This is the one decision that changes how much of the region you actually see, and a great many itineraries get it the wrong way round because Guilin is the name on the flight.
Why Yangshuo#
The karst towers, the green river and the paddy fields are downstream of Guilin, not in it. Guilin has a handful of peaks inside the city and a river running through it; Yangshuo is surrounded by the landscape on every side.
Ride ten minutes out of Yangshuo in any direction and you are among rice paddies, water buffalo and limestone towers. Do the same from Guilin and you are in a mid-sized Chinese city's suburbs.
The practical effect is on your mornings and evenings. Based in Yangshuo you can be out among the peaks at first light and back for breakfast. Based in Guilin, every good hour costs a transfer.
Where in Yangshuo#
Not the centre. West Street is a loud bar and souvenir strip, and it is what gives Yangshuo its mixed reputation.
Stay instead along the Yulong River or in the villages around Gaotian, a short ride out. The guesthouses there sit among the paddies, many run by people who will lend you a bicycle and point you at a route, and the difference in atmosphere is total for very little extra effort.
When Guilin makes sense#
- A late arrival or an early flight. The airport and main station are there, and one night by the station beats a transfer at midnight.
- The Longji rice terraces. They are a full day from Guilin and further from Yangshuo, so a night in Guilin either side is reasonable if the terraces are a priority.
- You have one night only. In that case you are choosing between two compromises, and Guilin's connections win.
Getting between them#
The Li River cruise is the standard way to arrive: four to five hours downstream from Guilin to Yangshuo through the best of the landscape, and it doubles as the transfer. Do it in that direction if you can.
Otherwise it is a bus of about an hour and a quarter, or high-speed rail to Yangshuo station, which is out of town and needs a taxi onward — check which your ticket names.
How long to give it#
Three nights in Yangshuo is the number most people wish they had booked. One for the river, one for cycling the Yulong valley, one for the terraces or simply not moving. Two works; one is a long way to come for an afternoon.
For the cruise, the terraces and what to do with the countryside days, see the Guilin and Yangshuo travel guide; for how it fits a longer route, the south China karst itinerary.