Xishuangbanna Dai Garden is located in Menghan Town, Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province. The scenic area is a national 4A-level tourist attraction, featuring a combination of natural and cultural landscapes, including charming subtropical courtyard scenery, rich Dai ethnic customs, typical Dai bamboo stilt house architecture, traditional handicrafts, and mysterious Theravada Buddhist culture. The overall planning area of the scenic spot covers 336 hectares, with the main scenic area composed of five best-preserved Dai natural villages: Manjiang, Manchunman, Manzha, Mangga, and Manting, housing 326 households with a total population of 1,536 people.
Historical Culture
Dai Garden has a profound historical and cultural heritage. The Manchunman Buddhist Temple and Manting Buddhist Temple here have a history of over 1,400 years, accumulating rich and profound Theravada Buddhist culture. The temples preserve famous murals such as The Reincarnation of Rudimi and The Story of Sakyamuni. In the early 1960s, the famous essayist Feng Mu encountered a butterfly gathering on the forest path from Manting to Manzha and wrote the famous article Butterfly Meeting by the Lancang River. Dai Garden is a living museum of ethnic history, centrally displaying a boutique eco-tourism destination for folk customs integrating Dai history, culture, religion, sports, architecture, customs, costumes, cuisine, and production.
Main Attractions
Greeting Square
As the gateway to Dai Garden, it welcomes visitors with unique Dai rituals, allowing them to experience the warmth and hospitality of the Dai people.
Mansongman Ancient Buddhist Temple
With a history of over 1,400 years, it is one of the oldest Buddhist temples in Xishuangbanna, showcasing Buddhist cultural activities such as Buddha offerings, sutra chanting, and worship.
Dai Villages
Visitors can explore Dai residences and courtyard scenery, experience Dai living customs, and feel the joy of Dai life.
Riverside Activity Area
This is a large-scale festival activity area for villagers, used for folk activities such as launching sky lanterns, releasing Kongming lanterns, and cockfighting.
Ganbai Shopping Area
It sells Dai barbecues, brocade, folk handicrafts, Dai bags, woodcarvings, etc., as well as tea ceremonies for famous Banna teas and Dai characteristic flavor restaurants.
Water Splashing Square
The main activity area of the scenic spot, it holds a large open-air theater with a professional water splashing team of over 100 people every day, where visitors can participate in the fun of the daily Water-Splashing Festival.
Open-Air Theater
Through song and dance, it truly and accurately reflects the essence of Dai traditional culture, recreates the historical origin of the Dai king's marriage recruitment, and showcases Dai customs. With over 100 performers, it features a grand scale and spectacular scenes.
Peacock Garden
Home to a large number of peacocks, it offers wonderful peacock dance performances at specific times every day. Visitors may have the chance to see peacocks spreading their feathers if lucky.
Food
Fragrant Bamboo Rice
From November to February of the following year, when fragrant bamboo reaches maturity, glutinous rice is roasted in bamboo tubes. The rice is soft and delicate, with a fragrant aroma, and is generally used to entertain guests as a staple food.
Lemongrass Grilled Fish
Wrap the cleaned fish with lemon-scented lemongrass, grill it over fire and brush with lard. Stuff the fish belly with the Dai specialty "tomato nan mi" sauce. The dish features bright colors and rich, full flavors.
Sour Bamboo Shoot Stewed Fish (or Chicken)
Sour bamboo shoots are made from tender bamboo shoots picked in summer and pickled. Stewed with fish (or chicken), they remove the fishy smell, offering a sour and fragrant taste that is highly appetizing.
Fried Moss
Moss with a unique fragrance takes on a special flavor when fried, making it a characteristic Dai dish.
Dai Flavor Platter
A collection of various Dai snacks allows visitors to taste different specialties in one go.
Pineapple Purple Rice
Soaked purple glutinous rice is cooked in a pineapple shell. The combination of the sweet and sour pineapple and the soft purple glutinous rice creates a fresh and sweet taste, with blood-nourishing effects.
Admission
Entrance fee: 45 yuan/person. Scenic area electric vehicles are an additional 40 yuan/person (limited to 4 rides). Border pier speedboat: 299 yuan/person. Subject to actual prices at the scenic area.
You can search for the official WeChat public account "西双版纳傣族园景区" to get the latest updates. As of May 21, 2025, the official public account does not offer online ticket booking.
Opening Hours
08:00 - 18:00 daily.
Tour Routes
Route 1: West Gate → Manjiang Buddhist Temple → New Water Splashing Square → Manjiang Village → Manchunman Buddhist Temple → Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition Area → Manchunman Village → Peacock Garden → Song and Dance Theater → Manzha Buddhist Temple → Manzha Village → Border Pier (speedboat tour) → Manting Village → Manting Buddhist Temple (White Pagoda) → Pagoda-Wrapped Tree → Mangga Village → Summer Lotus Camp → North Gate (or return to Water Splashing Square and West Gate), with a total walking distance of approximately 6-7 kilometers.
Route 2: West Gate (by vehicle) → Border Pier (by vehicle) → Manting Buddhist Temple (by vehicle) → Peacock Garden (on foot) → Song and Dance Theater → Manzha Buddhist Temple → Manzha Village → Peacock Garden (by vehicle) → Water Splashing Square (on foot) → Manchunman Buddhist Temple → Manjiang Village → Manjiang Buddhist Temple → West Gate.
Transportation
- Take a bus to Dai Garden from the north of Gaozhuang, fare: 10 yuan.
- Take a passenger bus from Banna Bus Station to Menghan (Olive Dam), and it is about 1.3 kilometers from the bus stop to the entrance of Dai Garden.
- Car-hailing from Jinghong City to Dai Garden costs approximately 45 yuan.
Must-See Attractions
- Water Splashing Square: Experience the joy of the daily Water-Splashing Festival, feel the lively atmosphere of the Dai Water-Splashing Festival, and participate in 360° all-around water splashing carnivals and Dai Di feasts.
- Manchunman Buddhist Temple: With a history of over 1,400 years, it is a representative of Theravada Buddhist temple architecture in Xishuangbanna, featuring exquisite architectural craftsmanship and carvings, and preserving famous murals.
- Peacock Garden: Enjoy wonderful peacock dance performances and have the chance to see peacocks spreading their feathers. The garden also has a historic mango forest.
Tour Tips
- It is recommended to wear light and comfortable clothing and shoes for easy walking in the scenic area.
- Bring sunscreen, sunglasses, hats, etc., to protect against strong sunlight in the scenic area.
- When participating in water splashing activities, prepare a set of changeable clothes in advance to avoid inconvenience from getting wet.
- If interested in Buddhist culture, spend more time in temples like Manchunman Buddhist Temple to feel the solemnity and mystery of Buddhist culture.
Notes
- Respect local religious beliefs and customs, such as keeping quiet when entering Buddhist temples and not touching Buddha statues arbitrarily.
- Pay attention to safety during water splashing activities to avoid accidental injuries caused by crowding.
- Protect the scenic environment, do not litter, and do not damage public facilities or natural landscapes.
- When purchasing goods or services in the scenic area, pay attention to prices and quality to avoid unnecessary disputes.