Luoyang Departure: Libo, Xijiang Miao Village and Huangguoshu Falls, 6 Days 5 Nights

Leave in the morning and land in Guiyang in the afternoon. Bags at the hotel, then walk the Qingyun market in the evening, eating from stall to stall: siwawa, changwang noodles, fried tofu balls. Siwawa you wrap yourself, a thin rice sheet across the palm, bean sprouts, fish mint and pickled radish inside, rolled and dipped in chilli water. Turn in early; tomorrow is two and a half hours on the road.

Attraction introduction: Guiyang sits in the centre of Guizhou at about 1,100 metres, with an average summer temperature of 24 degrees, which is why it is marketed as a summer capital. Qingyun is an old quarter reworked in recent years and gathers street food from across the province.

Tips: Fish mint is not to every taste the first time, so order a small portion to begin with. Guests generally find Guiyang cool after dark even in summer. In practice, keep the first evening within walking distance of the hotel.

Out at seven, two and a half hours to Huangguoshu. Into the main falls area first, down the walkway as the noise builds; the path turns a corner and the whole thing is suddenly there, white water dropping seventy-odd metres into a pool that sends up a wall of mist. The Water Curtain Cave runs behind the fall, and from inside, the water hangs across the openings like a curtain. Lunch on site, then Doupotang in the afternoon, where the fall is broad and the water slow, and where the opening sequence of the 1986 television version was filmed.

Attraction introduction: Huangguoshu Falls stands on the Baishui River in Zhenning county, Anshun, 77.8 metres high and 101 metres wide. The Water Curtain Cave cuts across the middle of the fall, 134 metres long with six openings, so the water can be seen from inside. Doupotang is 105 metres wide and is the widest fall in the group.

Tips: The cave is wet throughout and the path through it is narrow. Guests generally find the spray heaviest in the afternoon when the flow is up. In practice, bring a poncho rather than an umbrella, and a dry bag for the phone.

Leave Anshun in the morning for Libo, three and a half to four hours with one stop at a service area. Lunch in Libo town on sour soup fish, which is local cooking: the broth is deliberately sour and the fish is the small one grown in the rice paddies. In the afternoon enter Xiaoqikong from the west gate. Wolong Pool first, the water emerald and absolutely still. Then Mandarin Duck Lake, Cuigu Falls, and finally the seven-arch bridge itself, low over the water with vines over the stonework.

Attraction introduction: The Xiaoqikong scenic area lies south of Libo town and runs about twelve kilometres, named for the seven-arch stone bridge built in the fifteenth year of the Daoguang era of the Qing. Water features come one after another: Wolong Pool, Mandarin Duck Lake, Laya Falls and the sixty-eight-step cascade.

Tips: Entering from the west gate means walking downhill; from the east it is uphill the whole way. Guests generally find the light on the pools best before four. In practice, the west gate also has the shorter shuttle queue in the afternoon.

Back into the park in the morning for the water forest, where the stream runs over a stone pavement and the trees stand rooted in it. You can take your shoes off and walk, rounded stones underfoot, cold water to the ankle. Then the sixty-eight-step cascade, dropping ledge by ledge. Lunch outside the gate, then three and a half hours towards Xijiang. Arrive in the evening, shuttle up to the viewing platform, and watch more than a thousand stilt houses fill the slope from the valley floor to the ridge as the lamps come on one by one.

Attraction introduction: The water forest is the strangest stretch of Xiaoqikong, about 600 metres long, where water runs over a travertine bed and the trees root into cracks in the stone. Xijiang Thousand Household Miao Village lies in Leishan county and is made up of a dozen hamlets; it is the largest Miao settlement in the country.

Tips: The stones in the water forest are slippery even when dry. Guests generally find the viewing platform busiest between seven and eight in the evening. In practice, go up before six and stay for the lights rather than arriving with the crowd.

Walk the village in the morning. From the first wind-and-rain bridge the flagstones climb in steps, stilt houses on both sides, timber above and open underneath. The Miao museum holds silverwork and embroidery; the lusheng ground sometimes has a performance. Lunch is the long table, dozens of tables pushed into one line, sour soup fish, cured fish and glutinous rice along it, and the young women come round with wine and singing. The afternoon is free: sit in a hillside cafe and look across at the village opposite.

Attraction introduction: The stilt houses of Xijiang are mostly timber frame, three levels following the slope: animals at the bottom, living space in the middle, grain under the roof. The long table is the highest form of Miao hospitality, laid out for festivals and for guests.

Tips: The village is all stone steps and no vehicles, so a suitcase is a problem. Guests generally find the long table starts at noon and runs long. In practice, leave the suitcase at the car park and take an overnight bag up.

Leave Kaili in the morning for Guiyang, two and a half hours. If the flight is late, stop at Qingyan, an old garrison town where the braised pork knuckle and rose sugar are what people buy. Afternoon flight from Guiyang, home by evening.

Attraction introduction: Qingyan lies south of Guiyang and was built as a military garrison in the Hongwu era of the Ming. It is one of the four great old towns of Guizhou, with walls, archways and temples largely intact.

Tips: Choose the pork knuckle from the pot rather than the tray, and look for the glossy colour. Guests generally find the metro from Guiyang North to the airport more predictable than a taxi. In practice, allow two clear hours before departure.