Where to Stay in Yangshuo
8 Hotels by the Li River, Near West Street & Countryside Stays Waking Up to Karst Peaks and Rice Fields

We open the Yangshuo list with a resort that's a sight in its own right — Alila Yangshuo scores 9.6/10 from around 2,043 real guest reviews. This five-star design resort is converted from a 1960s state sugar mill on the Li River, keeping the raw concrete columns and original brick walls and adding contemporary architecture. The heart of it is a swimming pool laid on the old concrete platform that once carried sugar, reaching out to the karst peaks — one of the most-photographed shots in China — plus a slow-travel riverside mood, river-view rooms and the Sugar House restaurant serving Guangxi food. Guests say it's like sleeping inside a work of art. The honest catch: the resort sits next to a road, so you hear some traffic at night (you can ask for an inner room), it's premium pricing, and reaching West Street means a ~10-minute drive · details compiled from real reviews on Trip.com.

These are the riverside villas with the most privacy on the list — Banyan Tree Yangshuo scores 9.6/10 from around 5,138 real guest reviews. The resort hugs a bend of the Li / Yulong River in Fuli Town, with karst peaks on three sides, laid out as white-walled, grey-tiled southern-Chinese-style villas across riverside gardens. What stands out is that these are standalone villas, quiet and private, and some have a private pool — you wake to a view of the peaks and the water like an ink painting — plus plenty to do that keeps kids busy and adults relaxed, from peacocks and alpacas to bamboo rafts and an evening sunset gong ceremony, and it's pet-friendly. The honest catch: it's in Fuli Town out of the centre, a ~10–15-minute drive to West Street, the resort food is pricey, and it's the top price on the list · details compiled from real reviews on Trip.com.

This is the design resort with the best view from the room on the list — Shuidaotian Resort scores 9.4/10 from around 1,887 real guest reviews (a big review count for a countryside resort). It sits among the rice fields on the Yulong River in the Ten-Mile Gallery scenic area. Its signature is wraparound 270° glass rooms you can see the rice fields and karst peaks from without leaving the bed, plus an infinity pool in the fields whose edge seems to run straight into the paddies for postcard shots, with Guilin rice noodles at breakfast. Guests praise the view, the quiet of the fields and the clean, modern design. The honest catch: it's out in the countryside with nothing at the door, so reaching West Street is a drive (~6.6km), and it's ~65km from the city of Guilin · details compiled from real reviews on Trip.com.

This is the 4-star guesthouse with the highest score on the list, loved by foreign travellers for years — Lihua Chen's Garden scores 9.8/10 from around 1,722 real guest reviews. This small 17-room garden guesthouse sits in Egendi Village, Xingping Town (兴坪). What you won't find elsewhere is that it's a ~3-minute walk across the road to the Li River at the ¥20-note view (黄布倒影) — still water and drifting mist in the morning, bamboo rafts floating by — plus a sky-mirror roof for photos like walking through a painting, a pool, and a generous list of freebies: breakfast, afternoon tea, late supper, laundry and a free Mercedes station transfer, with warm English-speaking hosts. The honest catch: Xingping is a separate country riverside town from Yangshuo town, ~25km from West Street, so you need to plan transport, and rooms come in grades — specify a River View when booking · details compiled from real reviews on Trip.com.

This is the riverside resort closest to Yangshuo town on our list, good for travellers who want the nature view and to walk into town — Li River Resort Yangshuo scores 9.7/10 from around 169 real guest reviews. Built on a rise above the Li River in Shuangtan Village, its star is an infinity pool whose edge seems to merge with the water and the peaks, plus room balconies that open to full Li River and karst views — and unlike the other countryside resorts, it's a 2km walk or cycle along the river to West Street (西街) in the heart of Yangshuo town, with the Li River cruise jetty just ~1km away and English-speaking staff who arrange rafts, tours and show tickets. The honest catch: it's a small resort (~21 rooms) without the facilities of a big chain, there's nothing at the door, and the last stretch of road into the village is a small country lane · details compiled from real reviews on Trip.com.

This is the slow, relaxed pick out in the Yangshuo countryside — Yangshuo Zen Garden Resort scores 9.6/10 from around 235 real guest reviews. This Zen-style garden resort is restored from old wooden houses and stone courtyards in Jiwodu Village, in the Ten-Mile Gallery (十里画廊) on the Yulong River. What suits the unwinding crowd is a karst-view pool and jacuzzi, a sun deck looking over the rice fields, and yoga, tai chi and tea-ceremony classes, plus a well-liked Chinese-Mediterranean vegetarian restaurant. Guests praise the quiet, the pretty garden and the friendliness. The honest catch: it's out in the countryside, ~7km from West Street (you'll want a car / taxi), ~65km from the city of Guilin, and it's a small 38-room resort built for quiet rather than buzz · details compiled from real reviews on Trip.com.

This is the brand pick, Hilton standards on the Li River, good for travellers who want the reassurance of a big chain — Hilton Garden Inn Guilin Yangshuo scores 9.4/10 from around 2,392 real guest reviews (the most-reviewed on the list). This Hilton sits on the Li River in the old town of Xingping (兴坪). What stands out is a riverside view that's the same one printed on the back of the ¥20 note, plus a brand-new hotel with clean, spacious rooms, an infinity pool in the garden and room balconies that open to full views of the peaks and the river — a ~1-minute walk to Xingping old street, with a wider Chinese-Western breakfast than you'd expect at this level. Guests praise how new and clean it is and the view. The honest catch: Xingping is a separate riverside town from Yangshuo town, ~25km from West Street and ~65km from the city of Guilin — you stay for the Xingping view and the rafts, not West Street · details compiled from real reviews on Trip.com.

We close the list with a countryside boutique that gives an experience unlike anywhere else at the best value here — Secret Garden Yangshuo scores 9.7/10 from around 125 real guest reviews. This boutique is created from 5 restored Qing-dynasty stone houses in Jiuxian Village (九仙村) on the Yulong River in the rice fields, keeping the old grey stone walls and original timber and adding modern comfort. What lifts the score is the foreign owner and English-speaking team who look after you like a friend, arranging rafts, cycling and airport transfers, plus an in-house restaurant doing good Chinese and Western food, with an old garden, an art gallery, a library and a café-bar to linger in. Guests say it feels like sleeping in a real old Chinese village. The honest catch: it's deep in the countryside, ~15km from West Street (you'll need a car / taxi), it's an old building so there are old-house quirks with stairs and plumbing, and there's no pool · details compiled from real reviews on Trip.com.