Jun 1, 2018
Flight: Sanya, China (SYX) to Guilin, China (KWL); Hainan economy
Hotel: Secret Courtyard Resort Hotel; Guilin
An early morning wakeup and taxi ride to the airport for my 8:30 flight to Guilin. Unfortunately that was too early for breakfast at the Four Points. I was able to checkin then joined one of the 13 security lines. There is a Priority Pass lounge in Sanya but there wasn't much choice for food. Boarding was supposed to be at 8AM but the agent came running in at 7:45 and said my flight was already boarding! It turned out we had a bus gate instead of a jetbridge so that must be why they started early.



HU SYX-KWL


Priority Pass Lounge Sanya



The flight to Guilin was quick and the airport here was quiet by comparison to Sanya. I had contacted my hotel for airport pickup and the driver was already waiting for me. I had checked the weather for Guilin for the next few days and it didn't look good. Sanya had been clear but this is start of rainy season for Guilin. It was overcast and had rained recently but luckily now it had stopped. It took about 45 minutes to drive to the hotel, passing by building built among the towering karst hills. The hotel was a gorgeous little boutique hotel in a village on the west side of Guilin.





The weather still wasn't looking the best so had a bit of a sleep before a noodle soup lunch at the hotel. One of the attractions I wanted to see was the Reed Flute cave which was nearby. I asked about it at the hotel and they said they could buy my ticket (110Y) and show me the way there. There was a trail going along the edge of the river that ended near the caves. The caves were illuminated inside with colored lights which made for some amazing views. There were a few other tours in the cave including some Germans and a Chinese group.











Fried yarn!


Beer Duck

I walked back to the hotel and fell asleep again! So much for getting much done in Guilin. Tomorrow I had a booked full-day river cruise to Yangshuo. I had the hotel call the tour company to see what time for pickup (I assumed about 8AM). For dinner I ate at the hotel again, having the local speciality beer duck. I still hadn't heard back about pickup time.