Mekon River in China / Tibet

Just that you know, you cannot travel freely in Tibet. You need a special permit in addition to the Chinese visa and you must join a tour and be accompanied by your guide all the time. Not a cheap proposition.

Hi thank you yes I did know just thought it would be nice to see the river from Tibet

The river cuts a steep gorge through much of Yunnan, creating a geography that restricts the development of larger towns or cities in its vicinity, and also means there are few places where main roads actually run alongside the river. Various secondary roads cross the river all over Yunnan, as does one highway, between Xiaguan and Baoshan. I was lucky enough once to travel on the older road in the vicinity of the highway, which parallels the Mekong for a while, and is very scenic. Trying to take that road on public transport will be awkward though.

Alternatively, there are various crossings of the Mekong between there and Xishuangbanna, in obscure parts of Yunnan.

I have little knowledge of the Mekong's upper stretches in Yunnan, though looking at Google Maps there seems to be at least a couple of places where more major roads run alongside it. That includes the main road from Yunnan to Tibet. I don't know how close you could approach Tibet on that road before you start running into potential problems with the police.

Hi Giora Thank you very much for your help with this.

This topic has been automatically locked due to inactivity. Email community@lonelyplanet.com if you would like to add to this topic and we'll unlock it for you.