Yangshuo

Introduction

Yangshuo County sits in the northeast of Guangxi, under the jurisdiction of Guilin, with its seat in the town of Yangshuo itself. The landscape is the defining feature: karst peaks surround the area, and the Li River runs along one side.

You can reach Yangshuo by bus or by boat from nearby Guilin, making it an easy extension of a trip to that city.

Before you go

Yangshuo is known above all for its karst scenery, mountains, rivers, caves and temples, along with laid-back cafes and bars. It doesn't have the big-city feel of other Chinese cities: away from the major roadways it is relatively free of air and noise pollution, clean by Chinese standards, and spared the endless traffic chaos. Think of it as a vacation town with good restaurants and shops, and a good base for exploring the surrounding countryside by bike or trying the world-class rock-climbing sites. Note that it has long had a reputation as a foreigners' village and a major stop for independent travellers, sitting on the Hong Kong to Kunming overland route and the Chinese offshoot of the backpackers' route through Southeast Asia. More recently, though, most resident foreigners left during the COVID period and many foreigner-owned or foreigner-focused businesses closed, so it is now very much a domestic Chinese tourism destination.

Before you go, prepare for the practical side of a well-developed tourist town. Overcharging, persistent tour touts and illegal occupancy of routes to extort money are common complaints, and West Street has a two-price system, one for locals and another for non-local Chinese and Westerners. On the popular Yangshuo to Yulonghe biking route you may pass through Longtan Village, where villagers are known to set up a checkpoint to request an entrance fee, and rock climbers have met similar practices on some hills. Bag snatching by motorbike is frequently reported, often targeting bags in the rear baskets of bicycles, so keep bags locked to the bike or carry belongings in front of you, and be vigilant on buses, where the government-run non-stop service to or from Guilin is safer than private operations. Theft from swimmers is a frequent problem, particularly at Secret Beach, so bring only the necessities for swimming. Bamboo raft touts for the Yangdi to Xingping route, the landscape on the back of the ¥20 banknote, operate a system to "claim" a tourist, so if you want to negotiate yourself rather than book through a travel agency, don't talk to any touts on the bus. At night the streets are dark after a certain hour, so carry a torch, and some bars popular with western tourists can get loud and aggressive; noise is a major problem in hotels and on streets, so pick your location wisely or bring ear plugs. Traffic rules are practised half-heartedly, so don't expect drivers to stop at crosswalks and watch for motorbikes coming from any direction. Accommodation-related traps are rare thanks to enforced regulations, but expect sudden price surges around Chinese National Day on 1st Oct and Chinese New Year in Jan or Feb. On the plus side, designated police deal almost exclusively with foreigners and speak excellent English, and there is a small police box at the top of West Street and a larger police station on FuQian Xiang.

Getting there

Yangshuo has no airport or railway station of its own, so you'll arrive through Guilin or one of the high-speed rail stops nearby. The nearest airport is Guilin Liangjiang International, served by many Asian carriers with daily flights from Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen; flying in from Shenzhen is generally cheaper than from Hong Kong, since the former counts as a domestic flight. A non-stop airport shuttle runs from Guilin airport to Yangshuo's northern bus station in around 90 minutes, with tickets sold near the arrivals exit and buses departing from outside the terminal. A taxi is quicker and easier but costs considerably more, and it's far better to have your hotel arrange the pick-up, as drivers waiting at the airport tend to overcharge and know little of Yangshuo beyond the bus station. Taking the highway costs extra in tolls but saves roughly half an hour and makes for a smoother, less stressful ride.

By rail, "Yangshuo" station is actually in Xingping, about 36 km northeast of town, with shuttle buses linking it to downtown Yangshuo and a bus stop beside the station for onward travel to Xingping or Yangshuo. Guilin's station has more services, including a direct overnight train from Shenzhen, and some hotels will arrange a pick-up. Minibuses leave from the square in front of Guilin railway station, but they are known for scamming tourists and dawdling to gather passengers; the safer bet is to ignore the touts and walk north to the main bus terminal for properly ticketed, direct buses. GongCheng, a high-speed station, has become the most popular route from the Guangdong and Hong Kong region, reached by public bus to GongCheng Bus Station and then a bus to Yangshuo. From Guilin itself, frequent minibuses and express buses run to Yangshuo, with the government-run express service departing every twenty minutes from the Guilin Bus Terminal. Overnight sleeper buses also run direct from Shenzhen, Zhuhai and Guangzhou, dropping you in town a short walk from the main tourist area. Boats down the Li River from Guilin are slower and pricier than buses but very scenic, passing views including the mountain pictured on the ¥20 note; standards vary widely, so check with your hotel or agent which boat you're on, and book in advance rather than with agents who approach you at the station. In winter, the dry season, boats often start only halfway down the river, with part of the journey covered by bus or taxi.

Getting around

The heart of Yangshuo, around West Street and the surrounding tourist area, is compact and best covered on foot; signs there are in both Chinese and English, and many locals speak some English. An electric minibus network also runs several routes across most parts of town. If you plan to walk the streets and caves further out, pick up a map — the free ones are more useful for finding your way than the artistic tourist maps sold in shops.

For the countryside, renting a bike and heading out with or without a guide is a popular approach, with several rental places around the main street. Check brakes and gears before setting off, and pay for quality — better brands are worth seeking out, and some shops supply a helmet for an extra charge. If you use a rear basket, choose one that closes and lock it with your bike lock, as there are reports of thieves on motorbikes snatching bags and cameras from open baskets. Motorbike and scooter rentals can be found at the same locations, particularly at the top of West Street, and at least a couple of guesthouses offer them; note that riding any petrol-driven vehicle without a Chinese license is illegal, police tend to overlook scooters but may stop motorbikes, and electric scooters need no license and typically cover around 40 km per charge. Taxis are few because they are limited by the government, and drivers generally refuse the meter, so agree a price before getting in; open-air three-wheel and motorbike taxis work the same way, and motorbike taxis wait on many street corners. Local buses and minibuses from the bus stations serve outlying spots such as Gaotian for Moon Hill and the Banyan Tree, Jinbao via Baisha for Dragon Bridge, Shazhi for Fuli village, and Xingping for the Xingping–Yangdi scenic area, with climbers heading for the Gaotian minivan. Boat tours run up and down the river, private cars can be hired, and most hostels or hotels can arrange transport and a guide — useful for cycling trips — though be wary of guides who steer you into commission-paying shops.

Where to stay

Yangshuo has a wide range of places to stay, from simple dorm beds to luxury bungalows. Budget options cluster around West Street and the streets near the bus station, while quieter choices sit in the alleys and villages a short walk or ride away. Wherever you look, expect to negotiate: prices drop sharply in the off season, and the rate you are quoted will often be far below what is posted in the lobby. Hotel touts hang around the main bus station, but it is best to avoid them. Knowing the name of your hotel and its street in Chinese is a real help, and having it written down is better still, since even local Chinese may mishear the pronunciation.

If you want to be in the middle of things, West Street and the blocks around it put you close to the bars and restaurants, but be warned that anywhere within a block of West Street will likely be very loud, as the bars turn their sound systems up to the max. For a quieter stay, look to the alleys and lanes off the main drag, or to the villages outside town. Options range from hostels with dorm beds and private rooms, some with rooftop bars, bike rental and free breakfast, to family-run hotels and restored farmhouses with mountain views, homecooked dinners and air-conditioning. A few places sit right by the Li River or in small villages a short ride from the centre, offering a peaceful base with easy access to the surrounding karst scenery.

Food & drink

Yangshuo is full of restaurants, but as a touristy town its prices run higher than elsewhere in China. You can eat cheaply in the markets alongside locals, or settle into one of the many cafes for comfort food. The signature local dish is beer fish (pi jiu yu), carp or catfish cooked in beer sauce, and it's what most Chinese visitors come to try. Fish is priced by the jin (500g), and there are several species used, each with its own texture and taste — MaoGu fish has the fewest bones. For three or four people, a two-jin fish plus three or four other dishes is usually enough. Local cooking can be spicy and may contain MSG, though you can ask for both to be left out; even so, kitchens around town, including an Indian restaurant, tend to assume Westerners can't handle real heat no matter how you insist. Guilin rice noodles, white rice pasta, are a breakfast and lunch staple. Grapefruit or pomelos (sha tian you) are grown locally, very sweet and juicy, and sold everywhere — ask the vendor to pick one with a small top and cut it up for you. For halal food, there's a Chinese Muslim restaurant directly facing the bus station entrance, identifiable by the headscarves worn by the women who work there, serving noodle and rice dishes.

Many cafes offer burgers, shepherd's pie and a Western breakfast, but genuinely authentic Western food is still rare, and the Chinese dishes in those places are hit or miss — sometimes described locally as "Chinese food in a Western style." Prices run above the Chinese average. A rough guideline: the best Chinese restaurants don't serve Western food and vice versa, though a number of places in Yangshuo do reasonably well at both. Staff in these spots usually speak reasonable English, free WiFi is common, and several have a computer terminal. You'll find steaks, pizza, burgers and drinks at The Alley Yangshuo Beer Bar & Restaurant on Gui Hua Rd; French food and crepes plus a nightly movie at Balcony Bar on Xianqian Jie; burritos and a chocolate and banana pancake at Minority Cafe on Guihua Lu, a regular expat hangout; coffee and cheesecake at Cafe China on the corner of West Street and Xianqian Jie; and an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet at Cafe del Moon on West St. Cafe Too on Cheng Zhong Rd has English books to read, buy or trade, and Nature's Cup on Binjian Rd does an excellent breakfast with bottomless coffee. For Indian food, try Dosa U.K. on Yang Guang for home-made South Indian cooking and a good crispy dosa, or the Indian-owned Indian Restaurant on Guihua Lu. Lucy's Place on Guihua Rd serves both Western and Chinese dishes, and Luna, on the rooftop of Yangshuo Village Inn in Moon Hill Village, offers Italian food, gourmet Chinese dumplings and views of Moon Hill.

Outside West Street, most Chinese restaurants have neither an English menu nor English-speaking staff, but prices are often better than on the Street. The night market, now in the markets across the road from the bus station or down on Gui Hua Lu, has a wide variety of food at low prices, including oysters, mussels, rabbit, duck, shrimp, frog and the local mud snails — haggle, and keep a close watch on your belongings, as pickpockets here specialise in wallets, phones and passports. Clay Pot on Guihua Ln is where climbers gather for dinner, with a simple menu, great food and cheap prices. Other options include Riverview Cafe for a panoramic Li River view, Cloud Nine on West Street, Julies Moon Hill View for Chinese and Western dishes by Moon Hill, and Snow Lion just outside town, known for crispy duck with fresh plum sauce. Carpe Diem on Shi Ban Qiao, a short walk upstream from West Street, has an outside deck, local and international dishes, and a bar with Belgian beers and South-African wines.

What to see and do

The countryside around Yangshuo is the main draw, a karst landscape of hundreds of limestone hills that has long been a subject of Chinese painting and poetry. Several areas are set up for sightseeing by river cruise, bamboo raft, bicycle, trekking, or a combination of these. The Yangdi–Xingping stretch along the Li River is the most renowned and popular, with a 24 km riverside track for easy hiking; the traditional bamboo rafts here have largely been replaced by motorised rafts made of plastic pipe, and the better operators provide life jackets. The Yulong River valley is said to rival that stretch for beauty, and cycling its riverside tracks brings you through farming villages and past stone bridges such as Yulong Qiao and Fuli Qiao, though the track is complicated and easy to get lost on, so a local guide helps. South of town, Moon Hill's attraction is a hill with a huge hole shaped like a moon, and the hills can be climbed for views from the top; the Big Banyan Tree scenic area nearby is a park by the Yulong River featuring a 1,400-year-old banyan, and the Assembling Dragon Cave, between the two, holds stalactite and stalagmite formations lit by colourful neon lights. Elsewhere, local tourism companies run evening boat trips to watch fishermen using the traditional night fishing technique that employs cormorants, and Yangshuo Park is a good place to observe locals playing cards and women knitting and chatting.

For climbing, Yangshuo has a lively scene with routes across a wide range of difficulty, and experienced climbers can ask around the climbing places to find a partner. Beginners and those travelling without equipment can turn to the local climbing companies, several of which rent gear and run one- or multi-day trips; the Yangshuo Climbing Guide, showing route topos and grades, is sold by the climbing companies. Operators include Blackrock on Guihua Rd, which also offers abseiling, kayaking and ziplining; Rock Abond Inn on Fuqian St, with a gear shop and guiding; Insight Adventures off West Street, the largest operator, offering climbing plus kayaking, caving, biking and abseiling; Karst Climber on Chengbei Road, with beginner classes and guided climbs; Spiderman on Xianqian Road; Sunny Sky on Diecui Rd, with English-speaking guides; Terratribes on Fu Qian Road, which also runs multi-day camping, biking, rafting and caving for groups; and Yangshuo Basecamp in Fenglou Village, a family-run outfit emphasising safety, with ziplining, abseiling, camping and BBQ. Beyond climbing, bike riding is one of the best ways to see the countryside, wandering through villages with dramatic mountain backdrops; a popular trip is to take a boat ride with a bike and cycle back. Bikes tend to be poorly maintained, so check brakes and gears before setting out, and Bike Asia on Guihua Rd has well-maintained mountain bikes plus maps and route advice. You can also hire a farmer woman as a guide along the local paths, which may include lunch at her place.

Three days in Yangshuo

Day one: Base yourself in Yangshuo County and get your bearings along West Street, the busy heart of town where you'll find plenty of places to eat and drink. Note that overcharging can happen here, so agree prices before you commit. In the afternoon, walk or cycle out toward the Yulonghe, the river valley that winds through the countryside around Yangshuo. If you want a quieter stretch of water, ask about Secret Beach. Keep an eye on your bag, as theft is a minor risk in crowded spots.

Day two: Head to Yangdi and take a bamboo raft down the Li River toward Xingping, the stretch of scenery that draws visitors from Guilin and beyond. Traffic can be heavy on the roads, so allow extra time. Back in town, try FuQian Xiang for a meal and practise a little English or Chinese with the people you meet. If you're travelling from Hong Kong, Kunming or elsewhere in Southeast Asia, you'll find Yangshuo an easy place to settle into for a few days.

Day three: Slow down. Wander through Longtan Village and the surrounding countryside, where the pace is gentler than West Street. Think about timing your trip around Chinese National Day in October or Chinese New Year in January or February, when things get very busy. Before you leave, sort out your onward travel — Guilin Liangjiang International is the nearest airport, and Guilin is the main transport hub for the region. More recently, COVID disrupted travel here, so check current conditions before you go.