Songtsam Opens a Lodge in the Canyon of the Nujiang

Songtsam opened a lodge in the canyon of the Nujiang in March 2024. The Nujiang is the Chinese name for the upper Salween, the westernmost of the three great rivers that run side by side through the north-west of Yunnan. The lodge has 55 rooms, stands at 1,750 metres and is the group’s 17th property.

The valley

The Nujiang valley is one of the least visited parts of China. The river runs south for more than 300 kilometres in a gorge between the Gaoligong mountains, which form the border with Myanmar, and the Biluo range, with walls that rise more than 3,000 metres above the water. It is part of the Three Parallel Rivers World Heritage site and among the most biologically diverse temperate regions on earth.

Most of the people are Lisu, with Nu, Dulong and Tibetan communities further north. Villages cling to slopes so steep that fields are worked with ropes, and until recently people crossed the river on cables. Many Lisu are Christian, converted by missionaries in the early 20th century, and four-part hymns in the Lisu language are sung in village churches. A road along the river was rebuilt in recent years and has made the valley reachable in a day from Dali.

The lodge

The building follows the mountain architecture of the region, in stone and solid timber with brass fittings, on a larger scale than the group’s earlier lodges. Rooms range from doubles to family suites with four bedrooms. The interiors use the strong contrasting colours and striped fabrics of Lisu dress. The restaurant serves the food of the old caravan routes, with ham, wild mushrooms and, in season, truffles and matsutake.

The lodge runs guided days in the valley: walks in the forest of Gaoligong, a climb to about 3,300 metres for a view of the three ranges, visits to Lisu villages and to the stone formation known as the Stone Moon, a natural arch on the ridge that figures in Lisu legend.

How it fits the circuit

Songtsam’s lodges are designed to be travelled between. The Nujiang lodge opens a western route, from Dali over the mountains to the Salween and then north towards Bingzhongluo and the Tibetan border. It can be joined to the group’s lodges on the Mekong, including the wine lodge at Cizhong, by a road across the Biluo range. In 2026 the group added a starting point in the provincial capital, Songtsam Linka Kunming.

The best seasons are spring, when rhododendrons flower on Gaoligong, and autumn. The summer rains bring landslides, and the road can close.