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Best months: Sep – Nov
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Yunnan: Dali, Lijiang & the Gorge

4.4(18 reviews)7 daysStart and end in
3 photos
Meridian Overland
Runs this trip
7 Days · 6 Nights
Fully planned multi-day journey
Accommodation
Hotel or lodge, twin sharing
Fully guided
A guide travels with the group for the whole trip.
Trekking
Seven days from Kunming to the Tibetan plateau edge
Moderate Intensity
Travelers can expect 4-6 hours of daily trail walking
Group Size 1 - 14
1 guide per 10 ratio
Ages 14+ Welcome
The operator's minimum age for this trip is 14
3,160 m at the highest point

Where this operator goes

7 days · 13 stops

Itinerary

7 days, planned by Meridian Overland

Pickup point

Day 1 · Fri, 18 Sept, 2026

Meet atKunmingKunming Changshui International Airport (KMG)
Reporting time00:00 - 23:59
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What the price covers

Included in the price

You arrange yourself

Most of these can be added to your booking later — the operator confirms within a day.

Where you'll stay

Published by the operator. Nights on the ground can move with weather and permissions.

Kunming Courtyard

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Night 1

Dali House

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Night 2

Lijiang Lodge

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Nights 3, 6

Tiger Leaping Gorge Inn

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Night 4

Shangri-La Courtyard

Hotel or lodge, twin sharing

Night 5

What you'll eat

6 breakfasts, 2 lunches and 2 dinners across 7 days, at camp. It opens with dinner on day 1 and closes with breakfast on day 7.

  • DinnerServed on days 1, 4
  • BreakfastServed on days 2–7
  • LunchServed on days 4–5

10 meal services named in the itinerary. Vegetarian and vegan covered; Jain, gluten-free and allergies on notice at booking

One other operator runs this trailThe same trail, at their own price, group size and refund window.Farthest Field Co.₹1,11,499See all 2
BEFORE YOU GO · CAUTIONARY DETAILS
Break the boots in before you come
The single most common reason a trek stops being enjoyable. New boots on day one means blisters by day two and a descent on ruined feet by day four. Walk fifty kilometres in them at home first, on hills if you can find any.
Deal with a hot spot immediately
The moment something rubs, stop and tape it. Everyone on the trail will wait two minutes for that and nobody wants to wait an hour later while it is dressed properly.
The group moves at its slowest walker
That is not a courtesy, it is how groups stay together and how nobody ends up alone on a ridge in cloud. If that person is you on a given day, say so early rather than falling quietly behind.
Never leave the group to go ahead
Almost every serious incident on a marked Indian trail starts with somebody moving faster than the guide and taking a turning that looked obvious. Waiting at junctions is the whole discipline.
Treat your water
Streams above the villages look clean and mostly are; below them they are not, and giardia will ruin a week. Filter, boil, or use tablets — and drink more than you feel like.
Weather turns faster than you can descend
An afternoon build-up in the Himalaya arrives in under an hour. That is why days start early and why a guide who wants to turn back at eleven in the morning is not being cautious for the sake of it.
A stream is not the same in the afternoon
Snowmelt peaks with the day's heat, so a crossing that was ankle-deep at eight is thigh-deep at three. Cross early, unclip your waist belt, and face upstream.
Carry original photo ID
Forest and park entry in the Indian Himalaya is permitted through the district administration and checked at the gate against the permit your operator holds. A photocopy is not always accepted.
The medical certificate is not a formality
Several states now require a doctor-signed fitness certificate on higher and glacier-bound routes, and more ask for one over 55 or with a pre-existing condition. Get it early; it is a reason people are turned back at the road head.

Who runs this trip

Operated by
Meridian OverlandVerified

“Europe and the far north on a fixed calendar”

Based in New Delhi Running treks since 2017
Rating
4.4(18 reviews)
Response time
Within 8 hours
  • Team speaks: English, Hindi
Direct booking via licensed operator
View Operator Profile
Cancellation policy: Full refund up to 21 days before departure

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Customer reviews

Overall rating
4.4/5
Based on 18 reviews
Review summary
Food
4.3/5
Guide
4.3/5
Itinerary
4.3/5
Transport
4.3/5
Accommodation
4.1/5
Tour operator
4.3/5
Sort by:Recommended
5
T
Tom Bergman – Lisbon2025-11-20 · Verified booking

Well organised from the pickup onwards. The daily distances were honest about what they'd be. Accommodation was a notch better than the price suggested. Never went hungry, and the tea appeared exactly when it was needed. Recommended.

Reply from Meridian Overland

Appreciate the honest feedback; we're looking at the pacing on that section.

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4
F
Farah Qureshi – Kochi2025-11-20 · Verified booking

Well organised from the pickup onwards. The daily distances were honest about what they'd be. Solid operator.

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5
S
Sofia Marchetti – Singapore2025-11-20 · Verified booking

Second trek with this operator and they've kept the standard up. No complaints about any of the hotels — all of them well placed. Food was plentiful and hot, which counts for a lot at altitude. Would send friends their way.

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5
Y
Yuki Tanaka – London2025-11-20 · Verified booking

Second trek with this operator and they've kept the standard up. No complaints about any of the hotels — all of them well placed. Would send friends their way.

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5
S
Sameer Khan – Kolkata2025-11-20 · Verified booking

Yunnan in the right season is something else, and the team knew exactly where to camp. Rooms were comfortable and the locations meant we could walk most evenings. The team read the group well and adjusted without making a thing of it. Worth every rupee.

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5
A
Aditi Rao – Pune2025-03-26 · Verified booking

Yunnan in the right season is something else, and the team knew exactly where to camp. Never went hungry, and the tea appeared exactly when it was needed. Recommended.

Reply from Meridian Overland

Thank you for travelling with us — glad the route worked out.

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4
D
Dev Chatterjee – Mumbai2025-03-26 · Verified booking

Yunnan in the right season is something else, and the team knew exactly where to camp. Would send friends their way.

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5
F
Farah Qureshi – Delhi2025-03-26 · Verified booking

Well organised from the pickup onwards. The daily distances were honest about what they'd be. Crew were professional without being stiff about it. Would book with them again.

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Questions people ask

Two days, about twenty-two kilometres, with the 28 bends — around six hundred metres of switchback climbing — on the first morning. It is a well-marked guesthouse-to-guesthouse trail and it is genuinely a trek, not a walk.

One other operator runs this trail. See all 2 side by side →