Daotian Lixiang
A hand-picked boutique retreat
A small terrace-view lodge at Aichun, set right on the lip of the flooded Yuanyang rice terraces above Honghe. Floor-to-ceiling windows in the rooms open straight onto the water-mirrored fields, so sunrise arrives from bed and the sea of cloud rolls in below the ridge; a stone-and-timber lounge and library, with a wood-burning stove and tea laid out, is where the day begins and ends. Sometimes styled the Blue-Terrace Lodge, it sits within walking reach of the Hani village of Azheke along the ridge.
Highlights
- Perched right on the edge of the flooded Yuanyang terraces at Aichun, above Honghe in southern Yunnan
- Floor-to-ceiling terrace-view windows in the rooms — sunrise arrives straight onto the water-mirrored fields from bed
- A sea of cloud that rolls in below the ridge on the good mornings, with the terraces catching the light beneath
- A stone-and-timber lounge and library with a wood-burning stove and tea laid out — where the day starts and ends
- The Hani village of Azheke within walking reach along the ridge, a short stroll into working terrace country
- A small, quiet lodge (sometimes styled the Blue-Terrace Lodge) built for the light rather than for scale
Inside Daotian Lixiang
Staying at Daotian Lixiang
01 Where is Daotian Lixiang and what will I see from it?
It's a small lodge at Aichun, perched on the very lip of the flooded Yuanyang rice terraces above Honghe in southern Yunnan. The rooms' floor-to-ceiling windows open straight onto the water-mirrored fields, so sunrise arrives from bed and the sea of cloud rolls in below the ridge.
02 When is the best time to stay for the terraces?
The Yuanyang terraces are at their most spectacular when the fields are flooded and mirror-still, which is broadly the cooler months from late autumn through winter and into early spring. That's when you get the reflected skies, the sunrise light and the cloud seas the lodge is positioned for.
03 What is there to do besides watch the view?
The Hani village of Azheke sits within walking reach along the ridge, so you can wander into a working terrace community. Back at the lodge, the stone-and-timber lounge and library — wood-burning stove lit, tea laid out — is where the day begins and ends between sunrise and sunset viewpoints.
