Trip Overview
When: June (best weather for exploring)
Duration: 2 days
Travelers: With friends
Budget: ~2,000 RMB (~$280 USD)
Transportation: Domestic flight + local transport
Introduction
Sometimes I really want to believe in movies about time travel. After graduating from university, inspired by TV dramas like "One Meter Sunshine" and "Beijing Youth," I first stepped into this ancient town with over 800 years of history on the Tea Horse Road. Lijiang Ancient Town (丽江古城), built alongside mountains and waters, combines the charm of a mountain town with the elegance of a water town. Main streets border rivers, small alleys follow canals—stone paths and ancient lanes left me with beautiful memories.
Five years later, I returned to this historic ancient town: Lijiang Ancient Town. It feels as if time never moved forward—everything remains as familiar as ever. Walking on stone-paved long alleys, faint smoke from the town drifts by, occasionally a leisurely passerby walks by, leaving恍惚的记忆，遗落在时光里—this is the Lijiang Ancient Town everyone dreams of visiting. Surrounded by lush green mountains, every alley hides a legend. The town's tile-roofed houses cluster together, colorful rock pathways become smoother and brighter after rain and footsteps.
Lijiang Ancient Town has hundreds of bridges—stone arch bridges and stone slab bridges spanning flowing water. Green plants cluster along the banks, everywhere you see vibrant red bougainvillea, green moss covering corners of alleys—it's like stepping into a thick oil painting, extraordinarily enchanting.
Everyone who comes to Lijiang wants to meet another version of themselves, or forget the past. When you stroll through the ancient town, you feel the slow rhythm of life in every flower and tree. Perhaps that afternoon's sunlight can shine into the softest part of your heart. So you'll discover that the most precious thing in Lijiang is sunlight, and the least valuable is time.
Besides strolling through the ancient town and feeling the slow life rhythm, if you're a foodie, you can spend a whole day searching for flavors you love. Don't miss Naxi rice cake, black goat hotpot, Naxi spare ribs hotpot, butter tea, and chicken bean jelly.
If you want to understand Lijiang Ancient Town's cultural depth more deeply, you must visit Mufu Palace (木府)—the residence of the Naxi chieftain Mushi. It's the palace of the Mushi Tusi chieftains during the Yuan (1253), Ming, and Qing dynasties, spanning 22 generations over 470 years. So Mufu Palace is the political and cultural center of the Lijiang region. People call it the "Small Forbidden City." This building combines Ming Dynasty Central Plains architectural style with Naxi and Bai minority craftsmanship, making it a landmark of the ancient town.
Walking forward brings you to Sifang Street (四方街), the core of the ancient town and the busiest district. Four main streets extend from the center, famous as the food street. Food stalls surround the area—you can taste Naxi rice cake, stir-fried yogurt, and flower cake. Next to Sifang Street is Lion Mountain, with the best spot for panoramic views of the ancient town. After rain, you might even see a rainbow over the town.
Not far away is the Great Stone Bridge (大石桥) within the ancient town, built during the Ming Dynasty by the Mushi Tusi chieftain—a double-arch stone bridge. This bridge has carried the bustling scene of the ancient town for hundreds of years, being the most prominent among all bridges. Many tourists like to stop and rest here, and many singer-performers love to perform here—it's one of the busiest stone bridges.
Every block of Lijiang Ancient Town has its own charm. At night, the ancient town takes on another kind of energy—Sifang Street is bustling with people on one side, while peaceful, tranquil streets lie on the other, with the gentle sound of flowing water under small bridges.
On Xinhua Street, various bars light up their neon lights, filled with song, laughter, and brilliant lights—a scene of prosperity.
From day to night, experiencing this gentle, serene slow ancient town—it really does allow your restless heart to instantly calm down. Looking at this brilliant lighting, I can't help but ask myself: "Do you still remember your childhood dreams?"
Once I dreamed of traveling with a sword to the ends of the earth, seeing all the world's prosperity.
Now it has come true, but my soul seems to lack a sense of belonging—a place to call home.
Indeed, over the years of traveling the world, I've come to feel that even after traversing mountains and seas and encountering many beautiful landscapes, there's still an emptiness in my heart. To find a pure land in my heart, I walked again into Lijiang Ancient Town. Perhaps I need to find a "new" breakthrough in what seems like ordinary life. A carefree life can bring you a peaceful mind, and a carefree life needs to simplify the complex—minimalist living is the key to opening a calm heart.
And in Lijiang Ancient Town, I really found this key. There's a Cloud Residence (云舍) that can show you poetry and distant places, help you find the long-lost sense of belonging in your heart, or a harbor for your soul to anchor. Staying here, I discovered that life can truly be so slow, truly able to feel the anchored resting place for your heart—this is Lijiang Ancient Town Bo Xin Yun She·Wen Yuan (泊心云舍·文苑)!
Located in the heart of Lijiang Ancient Town, it covers over 3,000 square meters and is the largest courtyard in Lijiang Ancient Town—a courtyard-style building composed of five courtyards and a Tea Horse Road garden. Every place in the courtyard has its own story. It seems like a city, a courtyard, a home, a bedroom—all are telling us about Naxi ethnic customs.
Bo Xin Yun She·Wen Yuan is next to Sifang Street, adjacent to Mufu Palace, behind Lion Mountain, surrounding the ancient town—excellent location occupying a feng shui treasure ground. This courtyard has a rich Naxi architectural style, also integrating the best of Bai, Yi, and Tibetan ethnic groups. The entire courtyard is like a Dongba cultural secret place—every step is a scenic view, as if you can hear a thousand years of Dongba culture echoing in your ears.
Life-sized stone lions are placed on both sides of the main entrance, accompanied by exquisite and elegant colorful paintings, flying eaves and carved beams—reflecting the traditional Naxi wealthy family status. Pushing the door open, it truly feels like coming home. The entire courtyard environment makes you feel the unique grandeur that differs from ordinary homestays. Compared to star-rated hotels, it truly has the warmth of a home.
In front of you is the characteristic screen wall of Bai residents, with a green podocarpus pine inside the round hole.任意在这里摆个造型，拍出来的照片都是相当好看—posing here makes for absolutely stunning photos.
One side of the screen wall is planted with various succulents, hydrangeas, marguerites... this cluster of flowers and lush greenery, with its diverse variety, decorates this ancient-style courtyard exceptionally colorfully. It also seems to pass on a positive attitude toward life to us. They say flower lovers love people—this reminds me that Bo Xin Yun She founder Mr. Xiang Zi must also be such a person.
The转运桥 (Fortune Bridge) built in Bo Xin Courtyard has beautiful design and smooth lines, like a crescent moon reflected on the water. Accompanied by the agility of water and flourishing flowers and plants, especially the mist slowly emerging from under the bridge, filling the Fortune Bridge, it's more like an immortal bridge suspended in the air. Since childhood, I've been infinitely longing for such a leisurely life—it represents attitude and interest in life, and is also the spiritual pursuit of Chinese courtyards for thousands of years. The bridge in the courtyard carries not just a design, but an artistic culture.
Walking onto the Fortune Bridge, pressing the shutter randomly yields incredibly high photo success rates. Walking in theZen-like courtyard, or sitting with a few friends for an afternoon, the浊气 seem to have been cleared by the breeze. Instantly it calms your mind—such a courtyard is truly an excellent place to purify the soul.
In this courtyard, the water garden landscape and Dongba culture blend together. Time flows through our fingers, yet we feel the sunlight gently caressing this poetic and lush courtyard, while our hearts become extremely peaceful—everything is far from worldly noise, and the heart becomes infinitely broad.
Look at Bo Xin Yun She infinity pool water system—the design here is clever and interesting. Around the pool is a still water system, and outside that is an ecological fish pond water system. When we walk on these stone paths, koi fish shuttle continuously back and forth in the pool; when children chase these agile koi fish, snapping a photo at random, the time here seems to become softer and slower.
This is the courtyard's lobby, also the dining place. The entrance is spacious and grand, with traditional Naxi "Four Blessings Facing Longevity" stone carvings. In the center, a large bronze brazier is placed on the carved stone. Passing through the door with carved dragon and phoenix bracket structure, what meets your eyes is the ultra-high double-height living room. Here there's no lobby like a regular hotel front desk—it's more like your own living room. Various snacks and fruits are placed on tables, all for you to enjoy freely. The entire lobby is ancient and elegant, everything showing solemnity and grandeur.
The entire grand living room has a two-story wooden structure. Walking past the long staircase, what comes into view is the Bo Xin Book House (泊心书屋), filled with various literary books—including prose, poetry, novels and other literary works. Sipping tea, sitting quietly here for an afternoon, it's like being in your own study room, basking in sunlight streaming through the windows—one can easily spend an entire day.
Bo Xin Yun She has 30 master bedrooms, all named after famous Lijiang scenic spots, place names, or cultural elements. Each contains a different theme, and the design style maximally reflects the cultural characteristics of the named place, while integrating traditional elements from Naxi, Yi, Lisu, Tibetan and other ethnic minorities. Each master bedroom is over 60 square meters, with the largest over 120 square meters—the spaciousness of the bedroom makes people feel incredibly broad-minded.
This subverts the traditional hotel "guest room" concept, creating a "private master bedroom" concept. It can be said that every room is a bedroom with temperature. Although each master bedroom has a different style, it's also uniquely one-of-a-kind. From the balcony to the bedroom, every detail of each room reflects Bo Xin Yun She's meticulous craftsmanship.
I was lucky to tour some master bedroom room types—each truly carries the customs and cultural elements of old places and old people, integrating local traditional elements. Either primitive and simple, or fresh and elegant, or warm and passionate, yet without losing the sense of简约 technology design.
The entire house has smart home facilities. Each room has an independent cloakroom, sensing lights, dressing room, smart bathtub, smart electric curtains, smart background music system, steam ironing machine, smart humidifier, dry-wet separation, and thoughtful various toiletries— the room feels like living in your own home, warm and comfortable.
What gives me the biggest feeling of difference from hotels is that "special bed" in the bedroom and the thoughtful series of toiletries prepared, including disinfectant, disinfectant paper, hand wash, imported facial cleanser, exclusively customized peach wood comb, brand new bamboo fiber bath towels, brand new linen slippers, etc. These thoughtful details all make me feel the warmth of home. Honestly, having stayed in so many five-star hotels, no five-star hotel can equip such complete and thoughtful toiletries.
I also especially love the smart music system in the bedroom—light music automatically plays as soon as you enter the bedroom, just like coming home. There are also the exclusively customized brand new bamboo fiber bath towels, brand new linen slippers, and exquisite peach wood comb—these three items can be taken away when checking out. All of this truly shows quality of life and a sense of belonging.
The busyness of the day, only during sleep is there truly a peaceful moment belonging to yourself. Generally, traditional hotels all use uniform white bedding, giving a sense of hotel unfamiliarity. But Bo Xin Yun She's bedding uses Fu Anna's most high-end 120-thread Egyptian cotton home bedding, specially customized for Bo Xin Yun She in梦幻紫 (Dream Purple), 高贵金 (Noble Gold), 浪漫粉 (Romantic Pink), 优雅灰 (Elegant Gray) four colors, laying different colored bedding according to different master bedroom design styles and room tones.
Lying in the warm master bedroom, on this special bed, you can feel the detail art of every stitch, representing persistent adherence to quality and adherence to original intention without forgetting—like the spiritual resting home of every returning Bo Xin family member. And among the many master bedroom room types, I'm especially fond of these bedroom types.
Mufu Master Bedroom (木府主卧), "There is the Forbidden City in the north, there is Mufu in the south," Mufu Palace is a magnificent building art garden—the palace of the Mushi Tusi chieftains in Lijiang. Just like this room type in front of you, the brightly colored Naxi decorations, exquisite carvings, elegant arched doors—the room integrates the elegant and luxurious atmosphere of the Central Plains with the pristine elegance of mountains and rivers in just the right way. Staying here, you can dream back to the Ming Dynasty and be a Tusi of Mufu for a moment.
Shangri-La Master Bedroom (香巴拉主卧), meaning the world of utopia. The room uses Tibetan ethnic characteristic totem elements, perfectly preserving natural ecology and traditional ethnic culture—integrating pure land, canyons, high mountain lakes and Tibetan customs, mysterious and beautiful. The fire pit design adds warmth, and the Tibetan round bed design adds some romance.
Looking up from the window, Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (玉龙雪山) comes into view. This is the closest to heaven, not far from the mortal world.
Dayan Master Bedroom (大研主卧), Lijiang Ancient Town is also called Dayan Ancient Town. The streets in town are built alongside mountains and waters, various carved auspicious clouds inlaid, primitive and elegant—just like what we see now, the living water system full of vitality, the unified architectural groups, using blue bricks matched with white walls, using ancient six-way doors as partitions, the kind and pleasant spatial environment and unique decoration style—attracting countless tourists to come.
There's another must-check-in place at the homestay—the "Sky Mirror" (天空之镜) on the rooftop garden terrace. This is the favorite check-in photo spot for many people. Standing here, it seems closer to heaven, reaching out to touch the blue sky and white clouds.
Wearing ancient costume or fashionable clothes, stepping onto this "Sky Mirror" and casually posing will yield incredibly high photo success rates.
Lion Mountain is right behind, with green mountains and hills, the commercial residences hiding the ancient town. Overlooking the spectacular scene of Lijiang Ancient Town is right before our eyes—Sifang Street is lively on the left, on the right you can view the splendid Mufu Palace palace, facing north you can gaze at the beautiful and magnificent Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. Facing this beautiful ancient town, this scene seems to silently tell us its over 800 years of vicissitudes.
In the day, the meticulously designed Naxi style courtyard scenery makes people love it endlessly, while at night, the courtyard is like entering another world—the gorgeous lighting night scene makes people linger and forget to return.
What must also be praised here is that the concierge not only has thoughtful service, but also has meticulous warm help. Everyone's faces transmit warm smiles and sincere greetings after returning home—like family members! I want to say, this is truly the most warm and elegant place I've ever stayed—it's not a homestay, not a hotel, but a harbor as warm as home.
It must be said that compared to staying at template-like hotels, I prefer everything here—it's not a hotel but exceeds five-star comfort, it's not a inn but has higher sentiment.
Bo Xin Yun She is the destination of the soul—a place where the soul can rest. Here, all time is related to the return of the soul. Where to return after traveling all rivers and mountains? Bo Xin is my home here. Everything that exists here embodies a serene, far-reaching, and more warm homeland atmosphere.
Traveling through all rivers and mountains, in the end there must be a place for the soul to return to home—and in Lijiang Ancient Town, I found such a place for the soul to rest. Staying here, I found new joy in life, felt the warmth of returning home, and gained deeper understanding of life's value. Coming here is not to escape, not to hide, but to let life return to its original intention, and also to let the soul return to its beginning.