Guilin: Li River Cruise to Yangshuo & Countryside with Private Guide
Limestone peaks rise from the water as your boat glides toward Yangshuo
You're picked up from your hotel and driven to board a Li River cruise that drifts past karst peaks for four hours to Yangshuo. Lunch is served onboard. Once you arrive, you walk West Street and tour the surrounding countryside, including a local farmer's home, before being driven back to Guilin. The day takes about nine hours total and includes all transport, entry fees, and a private English-speaking guide.
Step-by-step itinerary
Li River cruise and Yangshuo tour
- Guide picks you up at hotel
- Drive 1 hour to Zhujiang Dock
- Board Li River cruise at 9:30 am
- Enjoy cruise with guide introduction
- Have simple lunch onboard
- Continue cruise to Yangshuo
- Disembark at Yangshuo around 2 pm
- Stroll on West Street
- Tour Yangshuo countryside and visit farmer's house
- Optional bike tour to see landscapes
- Drive 1.5 hours back to Guilin hotel
What’s included
- Your day includes hotel pickup and drop-off in an air-conditioned car with a driver, a private English-speaking guide for the full day, a Li River cruise ticket from Guilin to Yangshuo, and lunch served onboard.
- Once in Yangshuo, you'll explore West Street and the surrounding countryside, including a visit to a local farmer's home.
- Bike rentals are available separately if you'd like to explore the fields on your own.
Times
- Every day 08:00 08:30
Information
Prices and times updated 16 days ago
Operated by Travel China Guide
The experience
The car arrives at your hotel around 8:30 in the morning, and you're heading toward Zhujiang Dock for a one-hour drive through the countryside. By 9:30, you're boarding one of the Li River cruises. The kind of boat that moves slowly enough that you can actually see what's in front of you. Your private guide is there to point out the karst formations as they start to appear, those impossible-looking limestone peaks that seem to float above the water. The cruise takes about four hours to reach Yangshuo, and somewhere in the middle of it, lunch arrives on board. Nothing fancy, but it's included, which means you're not scrambling to find a restaurant or eating something you didn't want.
Around 2 p.m. you dock in Yangshuo and step onto West Street, the main strip that's been there long enough to feel lived-in but touristy enough that you won't get lost. After that, the guide takes you into the actual countryside: past rice paddies and water buffalo, into the kind of landscape that doesn't photograph the way it looks in person. There's a stop at a local farmer's house, the kind of place where you see how people actually live in the villages around Guilin, not a staged version of it. If you want to, you can rent a bike and ride through the fields yourself. The guide will arrange it, but it's not forced on you.
The drive back to Guilin takes about 90 minutes, and by then you've been moving for most of the day: on the road, on the water, on foot. The car is air-conditioned, which matters in the heat. You're dropped back at your hotel in the late afternoon, and the whole thing (transport, guide, the cruise ticket, lunch) is already paid for, so there's no negotiating at the end or figuring out what you owe.
Is this one for you?Book this if you want the main Li River experience without arranging transport, tickets, or timing yourself: the private guide and fixed schedule handle all three, leaving you to focus on the landscape and the day itself.
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Top questions
What languages is the tour guided in?
Live guide in English and Chinese.
Can children come?
Yes. Ticket types: Child (3 to 11 years); Infant (under 3): free.
What time does the tour start and end?
Hotel pickup is around 8:30 a.m. The cruise departs Guilin at 9:30 a.m., arrives in Yangshuo around 2 p.m., and you're back at your hotel in the late afternoon after a 1.5-hour return drive.
Is lunch included?
Yes, a simple lunch is served onboard the cruise. It's included in the tour price.
How long is the Li River cruise?
Approximately four hours from Guilin to Yangshuo.
Can I rent a bike in Yangshuo?
Yes, bike rentals are available in Yangshuo. Your guide can arrange it, though it's not included in the base tour price.
Is the tour suitable for people with mobility issues?
The tour is wheelchair accessible and suitable for all fitness levels. However, the countryside walk and farmer's house visit involve some uneven terrain. Discuss specific needs with the operator when booking.
What's included in the price?
Hotel pickup and drop-off, private English-speaking guide, Li River cruise ticket, onboard lunch, and the countryside tour in Yangshuo.
How many people are in the group?
This is a private tour, so it's just you and your guide (and driver), not a group tour.
What if I want to skip the farmer's house visit?
Your guide can adjust the itinerary. Let them know your preferences when you meet.
Guilin: Li River Cruise to Yangshuo & Countryside with Private Guide
8h–9h · EN +1 · at your hotel
from US$ 209 per person