Daguan Zhuanxin Farmer’s Market 大观篆新农贸市场
One of Kunming’s busiest local wet markets, the Daguan Zhuanxin Farmer’s Market is a foodie’s paradise and a photographer’s dream.
Off the usual tourist track, visitors can meander their way up and down the alleys, observing the everyday life of Kunming residents as they go about their daily shopping.
Plan to arrive with absolutely no plan, and instead pick your way through the extensive spread of seasonal fruits and vegetables, a multitude of mushrooms, bountiful baked goods and – most interestingly – smattering of minority specialty dishes.
Not only is the market a great place for inhabitants to pick up their groceries, it’s also ideal for tasting everything from the customary Kunming street snacks – grilled rolls of rose jam-slathered goat’s milk cheese known as rushan, plush corn flour steamed buns, sweet red bean stuffed pastries, and so much more...
... to the regional minority plates – Dai-style mashed grilled eggplant and zippy yellow chicken lemon cold salad, just to name a few.
The best time to visit is early in the morning for grocery shopping, or around lunch time for snacking, as the market closes by about 6pm.
Pro Tip: If it’s flowers you’re after, Kunming is also home to the Dou Nan Flower Market (斗南花市) – the largest wholesale flower market in all of Asia, operating 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, just south of the city center.
Jiaozi Snow Mountain 轿子雪山
Situated 150 kilometers north of Kunming, Jiaozi Snow Mountain is a 4A tourist site and year-round destination, rewarding the adventurous with expansive views from 4,223 meters above sea level.
Resembling something out of a Swiss Alps postcard, the terrain here encompasses mountain lakes, sky-high pine trees, and rolling meadows, with blooming azalea flower fields in spring and a picturesque dusting of snow in winter.
There are multiple tiers of cable cars and hop-on-hop-off bus routes for those who want to hike only specific portions of the peak, as well as numerous trails with continuous views.
Visitors can also enjoy a rustic, homestyle cooked meals mid-hike in Hejia Cun (何家村) or choose to spend the night to spread the hiking across two days.
Dai Minority Cuisine 傣菜
Kunming is known for its Dai population, a minority group that cooks with hot and sour flavors, sharing similarities with those found in northern Laos and Thailand.
From lemongrass roasted fish to Dai ghost chicken salad, from grilled pork belly to sticky pineapple rice, from Dai dried beef and herb salad to stir-fried banana flowers; it’s hard not to fall head over heels for this colorful cuisine.
While many restaurants around the city sport an all-encompassing roster of Dai dishes, we suggest Dai Family Courtyard (傣家小院) for their overflowing shouzhuafan sets.
Baba 粑粑
Baba is Yunnan’s version of bing – a round, flat bread or pancake of sorts, eaten for breakfast or an afternoon snack.
Each city around the province has their own version – baked, fried, steamed; made with rice flour, corn flour, or wheat flour; stuffed or unstuffed; savory or sweet.
The options are endless, begging visitors to sample them all.
While the Kunming version is customarily wheat-based and baked – filled with all manner of ingredients of your choosing – one can easily find the Xizhou-style baba – thicker and dense, with folded buttery layers encasing anything from scallion and egg to brown sugar rose jam – or fluffy rice and egg-based baba around the city at all hours of the day.
Other equally carb-forward street snacks span erkuai – the grilled rice cake sister “wrap” of the jianbing – and mixan – slippery rice noodles topped with ground pork, pickled vegetables and fresh herbs, swimming in a rich, warming broth.
Where to Stay
Getting to Kunming is a breeze, as its home to the largest airport and train station in Yunnan, with regular direct flights to all major Chinese cities.
But the real question is where to situate yourself within the city for the most prime jumping off point to begin and end your day with a bang.
The venue that checks all the boxes – location, comfort, value for money, and culture – is the architecturally appealing Moon and Chalice Boutique Hotel, positioned smack dab in Kunming’s old town center.
Flanked by local food shops, parks and historical buildings, it is also within walking distance of many of Kunming’s tourist attractions and public transportation hubs.
This historical building is one of the city’s most iconic structures, prized for its distinct arced shape to mimic the curvature of its surroundings.
It was converted into a boutique hotel in the 1940s, offering guests a taste of the city’s glorious past, paired with modern luxuries – comfy bedding and high-pressure showers in rooms that each have their own distinct layout, a rotating selection of complimentary room-delivered freshly-brewed tea, fast internet, original artwork, high-end service, and lounge-worthy common spaces.
