Itinerary · 7 days · balanced
Guizhou Minority Villages — Miao and Dong Country, 7 days
The Miao silver-adorned villages of Xijiang and Leishan, the Dong drum tower villages of Zhaoxing and Dong Grand Bridge country — Guizhou's ethnic minority heartland.
Guizhou (贵州) province has the highest concentration of ethnic minority groups in China — Miao, Dong, Buyi, Yi, Zhuang, and others. The Miao (苗族) are known for elaborate silver headdresses and pleated skirts; the Dong (侗族) build multi-storey drum towers and covered wind-rain bridges without a single nail. This route moves through the southeast Guizhou minority regions, staying in village guesthouses.
Day by day
Day 1 · guiyang
Arrival Guiyang, Jiaxiu Pavilion, Qianling Park
Arrive Guiyang (贵阳). Jiaxiu Pavilion on the Nanming River — a three-storey pavilion on a rock midstream, a city landmark since 1598. Qianling Park and its rhesus macaques. Guizhou cuisine dinner: sour fish soup (酸汤鱼), glutinous rice wine, and spicy scrambled eggs.
Stay in: Guiyang city centre.
Day 2 · kaili
HSR to Kaili, Miao Museum, afternoon village
Morning HSR east to Kaili (凯里). Guizhou Miao-Dong Cultural Museum for context on the ethnic textile and silver-work traditions. Afternoon drive to Langde village — a Miao village that practises traditional silk embroidery cooperatives without becoming overly commercialised.
Stay in: Kaili city.
HSR Guiyang → Kaili South, 45 min, ¥55.
Day 3 · xijiang
Drive to Xijiang, China's largest Miao village
Road transfer to Xijiang Qianhu Miao Village (西江千户苗寨) — over 1,200 households on terraced hillsides, the largest Miao village in China. Afternoon walking the wooden walkway above the village. Silver jewellery and batik textile workshops. Festival drumming in the main square at dusk.
Stay in: Xijiang village guesthouse.
Road Kaili → Xijiang, 1.5h, by bus or private car.
Day 4 · zhaoxing
Road south to Zhaoxing Dong Village
Road south via Rongjiang. Zhaoxing (肇兴) — a Dong nationality village with five drum towers (鼓楼, gǔlóu), each representing a different clan. The drum towers are built from wood and pine bark using traditional mortise-and-tenon joinery. Evening Dong polyphonic folk music (侗族大歌), a UNESCO Intangible Heritage.
Stay in: Zhaoxing village guesthouse.
Road Xijiang → Zhaoxing via Rongjiang, 3h.
Day 5 · zhaoxing
Dong wind-rain bridges, Tangam village
Morning hike to Tangam (堂安) village on the hillside above Zhaoxing — rice terraces and a small Dong museum. Walk the covered wind-rain bridge (风雨桥) that connects the upper and lower village. Dong bread-making demonstration.
Stay in: Zhaoxing.
Day 6 · guiyang
Return to Guiyang via Congjiang
Morning drive north to Congjiang for the Biasha Miao village — the last community in China where men by custom carry muskets and have traditionally worn their hair in a top-knot. Continuing by bus or train to Guiyang.
Stay in: Guiyang.
Road Zhaoxing → Congjiang 1h then train or bus Congjiang → Guiyang 4–5h.
Day 7 · guiyang
Huangguoshu Waterfall, departure
Day trip southwest to Huangguoshu Waterfall (黄果树瀑布) — one of the largest in Asia, 77m high and set among karst. Return to Guiyang for evening flight or train departure.
Flight KWE → Beijing 2.5h, ¥600; or HSR KWE → Chongqing 2h, ¥180.
Budget guide (CNY per day)
| Backpacker | ¥2800 |
| Mid-range | ¥6500 |
| Comfortable | ¥13000 |
Per person 7 days. Xijiang entrance ¥100. Zhaoxing entrance ¥80. Huangguoshu ¥180. Village guesthouses ¥80–200/night. Organised road transfers ¥200–400 per segment.
Cities covered