Frequently Asked Questions

to have the best of travel

YOU WILL FIND HERE, all the essential practical information to allow you to spend the best of trips to Shangri-la in the heart of the Tibetan Marches in Yunnan.
When to come, what route, what equipment? So many questions to help you prepare an expedition that will be remembered forever.

Season / climate / altitude

The best two seasons to come are spring, from April to June (including the flowering of giant rhododendrons from May 15th to June 10th) and autumn, from October to November, with superb colors. Summer is the monsoon season (especially in July) with a high risk of rain. But it’s still a good time for: very mild temperatures, wild flowers from the highlands and mushrooms.

  • April -> mid-May: between 0 ° C and 15 ° C during the day depending on the weather, between 0 ° C and -5 ° at night – snowfall is still possible during this period.mid 
  • May -> end of June: between 5 ° C and 20 ° C during the day, and 0 to 3 ° C at night 
  • end of June -> mid September: between 10 ° C and 25 ° C during the day, and 5-8 ° C at night 
  • mid September -> mid October: between 5 ° C and 20 ° C during the day, and 0 ° C at night mid October 
  • mid November: between 0 ° C and 15 ° C the day depending on the weather, between 0 ° C and -5 ° at night

We highly recommend arriving in Shangri-La (3,300 meters) at least two nights before the start of the caravan to acclimatize. And once there and during the caravan, drink water very regularly.

The symptoms of altitude sickness are: difficulty falling asleep, loss of appetite, headache, nausea and vomiting, dizziness.

From experience, since 2011 years that we organize caravans, children have always been more resistant and insensitive to altitude than some adults or adolescents. It is however very important to take care of their regular hydration because they do not think of it by themselves.

First you have to drink a lot of water or ginger tea and have a good rest in the camp. Take paracetamol to relieve pain. If the illness persists and worsens, then we can take the decision to bring the person in question on horseback, to the nearest road where our driver will wait, in order to take the patient either to the hotel, either to the hospital (which has never happened yet).

You should know that, just going down, usually resolves altitude sickness right away.

For the classic caravan, there is no need for special physical preparation. It is advisable to practice walking ,running or any other sport activities the month before departure to train the heart and legs. We recommend to be in good general health, with a minimum experience of hiking on one or severals days. People with particular health problems (heart for example), must consult their doctor and have his agreement to do such an activity. For the exploration caravan, please contact us.

Itinérary / material / options

The classic caravan of 4 days and 3 nights takes place in the south-east of Shangri-La, on paths taken mainly by locals, formerly belonging to the tea route. Departure and arrival are at Ferme Liotard. The route loops.

Exploration caravans take place in Tibetan Sichuan in distant lands. These are crossings from point A to point B.

During the classic caravan the camps are at 3,700 m and we cross passes from 4,000 to 4,300 m.

During the Exploration caravans, the camps are almost all above 4,000 m, some at 4,400 m.

On the classic caravan in Premium and Light, the route is always the same.

However, we can also adapt the route of the caravan to the walking level of the customers, especially for day 3.

The itinerary of the exploration caravans can change from year to another depending on our new discoveries.

This is a possible extra option. We highly recommend it for families with young children (5-10 years old) or for people with low hiking experience. Certain parts of the route cannot be done on horseback, and must therefore be done on foot.

You will find the list of equipment at this link (Lien vers la check list en Anglais). Your main baggage is put on a horse. You simply carry your daily belongings in a light backpack (water bottles, creams, snacks, valuable stuffs etc.)

Mainly the comfort of the bedding and furniture as well as the decoration, but also the quality of the wine and aperitifs, the number of people per tent. Thus influencing the number of horses in the caravan.

See the following document for more details.

Hygiene food and water

In the bedroom tents, there is a toilet corner with a basin, a thermos of hot water, towels and a mirror, allowing you to have a simple toilet. The loo are located in a small special tent near the camp.

Coffee and tea are made with water from the river that we boil for 10 minutes. For the day’s water, we take mineral water for the first two days. From the 3rd day, we take the already very pure water from the rivers that we boil for 10m, and cool it down.

  • Breakfast: bread, butter, jam, eggs, muesli, yogurt, coffee tea.
  • Lunch: picnic with mixed salads, bread, cakes, fruit, tea or coffee.
  • Taste: homemade tea or coffee cakes.
  • Aperitif: local charcuterie, peanuts, local beers and spirits (in Premium)
  • Dinner: starter / main course / dessert. European cuisine / fusion based on local products, wines.

You must provide yourself the “snacks” during the walk.

Yes completely, insofar as we are notified at the reservation, possible to make vegetarian menus.

PRACTICAL QUESTIONS / ACCESS

There is network only when we pass certain passes, the rest of the time, there is no network. We do not recommend the use of communications during the caravan, because its charm lies in this 4-day disconnection. No network during the exploration caravans.

There is no electricity at the camp, and no village around. You must bring your power bank if you want to charge phone and camera.

The minimum number is two people, the maximum number is 20 people, beyond contact us.

Yes, most of the groups we have are families with children.

We recommend a minimum age of 5 years (with the obligation to take the option of a horse that can be ridden up to 10 years).

At the age of 65, we ask for a medical certificate from a doctor.

Shangri-la has its own airport (code: DIG), with direct flights from the cities of Kunming / Chengdu / Chongqing and Canton. The airport is 10 at mn from the old town by car. A high-speed train line is expected to be completed by 2022, reaching Shangri-la in 6 h from Kunming.

The Farm Liotard is located 20 km east of the old town of Shangri-La, in the Ringha Valley at 3,400 m above sea level. We organize private taxi and driver from and to the old town, hotels and airport. The Fixed Camp is located just near the Farm Liotard with access to the 4G network. People living in the Fixed Camp have access to the Farm, its dining room and lounges, its toilets and showers.

Comptoir Liotard

farm products

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