Hello. Would you recommend the best way to travel from guilin to yangshuo if I prefer to experience the bamboo raft ride from yangdi to xinping as the alternative route?

Dear Leli,

Thanks for contacting Top China Travel!

There are a couple of ways for you to travel from Guilin to Yangshuo, by car/bus, by cruise or bamboo raft. 

By Bus
From Guilin, there are frequent minibuses and Express Buses leaving for Yangshuo. All buses terminate at the bus terminal in Yangshuo. Minibuses depart from the square in front of the Guilin railway station. The journey takes about 80 to 90 minutes. Starting at 7:00am, the busses depart close to every 20 minutes and cost an affordable 20 Yuan. Passengers are supposed to buy tickets on the bus once it is underway. Invariably touts will try to sell you a more expensive ticket before the bus departs, or invalid tickets, whilst even coming onto the bus. The best approach is simply to ignore them. Express buses (buy tickets from counter inside terminal) depart every half hour from the Guilin Bus Terminal off Zhongshan Zhong Lu (near to Guilin Railway Station) and take about one and a half hour. Most buses from Guilin now arrive at the new north bus station. You can take the small yellow public buses (looks like a large golf cart) from here to Yangshuo West Street in 6 minutes.

By Boat or Cruise
There are also boats that travel down the Li River from Guilin, which is known as Li River Cruise. It is slower and more expensive than buses, but a very scenic journey. You will pass by what is considered some of China's most famous scenic views. The boat usually departs from Mopanshan Dock or Zhujiang Dock at 9:00 am. And the journey takes about 4 hours.

Note: Do check with your travel agent or hotel which boat you will be on as standards can vary a lot. Ask for a picture to be sure it is what you had in mind.

By Bamboo Raft
This stretch along the Li River is probably the most renowned and popular. The "raft experience" is now a boom industry and hundreds of these small rafts cruise this route when the big tour boats have passed. The rafts are safe and the better operators provide life jackets. The Bamboo Raft departs from Yangti to Xingping. To take the bamboo raft, travelers should take minibus to from the parking lot in front of Guilin Railway Station to Yangti Dock first. Then have fun on the Bamboo Raft cruising along Li River for 2 hours. After get off the Bamboo Raft at Xingping, take minibus to get to Yangshuo Bus Terminal. You can take the small yellow public buses (looks like a large golf cart) from the terminal to Yangshuo West Street in 6 minutes.

Which way is the best depends on your expectation. If you need direct travel and save time, by bus/car is the best way. It takes about 1.5 only from Guilin to Yangshuo. If you want to enjoy beautiful scenerary with cheap price and do not mind transfer, taking the bamboo raft would be better. Taking the cruise is the most expensive and the most time-consuming one(4 hours).

Any further request or question, please feel free to contact with us.