The new highway from Kunming to Yuan Mou/Tu Lin (Earth Forest) is finally completed. The 150 km ride takes about 2.5 hours from the NorthWest Bus Station on Puji Road. Halfway between Kunming and Yuan Mou is Wuding/Lion Mountain (65 km), another good scenic spot.

When you arrive at the bus station in Yuanmou you can take one of the 2 daily buses (9am + 4pm) to Tulin for 7 RMB. The 26 km ride takes about 1 hour.

Don't forget to visit the Yuanmou Man Ruins Site as well as the Yuanmou Man Museum.

Hi, would you say YuanMou would be a good place to visit in July? Would you say it would be more scenic/beautiful than say, yuanyang? Or dongchuan? Thanks!

I was in Yuanmou 2 months ago and the road is much better then before. Unfortunately, it is not easy to compare these 3 places as they are completely different.

The red soil of Dongchuan is not in one specific location as is Yuanmou. The soil Forest of Yuanmou is in one place and you purchase a ticket and go inside. The Red soil is in various locations and one must drive around and know where they are located. Unless you know or follow some signs you will need a local driver to take you to each location.

The terraced fields of YuanYang are now a UNESCO site. You purchase 1 ticket for all 4 locations or you can purchase individual tickets for each scenic area. You must rent a car if you dont have your own and drive around the entire area which is a 60 km circle. The entrie drive plus time for pictures takes about 4-5 hours.

I have been to all these locations several times and it is difficult to compare.

If you go to YuanYang I suggest you stop by Jianshui Old Town as it is very nice. Main thing to consider is how much time you have. None of these can really be done in 1 day unless you just want the Been There Done That T-shirt.