This is Sandra from Spain. I am traveling to Yunnan this summer, so I am planning my trip around Yunnan. I am not sure how many days shall i stay at each place.
The route i am planning to do is:
Kunming to Dali by bus

Dali to Shangri-la by bus
Shangri-la to Lijiang by bus
Lijiang to Xishuanbanna by plane

Does anyone help me and recommend me how many days should I stay at each place?
In Xishuanbanna I might take a trekking for 3 days.

Thanks for your help!
My email: ssanchez_avila@hotmail.com

If youd like to add some excitement for the journey, rather than just taking a very touristical trail, you could instead head from Shangrila towards Sichuan. Through Daocheng, and all the way to Litang. Then towards Chengdu and back.

Xishuangbanna is not really worth to visit, (and not Lijiang either), but then again this is just one opinion. Maybe somebody disagrees, over here just cant find any reason for visiting Banna unless its heading for Laos or something like that.

Edit. Just stumbled on a website, theres a map up there in corner for a route Yunnan - Sichuan. No need to care about the tour there, this can fairly easily be done without agency. Check the map there. And anyway this is just a suggestion for an exciting, less touristical and commercial route.

www.travelsichuanguide.com/[...]

Thank you very much for your email and for your advise. In case i go to Sichuan from Shangri-la how can i go by plane? And to Chendu? Then how many days is worth to be at each place Dali-Lijiang and Shangrila?

The point is to go by land bcs its a dramatic landscape. So why go by plane. Walks around Yading will likely give more than walks among rubber trees in Xishuangbanna.

For Dali 2 days would/could be enough and for Lijiang 0 days. Just a few days ago many here described to another person that Lijiang is not really worth to visit. Even Chinese people have deserted Lijiang, and this says something. It has become a cheesy candyland thing. Shangrila? Oh well. Maybe someone else can have an opinion about Shangrila.

Anyway, the point is, that there are some okay routes left. It doesnt have to be the one I suggested (which anyway is a good one) it could be some other route too. The one you suggested is pretty much the maximum touristical-commercial route, it only lacks Stone Forest. And when we say "touristical" over here, we are talking about hordes of people, noise, a lot of fake architecture, high entrance fees, yea and noisy hotels too, commercialization, crowded lanes, you name it...

Much of Xishuangbanna is ugly rubber trees now. I was there last week. Best way to get away from the crowds is to rent a bike and ride up to the villages in the hills, but of course that requires a decent level of fitness. I'm sure you can still have some fun on your planned trip, if you don't mind Chinese tourist traps.

Impossible to give you advice without knowing how long you plan to be in Yunnan.

Hi Alien,
My plan is staying in the whole Region of Yunnan in total 18 days.
But maybe I modify the route if is than ugry as Peter said.

Thanks for your Suggestion!

First trip to China? You're here for a short trip so I wouldn't fly off to Sichuan or Chengdu - the land route mentioned into Sichuan is the point, I think - suggest you not try to add Chengdu. As for Lijiang and/or Xishuangbanna, I suggest choose one or the other, not both. Trekking in Banna might well be interesting, though if you've been to Laos or certain parts of northern Thailand you may not be too impressed.

I see. Thank you for your email.
This is not my first time in China but this is my first time in South China. I heard that Region (Yunnan) is very pretty, so that is why i am planning a trip myself.
What about Shangri-la? HOw many days should I stay there?

So maybe Dali (2 Days) Lijiang ( 2 Days) Shangri-la how many days?

Banna if I do the trecking 3 days - 2 nights, maybe stay 5 days, right?

Thanks for your help!
Sandra

Alien doesnt really make a clear point. Sure, there are just as many opinions as people around, but you more or less have to add Chengdu (which is pretty okay city anyway) on a "Yunnan to Sichuan through Eastern Tibet Route.", if theres a certain limit in days. Otherwise, yea sure, you could cross further to Qinghai and so on. Or head the same way back or even through Muli - now that would be something.

Besides that the land route is not the only point, theres plenty nature, temples, butter tea, yi ruffians, tibetan ruffians, and what not else.

I just mention this since there seems to be quite a few people now asking about Yunnan tours here, that if someone looks for some excitement, this is a nice one. It can either start or end in Chengdu, and you can add Danba there, and even certain areas of Yunnan depending on how long time you got in hands. 18 days would be a hurry to match in too many places, but fairly doable if planned well.

But this also depends on which type of traveller people are. Some people like the Dali-Lijiang-Shangrila route, even The Stone Forest, so its like that. An experienced traveller will likely not like the Lijiang - Shangrila thing, but then again even that is not a rule.