Shangri-La (香格里拉, formerly Zhongdian) is a small Tibetan town at 3,200 metres in northwestern Yunnan, about five hours north of Lijiang. The name was officially changed in 2001 to capitalise on the James Hilton connection, but the town's Tibetan character is genuine — prayer flags, yak butter tea, and monasteries set against a backdrop of snow-capped mountains.
The old town was largely rebuilt after a devastating fire in 2014, but the reconstruction preserves the Tibetan wooden architecture and the lanes are pleasant to wander. The enormous prayer wheel at the hilltop temple is a local landmark.
Highlights within day-trip range include Songzanlin Monastery, the largest Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Yunnan, often called the "Little Potala Palace"; Tiger Leaping Gorge, one of the deepest gorges in the world with an excellent two-day hiking trail; Baishuitai, terraced white limestone formations sacred to the Naxi people; and Pudacuo National Park (formerly Bita Hai), a high-altitude lake and forest reserve. The town is also the last staging post before heading further into the Tibetan plateau toward Deqin and the Meili Snow Mountains.