Top 8 Things to Do with Kids in Guilin
Guilin is one of the most scenic areas in China. Families to Guilin will enjoy its sheer visual beauty, local cuisine, and a series of activities featuring local characteristics such as Li River Cruise and rock climbing. For those parents and kids who want to get closer to nature or are looking for adventure, Guilin will be a very nice choice. It will meet your needs beyond your expectations.
1. Visit the Reed Flute Cave
Children will always be curious about what they have never seen before. Reed Flute Cave with impressive stalactite and stalagmite formations is worth a visit if you have not seen such caves ever. During the trip, the guide will take you around the various lit formations supposedly resembling lions, monkeys, old men, etc. When you see the caves the brief laser light and music show are also waiting for you.
2. Take the Li River Cruise
Cruising on the Li River is another local activity. The Li River flows 83 kilometers from Guilin to Yangshuo (a very picturesque smaller town downstream of Guilin), where the karst mountains and river sights highlight the famous Li River cruise. The boats are organized by the hotels. A slow trip will take a whole day but if you are using the luxury cruise, a couple of extra hours will be reserved to see the Cormorant Bird Fishing, which is bound to arouse the interests of both adults and kids.
Click Classical Guilin Tour to experience a family cruise on the Li River.
3. Eat Local Cuisine
Like many other Chinese cities, Guilin has its own snacks. Guilin cuisine is a combination of Cantonese and Hunanese styles but with more use of fish and spices. Rice Noodles is the most famous one. Traditionally the noodles and the topping are first eaten without soup, and once the topping has run out there is usually a pot of soup to add flavor to the rest noodles. If you do not like spicy food the restaurant will make your food bland and you can try other local delicacies such as Horse hoof cake, sweet tofu, and Rice with Mug Bean Paste. There is a lot to eat and restaurants can be found everywhere! Food will be available whenever it is wanted! Read more on Top Dishes to Try in Guilin
4. Visit West Street
Tourists who have been wandering around China for a while will probably want to take the chance to break from oily stir-fried vegetables and grab a cup of good coffee or have muesli for breakfast. If it is also true of you, West Street is designed for you. Here, Travelers' can eat food from many different countries at very reasonable prices. West Street, alive with cafes offering interesting Chinese and Western food, attracts a large number of younger international travelers.
It is filled with small shops and vendor's stands selling all kinds of souvenirs and snacks. Chinese teenagers mingle with young Western bicyclists and backpackers. International tourists feel at home here because everyone speaks fluent English and restaurants and bars provide menus in several languages. Why not kick back here for a few days? Take the chance to recharge your batteries and connect with your friends and relatives around the world in one of the internet cafes. The accommodation is very reasonable.
Wanna join our Guilin and Yangshuo Memories Tour to wander through West Street?
5. Li River Pebbles Art Experience
In the course of a 1.5-hour-long class, you will learn how to embellish a Chinese landscape painting with Li River pebbles:
- You select a picture from among those presented in the classroom.
- You’ll receive a sheet of paper from the teacher with your selected picture, and some pebbles collected from the Li River. Later the teacher will explain what to do.
- You will complete your work of art and keep it after the class.
Note: This experience is suitable for kids over 5 years of age.
6. Learn Chinese Painting and Calligraphy
There is a professional platform in Guilin for you to learn Chinese painting and Chinese calligraphy.
In Chinese calligraphy, you start by discussing the items traditionally used by calligraphers, including writing brush and ink, rice paper, and inkstone. Teachers demonstrate step by step how to make the motions and strokes for some Chinese characters before you perform this elegant artwork in your own fair hand.
Alternatively, you can choose to take an introductory course in traditional Chinese painting.
You will first get to know the two classic painting varieties of gongbi 工笔画 (the refined, meticulous style) and ink paintings (the freehand, expressionist style), as well as the techniques traditionally used by artists. Then you can pick up a brush and create your own Chinese painting!
7. Learn Tai Chi in Yangshuo
Tai chi is an internal martial arts system that places emphasis on the development and control of chi (consciousness) energy within the body.
When in Yangshuo, you will be able to practice tai chi in a park with a mountain backdrop. Your teacher will share some basic skills as an introduction to the art. You will be invited to participate in a tai chi competition. Exercise is surely good for the health of people of all ages.
8 . Visit a Local Family – Learn How to Make Bamboo Stuffed Rice
Bamboo stuffed rice is a famous food in Longji, with a sticky and fresh bamboo flavor. Local people will show you step-by-step how to make it.
While cooking rice in a smart and tasty way over about 40 minutes, you’ll have a chance to chat with the family and walk around their 50-year-old wooden house. It will be a feast for your eyes as well as your stomach.
Click Guilin Minority Tour to enjoy family time with the locals.
Guilin enjoys the best landscape under heaven. The rich plant, various wild animals, and stunning scenery all distinguish itself from other scenic spots. Certainly, the whole family will enjoy a good time here!
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