Old Town Walls and Gates

The walled rectangle that defines Dali Old Town is one of the best-preserved Ming-era city plans in China, still intact along almost its full perimeter. You can climb onto sections of the wall at three of the four gates and walk short stretches above the rooftops.

The South Gate (Wenxian Lou) is the most ornate and the principal entry, with the iconic view of slate roofs falling toward the lake. The North Gate is quieter and a popular sunset spot. The walls themselves are about 6 metres high, faced with the local grey stone. The streets inside are laid out on a grid, with the central north-south axis (Fuxing Lu) and east-west axis (Renmin Lu) being the busiest. Walking the full perimeter takes about 90 minutes.

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A story
Dali's grid plan and city walls date to the Ming dynasty, around 1382 — built after the Ming general Lan Yu conquered the area and razed the old Dali Kingdom capital. The wall was originally about 8 metres high and 6 metres thick, with four gates at the cardinal directions. The South Gate, the most photographed, was largely rebuilt in 1999 after centuries of weathering. Each gate still bears a traditional name — the South is Wenxian, the North is Sanyuan, the East is Erhai, the West is Cangshan — naming the directions of the lake and mountains they faced.