Originally Posted by Peter_N-H

Error in previous posting corrected. 'Yes' is what I intended to say.

I don't think there's any more to be said about Yangshuo. If you like tourist traps that in no way represent the country you're in then you just do, although there's plenty of perfectly clean and acceptable accommodation even in many places little visited by tourists.



You may not, and that's fine. No argument. But another, really very common desire is to see a China that's really Chinese; where real life is going on, where ordinary businesses predominate not ersatz made-for-tourism ones, where the village hasn't been rebuilt and extended just in order to make it look cuter for tourists, where people are helpful and approachable without expecting payment for it, where real local economy prices are paid for goods and services, (including those for perfectly modern, clean, and comfortable accommodation and proper local food).

Luckily these do not need 'searching out' since in excess of 700 million people live in rural towns and villages (although not necessarily as prettily located as Yangshuo), but are the norm, and the overwhelming majority of China simply hasn't made it on to the tourism superhighway as Yangshuo has (although that doesn't mean that there aren't comfortable Volvo buses providing easy access for locals anyway, and for you if you choose to go).

But there isn't any 'mysticism' about it at all, and if instead you like a resort atmosphere then you just do, and that's entirely up to you (and many others), and good for you. But I think I'll continue to recommend people with limited time to spend in China to consider other rural options where visitors are treated as human beings rather than wallets with legs. That's certainly my preference, and, I suspect, that of the OP.