Li River Cruises
Last Updated
13th Apr, 2010
The Li River is truly spectacular and a cruise is a very special way to take in the scenery
The official tourist boats leave each morning from Bamboo Wharf just outside of Guilin and take anything from 4 to 6 hours to reach Yangshuo. The difference in times is due to different water levels during a year. In the rainy season, the Li River flows faster and therefore the boat reaches Yangshuo earlier
Please note that all these boats return each day to Guilin empty as they are not permitted to carry passengers on the return leg
There are many other cruises that you can do on the Li River. There are many operators using smaller `farmer's boats` which just do shorter, more specific, cruises. These boats are not permitted to carry any passengers, but they do seem to get away with it
The section between Yangdi and Xingping is by far the most spectacular, but doing this trip is dependent on whether the local authorities are supervising the Li River. These trips need to be arranged in advance and could change at any time. Generally speaking, they can be run very early in the morning, around sunrise, before there are checks on the river. This is the best time to be on the river anyway and allows you to fit in other activities afterwards.
You could do a shorter cruise out of Xingping. There are many small boats waiting in Xingping and for a small fee you can go with a few other visitors. These boats go upstream a little bit towards Yangdi but don't get to make it all the way. Please note that Xingping can get very busy on weekends with domestic tourists and the riverside can become overcrowded
If you want to escape the crowds and still do a nice cruise then the section between Yangshuo and Liugong is the place for you. It will probably seem that you have the Li River to yourself and the views are still very impressive
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Li River Cruises
Guilin to Yangshuo
These are the only official cruises on the Li River
The cruise begins at the Bamboo Wharf which is just outside of Guilin. The cruises depart in the morning from 9am till about 11am and take anything from 4 to 6 hours depending on the speed of the current.
The boats can hold over 80 people and therefore cater to tour groups. Lunch is served on the boat. The staff also spend most of the cruise trying to upsell drinks and other dishes. There is usually a viewing deck on the top
Yangdi to Xingping
This section of the Li River is the most beautiful part of the Li River, but doing a cruise on just this part of the Li River is very difficult as the local authorities keep this section just for the larger boats from Guilin. To have any chance of doing this cruise, you need to arrange it with a local agency when you are here
Xingping and Upstream
There are many small boats operating out of Xingping and they will take you upstream towards the 9 horse fresco hill. These cruise are OK but they do miss out on some of the best part as thet do not go to Yangdi
Xingping and Downstream
These cruises are not as spectacular as if you went upstream as the Karst peaks become less frequent. This cruise can be OK if you have the money and don't want to come back to Yangshuo on the road
Yangshuo to Fuli and Liugong
This cruise is really nice because it still has beautiful scenery but without the hordes of tourists and their boats. This cruise can be tricky to arrange but not too hard
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Yangdi-Xingping
Definitly my favourite trip ......but I have done this trip on a local raft....about 2hrs.
On a lovely sunny Autumn day you could not get it any better. The rafts stop off for photo shots at the 9 horses mountain.
There is a commercial photographer there who will develop & laminate your photo for 10Y. The river "mafia" collect 4y per person somewhere along the trip, but to stop arguments with foreigners the raft driver now pays them.
We were dropped off along the river from Xingping which allows for a pleasant wander back into town up through the old street...( which keeps evolving very quickly) to the bus station. At Yangdi there is a very good restaurant ...the last building before the river. Very good food at a resonable cost. On both my trips we had lunch there before taking the raft. To get to Yangdi catch a local bus at the bus station.
Highly recommended trip.
Li River Cruises
There are many different types of cruises that you can do on the Li River, and I have done most of them
Guilin only cruises
These have to be the worst of the lot. Guilin city itself has very few Karst peaks of any real height. You get to cruise within the city and observe 3 or 4 peaks. The rest of the time, you get to glimpse hotels, traffic and shops, ouch!!!
Guilin to Yangshuo cruises
These are by far the most popular cruises in terms of numbers. Every major tour company and some smaller ones will put their groups on these boats. The boats are big enough to hold anything from 60 to 120 people. They usually have a viewing deck at the top which is shared by everyone on the cruise. I have had to use my elbows to get to the railings so that I could see the view.
Departure time for these cruises is between 9am and 11am. There are no flights that arrive early enough to meet a cruise on the same day. You can easily arrange a cruise the night before from any hotel in Guiin
These cruises leave from a wharf on the outskirts of Guilin and the transfer from Guilin is included in the ticket price.
Lunch is also something to talk about on these boats. It is included in the cost of the ticket. You get a set meal to share with the people at your table. The meal is very Chinese with rice, stir fried vegetables and some meat dishes. Included drinks are a small bottle of water per person and some bottles of beer. The staff on the boat also try to up sell expensive dishes and drinks such as fried shrimps and `snake wine`. You also get to have this lunch during some of the best scenery on the Li River
Many of the people who do these cruises get dropped off in Yangshuo and have a short time to explore West Street for shopping and then return back to Guilin the same day
Yangdi to Xingping cruises
The Yangdi to Xingping section of the Li River is by far the most spectacular part of the Li River. It is possible to arrange a cruise for just this section of the Li River. However, you need to know that the only boats that can take tourists on the Li River are the big boats from Guilin as they are the only officially licensed boats.
The boats that do the Yangdi to Xingping section are the small `farmer's boats`. These boats can hold about 12 people on them and have an open area at the front of the boat where you can sit down and put your feet in the river
Now, as these boats are not licensed, they can only operate when the Li River is not being monitored by the local authorities which is early in the morning or late in the afternoon which is the best time anyway for these cruises as the river has none of the large boats and is very peaceful. This has always been my favourite cruise on the Li River
Cruises from Xingping
There are many `farmer's boats` in Xingping as the monitoring of licensed boats is a bit more lax in Xingping. You can turn up at just about any time of the day to Xingping and have one of these boats take you on the Li River.
The cruise can take you up river towards Yangdi, but not all the way to Yangdi as there are regular inspections near Yangdi. How close does the boat get to Yangdi? Sometimes almost all the way and sometimes about half way. You can never tell as you would know what Yangdi looks like
The cruises out of Xingping can also go towards Yangshuo with a stop at the `fishing village`. This cruise is not as scenic with very few tall peaks along this section of the river. I find this cruise a bit on the boring side
Yangshuo to Fuli and Liugong cruise
This cruise is downstream of Yangshuo and misses all the big boats coming from Guilin. I like this cruise too as it is very relaxing due to the low traffic on the Li River. The cruise is also done on the `farmer's boats`. Both the old towns of Fuli and Liugong are worth a visit on their own
Kayaking Vs. River Cruise
After coming to Yangshuo on Li river cruise and seeing the magical landscape I thought it couldn't get much better but the experience of being in your own kayak going at your own speed and than stopping for nice picnic lunch, this is by far a more of an experience than the cruise