Things to do in Shilin

The First Wonder of the World | Stone Forest Scenic Area Location: Located in Shilin Yi Autonomous County, about an hour and a half drive from Kunming. Parking is plentiful. You can also take a bus. It's a bit far from the city center, making it suitable for a day trip. Travel Tips: Prioritizing the Large Stone Forest and Small Stone Forest is sufficient. Wear comfortable shoes, as there are many walking trails in the stone area. It's recommended to enter the park early to avoid tour groups. The scenic area is very large; if you're not physically fit, you can take the sightseeing bus and leisurely explore for 2-3 hours. Features: Typical karst landforms, with towering stone peaks formed over millions of years, resembling a giant stone maze. The Ashima Stone in the Small Stone Forest is particularly representative, paired with the Sani ethnic legend. The landscape sculpted by nature is breathtaking and a must-see when visiting Kunming.

Here, the sparse yet vibrant stone peaks are a highlight, the most striking being the Ashima Stone—a rock pillar resembling a beautiful maiden from Yi folklore. At dusk, when the colorful lights illuminate the landscape, the stone formations are bathed in a kaleidoscope of colors, creating a scene of breathtaking beauty! The lake reflects the stone shadows, the grasslands stretch endlessly, and the vegetation is abundant, the air so pure it feels like natural oxygen. Strolling through this area, the tranquility and mystery are captivating, as if stepping into a living garden painting. Note: It's recommended to visit in the evening for better photos under the lights; remember to wear comfortable shoes to explore the stone paths.

Jianfeng Pool is a particularly beautiful place, with water and rocks, making it perfect for taking photos. You can walk around the entire pool. It's also quite interesting, with its winding and meandering paths.

Great park outside of Kunming. The stone structures are really amazing. The lakes around the stones are also great. Not too crowded and a very big place. Only problem was that we had trouble finding the entrance and where to buy bus tickets. Requires a lot of walking

The parking lot was large and convenient. Since we were traveling with elderly people, we bought round-trip shuttle bus tickets directly to the Buddha statue, which was quite comfortable. However, the Buddha statue itself wasn't very impressive. Instead, there were many people buying lottery tickets near the Buddha statue, but the lottery shop was selling to minors, which was shocking. We chose to walk down the mountain on the way back. The Maitreya Temple was quite nice.

As a Han Chinese, it was my first time visiting a Yi village, and it was quite impressive. The braised pork and potato rice (15 yuan a serving) was small, but delicious. The buildings were yellow, and the village was clean and hygienic. The only downside was that it was a bit too commercialized. Overall, it was a good experience.

After visiting Shilin, I came to Shilin Xinglin Grand View Garden, which is located at No. 1 Heilongtan Road, Farmers Entrepreneurship Park, Shilin Yi Autonomous County, Kunming City. It is not far from Shilin and smaller than Shilin. It has karst landform, beautiful mountains and rivers, and fresh air. It is a place that integrates traditional Chinese medicine health care, leisure tourism and vacation, as well as ecological agricultural sightseeing. There are Xinglin Zen Temple, Sakura Valley, hot springs, etc.

Qifeng Cave is located 5 kilometers northwest of Shilin, between the strange peaks of Shilin on the east side of Ma'anshan at the junction of Beida Village and Shuitangpu Village. Qifeng Cave is the most peculiar one among the many caves in Lunan Shilin Scenic Area. It attracts attention because it can breathe like a human.

There is basically only one road inside, and you can walk along it in 20 minutes if you have fast legs. The mother and child travel together, Guan Gong Stone, etc. are quite similar. There are few people, it is quiet, and it is very good.

Highly recommended! The transportation alone is worth the price of admission. First, you take a cable car, then two boat trips, and on the return trip, you take a shuttle bus and two more cable car rides. The scenic area mainly consists of karst caves and canyons, combining features of Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon and Huanglong Cave. There are some steps, which can be a bit strenuous, but it's manageable. Before leaving, I also checked out the dome theater, which was much better than expected and definitely worth seeing! In short, I highly recommend visiting this attraction when you're in Kunming.