Cangshan Cableway Secret Spot Check-in

Today, I'll take you soaring through the clouds straight to Cangshan's "hidden transit station" — the Cangshan Gantong Cableway! 📍Located in Dali City, Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, it starts at the foot station near Gantong Temple in the east (about 2050 meters above sea level) and ends at the mountaintop station midway along the Yudai Cloud Tour Road in the west (about 2600 meters above sea level). The cableway is approximately 1.8 kilometers long and is the lightest and most Zen-like aerial path to ascend Cangshan. 🌿🚡 The cableway doesn’t go directly to the peak but cleverly stops halfway up Zhonghe Peak, one of Cangshan’s nineteen peaks. Here, clouds and mist linger year-round, ancient trees tower, streams sing clearly, and the Ming Dynasty relic Gantong Temple rests quietly among the forest. The Tea Horse Road’s stone steps wind upward, surrounded by layers of rhododendrons, alpine oaks, and fir trees. The most unique feature is that upon getting off, you immediately reach the Yudai Cloud Tour Road: an ecological trail suspended on the mountainside, about 6 kilometers long. On one side is a sheer cliff, on the other a rolling sea of clouds. Walking here feels like treading on clouds, occasionally spotting squirrels leaping between branches or monkeys peeking out, as if stepping into the secret realm of Cangshan from Xu Xiake’s travel notes. Itinerary: 1-day cloud zen journey | Cableway ride + walk the Cloud Tour Road + visit ancient temple + taste Gantong tea Total budget: under 400 RMB (about 392 RMB per person) Transportation｜¥60 Taxi from Dali Ancient City to Gantong Cableway Station ¥30×2 = ¥60 (about 15 minutes one way) Tickets｜¥150 Round-trip Gantong Cableway ¥150 (discounts available for students/seniors, buy on site) Highlights｜Be a mountain cloud wanderer! ✅ Capture panoramic views of Cangshan and the faintly visible sea of clouds and Erhai Lake through the cableway window as you ascend ✅ Upon getting off, head straight to the Yudai Cloud Tour Road: recommended walk to the "Qingbi Stream" viewing platform (about 1.2 km) to overlook the triple waterfall and deep valley cloud waves 💦 ✅ Visit the thousand-year-old Gantong Temple: see Yang Fu’s "Mountain Flower Stele," listen to the lingering ancient bell tones, and enjoy a cup of temple-roasted Gantong tea under the ginkgo trees 🍵 ✅ Climb up to the "Cangshan Grand Canyon Viewing Platform" and wait for the afternoon sea of clouds to roll over the ridge for a spectacular sight. Meals｜¥182 Lunch: Gantong Temple vegetarian feast (including tofu banquet + mushroom soup + buckwheat rice) ¥68 Afternoon tea: buy grilled milk fan and sour plum juice at the temple gate stall ¥22 Dinner: back in the ancient city, enjoy Bai-style sour and spicy fish + cold seaweed salad + Cangshan snow pear soup ¥92 ✅ Total cost breakdown: Transportation ¥60 + Cableway ¥150 + Meals ¥182 = ¥392 (remaining ¥8 can buy a handwritten blessing card) Best time: 8:30 AM – 11:00 AM | highest chance of sea of clouds | avoid afternoon fog Essentials: non-slip sneakers, light jacket (big temperature difference at the top), camera, power bank, thermos (to fill with mountain spring water) Off-the-beaten-path tip: Light a vegetarian incense stick at Gantong Temple, sit quietly for 10 minutes; record the sound of wind through pine trees on your phone 🎧🌲 As the cableway slowly lifts off the ground, I suddenly understand— Cangshan is not just a mountain, it is a slowly unfolding long poem above the clouds.