Xishuangbanna

Best time to visit

1. Jan
2. Feb
3. Mar
4. Apr
5. May
6. Jun
7. Jul
8. Aug
9. Sep
10. Oct
11. Nov
12. Dec

From the airport or station to the city

Where you land, the ways into the city centre, how long each takes and what it costs.

Getting around

Jinghong, the main town, is small: Manting Park, the Mekong riverside and the Gaozhuang night market are a short taxi or DiDi ride apart. For Wild Elephant Valley (north), the Botanical Garden at Menglun (east) and the Dai villages at Ganlanba (southeast), take buses from Jinghong’s bus stations or, easier, hire a car with driver for the day. The China–Laos Railway stops at Xishuangbanna Station: domestic bullet trains run to Kunming, and international trains continue via the Mohan–Boten border to Luang Prabang and Vientiane. Tickets for trains from China into Laos are sold only in China, at stations’ international ticket windows with your passport; check Laos entry rules before you go. It is hot and humid all year, with most rain from May to October.

Top sights

告庄西双景星光夜市Gaozhuang Starlight Night MarketJinghong’s big night market by the Mekong: rows of lantern-lit stalls with grilled food, tropical fruit, clothes and handicrafts.2 hours野象谷Wild Elephant ValleyA rainforest reserve where wild Asian elephants sometimes come to drink, seen from raised walkways and a cable car over the canopy.Booking recommendedHalf day中国科学院西双版纳热带植物园Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical GardenA huge research garden on a river island at Menglun, with palm and bamboo collections, giant water lilies and a patch of real rainforest.Booking recommendedFull day including the drive; 4–5 hours in the garden曼听公园Manting ParkJinghong’s oldest park, once a royal garden, with Dai-style pagodas, a lake, peacocks and palms.1.5 hours西双版纳总佛寺Wat Pajie (Main Buddhist Temple)The centre of Theravada Buddhism in Xishuangbanna: a gilded Dai-style hall and stupa where young monks study.30–45 minutes傣族园Dai Ethnic Garden (Ganlanba villages)Five inhabited Dai villages of bamboo stilt houses and temples among palms, with a daily water-splashing show.Half day西双版纳民族博物馆Xishuangbanna Ethnic MuseumThe prefecture’s free museum on the history of the Dai kingdom of Sipsongpanna, the region’s many ethnic groups and the rainforest, with costumes, palm-leaf scriptures and a Dai stilt house.1–2 hours勐泐大佛寺Mengle Grand Buddhist TempleA large, recently built Theravada temple complex on a hillside above Jinghong, with a golden main hall, a thousand-Buddha stupa and halls in Thai, Burmese, Lao and Sri Lankan styles.Booking recommended2–3 hours西双版纳热带花卉园Xishuangbanna Tropical Flower and Plant GardenAn 80-hectare garden in town run by the tropical crops research institute: palms, orchids, rubber and fruit trees, with a monument to Zhou Enlai’s 1961 visit to the Water-Splashing Festival.2–3 hours西双版纳原始森林公园Xishuangbanna Primeval Forest ParkTropical forest just outside Jinghong, with boardwalks along a stream, a peacock-release show, an Akha village performance and a small waterfall.Half day景真八角亭Jingzhen Octagonal PavilionA small, intricately tiered Dai Buddhist pavilion from 1701 in a village temple near Menghai, a national protected monument and one of the most photographed buildings in Xishuangbanna.1 hour (plus about 3 hours’ return drive)曼飞龙白塔Manfeilong White PagodaA cluster of nine white Buddhist stupas on a hill above a Dai village, one tall central spire ringed by eight smaller ones like bamboo shoots; a national heritage site.1 hour (half a day from Jinghong)澜沧江游轮（景洪港）Lancang (Mekong) River night cruiseAn evening boat trip from Jinghong Port on the upper Mekong, with the lit-up city and bridges, a dinner of local dishes and song-and-dance shows from the Mekong countries.Booking recommendedAbout 2 hours基诺山寨Jinuo Mountain VillageA village of the Jinuo people in the hills east of Jinghong, open as a cultural park with stilt houses, drum dances, crafts and a forest walk.2–3 hours南糯山Nannuo Mountain (tea villages)The ancient tea mountain closest to Jinghong, with Hani villages, centuries-old pu’er tea trees and a stone path to the 800-year-old “tea king tree”.Half a day from Jinghong勐景来景区Mengjinglai Dai VillageA lived-in Dai village on the Myanmar border river near Daluo, with bamboo stilt houses, a temple and traditional crafts such as pottery, weaving and sugar-making.Full day from Jinghong勐远仙境Mengyuan Wonderland (rainforest and caves)A rainforest park beyond Menglun with limestone hills, lakes, trails under huge trees and a network of caves, part of the Xishuangbanna tropical rainforest area.Booking recommendedFull day from Jinghong

Map

Further out, not on this map: Mengjinglai Dai Village

What to eat here

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