Experience local ‘Bai’ culture at the home of a local merchant family. Expect traditional music and dancing performance, tea tasting, local architecture, and a working temple complex.
Zhang’s Culture Garden has been welcoming tourists to its expansive grounds since 2008. Covering over 5 square kilometres, the site is filled with traditional Bai buildings and landscaped gardens, making it the largest Bai complex in the whole of Dali.
More than just a collection of ancient buildings, it serves as a museum of Bai architecture, history, and art, offering a glimpse into the world of a prosperous Bai merchant family.
The buildings encompass a range of local residential designs, focused on housing complexes around central courtyards, with beautiful decorative screen walls, ornate ponds, and flower arrangements reflecting the traditional Bai style.
In total there are four housing complexes and five major courtyards where the ancient Chinese principles of Ying-Yang, and Fengshui, come together to form a harmonious living space, with many camellia and azalea flowers from the CangShan mountains bringing colour to the gardens.
This beautiful complex is a fascinating place to visit, where you can find yourself spending many hours wandering the gardens and building complexes, and enjoy sampling the local tea, as you are treated to a traditional Bai music and dance performance.
For visitors who want an even more immersive experience, Zhang’s Culture Garden also operates as a hotel, with a range of traditional rooms available for booking.
Zhang’s Culture Garden is located around 5km to the south of Dali Old Town along the 214 Highway on the way to the new city, Xiaguan.
Leave a Reply