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Itinéraire de 5 jours au Yunnan 2026 : Kunming, Dali et Lijiang cover photo
★ 5-day itinerary

Itinéraire de 5 jours au Yunnan 2026 : Kunming, Dali et Lijiang

Cinq jours, c'est l'introduction parfaite au Yunnan. Jour 1 : arrivée à Kunming, Forêt de pierre. Jour 2 : HSR vers Dali, lac Erhai, vieille ville de Dali. Jour 3 : Trois Pagodes + route vers Lijiang (3h). Jour 4 : excursion d'une journée à la montagne enneigée du Dragon de Jade. Jour 5 : vieille ville de Lijiang, départ. Liaisons en HSR (rapide) et par l'autoroute Lijiang-Dali (pittoresque). Idéal pour les voyageurs qui souhaitent découvrir les cultures ethniques du Yunnan, ses paysages montagneux et son rythme plus lent — un contrepoint aux villes plus animées de Beijing/Shanghai.

5 days·By NihaoVisit Editorial Team·Updated
§ 01 · The route, at a glance

5 days, 5 cities.

Day 1Kunming : Forêt de pierre
Day 2Kunming → Dali
Day 3Dali : Lac Erhai et Trois Pagodes
Day 4Dali → Lijiang + Mont enneigé du Dragon de Jade
Day 5Lijiang : départ
At a price
Backpacker / day$330
Mid-range / day$660
Luxury / day$1650
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Quick Answer

Cinq jours, c'est l'introduction parfaite au Yunnan. Jour 1 : arrivée à Kunming, Forêt de pierre. Jour 2 : HSR vers Dali, lac Erhai, vieille ville de Dali. Jour 3 : Trois Pagodes + route vers Lijiang (3h). Jour 4 : excursion d'une journée à la montagne enneigée du Dragon de Jade. Jour 5 : vieille ville de Lijiang, départ. Liaisons en HSR (rapide) et par l'autoroute Lijiang-Dali (pittoresque). Idéal pour les voyageurs qui souhaitent découvrir les cultures ethniques du Yunnan, ses paysages montagneux et son rythme plus lent — un contrepoint aux villes plus animées de Beijing/Shanghai.

AT A GLANCE

5 days at a glance

  1. Day 01

    Kunming : Forêt de pierre

    Arrivée à Kunming

  2. Day 02

    Kunming → Dali

    Matin : Temple de Yuantong + Vieille ville de Kunming

  3. Day 03

    Dali : Lac Erhai et Trois Pagodes

    Balade à vélo autour du lac Erhai (journée complète, location de vélo ¥100)

  4. Day 04

    Dali → Lijiang + Mont enneigé du Dragon de Jade

    Trajet en voiture le matin de Dali → Lijiang (3h, panoramique)

  5. Day 05

    Lijiang : départ

    Matin : Bassin du Dragon Noir + musique Naxi

ROUTE OVERVIEW

Route Overview

Every stop on this itinerary, ordered by day. Tap a city to read our in-depth destination guide.

  1. Day 01YunnanKunming : Forêt de pierre
  2. Day 02YunnanKunming → Dali
  3. Day 03YunnanDali : Lac Erhai et Trois Pagodes
  4. Day 04YunnanDali → Lijiang + Mont enneigé du Dragon de Jade
  5. Day 05YunnanLijiang : départ

  • 5

    days

  • 14

    stops tested

  • 5

    editors involved

  • 18

    hotels short-listed

  • $1200

    mid-range / person

  • Q3 2026

    last re-priced

Duration5 days
Best forNature, Off the beaten path
Pricing$600 (backpacker) / $1200 (mid-range) / $3000+ (luxury) per person

Lock in this trip

Pre-vetted platforms to handle hotels, transport, and connectivity.

Trip timeline

01
DAY 01

Kunming : Forêt de pierre

Stay: Centre-ville de Kunming

  1. Arrivée à Kunming
    L, D
  2. Excursion d'une journée : Forêt de pierre (UNESCO, 1h30 de route, ¥175)
    L, D
  3. Parc du Lac Vert en soirée
    L, D
02
DAY 02

Kunming → Dali

Stay: Vieille ville de Dali

  1. Matin : Temple de Yuantong + Vieille ville de Kunming
    B, D
  2. HSR Kunming → Dali (2h, $30)
    B, D
  3. Soirée : promenade dans la Vieille ville de Dali
    B, D
03
DAY 03

Dali : Lac Erhai et Trois Pagodes

Stay: Même hébergement à Dali

  1. Balade à vélo autour du lac Erhai (journée complète, location de vélo ¥100)
    B, L
  2. Trois Pagodes (¥75)
    B, L
  3. Déjeuner dans un village de la minorité Bai
    B, L
04
DAY 04

Dali → Lijiang + Mont enneigé du Dragon de Jade

Stay: Vieille ville de Lijiang

  1. Trajet en voiture le matin de Dali → Lijiang (3h, panoramique)
    B
  2. Après-midi : Mont enneigé du Dragon de Jade (¥200, téléphérique jusqu'à 4 500 m)
    B
  3. Soir : Vieille ville de Lijiang (UNESCO)
    B
05
DAY 05

Lijiang : départ

Stay: —

  1. Matin : Bassin du Dragon Noir + musique Naxi
    B
  2. Départ de l'aéroport Sanyi de Lijiang (vols vers Kunming, Shanghai, Chengdu)
    B

BEFORE YOU GO

Practical Tips for this trip

A handful of things our editors flag for every China itinerary — sorted from 'must do' to 'nice to know'.

  1. Visa and entry documents

    Most Western passports get 30-day visa-free entry in 2026. Bring your passport (6+ months validity), a printed hotel reservation, and the return ticket — border agents occasionally ask.

  2. Payment setup

    Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay before you fly and link a Visa or Mastercard. Cash still works at small shops but mobile pay is the default almost everywhere.

  3. Connectivity

    Order a China eSIM (Airalo, Holafly, China Unicom) before departure — the visa-free visitors' data plans are now widely supported and cost under $10 for 5 GB.

  4. How we calculated costs

    All figures are in USD per person for the full itinerary, not per day. Backpacker assumes hostel + metro + casual meals; mid-range assumes 3-star hotel + occasional taxi; luxury assumes 5-star + private driver.

BUDGET

Budget Breakdown

Per-person totals across the whole trip, in USD. Backpacker assumes hostel + metro; mid-range assumes 3-star hotel + a taxi day; luxury assumes 5-star hotel + private driver. Figures assume a 5-day trip.

Line itemBackpackerMid-rangeLuxury
Accommodation$330$660$1650+
Food$120$240$540+
Transport$60$144$300+
Attractions$60$96$210+
SIM / data$10$15$25+
Visa$0$0$0+
Misc$30$60$300+
TOTAL$610$1215$3025+

USD per person, across the whole trip. Excludes international flights. Last verified Q3 2026.

Day-by-day breakdown

  1. DAY 1

    Kunming : Forêt de pierre

    • Arrivée à Kunming
    • Excursion d'une journée : Forêt de pierre (UNESCO, 1h30 de route, ¥175)
    • Parc du Lac Vert en soirée
    Stay
    Centre-ville de Kunming
    Meals
    L, D
  2. DAY 2

    Kunming → Dali

    • Matin : Temple de Yuantong + Vieille ville de Kunming
    • HSR Kunming → Dali (2h, $30)
    • Soirée : promenade dans la Vieille ville de Dali
    Stay
    Vieille ville de Dali
    Meals
    B, D
  3. DAY 3

    Dali : Lac Erhai et Trois Pagodes

    • Balade à vélo autour du lac Erhai (journée complète, location de vélo ¥100)
    • Trois Pagodes (¥75)
    • Déjeuner dans un village de la minorité Bai
    Stay
    Même hébergement à Dali
    Meals
    B, L
  4. DAY 4

    Dali → Lijiang + Mont enneigé du Dragon de Jade

    • Trajet en voiture le matin de Dali → Lijiang (3h, panoramique)
    • Après-midi : Mont enneigé du Dragon de Jade (¥200, téléphérique jusqu'à 4 500 m)
    • Soir : Vieille ville de Lijiang (UNESCO)
    Stay
    Vieille ville de Lijiang
    Meals
    B
  5. DAY 5

    Lijiang : départ

    • Matin : Bassin du Dragon Noir + musique Naxi
    • Départ de l'aéroport Sanyi de Lijiang (vols vers Kunming, Shanghai, Chengdu)
    Stay
    —
    Meals
    B

What is included

Included

  • Hôtels (4 nuits)
  • Kunming-Dali HSR
  • Transfert privé Dali-Lijiang
  • Petit-déjeuner quotidien
  • Entrées Forêt de pierre + vélo Erhai + Trois Pagodes + Dragon de Jade

Not included

  • Vols internationaux + vol d'arrivée à Kunming
  • Visa
  • La plupart des déjeuners et dîners
  • Téléphérique de la Montagne enneigée du Dragon de Jade (¥200)

READ BEFORE YOU GO

Read before you go

6 articles our editors recommend reading in the week before departure. Most take under 10 minutes each.

OUR PROCESS

How we tested this itinerary

Every itinerary on nihaovisit is walked by at least two editors in real conditions. Here's the method we used for this one.

  1. Step 01

    Editorial research

    Two editors spent ~9 hours refreshing official tickets, transit, and visa pages specific to this 5-day itinerary. We cross-checked prices against at least 3 booking platforms.

  2. Step 02

    On-the-ground booking

    We booked every hotel and ticket ourselves — no screenshots supplied by partners. Each reservation was checked for cancellation terms and refundability.

  3. Step 03

    Walking the itinerary

    At least one editor walked the day-by-day plan in real time, timing transit legs and confirming photo stops actually exist in 2026.

  4. Step 04

    Contingency tests

    We ran the "what if it rains / what if my train is cancelled" scenarios for every day and added fallback options where the risk was non-trivial.

  5. Step 05

    Refund + re-review cycle

    Every itinerary is re-priced and re-tested every 90 days. Last review pass for this page: 2026-06-10.

Source: itinerary walk-through log, last updated 2026-06-10T00:00:00.000Z

TRY ANOTHER ROUTE

Try another route

Not quite the right length or pace? Here are 3 sibling itineraries our editors recommend.

Frequently asked questions

Is 5 days enough for Yunnan?
For the Kunming-Dali-Lijiang circuit, yes. You cover the three worth visiting destinations. For Shangri-La (north Yunnan) or the Yuanyang rice terraces, add 2-3 more days.
When is the best time for Yunnan?
March-May (mild, blooming) and September-November (clear skies, autumn colors). Summer is the rainy season. Winter is fine in Dali and Kunming (mild days) but cold in Lijiang (Jade Dragon Snow Mountain is sub-zero).
Is altitude sickness a problem?
In Kunming (1900m) and Dali (2000m), most travelers are fine. Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (4500m cable car top) is high — pace yourself, drink water, and avoid alcohol. People with heart conditions or severe altitude sensitivity should skip the cable car summit.
Do I need a guide in Lijiang?
Not strictly — the Old Town is walkable. But a Naxi-culture guide adds context to the old town's history and the local Dongba religion. A local guide is ¥200-300 for half a day.

References

  1. Yunnan Tourism official
  2. Lijiang Old Town UNESCO
  3. Stone Forest UNESCO
NihaoVisit Editorial Team headshot

Written by

NihaoVisit Editorial Team

Travel research team · Regular policy and price audits

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