China by region

Southwest China

Tea houses, highlands and biodiversity

Provinces & municipalities

Shape the route from here.

These groupings are an editorial starting point. We connect cities around real journey time, interests and season.

1 city guide

Chongqing

3 city guides

Guizhou

Anshun, Guiyang, Qiandongnan

2 city guides

Sichuan

Chengdu, Garze

3 city guides

Tibet

Chamdo, Lhasa, Nyingchi

6 city guides

Yunnan

Baoshan, Dali, Kunming, Lijiang, Shangri-La, Xishuangbanna

City guides

Places to know in Southwest China.

Sichuan · 3–5 days

Chengdu

Teahouse time, giant-panda conservation, layered Sichuan flavors and an easygoing urban rhythm

Yunnan · 2–3 days

Baoshan

Tengchong’s volcanoes, hot springs and western Yunnan history

Yunnan · 2–3 days

Dali

Bai culture between Cangshan and Erhai Lake

Yunnan · 2–5 days

Kunming

Lakefront city life and a gateway to Yunnan’s karst landscapes

Yunnan · 3–4 days

Lijiang

Old-town lanes beneath northwest Yunnan’s mountains

Yunnan · 2–3 days

Shangri-La

Tibetan highland culture, monasteries and mountain wetlands

Yunnan · 3 days

Xishuangbanna

Tropical forests, Dai culture and Mekong-border landscapes

Sichuan · 5–8 days

Garze

Highland towns, sacred mountains and long valleys along western Sichuan

Tibet · 3–5 days

Chamdo

Tea-horse-road valleys, high grassland and the eastern approach to Tibet

Tibet · 3–5 days

Lhasa

Living pilgrimage, monumental architecture and everyday tea at high altitude

Tibet · 4–6 days

Nyingchi

Forested valleys, glacier-fed rivers and Himalayan scale in eastern Tibet

Chongqing · 3–5 days

Chongqing

Vertical river neighborhoods, wartime memory, communal hotpot and dramatic karst landscapes

Guizhou · 3–4 days

Anshun

Monumental waterfalls, water-cut karst and the living stone lanes of Tunpu country

Guizhou · 2–4 days

Guiyang

Cool plateau air, karst water, old towns and an energetic sour-and-spicy food culture

Guizhou · 6–8 days

Qiandongnan

River towns, timber villages and living Miao and Dong cultural landscapes

Southwest China

Shape the route from here.

Chongqing

Guizhou

Sichuan

Tibet

Yunnan

Places to know in Southwest China.

Chengdu

Baoshan

Dali

Kunming

Lijiang

Shangri-La

Xishuangbanna

Garze

Chamdo

Lhasa

Nyingchi

Chongqing

Anshun

Guiyang

Qiandongnan

Tell us what would make China easier.