Tiger Leaping Gorge is a two-day walk, not an afternoon photo stop

Coach tours take you to the viewing platform by the road, where you look at a river between two very large mountains for twenty minutes. The reason to come is the high trail above it: about two days, with guesthouses along the way to break the walk.

Store your main bag in Lijiang, take a small one, start early, and book a bed in advance at one of the halfway guesthouses in season. Do not walk it in heavy rain — parts of the path are exposed and rockfall is real.