Last Update: 4th November 2019
What are the Best Attractions in Guilin?
Are you interested to explore the best attractions to in Guilin? We will lead you to discover them so find out more about Guilin’s best attractions.
Guilin Best Attractions
- Li River Cruise
- Yulong River Bamboo Rafting
- Reed Flute Cave
- Elephant Trunk Hill
- Yao Mountain
- Zhengyang Walking Street
- East and West Lane
- Four Lakes Night Cruise
- Xianggong Hill
- Cuiping Hill
- Impression 3rd Sister Liu Show
- Yulong Valley Cycling/Walking
- Longji Rice Terraces
- Cormorant Fisherman Demonstration
- Li River Hiking
Interested in visiting Guilin’s Best Attractions on a Tour?
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- Li River Cruise
The 4-hours Li River Cruise, the best attraction to enjoy in Guilin will take you from Guilin to Yangshuo. The distance is around 83 kilometers.You will enjoy the amazing natural beauty along the Li River on board. No matter what the weather is like, the landscape is always a feast for your eyes, body, mind and soul.
- Yulong River Bamboo Rafting
Yulong River is located in the Yangshuo Countryside. The scenery along the river is also gorgeous. Take a bamboo rafting, listen to your favorite music and enjoy the natural views along the river. It will be an unforgettable experience.
- Reed Flute Cave
Reed Flute Cave is a combination of stalactites in different shapes, a lake and stone writing made in ancient China. In the colorful light, the stalactites become more attractive. It is popular among locals and tourists with its unique charm. Usually, it takes 1 to 1.5 hours to discover the opened section in the cave.
- Elephant Trunk Hill
Elephant Trunk Hill is the landmark of Guilin. It has been famed since hundreds of years ago. The hill stands in the heart of the city. It is within 15 minutes walk from Zhengyang Walking Street. The hill is a fusion of the nature, old buildings and old history. It takes around 1 hour to explore the hill.
- Yao Mountain
Yao Mountain is the highest mountain in the City of Guilin. It lies within 30 minutes drive from the heart of the city. On the top of the mountain, you could enjoy the bird’s eye views of the karst hills around. It features different natural views around the year. You could take a chairlift uphill and downhill. Or, if you enjoy mountaineering, you also can explore the scenery along the trail winding the mountain.
- Zhengyang Walking Street
Zhengyang Walking Street is popular among locals and visitors as well. It is a paradise for shopping lovers. With a long history, the street is lined with a variety of boutiques with local clothes, drink shops, handicrafts shops, local specialties shops and more.
- East and West Lane
Situated opposite Zhengyang Walking Street, the East and West Lane (Dongxi Xiang) has been more and more popular among tourists in Guilin. All the buildings are in the classical Chinese style. Wander through the lane, and you will feel that you are back into ancient China. It gathers boutiques, fine restaurants offering local food, Guizhou food, Sichuan hot pots and much more, and a movie theatre.
- Four Lakes Night Cruise
Four Lakes Night Cruise enjoys a good reputation. You will admire the natural views along four lakes in the city, enjoy cormorant fishing demonstration on one of the lake, and appreciate the live classic Chinese music on the cruise boat in the evening. It is really a great feast for eyes, body and soul.
- Xianggong Hill
Where is the best attraction for appreciating and photographing the sunrise in Guilin? Xianggong Hill in the Yangshuo Countryside is the one. It just requires 25 minutes walk-up to the top from the feet. The stone stairs are for all ages. Some pictures took on the top of Xianggong Hill has been issued in National Geographicmagazine. The clouds make for a fairy land. The clouds and the sunrise at dawn are the best photography materials.
- Cuiping Hill
Xianggong Hill features the stunning sunrise while Cuiping Hill has the most amazing sunset to enjoy. From spring to autumn, the views from Cuiping Hill vary with the colors of the fields around the hill as the peasants always grow different corps in plots of the fields. The houses, plots of the fields, and the karst hills around Cuiping Hill create attractive views.
- Impression 3rd Sister Liu Show
Impression 3rd Sister Liu Show always impresses the audience with its excellent sound effects, the unique stage and the great performance of local villagers. The background of the show is one section of the Li River with several karst hills.
- Yulong Valley Cycling/Walking
If you are looking to some spots to refresh yourself, enjoy the natural beauty and explore local culture, the Yulong River Valley is a great option. You could enjoy cycling there to admire the nature, walk to explore the old Jiuxian Village and old ancient Fuli Bridge.
- Longji Rice Terraces
Longji Rice Terraces in Longsheng is also popular with visitors to Guilin. The rice terraces were created by locals from the Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644) to the Qing Dynasty (1644 – 1912). It is home to Zhuang and Miao ethnic minorities for hundreds of years. There are several viewpoints offering the gorgeous views around the year. You also could explore the village to experience local life and culture.
- Cormorant Fishing Demonstration in Xingping
If you want to search for something special in Guilin, cormorant fishing demonstration in Xingping is in the list. Cormorant Fishing was developed in the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907) in Guilin. Fishermen train the cormorants to fish for them. Through the cormorant fishing, you will get acquainted with how locals in ancient time caught fishes.
- Hiking along the Li River
Hiking along the Li River is a distinctive experience from the Li River Cruise. Along the Li River, you explore the views with not only your eyes but also your foot. Along the trail, you could experience something that couldn’t be done on the cruise. But in monsoon season, some sections of the trail by the river could be inundated.
1 Day in Guilin:
Best Attractions to Visit
If you only have 1 day to visit Guilin City (not Yangshuo), the best attractions to visit are as follows:
- Reed Flute Cave;
- Yao Mountain;
- Elephant Trunk Hill;
- Zhengyang Walking Street;
- Daxu Old Town;
- East and West Lane; and
- Four Lakes Night Cruise.
2 Days in Guilin: Best Attractions to Visit
If you have 2 days to stay in Guilin Region, it is recommended that you spend one day exploring GuilinC ity and the other one day in Yangshuo. During the day in Guilin, you could visit the Reed Flute Cave, and Yao Mountain, Fubo Hill, Daxu Old Town, Four Lakes Night Cruise, walking around the lakes with the Sun and Moon Pagodas, Zhengyang Walking Street, East and West Lane and Shangshui Snack Street, a paradise for foodies are the best options.
On the day in Yangshuo, the Li River Cruise from Guilin to Yangshuo, the West Street, Yulong River Valley through a bamboo rafting, cycling or walking, Impression 3rd Sister Liu Show, Xianggong Hill, and Cuiping Hill, are the best attractions in Yangshuo.
3 Days in Guilin: Best Attractions to Visit
If you are planning to stay in Guilin Region for 3 days, we would recommend that you visit Guilin for one day, spare one day to Yangshuo and one day to Longji Rice Terraces. The best attractions for Guilin one day tour and Yangshuo one day tour are the same as the above mentioned. In Longji Rice Terraces, the best attractions to visit are Longji Zhaung Village, Huangluo Yao Village – the longest hair village in the world (Tianxia Diyi Changfacun), Tiantouzhai, Xiaozhai and Dazhai Villages great for hiking, Jinkeng Rice Terraces, and Ping’an Zhuang Rice Terraces.
In a word, there are tens of best attractions in Guilin for you to explore. The Guilin Region combines the natural beauty, the old villages, unique culture with a variety of activities to enjoy, such as cycling, hiking, fan-painting, Chinese calligraphy and Taichi classes and local food cooking classes.
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Reed Flute Cave
Interested in visiting Guilin’s Best Attractions on a Tour?