Lijiang city, a prefecture-level city in the northwest of Yunnan province, located at the joints of Yunnan-Guizhou plateau and Qinghai-Tibet plateau, known as one of the best preserved four ancient cities(alongside Langzhong of Sichuan province, Pingyao of Shaanxi province, Shexian of Anhui province). Lijiang is a multi-ethnic area where resident 12 ethnic minorities, Naxi, Yi, Lisu are the 3 major minorities. The climate in Lijiang is plateau south-west monsoon with the low temperature and significant differences between day and night. Most of regions are warm in winter and cool in summer, so the best seasons for tour are spring and summer.
The tourism resources are main representative with ''two mountains, a city, a lake, a river, a culture and a style''. Two mountains, mean Yulong Snow Mountain and Laojun Mountain; a city, means Old town of Lijiang; a lake, means Lugu lake; a river, means Jinsha River; a culture, means Naxi Dongba culture; a style, means the Mosuo customs that refer to the people living in Lugu lake still retain the matriarchal walking-marriage customs ''men do not take wife, women do not marry to husband''.
Naxi ethnic have many flavor foods, especially the well-known ham baba. Also there is Naxi pot, chicken bean jelly, chicken stew tofu, blown liver, butter tea and so on. Ancient town of Lijiang is the main distribution center of goods and crafts, ''Square Street'' is the most traditional and popular market in Lijiang.