On the Road in Shangri-La – 12 Days

Shangri-La Map

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Booking Conditions
High Altitude Briefing Paper
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What you'll see

Driving Holiday Overview
Shangri-La Itinerary
Driving Tour Dates
What's Included
What's not Included
Prices and Options
Contact Us

Driving Holiday Overview

On the Road in Shangri-La is the first driving holiday tour offered by On the Road in China. When I first drove this itinerary myself, it inspired me to write this:

Dream. Escape. Breathe.
Invisible air that places the distant mountains into the palm of your hand.
Heavy, black yaks swaying in the gentle breeze. Unspoiled smiles splashed across dark-brown, weather-beaten faces. The warm glow of red lanterns.
Sapphire-blue skies, snow-white peaks, Tibetan temples daubed in red,
purple and gold. And the road before you unfolding, turn after turn,
in the direction of mystical Shangri-La.

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As with all On the Road in China packages, On the Road in Shangri-La celebrates the stunning landscapes of China and the pleasures of being on an open road. You will see a part of China that only few have seen. And along the way, you will also find it to be a wonderful immersion into the cultures of South-West China.

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Shangri-La Itinerary

The journey starts and ends in Chengdu. After obtaining your Chinese driving license, you will drive from Chengdu in Sichuan province to Lijiang in Yunnan province (see the map on the right), and you will return from Lijiang to Chengdu by plane.

Day 1: Arrival in Chengdu…I’m filled with anticipation…
You arrive in Chengdu according to your own arrangements at any time.
Day 2: Getting your Chinese driving license…and seeing a bit of Chengdu
There are two steps to getting your license: one is to assess your basic fitness to drive (e.g., test your eye sight); the other is to apply for the license itself. We will have all the documents ready; we just need you to show up and sign. In between the formalities, we’ll make sure to give you a taste of Chengdu. The day ends with a dinner together and a genuine Chengdu foot massage.
Day 3: Chengdu to Kangding, the gateway to the Tibetan Highlands
At last, we’re on the road. Leaving Chengdu, you first drive on a highway embedded in rice fields, then along a beautiful river, climbing and climbing to 2,600m. At the end of the day, if you are up for it, join us for a drink or a dance in one of Kangding’s discos.
Day 4: Kangding to Yajiang via the Tagong Grasslands … ‘A first taste’ You will be driving across 4,500m right on this second day of driving. You will have lunch in Tagong town, the centre of the well-known Tagong grasslands. Tagong itself is a colourful town. Go for a wander through the town and get a first taste of Tibetan life.
Day 5: Yajiang to Yading via Litang … ‘Of high passes and hot springs’ Today you drive across the tallest mountain pass of the journey, nearly 4,800m and then past the world’s highest town, Litang. After lunch, the road leads through the Haizi Mountain Nature Reserve – huge rock fields and countless sparkling lakes I never forget.
Day 6: In Yading … ‘Sacred Mountains in the Heart of Shangri-La’
A short drive into the Yading Nature Reserve. Then a horseback ride with a picnic amidst the splendour of some of Sichuan’s most beautiful mountains.
Day 7: Yading to Xiangcheng ‘Tibetan monasteries…and discos’
In Daocheng, on the way to Xiangcheng, we are guests in a Tibetan home for lunch. Late in the afternoon, we visit a marvellous Tibetan monastery in Xiangcheng. And after dinner, we go to a Tibetan disco for a drink or more…last time it was 2am until we (well, some of us) got back to our hotel rooms.
Day 8: Xiangcheng to Zhongdian … ‘Into Yunnan’
At last, we get into Yunnan and stay, for two nights, in the charming Ghyaltang Dzong hotel. Dinner is in the old town of Zhongdian.
Day 9: In Zhongdian … ‘Rest, Nature Walk or Tea Plantation?’
After a leisurely start to the day, we have a few events planned: a visit to a museum of minority cultures in the morning, a local manufactory in the afternoon, and a dance performance in the evening. Or, if you’d rather just enjoy the luxury of the hotel, why not rest for a day and immerse yourself in James Hilton’s Lost Horizon?
Day 10: Zhongdian to Lijiang … Tiger Leaping Gorge ‘It makes you tremble’
Today ’s drive, on the absolutely best roads yet, is to Lijiang, the Venice of China, as some call it. Along the way we visit the world-renowned Tiger Leaping Gorge. It will make you tremble.
Day 11: Lijiang & Shuhe, then back to Chengdu … ‘What? Back already?’
Lijiang is an unforgettable town, but Shuhe is even better, because it is Lijiang without the tourists. It’s also a great place to do a day of shopping. In the evening, you fly back to Chengdu.
Day 12: Back in Chengdu … ‘Life goes on’
Feel free to schedule your return/onward journey as you like. If you prefer, we can help you make arrangements for sight-seeing in and around Chengdu. Or why not pamper yourself by extending your journey with our 3-day Culinary Chengdu package?

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Driving Tour Dates

We will offer On the Road in Shangri-La as follows:

In 2009	Booking Deadline	Early Bird Booking Deadline
Day 1 is Tuesday, June 30	May 30	March 30
Day 1 is Sunday, July 26	June 26	April 16
Day 1 is Wednesday, August 12	July 12	April 12
Day 1 is Wednesday, October 14	September 14	June 14

For other dates or if you want to organise your own group, please be in touch (see Contact us).

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What's Included

This tour includes the following:

Arrangement and fees for Chinese driving license application.
Hotel rooms for all nights (12 Days/11 Nights).
An SUV/4x4 rental car rental car for all nine driving days, including car insurance, of course.
A state-of-the-art satellite navigation system with pre-programmed route for the journey.
All China-internal flights and airport transfers.
Lunches and dinners – a culinary journey of discovery (in local restaurants where possible, otherwise in hotels; on some days picnics for lunch). For dinners, feel free to choose any kind of drink, even alcoholic drinks. It is all on us, but if you drink, please drink in moderation!
Breakfast at the hotel every day which will include good coffee (from a plunge coffee maker), a choice of cereals, milk, soya bean milk, hard-boiled eggs and, of course, local fare.
Entrance fees for all jointly attended activities. (See itinerary above.)
Toll fees for all roads along the itinerary.
Petrol for your car.
On the Road Home-Away-from-Home Kit and Goodies including … wet towels, anti-bacterial hand wash and basic toiletries, daily picnic basket containing fresh fruit, fruit juice, 1-litre bottle of water, a mixture of overseas and local sweets and nibbles.
We also provide other essentials such as walky-talkies, thermos flasks, and oxygen bottles.
A lead car that prepares the destination each day and will carry necessities, including a first-aid kit.
Pre-departure traveller information pack.
24-hour medical assistance, evacuation and repatriation emergency service provided by International SOS.

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What's Not Included

The price for the journey includes everything except your airfare to and from Chengdu and any purchases for gifts and souvenirs you choose to make.

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Prices & Options

We have a standard price for a couple that assumes two people sharing a car and hotel rooms. If you book by the 'Early Bird Booking' date, we offer a 5% discount off the standard price of the basic tour price. Please refer to our Standard Price List.

We can offer several options to suit your needs:

We can accommodate many different groupings. In particular, if you are on your own and would like to join, don't worry. We will do our best to find someone (1 or 2 others) whom you can join.
Our standard car is a manual gear-shift, but we will endeavour to get you an automatic, if you prefer.
If you'd really like join one of our driving tours, but would rather not drive the whole way (or not drive at all), we can also provide you a driver.
And if you would want go get even more out of the journey, how about your own personal translator and guide? We can arrange this, too.

Please contact us for any questions or special requirements you may have.

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