Guangxi is the landscape of Chinese ink paintings made real: karst peaks rise out of the Li River, and the Zhuang, Yao and Dong peoples fill the valleys with song. It's the south of China that feels least like anywhere else.

What to See

The Li River is where “the scenery of China begins”: ride a bamboo raft downstream, karst peaks mirrored in jade water, the view from the 20-yuan note right along this stretch.

Yangshuo is cycling paradise — rice fields, peaks and the Yulong River, best explored by e-bike. And Detian Falls, on the China–Vietnam border, is Asia's largest transnational waterfall.

What to Eat

Guilin rice noodles are the province's morning fuel: rice noodles in a bone-and-meat broth with pickled beans, peanuts and chilli. Luosifen is the love-it-or-hate-it river snail noodle soup whose fermented bamboo shoots announce themselves from a block away. And beer fish, Yangshuo's signature, is river fish braised with beer, tomato and peppers — the perfect end to a Li River day.

Folk Customs

Practical Tips

Photos: Li River, Yangshuo — via Wikimedia Commons, CC-licensed. Licenses and authors available on the original file pages.