Atlas of China
Diqing 迪庆Díqìng
Sacred snow peaks, a golden-roofed monastery and the gorge a tiger leapt
- Type
- Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture
- Region
- Yunnan
- Seat
- Shangri-La
- Featured places
- 4
- Listed sites
- 71 rated 5A · 2 rated 4A · 4 national heritage
About Diqing
Diqing, or Dêqên in Tibetan, is Yunnan's Tibetan corner, where the Jinsha (upper Yangtze) and Lancang (Mekong) cut deep gorges on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau. Its capital, called Zhongdian until it was renamed Shangri-La in 2001, is the base for Songzanlin, Yunnan's largest Tibetan monastery, and the lakes of Potatso National Park. In the north-west, Kawagarbo, sacred and unclimbed, rises above the Mekong near Deqin, while Tiger Leaping Gorge and Baishuitai lie to the south.
What to eat in Diqing
- Butter tea (酥油茶)
- Highland barley wine (青稞酒)
Featured places in Diqing
-
Meili Snow Mountain & Yubeng 梅里雪山与雨崩
Yunnan's highest peak, sacred and unclimbed, with a trek to a village beneath its glaciers
-
Shangri-La & Songzanlin Monastery 香格里拉松赞林寺
A golden-roofed Tibetan monastery stacked up a hillside, nicknamed 'Little Potala'
-
Tiger Leaping Gorge 虎跳峡
A classic two-day trail high above one of the world's deepest gorges
-
Baishuitai 白水台
Milk-white travertine terraces below Haba Snow Mountain, sacred to the Naxi Dongba faith
Listed sites in Diqing
7 sites in Diqing are on the official lists. Those with a page of their own link to it; the rest open as cards on the map.
- Potatso National Park 普达措国家公园 5A scenic area
A protected area of lakes, wetlands, forest and alpine meadow east of Shangri-La, inaugurated in 2007 as the first reserve in mainland China to be named a national park, within the Three Parallel Rivers World Heritage area. - Balagezong (Shangri-La Grand Canyon) 巴拉格宗 4A scenic area · on the map
A deep canyon area in the north-west of Shangri-La, near the borders with Sichuan and Tibet, within the Hongshan section of the Three Parallel Rivers World Heritage Site. - Shika Snow Mountain 石卡雪山 4A scenic area · on the map
A mountain rising to around 4,500 metres just south-west of Shangri-La town; its Tibetan name is said to refer to a place where red deer roam. - Cizhong Catholic Church 茨中教堂 National heritage site
A Catholic church in the village of Cizhong in southern Deqin County, rebuilt here by French missionaries of the Paris Foreign Missions Society in 1909–1911 after their earlier church, about 15 km to the south, was burnt in 1905. - Shouguo Temple, Kangpu 寿国寺 National heritage site · on the map
A Tibetan Buddhist monastery of the Qing dynasty in Kangpu township, in the Lancang (upper Mekong) valley of north-western Yunnan, usually described as belonging to the Karma Kagyu school. - Tongle Lisu Village 同乐村 National heritage site
A Lisu village of about 130 households on a slope above the east bank of the Lancang (upper Mekong) at about 2,200 metres, founded more than 200 years ago. - Yezhi Tusi Residence 叶枝土司衙署 National heritage site
The seat of the Wang family, hereditary Naxi chieftains (tusi) of the Yezhi area, begun under the Kangxi emperor and enlarged until it reached its present size in the Guangxu era.
Getting to Diqing
Train, flight and driving times from the cities most visitors come from, with stations, fares and how many run a day; each opens the full comparison.
- Lijiang 丽江 to Shangri-La · high-speed train 1 h 10 min, 10 a day, from ¥70
- Dali 大理 to Shangri-La · high-speed train 3 h 15 min, 5 a day, from ¥129
- Baoshan 保山 to Shangri-La · high-speed train 5 h 35 min, 1 a day, from ¥197
- Kunming 昆明 to Shangri-La · high-speed train 4 h 45 min, 4 a day, from ¥260; 3 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 20 min in the air
- Chongqing 重庆 to Shangri-La · train 11 h 59 min with a change at Kunming; a nonstop route is listed
On the map
Open Diqing on the illustrated map to see its outline, its places and listed sites together, and to add them to a trip.
Open Diqing on the map