How to Plan a Kunming Tour

Kunming is known for its weather like spring all year round. With the annual average temperature around 15℃, and the lowest one rarely below 10℃, Kunming is comfortable and recommended to visit any time in a year. The best time to travel is from March to October when you will enjoy diverse festival gathering of local ethnic minorities and blossoms in rich colors. Besides, from December to March is the best time to see the large number of black-headed gulls flying from northern areas and the white snow peaks. From June to August is the rainy season of Kunming, and every time after raining, the temperature drops lower in need of your long-sleeves and trousers for warm keeping. As temperature varies widely from day to night, you are still recommended to prepare some thin coats even in summer, and down jackets are also Okay in winter is you have a sensation of chill. Sun block is always suggested due to the strong UV rays in Kunming with the altitude between 1,500-2,800m.

▶ Learn more about: Kunming Weather, Temperature & Best Time to Visit

Kunming is the provincial capital enjoys developed net of transportation is most large cities in China. Travelers can easily access to Kunming either by air or rail.

Flights to Kunming

Kunming Changshui International Airport (IATA：KMG) well links Kunming with more than 120 domestic cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Xian, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Changsha, Wuhan, Guilin, Zhangjiajie, Xiamen, Huangshan, Lhasa, Shenzhen, Zhengzhou, Sanya, Tianjin, Dalian, Harbin, Lanzhou, Luoyang, Nanning, Qingdao, Shenyang, Taiyuan, Urumqi, Xining, Yichang, etc. Besides, visitors also can fly to Kunming from the more than 50 international cities (regions) like Hong Kong, Taipei, San Francisco, Paris, Sydney, Singapore, Seoul, Tokyo, Bangkok, Phuket, Chiang Mai, Yangon, Colombo, Kathmandu, Dubai, Luang Prabang, Ho Chi Minh City, Kuala Lumpur, etc.

Kunming Airport is about 23 kilometers away from the city center, and it usually needs about 40 minutes to get there by car or about 1 hour by Kunming Metro Line 6 and Line 3. Airport shuttle buses are also available to the downtown.

Trains to Kunming

Three major railway stations, namely Kunming Railway Station, Kunming East Railway Station, Kunming South Railway Station and Kunming North Railway Station are under service for bullet trains and normal trains to and from Kunming City. At present, Kunming has daily high speed trains with Beijing (11 hours), Shanghai (11 hours), Hong Kong (7.5 hours), Xian (10.5 hours), Guangzhou (6.5 hours), Chengdu (5.5 hours), Chongqing (4 hours), Guiyang (2 hours), Guilin (8 hours), Hangzhou (10 hours), Changsha (5 hours), Wuhan (6.5 hours), Shenzhen (7 hours), Nanchang (7.5 hours), Nanning (4 hours), Nanjing (10.5 hours), Suzhou (12.5 hours), Zhengzhou (8.5 hours), and more destinations in China. Visitors can get to Kunming with sightseeing along the way and new technology experience. Besides, the China Thailand Railway linking China, Laos and Thailand is under construction and is said to be put into operation in 2022 or 2023.

▶ Learn more about: How to Get to & Around Kunming | Kunming Bullet Trains

Kunming has metro system linking the city center with the airport, railway stations, major bus terminals, attractions and many places in the downtown conveniently. So far in April of 2020, Kunming Metro Line 1, Line 2, Line 3 and Line 6 are under operation. Besides, local buses and public bikes are also easy at hand to take you to any places you want in the city. And Kunming East Bus Station and Kunming North Bus Station are the two large bus terminals that offer many daily distance coaches to Stone Forest, Jiuxiang Scenic Area, Jiaozi Snow Mountain, etc. Moreover, our local private transfer service is also recommended for your comfortable transfer during your Kunming discovery!

Stone Forest

A Kunming visit shall not miss the Stone Forest that is listed as the UNESCO World Heritage Site and praised as “Essence of Karst Landform in the World”. Walk in this maze of about 12 square kilometers to meet the countless big and small stone peaks and stalagmites created from 270 million years ago. There not only preserves diverse shapes of stone teeth, karst caves, lakes, waterfall, underneath rivers, etc. but also has the sharp sword-shaped karst landscape to make to wonder entering another amazing planet.
Recommended Visiting Time: half to 1 day
Transfer from City Center: about 1.5 hours by car (driving 85km)

Western Hills (Dragon Gate)

Near the downtown, it is the best place for locals to climb high and gaze far. Dragon Gate on the peak enjoys quite outstanding stone carvings by stonemasons from Qing Dynasty. Get up to the Western Hills to have a bird’s eye view of Kunming City and the terrific sightseeing of Dianchi Lake like a sapphire.
Recommended Visiting Time: 2-4 hours
Transfer from City Center: about 30 minutes by car (driving 17km)

Kunming Green Lake

Take a leisure stroll at the “Eye of Kunming” with exquisite Chinese traditional pavilions and corridors to have a closer feeling of local citizens’ life such as gathering, dancing, singing, business talking, etc. Green Lake is also the top favored place to play with those lovely black-necked gulls from Siberian in winter time.
Recommended Visiting Time: 1-2 hours
Transfer from City Center: in downtown

Dongchuan Red Land

Embrace this dreamy colorful wonderland for photographers no matter you are shutterbugs or ordinary travelers. Dongchuan Red Land is the great work of earth and local villagers, and the entire higher land of rich layers in major bright scarlet, orange, green, white, purple, etc. is more like jointed by pieces of wool carpets.
Recommended Visiting Time: 1-2 days
Transfer from City Center: about 3 hours by car (driving 150km)

Yuantong Temple

Enjoy some peaceful moments at this largest temple site in whole Kunming. With the typical structure like a classic garden and the special combination of three Buddhist sects, Yuantong Temple is the must-visit cultural site there.
Recommended Visiting Time: 1-2 hours
Transfer from City Center: in downtown

Dianchi Lake

This national top largest lake is satisfied for waterscape. Good mood is easily caught with the shimmering lake under sunshine, no matter walking along the bank at Haigeng Park or cruising in the center. Black-necked gulls visiting there in winter is another representative landscape there.
Recommended Visiting Time: 1-3 hours
Transfer from City Center: in downtown

Jiuxiang Karst Cave

Expert visitors call it “Museum of Karst Caves” for its more than 100 big and small karst caves. Take the sightseeing escalator to discover the dazzling wonderland - Jiuxiang Karst Cave in iridescent colored lights, which ignite all the fantastic stalactites and stalagmites and the reflections in the natural karst river very charming!
Recommended Visiting Time: 2-3 hours
Transfer from City Center: about 1 hour & 40 minutes (driving 105km)

Yunnan Nationalities Village

Experience the diversity of ethnic nationalities in Yunnan at this large village as the epitome of the large province family of 26 ethnic groups. Featured ethnic houses, folk customs, performances of songs and dances, etc. are all excellently shown there for your wonderful memory!
Recommended Visiting Time: half to 1 day
Transfer from City Center: in downtown

Apart from the above, you will have many other interesting things to see and do in Kunming, such as learn the culture and history at Yunnan Provincial Museum, stroll at local birds and flower markets, appreciate different blooming flowers in each season, and so forth.

▶ Learn more about: Top Kunming Attractions | Top Kunming City Attractions | Top Things to Do in Kunming

Where is the best place to stay during a Kunming trip? For most visitors, staying around the Green Lake area is the best choice. Because the must-see Green Lake, Jinma & Biji Pedestrian Street, and more old sites are easy to access with walking distance for your great savory of local lifestyle of Kunming City. Besides, convenient commercial facilities are arranged around for your easy finding of food and transport. While, if you would like to enjoy some night life of the modern provincial capital and prefer some simple drinking, you can also consider staying around Jinma & Biji Pedestrian Street which is also very popular.

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Where to Stay in Kunming | Recommended Kunming Luxury Hotels | Recommended Kunming Comfort Hotels | Recommended Kunming Budget Hotels

Most visitors plan Kunming as a part their exploration of the vast Yunnan Province and usually arrange it at the start for first landing. To enrich your travel experience, you are highly recommended to do as the others to enjoy a classic week long vacation in Yunnan. You can spend 2 days for getting to Kunming and visiting Stone Forest and the city highlights, take a bullet train to Dali and spend 1-2 days there discovering the beauty of Erhai Lake and historical culture of the past Nanzhao Kingdom, transfer to Lijiang to meet the famous Lijiang Old Town and learn the mysterious Dongba culture within 2 days. Following the exciting Tiger Leaping Gorge hiking, enjoy another 2 days in Shangri-La to immerse into the earthly paradise with nice visiting of the holy monasteries and lovely landscapes.

Besides, you can extend from Kunming to Yuanyang to marvel at the unbelievable magnificent Yuanyang Rice Terraces, to Puzhehei to relax at the pleasant wonderland of lotus blossoms, to Luoping to be fond of the golden sea of rapeseed flowers, to Xishuangbanna to feel the enthusiastic Dai ethnic people and the lush tropical forest, etc.

Most Popular Kunming Yunnan Tour Packages:

8 Days Classic Yunnan Tour (Kunming / Dali / Lijiang / Shangri-La)

6 Days Best of Yunnan Tour (Lijiang / Shangri-La / Kunming)

11 Days Amazing Yunnan Tour (Kunming / Yuanyang / Jianshui / Kunming / Dali / Lijiang / Shangri-La)

Moreover, Kunming is well connected with many hot destinations in China by direct flights and bullet trains, so it is also a great idea to travel Kunming and Yunnan with more places around China to savor more amazing landscape, culture, history, ethnic minority customs, food, etc. in one go, such as Guilin with Karst landform wonders, Guiyang with wonderful ethnic beauties, Chengdu with adorable giant pandas, Beijing with profound ancient royal Forbidden City, Shanghai with modern cityscape, Xian with impressing Terracotta Warriors, Zhangjiajie with incredible Avatar Mountains, and more like Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Yangtze River, Lhasa, etc. If you have any idea about planning your Kunming trip, please feel free to contact us for help!

Most Popular Kunming China Tour Packages:

14 Days Wild China Tours from Shanghai to Yunnan on Expresses (Shanghai / Zhangjiajie / Kaili / Xijiang / Kunming / Lijiang / Shangri-La / Kunming)

10 Days Classic Sichuan & Yunnan Highlights Tour (Chengdu / Leshan / Mount Emei / Lijiang / Shangri-La / Kunming)

9 Days Meet Yunnan Nature & Culture from Hong Kong by Bullet Train (Hong Kong / Kunming / Lijiang / Shangri-La / Kunming)