Ailao Mountain Tea-Horse Ancient Road

The Ancient Tea-Horse Road was not just one road, but a vast transportation hub. It had different routes at different times, with the Sichuan-Tibet Road, the Yunnan-Tibet Road, and the Qinghai-Tibet Road (Gansu-Qinghai Road) as the main routes, and numerous smaller branches and auxiliary routes forming a road system.

When purchasing tickets, you can choose a three-ticket package, or you can choose a package that only includes the Shimenxia Scenic Area and the Ancient Tea-Horse Road. When you get here, just show your ticket to the staff and they will let you in.

This is a section of the Ancient Tea Horse Road in Ailao Mountain, and also the second scenic spot in the area. A 5-kilometer drive from Shimenxia brings you to the main entrance. Parking is very convenient, and you can park your car in the open space at the entrance to the scenic area. There is also a shuttle bus that runs here at a fixed time, so it feels a bit rushed.

This place is not as steep as Shimen Gorge, but it has lush vegetation and a caravan cultural exhibition room. When I went in to have a look, I saw some items used by people who traveled along the ancient Tea Horse Road at that time.

It takes about 40 minutes to walk the entire circle. When you first enter, the trees are lush and the sunlight cannot penetrate. It feels a bit cold. As you walk, you will feel hot again. It is best not to take off your clothes at this time, as you will easily catch a cold. The entire road is paved and flat, but it still takes some physical effort. It is not recommended for the elderly with poor physical strength to walk.

It takes about 40 minutes to walk the entire circuit. When you first enter, there's no sun, and the trees are dense, so the sun can't get in, so you feel a little chilly. As you walk further, you start to feel hot again, so it's best not to take off your clothes, as you'll easily catch a cold. The path is fairly flat, but it's not recommended for elderly people with limited stamina.

Today, the Ancient Tea Horse Road boasts picturesque scenery and well-preserved natural beauty, with fewer traces of horse hooves left. Due to its age, the area no longer bears the traces of its former prosperity. However, the ecological environment remains excellent, with lush vegetation. Since you're here, why not take a stroll?

The so-called Ancient Tea Horse Road is the Silk Road in Yunnan in ancient times. It is of course thousands of kilometers long, but what we experienced today was only a 1-kilometer journey near the horse farm. Although it was short, it was very thrilling. A master led five horses in a string, walking on a narrow and rugged mountain road. In some sections, there were deep ditches next to the mountain road. I didn’t dare to take pictures when I went up the mountain. I rode to the viewing point and arrived at the end. I had nearly half an hour to take pictures. In fact, I hope tourists can buy horse food to feed the horses. The scenery at the photo point is really good.

The Ancient Tea-Horse Road on Ailao Mountain in Gasa Town, Xinping Yi and Dai Autonomous County, Yuxi City is unforgettable!

There was only one staff member on duty at the scenic spot, who was dozing off out of boredom. I guess there were very few tourists. The scenic area was naturally quiet.

I was so excited to see these ruins the first time I went, eagerly searching among the trees and grass. All I saw were jumbled stones piled together, or rotten wood piled together. I figured if there were any traces of caravans stopping here, they'd long been washed away by rain, wind, and frost over the course of history. Since then, when I've encountered similar ruins, I've simply peeked in from the road. The Ancient Tea Horse Road follows the path of a mountain stream, flowing down a valley. The ten-mile-long beach is beautiful, with gurgling springs cascading down. We left the trail and excitedly headed for the stream, hoping to play there. The only downside was the hot and humid valley, and the constant buzzing of mosquitoes around us, pestering us. They haunted us the entire time we were there, as if we'd intruded into their territory and were determined to get rid of us. As we walked and played, we had to keep a hand free to shoo the mosquitoes away. We were exhausted, but we didn't dare stop for a moment, missing out on the beautiful scenery.

Xinping is a place with Dai and Yi culture, and is also famous for its horse caravan culture. The Ancient Tea Horse Road of Ailao Mountain is a system of Ailao Mountain culture. The ancient mountains are home to mysterious horse caravans. The mountain road is a bit difficult to walk, but overall, it is worth a visit to breathe the air deep in the mountains and experience the legend of the horse caravan.

I was just passing by here, and I thought it was quite magical. The Ancient Tea-Horse Road was a channel for transporting tea for exchange. It was very narrow, which gave us a glimpse of how difficult the road to Shu was.

When you go to the Ancient Tea Horse Road, you will see many yards with horses.

The prices are different

So when you go horseback riding on the Ancient Tea Horse Road, remember to bargain!!!



We had a 2-hour horseback riding trip, a boat trip to Lashi Lake, and lunch.

Starting price: 850 RMB

Finally we talked about 200RMB/person



There is actually no scenery on the Ancient Tea Horse Road

The main thing is to ride a horse to experience the ancient Tea Horse Road at that time.

The scenery is average, but it is tiring to keep walking in the woods.

It's not as good as I thought. Riding a horse is really a technical job. My butt hurts a lot.

The Tea Horse Road is a 740 yuan trip for two people to ride a horse around the mountain road and take a boat for a round trip. It's a rip-off. The scenery here is not good at all. It's not worth spending the money. If you want to come, don't get ripped off...

Riding a horse and thinking about the days when the horse team walked on the ancient road, it must have been very difficult and slow.

The mountain road was very narrow. Ma Lao loved to eat the grass on the cliff edge. He was mentally exhausted along the way and his legs were weak when he came down...

My little white horse, I miss you. You are so good. I hope you don’t carry heavy people. Grow up well.

You can still go, but be careful not to get ripped off. It's really easy to get ripped off, okay? They said the original price was over 500 yuan, but since we were students, we only had to give over 200 yuan. Even if I begged and pampered my friends, we couldn't get that extra 10 yuan off... Anyway, I know he must have made a lot of money.

We booked a day trip to Lashi Lake with the inn. We didn't go very far, just rode around for a bit. The horses were really tired, and I felt bad for them. The food was pretty good, a delicious local chicken hot pot.

Riding a horse and going around the rugged mountain roads, you will deeply appreciate the hardships of horsemen in ancient times. The scenery along the way is very beautiful.

Enjoy the scenery while riding a horse or rowing a boat, or make a pot of tea and sit and chat with two or three good friends. I just want to stay here forever and watch the clouds roll by.

On the second day of arriving in Shuhe, we took a one-day tour to the Tea Horse Ancient Road and Lashihai. The price was about 85 or 95 per person, I forgot which. I personally think it was great value.

The Ancient Tea Horse Road, to be honest, this afternoon's spending was not worth it. We rode horses around the mountain, but there were not many attractions on the mountain. The tour guide was boring and kept moving forward as if he was in a hurry to complete a task, leaving us no chance to get off the horses and take a closer look.

The Ancient Tea Horse Road was a little disappointing. The road was not easy to walk on and was a bit bumpy. After I came back from riding, my whole butt was sore, which was embarrassing.

In ancient times, this was a popular commercial route, with horse caravans as the main means of transportation. The road was rugged and winding. From Lijiang, you could reach Shangri-La and Lhasa.

While wandering around, we suddenly decided to join a tour group to the Lashi Lake Tea Horse Trail. The fee was 80 yuan per person. We had virtually no other expenses at Lashi Lake, saving hundreds of yuan compared to going horseback riding on our own.

The entire Lashi Lake trip was good, but not particularly exciting. It mainly consisted of horseback riding, eating horse caravan food, boating, and finally a tea tasting with a sales pitch.

We rode horses on the Ancient Tea Horse Road up the mountain, and then I was afraid of heights on the cliff and didn't dare to look down.

High school graduation trip. First time horseback riding. A white horse. A little scared at first, but eventually I was able to get on the horse myself. Hehe~ The locals were very welcoming and nice.

This ancient road should be a copy. There is a stone road in the middle. I don’t know how dangerous it is.

It is impossible to ride a horse and hear the west wind on the Magu Road, but it is also a good choice to feel the bumps on the horse's back and appreciate the fleeting shadows under the sunset.

Essentially, you can ride horses around the village, hike up the mountains, see waterfalls, and visit lakes. Because Yunnan is arid, the lakes and waterfalls don't have much water, but it's still a pleasant experience to just ride around.

The local horses have to go through a three-year training period and pass an exam before they can pick up passengers, so it is quite safe. Tourists who seldom ride horses should be careful, as it can be very painful on the buttocks!

Horseback riding was quite novel and the weather was also very good. The only thing that made people feel uncomfortable was that the people doing business there seemed to be trying to force their buying and selling.

The ride only took about 10 minutes, and I was charged 160 yuan for doing nothing. I was so confused that I decided to leave. Then a man from an ethnic minority started whining and talking to the ticket seller. He told us that we could ride to Lashi Lake for 160 yuan and go boating. I also saw a few local men being aggressive towards tourists, which left a bad impression on me.

The moment I got on the horse, I felt like I was back in the days of horse caravans, crossing mountains and steep cliffs, following the hoofprints of my ancestors, step by step, to realize my dream of reaching a neighboring country. This feeling was completely different from spending a few dozen yuan to run around the amusement park.

The scenery along the way is really beautiful and the air is fresh and pleasant

, blowing the cool wind, admiring the scenery along the way, this is definitely a kind of enjoyment

Before you ride, there will be many women trying to sell you gloves. I recommend not buying them. Gripping the saddle with your bare hands is much more secure than wearing gloves, though it may hurt a bit. Ask the groom for specific riding techniques. The most important thing is to stay relaxed. If you're afraid of the horse, it will be painful. The groom will even make the horse run, allowing you to fully experience the feeling of galloping. The scenery along the entire route is truly beautiful.

This was my first time riding a horse, and I was quite scared at first. When the horse lowered its head to drink water, I felt like I was going to fall off. It was quite scary.

Along the way, you can see dense and lush forests, as well as many towering ancient trees with luxuriant branches and leaves or towering pillars. There are many unknown small flowers dotted on the roadside or in the woods, white, pink, yellow, and bright red, with bright colors and graceful postures. You forget the "hardships" of the road and just feel like you are sitting on horseback, overlooking any mountain scenery you can pass through. You wonder whether the ancients were also in such a situation, enjoying the beautiful scenery while using their unique wisdom to survive on this ancient road between heaven and earth.

When we first started riding, we were very nervous, afraid of falling off. The road was narrow and steep, and my whole body was tense. It was not until we were going down the mountain that we relaxed a little. After going down the mountain, we rode directly to the boating area.

Walking along the Ancient Tea-Horse Road, you will immediately see the scenery: neatly arranged corn, sunny sunflowers, and apples that can be picked at will. There is fun everywhere.

The ancient Tea Horse Road was covered with mottled shadows of trees. I had to pull the horse's mane hard all the way up and down the slopes, fearing that it would fall off if I wasn't careful. Fortunately, although it was a bumpy road, it was quite stable. The brother who drove the horse was very capable.

The horses here work very hard. Like their owners, they are simple and kind, carrying the heavy burden of life.

This morning's ride was really bumpy for me.

Riding a horse up the mountain is not an easy task.

Fortunately, it’s just an experience, so I can only take it easy.

It's purely for the fun of horseback riding. There's nothing much to see. The road up the mountain is very rugged and muddy. My shoes and trouser legs are covered in mud (it's recommended to be prepared before going, buy things like shoe covers).

We rode our horses along the mountain road, which was filled with the smell of horse manure. The young man occasionally chatted with me without saying much. I took photos while riding. The scenery along the way was endless. There were local flowers and plants on the mountain, which was very fresh and clean.

The pony was incredibly energetic the entire way, running whenever there was a slight downhill slope. The pine forest scenery along the way was picturesque.

On day three, we journeyed to the legendary Tea-Horse Trail, retracing the footsteps of our ancestors. The local ponies were easily manageable, even for someone like me who had never ridden before. The scenery along the trail was breathtakingly beautiful. Due to safety concerns and the jolting of the horses, I didn't get to take many good photos.

Riding a horse on the Ancient Tea Horse Road, my butt was hurting so much, and the sun was particularly glaring...

As we rode the horses all the way, the horse owners joked with us, "You kids are just asking for trouble." The sun here is so strong and the radiation is so intense that even though we each bought a Naxi shawl, we still couldn't withstand the sun's heat.

Although the Tea Horse Road is steep, riding is not strenuous at all. The grooms recommend riding ponies, as they have a low center of gravity and are more convenient for maneuvering on the mountain roads.

I spent the entire morning on the awful Ancient Tea-Horse Road, which essentially consisted of a bumpy ride up and down two hills. I saw the supposed bathing place of the Seven Fairies—Seven Fairies Lake. Honestly, it's just a small pond, but the grass is greener, the water is clearer, the mountain spring water is sweeter, and the place is more beautiful.

Along the way, the mountain roads we climbed were quite steep, but my Xiaohong walked very steadily and the saddle was very soft, so it didn't cause me any discomfort.

Walking on the rugged Tea-Horse Ancient Road, especially on the steep rocks, the horse's hooves will slip, but fortunately it has four legs. Four legs are different, haha~~

I didn’t dare to take photos casually while riding on horseback, but the breath of the alpine forest and the cool air in the coniferous forest made me feel refreshed. I no longer felt dizzy or weak. I am grateful to nature for making people sober.

The road is very narrow, and there are some dangerous uphill and downhill sections. Some places are really difficult to walk on.

Actually, the activities along the Ancient Tea Horse Road are pretty much the same: horseback riding and boating. I'm not a big sports person by nature, so I'm not that keen on horseback riding and I'm actually quite scared. My husband and I spent a little over 500 yuan. He mentioned all sorts of attractions, but they're all pretty much the same. Those so-called attractions are nothing more than small ponds or something. Let me show you that Seven Star Lake. There are so many coins in there.

Two hours of horseback riding on the so-called Tea Horse Road, half an hour of boating, and a decent, but still satisfying, farm-style meal. The horses were obedient, but the treacherous mountain path was enough to scare the crap out of me. If the horse stumbled, I'd be dead too. We climbed to the top, commanding a panoramic view of the mountains, and then trudged back to the stables, where my butt was bruised in several places and my back was broken.

We saw many beautiful sights along the Ancient Tea Horse Road. Although the weather was not very good and it was very sunny and cloudy, the scenery was still beautiful.

When choosing a horse, you can choose to ride it yourself or with a guide. My wife's horse was led by a guide, while I rode mine myself.

The scenery along the way is quite beautiful.

Actually, many of the scenic spots I mentioned were beautiful, but we only passed by them along the way. Furthermore, the horsemen were in a hurry, so the ride was rushed and the scenery was so swift that I couldn't even find a place to lie down and sleep. This trip was purely for the horseback riding experience. So, if there's a next time, I'll definitely hike the distance—it's only a few kilometers! But I don't think there will be a next time...

In fact, the mountain road is not easy to walk on, and the horses are very smart and always want to change routes secretly. If it weren't for the master, they would have gotten lost long ago.

Riding a horse leisurely on a country road, walking along the ancient Tea-Horse Road, looking at the beautiful scenery, daydreaming or enjoying it are all beautiful times and different experiences.

While it's called an ancient trail, it's actually only a small part of it. Its historical significance and far-reaching influence can't be fully appreciated by simply walking around it. Well, let's just enjoy the fun of horseback riding.

Lashi Lake is 8km away from Lijiang Ancient Town. Of course, you have to experience horseback riding when you go to the Ancient Tea Horse Road. Most of the horses here are Yunnan horses, which are very small.

On the Ancient Tea Horse Road, you can pass by a large rose field. The flowers are in full bloom and are very beautiful. The sky in Lijiang is also really blue. It is so beautiful that it seems unreal. PS is powerless under the magic of nature.

There is a horseman leading us up the mountain, taking a 10-minute break to take pictures, and then riding down the mountain. Needless to say, the scenery along the way is very beautiful, and riding is also very fun. The horse I chose is very docile and tall. I like it very much!

We walked along the Ancient Tea-Horse Road into the mountains. The road was narrow and difficult to walk on at first, so we changed to a slow walk. Try not to come here when the weather is bad, as it will be uncomfortable.

Our route was a route taken by local villagers, riding horses along a section of the former Tea Horse Road.

If you buy tickets formally, there are at least 4 routes to choose from. The riding time is different, so the prices are different, and you can see more attractions. I suggest you choose the 2-hour or 3-hour route, otherwise your butt will hurt after riding for a long time.

It is recommended to buy regular tickets so that you can see more attractions.

For thousands of years, between the towering mountains of the Hengduan Mountains and the Tibetan Plateau, there has stretched a transportation route that is the highest and most dangerous in the world.

Ride on horseback and retrace the ancient Tea-Horse Road opened up by the ancients, feeling the long-standing tea-horse culture. Imagine yourself as a bag of tea on the horse's back. The mountain road is rugged, so come on, horse!

The so-called Ancient Tea-Horse Road is just a small path opened up on the mountain. The annoying thing about the Lashi Lake cruise is that it turned back after only a few minutes of sailing, saying that it had reached the boundary of another horse farm.

First, we went to the Ancient Tea-Horse Road to learn about the history of these ancient roads and appreciate the ancient scenery.

It was my first time riding a horse, and I was a little excited that it took me half a day to get on the horse.

Fortunately, I finally got to ride a horse. The scenery along the way was as fascinating as the blue sky.

The same bluestone pavement once traversed by the caravans of the Tea Horse Road is still traversed by groups of horses today, though they no longer function as caravans but as props for tourists to ride or admire. This is part of the "Tea Horse" landscape of Shuhe Ancient Town. The next stop, Dayan Ancient Town, is more crowded than here, so horseback riding and sightseeing are unlikely to be a priority. For a truly enjoyable experience, this is the place to go.

To be honest, the Ancient Tea Horse Road was far from what we imagined. I wonder who are the people who are misleading us innocent kids with all those good reviews online! In addition to the poor scenery, the irregular prices are speechless.

Riding a horse on this road can really make you feel the

Helping to understand the hardships of transporting tea leaves... Horseback riding is very fun... I personally like it very much...

It's recommended to wear more clothes, as it's still a bit cold in the woods. If you're brave enough, or if you've ridden a horse before, you can make the horse gallop. The horses here are all Yunnan Dian horses, which are relatively short.

We went horseback riding on the Ancient Tea Horse Road. There are three routes, depending on the distance and number of attractions. We chose the longest one. The reward was the beautiful scenery of Qixian Lake, but the price was nearly 5 hours of riding, and my butt was sore...

The characteristic of the ancient town is the stone slabs... It is said that this is the ancient "Tea Horse Road" - merchants and horses carried tea, porcelain, and silk on these stone slabs... Gazing at the stone slabs, it is almost as if you can see the merchants' footprints and horses' hoof prints...

My favorite sport. I rode for about an hour that day, but it started to rain so I had to turn back! The horse was very obedient.

The Ancient Tea-Horse Road covers a wide area. This is the Ancient Tea-Horse Road on the Ailao Mountains. I have seen Dousha Pass before, and this time I only stayed at the entrance of the ancient road. The ticket is 20, and it is said that you can finish the tour in an hour.

Going for a walk on horseback in a blue sky with white clouds, even if you don't gallop, just taking a leisurely walk will make you feel good.