[2025 Shangri-La Restaurant] Travel Guide for Halfway (Updated Feb)

The previous article provided a two-day guide for Tiger Leaping Gorge, but some of you may not have enough time and only plan to spend one day, or you may not have the physical stamina but still want to take some cool photos. Then this article is for you—a relaxed one-day hiking guide to Tiger Leaping Gorge. Without further ado, let's look at the route (map at the end). This route is more suitable for self-driving: 1. Leave Lijiang by car in the morning and head to 'Meet Halfway' at Tiger Leaping Gorge. The drive takes about 2 hours and parking is free, but the mountain roads are quite narrow, and you may need to reverse into the parking lot at the entrance. 2. After parking, you can walk back a bit along the high line to take photos and check in. There's no need to go too far; there are two bends that are particularly photogenic. 3. After checking in, return to the parking spot and continue walking down towards the halfway direction to take more photos. 4. Coming out from halfway, continue walking forward to check in at the small waterfall. 5. This is basically the end of the check-in spots. Head back to the car pick-up point and go to Teacher Zhang's. 6. Arrive at Teacher Zhang's Inn and take Teacher Zhang's trail down to the middle of Tiger Leaping Gorge to check in! 7. The return trip uphill is a bit challenging. If you feel energetic, you can return the same way. If you're not afraid of heights, you can climb the 168 steps of the Brave Man's Ladder for a more fun experience! Tips: Although this route doesn't involve much hiking, the schedule is quite tight. Time arrangement: It is recommended to depart at 8:30 am, have lunch at halfway around noon, and return to Lijiang before evening. Equipment recommendations: Sun protection!!! Focus on sun protection, followed by looking good. Wear whatever looks best because the route is not very challenging. Just consider sun protection, including a hat, sunglasses, a windbreaker, an outdoor backpack, and trekking poles.

🚵🏻The blood of a veteran hiker awakens at Tiger Leaping Gorge, and a unique hike is decided: connecting two inns with stories! 🎈Route: Halfway Guesthouse---Dragon Cave Waterfall---Tina's---Sky Ladder---One Line Sky---Teacher Zhang's Guesthouse. The entire journey is less than 10 km and can be easily completed in half a day. 🏮Story 1: Halfway Guesthouse The owner, Feng Defang, is a veteran. In the early days of reform and opening up in the 1980s and 1990s, he began to offer free assistance to hungry, sick, injured, lost, or delayed hikers. This act of kindness was recorded by a kind guest and published in *Lonely Planet*, attracting more and more lodgers. To meet the needs of these travelers, Feng Defang opened a guesthouse and named it "Midway Guesthouse," later transliterated by foreign guests as "Halfway." The guesthouse has a famous "Shuang Si Ni Balcony" and the "World's Best Toilet." From both the balcony and the toilet, hikers can enjoy the natural breeze and overlook the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain for free. 🏮Story 2: Teacher Zhang's Guesthouse The founder of Teacher Zhang's Guesthouse is named Zhang Sanfeng, yes, the same name as the martial arts master. However, this Zhang Sanfeng was originally a primary school teacher in Baishuitai. In 1996, when the government built a road here, he began to build simple houses for tourists to rest temporarily. In 1999, Zhang Sanfeng started building a road to reach the Jinsha River. After years of hard work, this road gradually became a famous tourist attraction. The popular spot in Middle Tiger Leaping Gorge is here (the same spot Li Xian visited). Friendly reminder: There is a 20 CNY per person fee to enter Tiger Leaping Gorge from Teacher Zhang's Guesthouse, which supports Teacher Zhang's daily expenses. 🎈The journey between the two guesthouses is full of thrills and surprises. The thrill is walking along the cliff edge, with mountain winds and the potential for falling rocks. The surprise is the picturesque scenery, with majestic mountains, continuous snow-capped peaks, and the turquoise Tiger Leaping Gorge right before your eyes. You might even encounter adorable mountain goats…

Choosing to come to Lijiang in spring was definitely the right decision!!! My friends had long told me that I must visit Yunnan for its incredibly beautiful scenery, and I chose Lijiang for my trip to Yunnan. Before coming, I was really worried that altitude sickness would disrupt the rest of my trip, but after arriving, I found that the biggest impact was actually my own lack of physical stamina. 1 I chose a relatively easy route, Blue Moon Valley. I'm quite grateful that although it was an overcast day, there was occasional sunshine, making the lake water shimmer like jewels under the sun, framed by the snow-capped mountains like a scene from a movie. I didn't arrange any subsequent itinerary, so I could take a leisurely stroll around the lake to enjoy the beautiful scenery. Before leaving, I kept taking live photos, saying I'd take one last look. 2 Finally, I arrived at Tiger Leaping Gorge. Starting from halfway to the Middle Tiger Leaping, I marveled at the scenery I had never seen before all along the way. From Mr. Zhang's guesthouse to the Middle Tiger Leaping, it was pure mountain climbing with strong winds and lots of dust. By the end, my pants, shoes, mask, and nostrils were all covered in dust, and even the water I drank was mixed with dirt. This part of the journey also resulted in cuts on my hands and a swollen knee, making it difficult to climb stairs the next day. The kindness of strangers who gave me a mask and band-aids reminded me that there is true kindness in the world. 3 I chose to wander around Lijiang Ancient Town, where the vegetation coverage far exceeds that of other cookie-cutter ancient towns. Walking through the ancient town and admiring the flowers was like strolling through a park. Spending is entirely up to oneself, and my most satisfying purchase was Jiahua fresh flower cakes and Dongba paper.