Yulong River
Yulong River
4.6
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Monday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Tuesday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Wednesday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Thursday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Friday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Saturday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Sunday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
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4.6
1,645 reviews
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Ettorino05
Florence, Italy2,231 contributions
Jan 2025 • Family
I traveled this area by boat: postcard views and I arrive in the lively Yangshuo where - now only for tourists - cormorant fishing is practiced. It is recommended to return to Guilin with a bus that leaves every hour and takes an hour and a half to make the journey. It is not easy to find the stop: at the end of the main road you have to continue for about 10 minutes on the right. The cost of the cruise is around 300 yuan per person (about 40€), including lunch.
Automatically translated
Written 1 January 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Quynh M
219 contributions
Mar 2024 • Friends
Yulong River is truly like a scene from a movie. The breathtaking landscape, with its towering karst mountains, lush greenery, and peaceful villages, feels almost unreal. The water is a stunning shade of blue, reflecting the sky and surrounding nature like a perfect painting.
No matter where you stand, every angle offers a picture-perfect view. Whether you’re cruising on a bamboo raft or simply walking along the riverbanks, the scenery is mesmerizing. The atmosphere is calm and serene, making it a perfect escape from the hustle and bustle of city life.
If you’re visiting Yangshuo, Yulong River is an absolute must-see. It’s not just a place to explore—it’s an experience you’ll never forget.
No matter where you stand, every angle offers a picture-perfect view. Whether you’re cruising on a bamboo raft or simply walking along the riverbanks, the scenery is mesmerizing. The atmosphere is calm and serene, making it a perfect escape from the hustle and bustle of city life.
If you’re visiting Yangshuo, Yulong River is an absolute must-see. It’s not just a place to explore—it’s an experience you’ll never forget.
Written 4 February 2025
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SandiL
Katonah, NY203 contributions
Aug 2024 • Couples
We stayed in Yangshuo for two days in a hotel right along the Yulong River. Highlights of our time on the river included a 30-minute bamboo raft ride down the Yulong (hokey and touristy but amazing, peaceful and beautiful) and both bike rides and walks on the path right next to the river. I run out of adjectives trying to describe this area - magical, breathtaking, beautiful, peaceful, calm, mesmerizing, spectacular, amazing - really, you can't imagine an adjective that would not fit this special place! If you can make it here, spend some time along the river!
Written 24 December 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ordinary Traveller
8 contributions
Aug 2024 • Family
Very amazing experience! I went there at 7:00, air is fresh and water is very clear.
Jinling river to Jiuxian route is recommended if you want to try out bamboo raft drifting. I’m willing to say that this is one of the most impressive experiences in Guilin
Jinling river to Jiuxian route is recommended if you want to try out bamboo raft drifting. I’m willing to say that this is one of the most impressive experiences in Guilin
Written 12 August 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
anoelleh
Barcelona, Spain138 contributions
Nov 2024 • Family
We spent 5 nights in the area of Li and Yulong River. 2 nights in Guilin and 3 in Yangshuo. It's beautiful and amazing to explore the karstic feery mountains from different points.
Yulong River offers the less dramatic and more quiet, but not the best. We recommend to take the bamboo raft in Yangdi down to Yangshuo, 90 minuts rafting along the best scenery and then, if you stay a couple of days in Yangshuo ride along the Yulong River on a e-scooter (they call chickens!) or on a bycicle.
I did the same itinerary 25 years ago cycling through the green rice fields and meeting local people on the way. In winter time the road is less crowded than in summer and local young people have "taken" it as a new meeting point with some nice coffee or snacks places and escape from the too busy Yangshuo.
Everything has changed a lot, but it's still a "quiet" option to complete your stay. I wouldn't recommend it as a first option.
Yulong River offers the less dramatic and more quiet, but not the best. We recommend to take the bamboo raft in Yangdi down to Yangshuo, 90 minuts rafting along the best scenery and then, if you stay a couple of days in Yangshuo ride along the Yulong River on a e-scooter (they call chickens!) or on a bycicle.
I did the same itinerary 25 years ago cycling through the green rice fields and meeting local people on the way. In winter time the road is less crowded than in summer and local young people have "taken" it as a new meeting point with some nice coffee or snacks places and escape from the too busy Yangshuo.
Everything has changed a lot, but it's still a "quiet" option to complete your stay. I wouldn't recommend it as a first option.
Written 10 December 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dawei
World26 contributions
Aug 2023 • Family
We hired an electric scooter in Yangshou and drove up the valley, was a pleasant drive but roads busy, views were quite attractive. The river is swarming with fake plastic bamboo rafts and orange life jackets drifting down and punting up the river. People jockeying to get that selfy pic without the million other visitors getting in the way. My head hurt. Then some rando village aunty tried to stitch us up for rmb5 for parking in a normal space. I was here 15 years ago, it was just bucolic and undeveloped. Things do change I understand but it's a classic case of killing the golden goose. Will never be back.
Written 24 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Eric2759
Guangzhou, China45 contributions
Feb 2024 • Family
This is the most beautiful place in Yangshuo! The river is wilder than the Li River, you can go for rides on an electric scooter, by bike or on foot, and practice bamboo rafting, another typical way to discover the landscapes.
A tip: book a hotel near the Yulong River (Yulong He) to be away from the noisy city center. The city center is only 4 or 5 kilometers away, so it's easy to get there if necessary, but it's definitely better to sleep in peace and quiet!
A tip: book a hotel near the Yulong River (Yulong He) to be away from the noisy city center. The city center is only 4 or 5 kilometers away, so it's easy to get there if necessary, but it's definitely better to sleep in peace and quiet!
Written 9 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Harry Li
Guilin, China102 contributions
Jan 2023 • Friends
Come to Guilin, come to Yangshuo, come to Yulong River, “Yulong” means “meet a dragon”, which is a nice symbol of China. This place is heavenly, make sure you rent a motorcycle unless you want to walk 12km. Hire a boatman at the price of CNY33-CNY260(different routes different price), and a boat can sit 2 people. I genuinely suggest you live here for a few days, upstream villages, no tourists!
Written 15 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TaylorMade58
Columbus, IN16 contributions
Sept 2023 • Solo
I stopped here on my way to Guilin to play golf. It was a Monday afternoon and there was not much business at that time. There was no line to ride on the bamboo rafts. The raft ride was about 40 minutes and cost 180 RMB. There were lots of people there selling trinkets. There were some small restaurants overall a nice distraction for two hours time.
Written 23 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
JonasCN
Singapore, Singapore4,396 contributions
Sept 2019
The Yulong river is located in a prominent area in the main town of Yangshuo. To experience the river and the karst mountains, you can get a short 1 hour long river cruise. It is a small raft with 4 seats. They will only leave when there are 4 passengers unless you are willing to pay more. The boat will ride is bumpy but you will experience beautiful scenery and even water buffalos swimming in the river. There is a photo booth mid way in the cruise where you can take a photo in ethnic clothes. But there are safety concerns. Life jacket is compulsory but the strings on the life jackets are all broke. There are also no safety belts on the raft. Thus this boat ride is not suitable for families with young kids or elderly who cannot swim. Thus the Yulong River is a beautiful trip if you can ignore the safety breaches.
Written 17 April 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Is it possible to take a bamboo raft from Xingping to 9 Horse Mountain upstream, then come back down to Xingping. Is this route feasible (I know the typical route is in the opposite direction). Where can I find this raft, and how much should I expect to pay for 1 hour of rafting maybe?
Written 22 July 2019
It is possible to take bamboo raft ride from Chaobanshan to Nine Horse Mountain in the other side of the Yulong River. Chaobanshan is very near to Xingping and your taxi drover should know. However, it i important to know hat bamboo raft is only available for hire after 1:30 pm.
Written 9 August 2019
Is het mogelijk om van Guilin naar Yangshou te reizen per cruise?
Written 14 August 2017
Nog even een aanvulling. Wij hebben de Li rivier met de boot gedaan. Op de andere rivier de Yulong, waar we langs hebben gefietst, hebben wel veel bamboevlotten gezien, maar een cruise?geen idee of dat mogelijk is op de yulong rivier. Succes!
Written 14 August 2017
Arriving in Guilin Airport at around noon which I have all day and the next day but have to fly out the following day.
Seems like starting in Guilin, seeing whatever there is there in afternoon, then waking up early for LiRiver cruise 4-5 hrs and take bus back to Guilin is the typical route for many tourist.
Came to this area for the scenery so it seems to make more sense to go directly to Yongshuo from airport upon arrrival and explore Yongshuo, bike paths, do bamboo rafting down YuLong river. any point doing bamboo motor rafting on Li river ? anyways, leave on day of my flight from Yangshuo and call it a day.
Written 24 January 2017
Yangshuo is much nicer than Guilin, so skip Guilin and take taxi directly to YS from GL airport. Should cost around 300Y and take 1 hour or so. But make sure to say you are willing to pay for the expressway road toll (around 30Y) or otherwise the driver will take the much slower highway which currently is under repair (anything from 1.5h to 3h).
We stayed at the Yangshuo C. Source West Street Residence (search for "Yangshuo West Street Residence" on TripAdvisor and my review there). For our bike tour we arranged from one of the freelancing tour guides roaming West Street. Do not bother using the hotels - they are mostly just middlemen to a larger tour agency which may be a hit or miss when it comes to individual travel arrangements). Most of the freelancing guides are women and speak enough English for what you need (if you speak Chinese it is of course better!) We hired "Esther" (Zeng Shiyan曾诗燕 13617860516 or 13667866009) who is most often found close to KFC on West Street). Anyway, most guides can arrange whatever you ask for! Bikes, e-bikes, electric "golf cart", tandem bikes, ordinary car...
The guide then can take you along less trafficked roads towards northwest upstreams Yulong River passing beautiful countryside along the way.
There are several spots where you can take a raft, but none of them will travel the whole length of the river. Each dock serves just a specific stretch of the river. We went by bike to Jiuxian Dock (旧县码头), crossed the bridge and continued north along a common countryside gravel road to the next bridge upstream. From there, back to Jiuxian and the newly beautifully paved pedestrian/bike path along the east side of Yulong River towards the Banyan Tree/Gongnong Bridge.
There are several places to take a raft trip en route: Jiuxian, Xiatang, Chaoyang, Aishanmen, Mountain Retreat etc. (We, seven people, however went by bike and "golf cart" all the way. The scenery is the same and the rather expensive bamboo rafts only take two persons each). Perhaps Jiuxian is the best place for rafting unless you continue even further upstream to the most beautiful stone bridge: the arched Yulong Bridge. Quite a long ride but manageable for most people. Maybe not for you if you have a flight to catch the same afternoon/evening...
The guide can arrange (probably quite late by now!) lunch near Moon Hill, and then it is an easy bike ride back to YS along the main road (8 km or so). If there is time: a climb up Moon Hill is recommended!
If you are short of time, you can just go by bike to Jiuxian, ride down to Banyan Tree and back to YS for a taxi to the airport.
In any case - a guide is well worth the 200Y or so it will cost for a day since she will arrange for rental bikes, fix discounted tickets (for the banyan tree etc) and knows both the roads/paths and where to stop for the best photogenic views! (of course bikes and tickets are paid separately and not included in her fee).
Li River: The good thing about the motor rafts or other ferries along the much larger Li River, is that you can go to interesting and historic villages/towns like Fuli and Liugong. Otherwise, the natural scenery along Yulong River is _much_ better than Li River downstream Yangshuo.
Written 24 January 2017
when does the bamboo rafting shut down, stop running?
how much for bamboo rafting. planning on biking from Yangshuo to YuLong bridge( Chaoyang dock) and getting off at Gong Nong Bridge
how much does it cost to rent bicycle for the day.
Written 24 January 2017
It depends on the quality of the bike. For a normal bike I payed 200 Yuan for 6 weeks, but if you like a better one, it will be much more. The area here is totally flat, so it is not necessary to have a mountainbike or anything else. The raftigtour for me with transportation of my bike was about 200 Yuan, but actually I didn't bargain, so may be you can get it much cheeper.
Written 29 January 2017
Do you guys recommend the Li river or the Yulong river ? Thanks !
Written 7 December 2016
I preferred the Yulong river! It's much more quite and not so overcrowded! If you are interested in rent a bike and bike along the river - it's an absolut gorgeous landscape!
Written 8 December 2016
Hi, I am planning a trip in Jan 2017 same month as u went. Is it too cold or the river too shallow ... that's what I have been told if u go to Yangshou in Dec / Jan ? Seems like u really enjoyed your trip without any issues
Written 9 April 2016
It's not quite the cold you should worry about since the cold is quite bearable with warm clothing. The cold is not very cold, even with wind. It is the rain you should worry about. It can rain the whole day - light rain though. And the rain can last many days in a row. A boat ride is ok with the rain but you will have problem with other out-door activities like cycling.
Written 11 April 2016
We intend to stay in Guilin on May and take the express bus to Yangshu.
Once in Yangshu we would like to have as long as possible raft ride on the Yalong river. Which is the recommended start point? When ending the raft ride how one would return to Yangshu?
Thanks
Written 7 April 2016
The only rafting we went on was several hundred metres up the river and back. I don't know if there is rafting fully along the river or not.
Written 8 April 2016
Is there a way to book the bamboo rafting on your own? Do you know what company it was?
Written 2 August 2015
The easiest way is book via your hotel or a travel agent. Yangshuo is a small village, folks seem to know each other. You can also purchase tickets by the Yulong at the dock, but might be pricy. The questions before booking are: 1) how do you want to organize your transportation before and after--car/bike ride or mix both; 2) how long do you want this journey to be? it stars from 30 mins to 3 hours, I think 1 hour is good. Also book it at early morning or later afternoon to avoid crowds. (we did it at 7AM)
Written 4 August 2015
Hi Roger,
I am in Yangshuo for three days in the end of April, 2016 and debating between Tea Cozy and Yangshuo Mountain Retreat, We are two parents and three young teens. Any thoughts on these two inns?> Also how did you spend your time there. What would you do the same or different?
We want to go up to the Rice Terraces after Yangshuo which is a distance but I am interested to see Minority Vilages with the Yao and other people. I wonder if I would see many of these traditional Chinese people in the farms and back roads of the bike paths of the Yulong. I am a bit confused with how close things are to Tea Cozy and the other inn. If you leave Tea Cozy on bike, how long is it to get to the Half Moon Area. and is that where the kids jump off> I would love to hear about your time there and anyone else who wants to share their experience there. I am not sure if I need to hire a guide for every move we make or not. Also how did you do staying healthy eating food there. I need to practice safety so kids do not get sick.
Thank you
Carolina
Written 13 July 2015
I hired a guide through my hostel (Trippers Carpe Diem) because I was travelling solo and wanted to do a hike along the Yulong River, countryside farms, and then a bamboo raft ride. We started at the Dragon Bridge. The hike/raft excurion was an all day event and the guide cost 200Y. Raft was an extra 200Y for 2 people. I was there in May and it was in the 90s, so I really enjoyed the cooler temps on the water.
Both places I stayed in Yangshuo and Ping'an (rice terraces) arranged transportation for me. It was 650Y for the car from Ping'an to Yangshuo. I stayed at Bai Ke Hotel in Ping'an and would recommend 2 nights there; and the full day hike through the villages.
Written 22 July 2015
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