Everything included
In-Depth Longji Rice Terraces Day Tour with Lunch
From $88 per person
Check AvailabilityFree cancellation up to 24 hours ahead. You will not be charged yet.
- Length10.5 hours
- On the hill6.5 hours, arriving 11:00 and leaving 17:30
- Leaves fromGuilin (Sheraton Guilin Hotel)
- GuideGuide included
- Gate ticketTicket included
- LunchIncluded
- CancellationFree up to 24 hours ahead
The one day here where nothing is left to settle at the gate. The scenic-area ticket, an English-speaking guide, a Zhuang bamboo-rice lunch and the Red Yao long-hair performance are all in a single fare, and the operator publishes the day to the quarter hour.
What the day gives you
A published clock
08:30 gather, 11:00 at the gate, 13:00 hiking, 17:30 off the hill, 19:00 back in Guilin.
Ticket, lunch and show
All three in the fare, which is what makes $88 the value it is.
Guzhuang, which few tours reach
The Ancient Zhuang Village and its ecological museum, before the crowds get to Ping’an.
Six and a half hours on the hill
The longest time at the terraces of any day tour here.
A one-hour walk between villages
Guzhuang to Ping’an through the terraces, rather than two car parks and a viewpoint.
No shopping stops
None on the itinerary, and the timetable leaves no room for one.
Six and a half hours on the hill, to a published clock
You know this day to the quarter hour before you book it. Gather at the Sheraton Guilin at 08:30, board at 08:45, reach the ticket office above Guzhuang at 11:00, leave the hill at 17:30 and be back in the city at 19:00.
What that timetable buys is the thing every other fixed departure trims: six and a half hours actually at the terraces. It is longer than two of the private days here, and it is why the walking section is a real hour rather than a photo stop.
Your return time moves with the traffic on the mountain road, so plan the evening loosely rather than booking a train.
Guzhuang first, then the walk to Ping’an
The order is the interesting part. Rather than driving to Ping’an and climbing from the car park with everyone else, this day starts higher, at Guzhuang, the Ancient Zhuang Village of timber houses and stone paths that most itineraries skip altogether.
You walk the village, visit its ecological museum of tools, costume and household objects, and call at a family home. Then, at one o’clock, you walk an hour through the terraces to Ping’an rather than driving round.
The Yao long-hair performance happens en route rather than as a separate excursion, and lunch waits in Ping’an at the far end of the walk.
Bamboo rice, and the two platforms after it
Lunch is a Zhuang village meal with bamboo-tube rice as the dish it is built around — rice cooked inside green cane over a fire so it takes the scent of the wood. It is included, which is unusual at this price.
Afterwards the day climbs to the two named platforms above Ping’an: Seven Stars with the Moon and Nine Dragons and Five Tigers. Two and a half hours are allowed, which is enough for both without hurrying either.
What the fare covers
In the fare
- ✓ Day-return coach transport
- ✓ English-speaking tour guide
- ✓ Admission to Longji Rice Terraces
- ✓ Yao women's long hair show
- ✓ Lunch, a local Zhuang meal
Not in the fare
- ✗ Personal expenses
- ✗ Travel insurance
The day, hour by hour
- 08:30 gather at the Sheraton Guilin Hotel
- Two-and-a-half-hour coach to Longji
- Ancient Zhuang Village and Ecological Museum
- Local family home visit
- One-hour hike to Ping'an Village
- Yao long hair performance en route
- Zhuang bamboo-rice lunch in Ping'an
- Two famous Ping'an viewing platforms
The sequence the operator publishes for this tour. Times shift with the traffic on the mountain road.
Who this suits, and who should book something else
This one suits you if…
First visits, and anyone who would rather not spend the day making small decisions about tickets, buses and lunch. It also suits walkers: the Guzhuang-to-Ping’an hour is the best stretch of path any fixed departure here puts you on, and it is guided the whole way.
Choose something else if…
If you want the Jinkeng bowl, the ropeway, or a sunrise, this day cannot give you any of the three — it arrives at eleven and goes to Ping’an. See the private day that reaches both valleys.
Where you are collected
The lobby of the Sheraton Guilin Hotel at 08:30, and you make your own way there — this is a self-check-in departure rather than a hotel pickup. The team wear blue vests and hold a boarding sign, and the guide telephones the day before to reconfirm the time.
Know before you go
- You travel to the meeting point yourself. It is a join-in coach, not a door-to-door service. Budget fifteen minutes and a taxi fare to reach the Sheraton by 08:30.
- You share the coach. It is a join-in departure. If you want the vehicle to yourself, the private days cost roughly a third more per person for two travellers.
- The day is ten and a half hours door to door. It is the longest fixed departure here. Treat it as the whole day rather than the morning.
- Not suitable if altitude affects you. The terraces top out around 1,100 metres, so it is mild — but it is named on the product, so take it at face value.
- Children must be with an adult. There is an hour of walking on stone steps in the middle of the day. The buggy at Ping’an covers part of the climb for CNY 30 one way, CNY 50 return.
- Bring your passport. The operator asks for it, and the scenic area checks documents for reduced-price tickets at the gate.
What travellers said about this tour
Well organised, and our guide went into real detail on the history and culture of the region as well as the terraces themselves. The lunch was good too. I would recommend it to anyone heading up from Guilin.
Stoycho · Traveller from Bulgaria · May 2026
A new van with proper seats and a professional driver, which matters over that distance. Our guide navigated some slippery ground safely and was always ready to help. The meal was generous.
B. · Traveller from Poland · May 2026
Good trekking between the villages and the terraces, done in early August in a lot of heat and humidity. The organisation was thorough from start to finish and our guide was professional and friendly.
Massimo · Traveller from Italy · August 2026
I enjoyed the hike and our guide was excellent. One caution: in my view this is not a walk for everyone, because it is strenuous, and I think that could be clearer in the description. We are a young couple and had no trouble with it.
Giulia · Couple, Italy · August 2026
Read all reviews on the booking page
Photographs from the terraces
See more photographs and live availability
Questions about this tour
Is the CNY 80 scenic-area ticket in the price?
Yes, along with the guide, the Zhuang lunch and the Red Yao long-hair performance. Bought separately those come to most of the fare before you have paid for the drive.
Is there hotel pickup?
No. You make your own way to the Sheraton Guilin lobby for 08:30, which is the trade-off that keeps the price at $88. If door-to-door matters, the private car with a guide collects you and costs $68.
Which villages does it visit?
Guzhuang, the Ancient Zhuang Village, then Ping’an on foot through the terraces, with the long-hair performance en route. It does not go to Jinkeng Dazhai.
How much walking is there?
About an hour between Guzhuang and Ping’an on stone paths, then the climb to the two platforms above the village. Comfortable shoes with grip matter more than fitness.
Is it really a small group?
The listing offers private and small-group options and does not publish a cap for the join-in departure. It runs as a coach, so expect a full one in harvest season.
Can I cancel if the weather turns?
Yes, in full up to 24 hours before it starts. That is the simplest insurance against a bad forecast in a region where the cloud decides a lot.
Other ways onto the terraces
- Longji Rice Terraces Full-Day Private Tour from Guilin — From $119 per person, 7 to 12 hours
- Private Longji Rice Terraces & Minority Villages Day Tour — From $68 per person, 10 hours
- All Longji Rice Terraces tours