For a 3-day getaway in Guilin and Yangshuo...
Any guesthouse or hotel you would recommend in Yangshuo ?
What to do there apart from the river trip ?
V.
[There are 5 posts - the latest was added on Fri 21 May, 23:54]
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I was staying at the Si Hai Hotel, and I was told by otehr
travellers I was getting completely ripped off, so I went
to the Good Companion Holiday Inn, and it was undergoing
renovations, so accomodation was really cheap and they were
quite willing to bargain. Also, the youth hostel was really
cheap, but the rooms were quite small. Accomodation is so
easy to find there, it is just a question of finding the
cheapest option with decent rooms etc.
When i was there with my GF in the sihai last year we
arrived back at our room to find a maid looking through my
GFs purse!!!!
Needless to say, they only apologised and told us to please
not tell other travellers.
AND they tries to charge us 200y per night for our double
room, saying it was a "special room". I refused to pay that
much and got it for 150y and it was only JUST worth it at
that compared to the other hotels.
Try the other hotels which are cheaper and probably better.
Once you're in Yangshuo, look up a local woman named Mrs.
Zhou from Moon Hill Village--the easiest way to find her
might be to ask around in some of the travelers' cafes like
Lisa's. When you've found her, rent some bikes and have
her lead you to her home. The ride follows small dirt
roads and paths utterly innocent of automobile and truck
traffic, and takes you through some of the best scenery in
the Guilin/Yangshuo area. Sure, you'll think you've seen
it all once you've been to Guilin and taken the Li River
cruise, but you're wrong...this ride was absolutely
spectacular and everyone in our group was oohing and aahing
the entire way. On arrival in Moon Hill Village, Mrs. Zhou
will take you to her home, a rustic courtyard compound in
traditional Guangxi style. While you poke around, her
husband will cook lunch, several dishes all using local
produce. It was fantastic, one of the best meals on our
trip--stuffed chili peppers, small omelets, fermented beans
(they grow the beans on their farm plots and ferment them
in large earthenware vessels in the back building), even a
taste of their homemade rice wine. Yes, you probably are
expected to pay something, although she doesn't ask
outright, but it was worth it. There are a lot of local
women doing this--sometimes it seems that they beseige some
of the cafes--but Mrs. Zhou was the real thing, and worth
taking the time to look for.
I completely agree with the above posting, the Sihai is a
complete rip off. I really didn't think I was getting my
money's worth, so I went to the Godd COmpanion Holiday Inn
and it was significantly cheaper, after a little good
hearted bargaining. I really think that YS is so easy for
accomodation that you should just walk around and see what
you can find. The YS youth hostel is meant to be good too.
As for whether or not there is stuff to do there, try the
endless sightseeing trips, bicycle rides into the sunset,
market days in Fuli, minority sightseeing tours, comorant
fishing, and the list goes on. Or, you could just sit in a
cafe, do a couple of short courses and party with friendly
groups of locals or travellers. Whatever you want. Yangshuo
is a real blast!
In 1994 double rooms at the Golden Dragon Hotel diagonally
across from Lisa's were Y60, though they would give them for
Y30 single if they weren't full. The staff were very
friendly and the rooms were very good. It sounds like
Yangshuo prices have changed a lot since then! Is the
Golden Dragon still there?