Dali Transportation

Getting There

By Air
Dali Airport (DLU) is located in the southeast bank of Erhai Lake, 12km away from the downtown. As a small airport, it only has several airlines here, including Kunming, Xishuangbanna and Guangzhou. The flight from Kunming to Dali is available everyday costing only 30min.

How to get to the airport
1. By No.7 public bus
2. By taxi (50RMB to the Xiaguan District, 90RMB to the Dali Ancient Town)

By Train
There are three trains everyday from Kunming to Dali and two of them start in the morning and one begins at night, taking 6 to 8 hours. In front of the station, you can go to the Dali Ancient Town by No.8 public bus with a cost of only 1.5RMB. The Dali-Lijiang Railway has been opened to the traffic in 2010, which is considered as ‘the most beautiful railway’. You can get to the Lijiang Ancient Town by train from Dali to appreciate amazing sceneries along the railway.

Tips: Additionally, Dali Train Station is opened to the passengers only 1.5 hours before the departure time of each train. Entering the waiting room means ticket checking. Please pay attention!

By Long Distance Bus
There are three main coach stations in Dali, including Dali Coach Station, Passenger Service Station and Dayun Coach Station.

Dali Coach Station is located in the No.21, Jianshe Road. Most of the long distance coaches start from it here. In the station, there is a luxurious waiting room. The coaches from Dali to Lijiang start at 8:30, 9:30, 14:00 and 19:00 everyday, two hours’ drive with a cost of 50RMB per person. The coach to Shangri-la begins at 9:00 every morning, 9 hours’ drive with a cost of 85RMB per person.

Passenger Service Station, the second largest coach station is close to the Dali Coach Station. Many buses start from it here too.

Dayun Coach Station is on the opposite of the Dali Coach Station. The cheapest ticket to Kunming is only 50RMB.

In addition, if you want to go to Lijiang or Shangri-la, Xiaguan Bus Station is also a good choice. The bus to Lijiang starts every 30 minutes and the latest one starts at 18:30, with 3.5 hours’ drive and 38RMB per person.

Getting Around

Taxi
The taxi service in Dali is very convenient. The followings are the price just for your reference.

Tips
1. Waiting Time Charge: The waiting time for free of every taxi is 5 minutes. Otherwise, you should pay an additional charge of one kilometer on account of every extra 5-minute-waiting.
2. Deadhead Kilometrage Fee: You should pay an additional charge of a half of one kilometer on account of more than 10km.

Bicycle
If you want to experience Dali, bicycle is a good choice. You can rent a bike in Bo’ai Road, Dali Ancient Town. The price for rental is 10RMB~12RMB per day and the deposit is also needed.?

Boat
Cruising on the Erhai Lake is also the highlight of a tour in Dali. The ship starts from the Erhai Dock at every 8:30 with a cost of 70RMB~80RMB. We suggest that it is better to book the ticket one day ahead.