The ancient city of Lijiang is situated in the northwest of Yunnan Province, south of the Yulong (Jade Dragon) Snow Mountain, and at the upper reaches of the Jinsha River.

Lijiang is incredibly rich in cultural resources, home to the Baisha Frescoes (a national historical relic) and "Naxi Dongjing Music" being living examples of Tang and Song Dynasty art, and also Dongba hieroglyphs, the only existing pictographs in the world.

Dayan Town, the capital of Lijiang, was first built at the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty. This town is known as "Oriental Venice", or "Suzhou on the Plateau", with water flowing past almost every household, and every home surrounded by picturesque willow trees.