Yuanyang Rice Terraces is located in Honghe Prefecture, Yunnan Province, which belongs to the southeastern Yunnan region. Generally, the terraces start to be irrigated in mid-December, and the rice is transplanted in May. The scenery is most beautiful from January to February, and seas of clouds often appear. Because the altitude is high, the temperature difference is relatively large at this time, and the sun is very strong at noon. To watch the sunset and sunrise in the morning and evening, a down jacket is essential.
My travel route is Qingdao-Kunming-Jianshui-Yuanyang Xinjie Town-Yuanyang Rice Terraces. I took an early flight from Qingdao and stopped in Nanjing. It was already noon when I arrived in Kunming. I took the subway and went straight to Kunming South Station, Kunming Station and At Kunming South Railway Station, there are many trains to Jianshui every day. You can choose according to the time. While waiting for the train, you can order lunch from Meituan Takeout.
After getting off the train, I took the 919 bus from Jianshui Station to the ancient city. According to the location of the hotel, I chose the bus stop. I booked Nilv Huashi Youth Hostel, which is outside the south gate of the ancient city. In the off-season, the preferred double room is 54 yuan. Because we passed the station and got off at the north gate of the ancient city, we happened to walk through the ancient city to the inn.
Probably because of the epidemic, there were not many people in the ancient city. I passed by a grilled tofu shop, which was quite popular. When I arrived at the inn, after checking in, I asked the boss which barbecue restaurant nearby was better. The boss said that they were all similar and recommended the nearby one. One restaurant was closed when I walked over. So I went straight to the restaurant I just passed by in the ancient city. Later, I checked Dianping and found out that it was the highly rated Xiaobo BBQ.
I ate the local specialty roasted tofu with milk, and also had a bowl of rice noodles. The taste was not amazing, but the tofu was very unique. You can also try roasted grass sprouts, turned beef, and roasted pork liver. The gatehouse behind the old lady, It is said to be more than 100 years old.
I woke up the next morning, checked out of the room, and went straight to another snack restaurant in the ancient city, Huangji Vietnamese Roll, and ordered a plate of Vietnamese roll noodles. The portion was really large, and I could eat it by myself. It tasted pretty good, and the ingredients were good. It was great to dip it in water. The lady I met later at Yuanyang Rice Terraces said that their rice dumplings were also delicious.
I passed by the supermarket, bought some milk and dry food, and went straight to Jianshui Passenger Transport Station. There is a shuttle bus from Jianshui to Xinjie Town at 11:34 every day. You can follow the article "Hongjiao Group" and buy tickets online in advance. When we set off, it was almost full, with locals and tourists.
After passing Yuanyang County, we started walking on the winding mountain road. Friends who get motion sickness must take precautions in advance. At about 3 pm, we arrived at Xinjie Town. When we got off the bus, a van driver came up to collect passengers and went to Duoyishu. Carpooling in scenic spots costs 15 yuan per person. The place you live is usually near Duoyishu, and the driver will take you to the nearest place that the car can reach.
I bought some fruits in the town and arrived at Duoyishu in about an hour or so. The two girls in the same car stayed at a B&B in Huangcaoling. This location has a good view of the sunrise in the morning, so the price of the B&B is also very high. , I stayed at the Hongqi B&B in Pugao Laozhai, and the price/performance ratio was very good. Where you choose to live, it’s up to you to be rich and frugal.
The girls made an appointment to have dinner together in the evening. The driver took me to the parking lot of Pugao Old Village, and then I stepped on the bluestone slabs and listened to the gurgling water as I walked through the village. It felt so chronological, and all of a sudden I really like it. If the weather hadn't been bad later, I would have stayed a few more days.
Below the village are terraced fields. When we arrived at the inn, we put down our luggage and went directly to the terraced fields. When I went there on January 20, the terraced fields were almost filled with water.
Then we went to the terraced square in the village and climbed up to overlook the Duoyishu terraced fields. I met a local art student from Jianshui who came on the same bus. She was going back to draw her graduation project and came to play with her sister. The next day, we met by chance along the way.
Near sunset, the terraces reflect the setting sun, showing golden light. The children in the village were also playing in the square, and the dog next to them looked solemn, which was really fun.
It was getting dark, so I wanted to take a look at the Huangcaoling side, so I walked to the B&B where the two young ladies were staying. The view from this side was indeed more majestic. One young lady, because of motion sickness, Resting in the room, another young lady was taking time-lapse photography of the sunset, and I started to review the highly rated eating places nearby on Dianping.
In the end, I chose Hani Fire Pond, a restaurant with relatively good reviews near Duoyishu Scenic Area. The environment is very good, especially the stove in the room, which adds a lot of warmth to the cold night. The food is not very large and the price It's also a little expensive. It's a scenic spot and is prepared for tourists. However, the service is still good and the ingredients are not bad. The bacon is a bit salty. The vegetable soup is absolutely authentic and the atmosphere is good. It costs 200 yuan for 3 people.
A teacher who teaches in a local middle school, the school was on holiday, because a young lady came over to take pictures and came to drink with us. It was the kind of wine made by the locals. It tasted pretty good and the atmosphere became lively. He returned the We made some suggestions and the three of us decided to charter a car together the next day.
The scenic spots in Yuanyang Rice Terraces are very scattered. The advantage of chartering a car is that it saves time, and the local driver is also familiar with the best shooting spots, which saves a lot of trouble of asking for directions. The price of our charter is 400 yuan a day, 300 yuan in the off-season. One day later, we asked the driver to take us to Laohuzui and Yakou Rice Terraces, and we added 150 yuan to the driver.
The next day, I watched the sunrise at the terraced square in the village. You can also go to Duoyishu Observation Deck, which is not far from the village. It takes about 15-20 minutes to walk there. Tickets are required for the observation deck. The best time to shoot the sunrise terraces in the morning is 6:50. Look at the morning glow first. The sun comes out around 7:30. There was no morning glow that day, but there was a sea of clouds. It was particularly spectacular when we watched it later in Azheke.
After watching the sunrise, I went back to the inn to wash up. I ordered a bowl of rice noodles at the inn for 15 yuan. I asked the boss to help heat up the milk, bean paste buns and eggs I bought in Jianshui. A bowl of rice noodles was really not for me, a northerner. I'm hungry. The boss is from Shandong and he said he can only serve for two hours.
After breakfast, we went to the parking lot. The two girls and the driver had already arrived. The first stop was the Aichunlan Rice Terraces. The best time for shooting is 9:00-10:30, because the terraces belong to the villagers. If you go down to the terraces, Here, everyone has to give 5 yuan to the villagers. Some children wearing national costumes on the roadside also have to pay for taking photos. They also give dozens of yuan to take photos with the children.
Let’s list the following itinerary so that the day can be fully arranged:
Azheke is an ancient Hani village. The entrance fee is 30 yuan per person. The mushroom house houses are very unique. Here we encountered the best perspective for photographing the sea of clouds.
Eagle Mouth, you can take pictures of colorful terraces and sunset here. The best time to take pictures of colorful terraces is 9:00-11:00 in the morning. Because it is an aerial photography, the resolution is a bit lower, but it is still shocking. If you want to take pictures of sunset, 18:30- 19:30 is better.
The horse mounting point, the horse breaking point, and the Malizhai Tea Factory are all small roadside attractions along the way, and the driver will stop there.
In the small town of Hani, I also met a local married woman, who was very ethnic.
Bada is the place to shoot the sunset. The best time is around 18:30. There is a viewing platform where you need to buy tickets. Generally, the driver will take you to a place that does not charge tickets. Pay attention to safety. We then went to the Yakou Rice Terraces, where we could take photos of the Time Tunnel Terraces, and watch the sunset at Laohuzui when we came back. The Laohuzui Observation Deck is currently closed and can only be viewed on the roadside.
There is also a large tile-cane village where you can watch the sunset and the sea of clouds. The best time for shooting is 18:30-19:30. We did not go there this time.
At noon, the driver stopped the car in Shengcun. Shengcun was still very prosperous. The driver went to eat, and we also ate some dry food. In the evening, we ate at Duoyishu Restaurant across from Hani Fire Pond. It cost 190 yuan for three people. Their fish is highly recommended.
Below is a video clip of Yuanyang Rice Terraces (full screen playback is highly recommended), follow my WeChat video account "Uncle Tianyi" for more travel videos.
Originally, the next day, I wanted to watch the missed sunrise at Huangcaoling and the sunset at Bada. I could also bask in the sun in the village during the day. The weather forecast also said that the next day would be sunny. However, when the alarm clock rang in the morning, outside Under the drizzle of light rain, the fog spread all the way into the village, hiding the terraced fields and the villages in the distance. Moreover, the weather forecast for the next time was also full of rain, so we decided to return.
Every time we travel, there will be regrets. This is also the normal state of travel. More importantly, it gives us a reason to set out next time, which is the best arrangement.