A Song of Countryside
6-Day Guilin, Yangshuo and Longsheng Tour
Slow down and allow yourself to have a relaxing vacation in Guilin. This 6 days tour covers the highlights in Guilin, Yangshuo and the Longsheng Longji Rice Terraces, and allows you to enjoy the peaceful scenery, countryside, and traditional ethnic cultures at a relaxing pace.
Tour Highlights
- Walk on a less-visited rice terraces trail.
- Cycle through Yangshuo's countryside and see locals working in the fields.
- Relax on a bamboo raft on the calm Yulong River, enjoying the peaceful countryside.
- No rush: relax and travel at your own pace.
- No fixed itinerary: one-to-one local experts for your requirements.
Discover real reviews of Highlights Travel Family's best-rated service across trusted platforms.
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Great experience in Guilin
Our guide lele is a wealth of information, Lele is very professional and very attentive to our needs. Lele is amazing. Lele got everything spot on. It probably helps that Guilin is a brilliant place to visit so Lele has great material to work with but that doesn't take anything away from how much Lele helped make it a great trip. more
Mar 2024, Nags t
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A knowledgeable guide make all the differences.......
He picked up our pre-booked boat/other excursions tickets so we were able to avoid all the long lines and chaos. He is knowledgeable of the places we visited, courteous, fun to travel with and well-versed in Chinese classics. more
Mar 2024, weindork
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Nice tour and Best guide Lele
lele was our guide throughout and he is outstanding. Lele is a wealth of information in geology, history, local life, and knew exactly where the best pictures could be taken. Lele was happy to take my iPhone to take pictures for us! I am very grateful for that especially since he has a keen eye for photography. Lele did not sound like recording of facts like many guides are but he was personable and fun. more
Mar 2024, Ameri M
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China highlights & Lele Guilin
Our guide Lele was fun and spoke very good English. He would give us pointers all the time in regards to shopping, food etc.We had so much fun on our river cruise. Lele made sure he pointed out all the interesting highlights along the way. I would highly recommend China highlights to help with the planning details. more
Mar 2024, Jade K
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Experience Guilin
Frank our guide was fantastic - both taking us to really nice spots, but also very informative. We spent 4 days exploring Guilin. more
Mar 2024, James F
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Thank you China Highlights and Chase
From our train tickets to every little detail, Chase our tour guide took excellent care of us. He was also flexible to accommodate our special requests and for that we are grateful. more
Mar 2024, Jen
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Great experience with China Highlights and Chase our tour guide
Our guide Chase took care of everything for us from pick up to send off, leaving us free to relax and enjoy. He was knowledgeable, patient and flexible with our added requirements. Really enjoyed the trip. Driver and car was clean, comfortable and always punctual. Excellent partner to have on your visit to China. more
Mar 2024, Jen1fer
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A day trip with Lele
Our one day trip, was a very pleasant and memorable learning experience with our exceptional guide Lele who efficiently managed our time, so we were able to see and do everything. Lele stayed with us for more than 8 hours and was flexible with the itinerary. more
Mar 2024, Jens T
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A big thank you to Lele
Your guides lele was superb-nothing was too much for him and he was very professional and enthusiastic making our experience in Guilin a trip of a lifetime! more
Mar 2024, Lucyan A
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Excellent Encapsulation
We had a great time in China, as planned by Leeky and the China Highlights team! more
Mar 2024, Ryan Farnan
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Guilin 2024
We visited Guilin for 2 days and stayed in the Guilin Waterfall hotel. Guilin was absolutely beautiful! Our guide, William, was very knowledgeable and kind! He taught us so much about Guilin and the surrounding area! We really enjoyed trying the specialty rice noodles of Guilin. Our highlight was the Li river cruise. more
Feb 2024, Explore
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Excellent service
Amazing tour and the guide Mr. 贺霄 was very accommodating with our needs and request as we have bought our 2 years old with us. Well explained for all the place we visited. Any additional cost were informed well ahead and didn't felt any pressure if we opt not to go for additional detour. The trip was relaxing/ laid back/no rushing with zero shopping! more
Feb 2024, JJC
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Vincent was a fantastic guide !
Vincent was a fantastic guide !Vincent is a wonderful & warm guide. He is extremely knowledgeable and his explanations are excellent. He showed us around Guilin & Yangshuo. He attended to all of our needs and really made the tour very special more
Feb 2024, David
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Beautiful Yangshuo
Guilin, but mostly Yangshuo was at the tail end of our China adventure so there was a lot to live up to. Having a guide like Gary Wei meant that our trip ended on a high! We arrived in Guilin very late from an 11 hour train journey. Gary met us with gifts of fruit, sweet bread and cakes which was so unexpected and thoughtful.Gary's knowledge of the area was exceptional and his attention to us the same. He really took our children under his wing - even tuning in to annoying sibling rivalry and managing to keep the peace very well! Gary was our personal photographer at times and even our Taiji instructor, making a beautiful video of us all doing Taiji in a scenic setting :)The cruise from Guilin to Yangshuo is definitely worth taking and we enjoyed our few nights in the area, riding bikes along the river, doing a cooking class and enjoying the scenery more
Feb 2024, JenB
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Nice tour in Guilin
I have an excellent trip to Guilin and local guide Tony.Tony has a lot of information about the local history and culture.We enjoy the tour very much. more
Feb 2024, Chai Kiam leung
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Beautiful and Great Trip
Our guide Steven, is a local in the area and was very knowledgable, kind and patient. Our flight was delayed and came in late in the early morning. Everything was well accommodated for the delay. Also, he had great restaurant choices/recommendations and helped us take great photos. Overall, great guide and experience! more
Feb 2024, Karol
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Inolvidable viaje en Guilin con Alonso y China Highlights
Alonso cuenta con un manejo del espanol bastante bueno y muy profesional. Mis padres no hablan ingles y pudieron comunicarse con el directamente todo el tiempo. Tiene un elevado conocimiento de la cultura, la historia, la geogrfia y los sitios a visitar. Alonso ademas cuenta con un excelente sentido del humor, haciendo el viaje muy ameno y divertido. Se interesa genuinamente por la cultura latina y el viaje se convierte en un exquisito intercambio cultural. more
Jan 2024, eduardogor77
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Amazing trip in China
From the start until the very end our guides were very professional, helpful, knowledgeable and funny! We would not have had such an amazing time if we had done this on our own. We went to several cities, each city we had a new guide, who were from that area. Each guide made sure we were picked up in very nice van and delivered to each activity, safely and on time. They got us through lines quickly as well as showed us where to get the best views and pictures. Their knowledge of what they were sharing with us made the trip even more valuable. more
Jan 2024, Mary Ann Brady
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unforgettable Guilin
Lily Wong our guide at Guilin was wonderful. Along with all the good qualities like being punctual,courteous, organized,knowledgeable,hard working she is also caring.The scenaries at Guilin is second to none,Lily helped us to take lots of pictures to capture the scenaries as much as possible.With Lily's help I can enjoy the amazing cave and the rafting.At Yangshuo Lily also recommend a Light Show on the river.That was fantastic never saw anything like it. I must mention the unique hotel they put us in.Its called Yangshuo Moondance hotel.My wife is very happy with Lily because she took a lot of pictures for her and took her shopping for a new (Qie Pao,cantonese Cheung Sham). more
Jan 2024, Peter W
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Just wish I could stay longer!
Our guide Frank was fantastic. He was really knowledgeable about the region and the many different ethnic groups living here. He has contacts with local people who invited us into their homes. He was so high energy and kind. We saw many things in a short period of time from the pagodas, to history Duha (so?) street, to a beautiful relaxing cruise on a river….we also attended a spectacular cultural show in Yangshou. It wasn’t on the agenda but so glad we went. (Randomly called the Romance show). Frank also introduced us to local cuisine like Guilin noodles. We stayed at the Aspara Lodge for one night in Yangshou and seriously could have stayed for a few days if I didn’t have to go back to work. Travel advisor Liberman was a great resource as well and helped plan such a special trip. more
Jan 2024, Rosequarose
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Suggested Itinerary
Here is a suggested itinerary. We are happy to customize a tour according to your interests and your schedule
Upon your arrival in Guilin, you will be transferred straight to Longsheng. Check in to your hotel and enjoy the mountain breeze as you clear your head.
Tips to tailor-make your tour:
A one-way transfer from Guilin to Longsheng usually takes about 3 to 4 hours on the mountain road. We will arrange for you to travel on the highway to shorten the journey to 2½ hours.
No time is wasted upon your arrival as we will transfer you straight away. However, it's necessary to spend a night in Guilin if you arrive after 7pm.
Hotel options:- Baike Hotel (newest hotel in rice terraces with best facilities)
- Li-An Lodge(located at the highest spot,convenient for sunrise catch)
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
Construction of the rice terraces began about 600 years ago and now the ethnic minorities who live in Longsheng are still very dependent on this massive farming project.
You can walk up or take a buggy ride up to the top, providing an awesome view over the rolling mountains laced with lush rice paddies.
Later, walk down to a Yao family's home where the host will introduce you to their unique bamboo rice cooker and oil tea culture. Enjoy a chat with them before lunch.
Gear up for an easy hike along the mountainous trail from Ping'an Village to Guzhuang Village. The former is home to the Yao ethnic minority while you will see different customs of the Zhuang people in the latter.
The hike covers the most picturesque parts of the rice terraces and you will meet some lovely locals along the way.
Your private driver will be waiting for you in Guzhuang Village with your luggage, ready to transfer you back to Guilin where you will enjoy a relaxing evening.
Tips to tailor-make your tour:
The hike from Ping'an Village to Guzhuang Village is about 2 kilometers, mostly on downhill steps and country roads, taking approximately 1½ hours at a slow pace.
We can hire some local porters to carry your bags and the roads are in good condition for hiking.
Hotel options:- Lijiang Waterfall Hotel (5-star location and facilities, 4-star service)
- Shangri-La Hotel Guilin (best in Guilin)
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
An important trading port back in its heyday, Daxu Ancient Town is now almost forgotten by the outside world.
Yet something interesting can still be found here: as you walk around this small town, you will learn about the trading history and, most intriguingly, an old gentleman will show you his fun collection of daily-use items that have been used by others over the last two centuries.
After lunch, visit the landmarks of Guilin: Elephant Trunk Hill and Reed Flute Cave. The rest of the day is free for you to spend at your leisure.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
As the Li River weaves its way gracefully through Guilin and down to Yangshuo, the natural landscape is brought closer to you while you enjoy the 4-star Li River cruise (this is the highest level of cruise, offering better facilities and a buffet lunch).
Chinese people are great dreamers and most mountains are named after their quirky appearances.
You might need to use your imagination to see the same shapes; of course, you might just as well kick back and empty your mind while the wind tousles your hair gently.
Arrive at your resort in Yangshuo in time for afternoon tea. Sit back in a relaxed setting with a nice cup of coffee - that's what a vacation should be like. Enjoy a relaxing night in Yangshuo.
Tips to tailor-make your tour:
The Li River cruise normally takes 3 to 4 hours during summer.
You will be in Yangshuo in the early afternoon and we have some options for you to choose from if you'd like something fun to do, such as Chinese calligraphy or a cooking class, among others.
Hotel options:- Yangshuo Mountain Retreat (boutique hotel with great location by riverside)
- Yangshuo Ancient Garden Boutique Hotel (5 star, one of the best in Yangshuo)
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
Some claim that whatever Guilin offers, Yangshuo also has it and it's much better. Test this saying with your own experiences.
Before the sun gets too high for a cool ride, explore the countryside by bike. Narrow single-lane trails lead you to secluded villages and boundless fields, and you will pass by locals waving hello to you.
After lunch, get on a traditional bamboo raft with a private punter to sail along the Yulong River.
No noisy motor rafts are allowed on the Yulong River and you can enjoy a tranquil moment while the reflections of the mountains and bamboo groves pass by.
Tip to tailor-make your tour:
There are many rafting routes and your tour guide will choose one according to the season and timing of your trip.
Trip Notes
With so much to offer, it can be difficult for a first-timer to plan a trip that is both relaxing and filled with experiences. The itinerary above can be one possibility and your interests will decide how this trip is to be designed and executed.
Tour Price
Price includes:
- Private air-conditioned business car with big windows and ample space
- English speaking local guide
- Activities, hotels, and meals listed in the itinerary
- 24/7 helpline for while you are traveling
Tour code: gl-7