7 Days XishuangBanna Tropical Forest Cycling Tour with Ethnic Minorities and Ancient Tea Culture

For this 7 Days Xishuangbanna Cycling Tour, you will ride along the beautiful natural scenaries of mysterious tropical rainforest, the ancient tea mountain and local old street. Visit Daizuyuan to fully appreciate the ethnic culture of Dai People. Moreover, step into ethnic villages to explore their diverse ethnic cultures and daily lives. It is also a tour about tea exploration, pay a visit to tea mountains and ancient tea trees, drink tea with local tea growers and have nice chat with them to fully appreciate the tea culture.

Highlights:

  • Explore mysterious Tropical Forest and enchanted in the charm of nature.
  • Step into ethnic villages to explore ethnic people’s life and culture.
  • Visit tea plantations and have nice chats with tea growers to know more about tea.

Brief Itinerary

  • Day 1: Jinghong Arrival
  • Day 2: Jinghong – Ganlanba – Daizuyuan
  • Day 3: Daizuyuan  – Menglun Town
  • Day 4: Menglun Town – Mengxing – Mengla
  • Day 5: Mengla – Yiwu Town
  • Day 6: Yiwu Town-Menglun Town-Jinuo Mountain
  • Day 7: Jinghong Departure

Google Map

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1 Arrive in Jinghong City

Sightseeing and Activities: Arrive in Jinghong City
Accommodation: Jinhong 
Meals: None

Upon your arrival, your guide will meet you at arrival hall in the airport. Transfer to your hotel to check in and relax. In the afternoon, meet your tour guide to have a try of your bike. 

After that, you will enjoy your free time to explore the beautiful scenery and southeast-style night market of Gaozhuang Xishuangjing(name in Dai language means nine towers and twelve villages in Chinese), also known as small Chiangmai.

Day 2 Jinghong – Ganlanba – Daizuyuan (Dai Minority Garden)

Sightseeing and Activities: Jinghong – Ganlanba – Daizuyuan (Dai Minority Garden)
Accommodation: Dai Ethnicity Park
Meals: Breakfast and Lunch 

After breakfast, you will ride about 33KM to visit Ganlanba Dai Minority Garden(橄榄坝傣族园) which  is located in the southeast direction of Jinghong. It is a dwelling place for Dai minority people cause they have lived there generations to generations. Thus, the dense Dai minority culture can be found here. Ganlanba can be a representative to experience both the minority culture and the tropical atmosphere. Because Ganlanba with the lowest altitude which is about 530m in Yunnan, it is the hottest place. The hot climate makes Ganlanba as a rich fruits production area. Ganlanba in Xishuangbanna culture means “the imperial gardening village”. Inside it, there are two large villages called Man Chun Man (means flowers village) and Man Ting (means fruits village) separately. No matter which village you choose to visit, you can appreciate the typical Myanmar temple and Dai bamboo house. Overnight in Daizuyuan.

Cycling: 33KM/ Low Climbing Intensity/ 30KM Asphalt Road/ 3KM Cement Road

About: Mekong River Scenery/ Cycling around Ganlanba/ Idyllic Scenery/ Ethnic Villages of Dai 

Day 3 Daizuyuan (Dai Minority Garden) – Menglun Town

Sightseeing and Activities: Daizuyuan (Dai Minority Garden) – Menglun Town
Accommodation: Menglun
Meals: Breakfast and Lunch 

After a simple breakfast, you will ride about 46KM to Menglun Town. After lunch and a short break, pay a visit to the Botanical Garden, the biggest and richest botanical garden in China nowadays. Since 1996, this garden combined with former Kunming Ecological Research Institute, formed an independent research institution attached to Chinese Academy of Science. With the time goes by, it becomes a comprehensive garden that combined research, preservation and education of tropical plants together. A vast expanse of rainforest has been well preserved in this 900 hectares land. Hundreds of thousands tropical plants from home and abroad are planted separately in 35 specified gardens. You will spend your time to fully appreciate the charm of nature.

Cycling: 46KM/ Low Climbing Intensity/ 46KM Asphalt Road

About: Tropical Rainforest Scenery/ Idyllic Scenery/ Ethnic Villages of Dai and Hani/ Botanical Garden

Day 4 Menglun Town – Mengxing – Mengla

Sightseeing and Activities: Menglun Town – Mengxing – Mengla
Accommodation: Mengla
Meals: Breakfast and Lunch 

In the morning, you will ride about 20KM to visit a local ethnic village-Mengxing(勐醒), ride around the village to explore the daily life of local people and then have your lunch there. After a short break, you will continue to ride about 70KM to Mengla County. Arrive at Mengla in the late afternoon, ckeck in local hotel for rest.

Cycling: 90KM/ Moderate Climbing Intensity/ 90KM Asphalt Road

About: Tropical Rainforest Scenery

Day 5 Mengla – Yiwu Town

Sightseeing and Activities: Mengla – Yiwu Town
Accommodation: Yiwu
Meals: Breakfast and Lunch 

Yiwu Ancient Town in Mengla County,XishuangBanna

Get up in the early morning, today, you will ride 94KM to Yiwu Town(易武). One the way, have you lunch in a local village. After arriving at Yiwu Town, you will pay a visit to Yiwu Tea Mountain, stroll around tea plantations, enjoy a cup of tea with local tea growers.

Cycling: 94KM/ Moderate Climbing Intensity/ 94KM Asphalt Road

About: Yiwu Tea Mountain/ Tea plantation/ Tea Trees/ Chat with Tea Growers

Day 6 Yiwu Town-Menglun Town-Jinuo Mountain

Sightseeing and Activities:Yiwu Town-Menglun Town-Jinuo Mountain
Accommodation: Jinuo Moutain
Meals: Breakfast and Lunch 

In the morning, pay a visit to Yiwu Old Street(易武老街). Then, ride about 48KM to Menglun Town for lunch and a short break. After lunch, ride another 42KM to Jinuo Ancient Tea Mountain. Enjoy the rest time in a ethnic village of Jinuo and stay over night in local family.

Cycling: 90KM/ Moderate Climbing Intensity/ 90KM Asphalt Road

About: Yiwu Old Street/ Jinuo Ancitent Tea Mountain/ Idyllic Scenery/ Ethnic Villages of Jinuo

Day 7 Jinuo Mountain- Jinghong City and Departure

Sightseeing and Activities:Jinuo Mountain- Jinghong City and Departure
Accommodation: None
Meals: Breakfast and Lunch 

After breakfast, ride about 38KM back to Jinghong City. After a short break and luggage pack-up, transfer to the airport for departure. Service ends.

Cycling: 38KM/ Low Climbing Intensity/ 38KM Asphalt Road

About: Idyllic Scenery/ Luggage Pack-up/ Departure

Recommended Hotels

Destination 5 Star 4 Star 3 Star Hostels
Jinghong Jinhong Qixi Hotel Jinghong Ninty-Seven Daiyun Theme Hotel Fanyin Shuyuan Hotel Daixiang Hostel
Menglun / / Chunlin Hotel Lidu Hostel
Mengla Annatala Vocational Hotel Hejin Hotell Hailun Vocational Hotel Mancheng Hostel

Service Included:

  • Admission fees for all of the sightseeing spots listed in the itinerary;
  • Meals as listed in the itinerary;
  • Hotels as listed in the itinerary;
  • Private English-speaking tour guide;
  • Private vehicle for transfers & sightseeing with skilled driver;
  • Service charge & government taxes;
  • Luggage transfers between airports and hotels.

Service Excluded:

  • Any arrival and departure international airfares or train tickets;
  • Chinese visa fees;
  • Excess baggage charged by Airlines;
  • Single room supplement;
  • Tips to guides and drivers;
  • Personal expenses and gratuities to service staff;
  • Personal travel accident insurance;
  • All optional programs.