1

Your general idea is fine, and Xian is only overnight from Chengdu if I remember correctly. Certainly closer than Kunming.

2

Hi
just to make sure i got it right. is Tibet closed for everybody, or only because u don't have enough people (5 minimum) to travel with?

Thank you

3

#2 The problem is getting people of the same nationality to travel with.

OP - Perhaps head to Xi'an first from Chengdu. Then fly to Kunming or Lijiang and base yourself in Yunnan. If you can fly out from Kunming that could be better, or plan an itinerary from Lijiang via Lugu Lake, Emei and back to Chengdu.

4

kunming is also "only" an overnight train from chengdu!!

5

As I said before its only a question of bucks and more sadly the Tibetians are organising that.

6

Thanks everyone,

Is it easiest to head to leshan and emeishan from chengdu and then return to chengdu.

I was thinking

Chengdu
Leshan
Emeishan
Chengdu
Xian
Kumning
Dali
Lijiang
Shangri-la
Tiger gorge
Kumning
Back to chengdu if can't change flight to kumning.

7

Hi,

Don't worry.... If you want to see tibetans there is another way. More Tibetans live outside the chinese provence of tibet then in the provence. Qinghai is almost all Tibetan. Western Sichuan is same as is southern Gansu. One of the best routes in China is between Chengdu and Xian, you travel across the Tibetan grassland, visit amazing monasteries, silk road caves. Best part there is few tourists.

Chengdu.... Songpan for horse treking among tibetan villages
Juijaigou expensive but the best national park in China.
Langmusi... small village with twin monasteries. great walk up a gorge to see yak herds.
Xiahe...... the monastery outer wall is over 4 kilometres
Binglingsi take a boat to visit these buddhist caves on the sil route
Lanzhou opera
tianshui ..... maji shan .... more buddist caves.
then 6 hours by train to xian

all this is in the guide....

enjoy

8

@ daledobie - Qinghai is mostly Tibetan, but it's not on his way..

your route is well planned.
Yunnan is also one of the 'Tibetan' provinces, so you will see lots of Tibetans in Dali, Lijiang and Shangri-la.
Xian - only to see the terra cota? its kind of wasting 2 days to my opinion...

Leshan and Emei-shan are really close to 1 another, 1 hour away by bus.
Take the early bus in the morning, visit there (Leshan) 2,3 hours and then take a bus to Emei-shan (Bagou village). maybe you can start your climbing at around 2pm.

9

So is xian a waste of time? 2 out of the 4 travelers have already been there which is why I was considering missing it.

10

Personally, I really enjoy Xi'an. There is a lot more than just the Warriors. I went last summer with colleagues. Summer allows for taking a bumpy ride around the whole city wall on bikes without brakes while taking pictures. It also means you can cool off at the gigantic fountain by the Big Goose Pagoda (cheesy, but oh so much fun!). I went again this year at Chinese New Year when my parents visited China. Although freezing, we thoroughly enjoyed the city then too.

If you are touring with others who have already been, maybe it isn't right for your group. If it has been a long time since they visited Xi'an, a lot will have changed though. I've shown pictures to colleagues who haven't been for a few years, and they were impressed by the changes.

What I enjoyed most:
- Han Yangling (Tomb of Emperor Jingdi) is fascinating. As LP says, go on your way to or from the airport as it is all by itself in the middle of a bunch of fields.
- If you are interested in history and culture, the Shaanxi Museum (if you can get in in a reasonable amount of time) is free and well done. (the free means I didn't go last summer because of the block-long line, but went in winter).
- The Beilin (Forest of Stele) Museum (near the south gate) has absolutely spectacular sculptures and carvings in addition to the stele with calligraphy. (although that's if people are interested in those things)

Good luck on your trip! I'm still trying to get into Tibet this summer, myself.

11

Xi'an isn't meant for your itinerary unfortunately. You have a VERY solid trip otherwise. Sichuan province:Chengdu, Leshan, E'mei Mountain, Jiuzhaiguo (day trip to Chongqing) Yunnan:Kunming, Stone Forest, Dali, Lijiang, Tiger Leaping Gorge. That's enough for one hell of a trip. Don't over do things. More time in less places is good!

12

yes, in this case (16 days trip) it is a waste of time. many people DO like Xian and the great mountain nearby (Huashan). but it is really out of your route, plus 2 of you already visited there.

like home42morrow said, Xian is more than just the terra cotta warriors. it is also the starting point of the silk road etc.. but you better leave a little space in case of delay (flights, trains..) and not plan your route too tight.
:)

13

I went through this area a couple of years ago and love the whole area. I have never seen a place more Tibetan than Shangri-la. One of my favourite places was Xian. If you do overnight train trips it means you stay the night in a train instead of a hotel....nothing lost. You can travel long distances this way. I say pick the places you think you might like and go for it.
If you change flights they will charge you to do it. I tried to change an Air Asia flight last year and they wanted more than the cost of the original flight to make the change.
Good luck, it is the BEST part of China

14

Hello, very interesting topic!
I also this year, trying to get into Tibet, now my chances are 50/50.
Have 25 days and I will be very grateful if you could indicate to me an interesting route associated with visiting many Tibetan places and monasteries in Sichuan and neighboring provinces.
2 years ago I was in Yunnan Shangri-la, but I could not get to Decin.
Regards !