This remote area near Myanmar and Laos is reached by plane (about an hour) from Kunming. Its main attraction is its thriving ethnic culture. Although it's hard to get airline tickets, the best time to visit Xishuang Banna is during the Water-Splashing Festival (usually in mid-April), which symbolically washes away the demons and dirt of the old year. It features traditional dragon-boat racing, fireworks and free-for-all water fights (plan on being soaked). The town of Jinghong, on the Mekong River, near the Myanmar border, is the center of festivities. About 1,600 mi/2,500 km southwest of Beijing.
