fails for no reason at all.