Guilin Ethnic Groups Tour

Longsheng Multi-ethnic Autonomous County is 88 kilometers away from Guilin and has 10 ethnic groups distributing over the county which include Zhuang, Yao, Miao and Dong. The unsophisticated folkway and customs of the local minorities and the imposing terraced fields are the most attractive highlights of the area. After about two hours driving from Guilin, you will get to Longsheng County. As it is a mountain district, the highway can not reach the two best viewing spots. Tourists need to climb up by the bluestone alley for about 1 hour to get to the Ping’an Village, then another 30 minutes to the viewing spots. Comfortable shoes and light carry-on luggage are strongly recommended today. In this itinerary, you will spend the night in Sanjiang, so your can leave your big luggage on the private vehicle we arranged for you while visiting. If you will spend the night in the Village, you can ask the porter to carry the luggage for you and the service charge is CNY20.00 per piece per way. Visit Ping’an Zhuang Minority Village, the Suspension Bridge and the splendid Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces. The distinct views of Longsheng in four seasons make it one of the most favorite places of photographers and hikers. In the afternoon, keep driving for about 1.5 hours to Sanjiang Dong Autonomous County and check in the local best hotel - Sanjiang Hotel. Please kindly note that as limited by the local condition, the facility and service of the hotel can not be compared with the ones in the big cities. (L)

Sanjiang is located at the joint area of Hunan Province, Guizhou Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. 57 percent of the population is Dong Minority which makes it the biggest habitation of the five autonomous counties for Dong people. Dong people are laborious, industrious, sapiential and thrifty. The Dong style architecture is the most attractive part of their culture as the architectural skill and technique are mirable. They build their houses, towers and pavilions but without using one single nail or rivet, all the wood pieces are inlayed and scrabbled up. The representative works are the Chengyang Wind and Rain Bridge and the Sanjiang Drum Tower. The Chengyang Wind and Rain Bridge was built in 1916 and is the most well-preserved and biggest one. It is 64.4 meters long, 10.6 meters high and 3.4 meters wide. The delicate patterns, fussy structure and bravura appearance of the bridge is the wisdom result of the Dong people. Drum Tower is the symbol and spirit of Dong’s culture and there is one in the center of every Dong village. Sanjiang Drum Tower which was finished construction in 2002 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the county is the biggest and tallest one. The 42.6 meters high building has 27 storeys of tiled eaves and occupies an area of over 600 square meters. After the visit, drive back to Guilin in the afternoon and the tour ends here. (B+L)