Mengla Voyage Tips and guide

Mengla (Chinese: 勐腊, Lü: ᦵᦙᦲᧂ ᦟᦱᧉ) is a city in Xishuangbanna. It is located near the China-Laos border in Southern Yunnan.

Guanlei: There are ferry boats to Thailand from Guanlei to Chiangsaen in Thailand four times a month.

Buses from Jinghong usually take 2½ to 3 hours. Buses leave Jinghong between 07:00 and 18:00 and cost ¥42.

This is the first big town/city for travelers arriving from Laos. Buses from Luang Namtha in Laos take around 4 hours. From Luang Namtha you can get a bus leaving at around 08:00, going to Boten (Chinese border) and Mengla. You may need a Chinese visa beforehand as there is no way to get one on arrival if you do not qualify for a visa waiver or visa-free entry. The border is close (about one hour). Customs procedures may take up to an hour if busy. The trip costs about 45,000 kip.

It would be wise to have some local currency before-hand. There are a few touts changing money on both sides of the border and banks a few hundred metres away.

There are taxis and tuk-tuks that will take you around town for ¥6. The train station is about 6 km south from the bus terminal and about 9 km from the town centre.

Mengla is the southern gateway to Xishuangbanna, surrounded by untouched rainforest good for trekking. Local Dai ethnic villages are within 10 km of the town that are untouched by commercial tourism. If you have the time and are not in a hurry to leave they are worth visiting.

New Bupan Aerial Skyway Park. The park gets its name from the skyway in the clouds attraction. Visitors literally walk through the canopy of the key rainforest species, Paraforestea, a tall, straight-trunked tree. You walk supported by cable-supported rope transoms that permit you to step along among the higher branches of the forest. It gives you a new perspective on the rainforest. Overall the park is easily accessed, clean and unique.

Yiwu (易武), hometown of Pu'er Tea, is situated in the north of Mengla County. It is the hometown of Pu’er Tea as well as the starting point of the Ancient Tea-Horse Trail (Road). In old times, Yiwu was known as a commercial city. It serves as the linkage between China and Laos and an important gateway to Southeast Asia.

Mengla is a fast growing border town. There is a market in the mornings that runs parallel behind the main street. The place has become quite nice so you might be interested in simply walking around the place for a couple of hours.

• 21.873654101.3228321 Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (中国科学院西双版纳热带植物园), ☏ +86 691-8715914. 08:00-18:00. ¥80. (updated Sep 2022)

There are several well stocked supermarkets in town. Two close to the bus station and more in the town centre. If you are in need of a Chinese SIM card there are several China Mobile outlets. Locally made items are also available at reasonable prices if your bargaining skills are good.

There are many popular restaurants in the main shopping area in the town centre and no shortage of places to eat near the bus terminal. The restaurants all sell Yunnan and typical Chinese dishes but don't expect a very high standard. Rice noodle dishes (米线) start from ¥12 and larger or fancier meals priced upwards from there.

There is a newly developed bar area down by the river close to the centre of town, behind the DICO’s chicken Western food outlet. There's also a bar area about two blocks form the bus terminal.

There doesn't seem to be anywhere to have a cofee in the bus terminal part of town. But in the centre there's several Chinese chain cafés. The big chains Wi-Fi tends to need a Chinese phone number to log in, but smaller ones will just give you a passord. Excellent coffee is at Bean House (豆屋) in a cool street off the opposite side of the main road from the plaza, Qingnian Road.

The Wine Barrel Bar: As you walk towards Dico’s turn right, large wine barrel above the entrance. This small bar serves cold beer, and is a relaxing place to sit and have a drink with its water feature and fish pond. A good sized bar, with live music from 21:00, dance floor, not too loud and a good place to mix with locals.

There are many hotels and guest house in Mengla, some options are:

• New Asia Business Hotel (新亚洲商务宾馆): Right beside the bus station with good big rooms upstairs for ¥70 with A/C (2025).
• Na La Bin Quan: Is a good option, quite clean with A/C for ¥40, the rooms are quite large with an area for washing and hanging clothes, closer to the shops, restaurants and bar area of town. Turn right as you leave the bus station, it is about 1 km down towards the centre of town (¥5 taxi fare) turn left at the Spider King shop and it is 10-15 m down on the left.

Cheaper, as you leave the bus station and turn right, walk approx 50 meters and there is a guest house on the right hand side near the Forest Cafe. This place has no English name and is a pretty run-down establishment. They have rooms for around ¥20-25 per night.

The best contact in town is the local guide, Peter Lee – 18608811499 – a fluent English speaker - he can offer advice on places to stay, eat and drink. As you get off the bus in Mengla, turn right and walk down the street about 50 m to the Forest Cafe. He can also be found at his restaurant, which is located a few restaurants left of the third intersection when you walk south from the north bus station.

In front of the bus station there is also a helpful man who will exchange money and also offer advice on accommodation and help you with directions. He takes a commission from places so be very specific about what you want and how much you want to pay. His exchange rates are poor but if you are in need of some Lao ip just to be safe, it is worth exchanging some euros, dollars, Thai baht or anything else if you need to. He has a very wide range of currencies and is keen to show them off. His English is also pretty good compared to most locals.

The border crossing takes around an hour if you are on a bus. Much quicker if you are solo and the crossing is not busy.

Buses depart to Louang Namtha in Laos at around 09:00 and take around 4 hours. Expect a bumpy and hair raising journey during the rainy season. The cost is around ¥40.

Alternatively, you can head to Muang Xay/Oudomxay, the largest city in northern Laos and then onto Luang Prabang.

There is now a direct bus from Jing Hong to Luang Namtha.

There are loads of buses to Jinghong, the capital of Xishuangbanna. The cost is around ¥40. There are also 4 or 5 buses a day that leave for Kunming. The cost is about ¥250. Nowadays you can go to Yuangyang Terrace from Mengla by bus instead of going to Kunming directly, it is cheaper and less tiring.