"Go to Where the Wind Blows" Yunnan Filming Locations Guide: Complete Route of Windy Courtyard, Shaxi, Xizhou, Erhai Lake, and Zhoucheng

The stone-paved road leads uphill from the entrance of Fengyangyi Village, with tie-dyed cloths drying along the walls, and the earthen walls of the old houses bathed in the warm yellow sunlight. Reaching the gate of "Youfeng Courtyard," the courtyard before you is smaller than what you see on television, yet the village itself is more complete than depicted in the drama. Although the story of Xu Hongdou moving into Yunmiao Village is fictional, the ancient Tea Horse Road, Bai ethnic courtyards, rice paddies, and Erhai Lake that make up Yunmiao Village can actually be visited.

A three-day itinerary is recommended for binge-watching. Fengyangyi, Xizhou, Zhoucheng, and Erhai Lake can be visited from Dali Old Town. Shaxi Ancient Town, located in Jianchuan County, is usually a two-hour drive one way, so it's advisable to stay an extra night.

How are the filming locations distributed?

attractions	Scenes in the play	Starting from Dali Old Town	Suggested to stay
Fengyangyi Village, Youfeng Courtyard	Xu Hongdou lives in Fengxiaoyuan and Yunmiao Village Street.	Approximately 7 kilometers	2 to 3 hours
Xizhou Ancient Town	Wheat fields, rice paddies, and exterior views of Bai ethnic villages	Approximately 20 kilometers	3 to 4 hours
Zhoucheng Village and Puzhen Tie-Dye Museum	Bai ethnic tie-dyeing and handicraft scene	Approximately 25 kilometers	2 to 3 hours
Erhai Covered Bridge, East Ring Road	Seaside walks, horseback riding, and driving scenes (empty shots)	It varies depending on the shooting location.	Half a day to the 1st
Shaxi Ancient Town, Mint Coffee	There are several scenic spots including Youfeng Restaurant, Ancient Stage, Sideng Street, and Yujin Bridge.	Approximately 120 kilometers	1 day 1 night

The distances are approximate figures for trip planning; the actual distances may vary depending on accommodation location, road construction, and navigation routes.

A Windy Courtyard: Fengyangyi Village Has More Than Just One Courtyard Gate

Fengyangyi is located at the foot of Cangshan Mountain, and the "Yunmiao Village" in the drama is mainly presented from this village. The Fengxiao Courtyard is the core setting where Xu Hongdou lives and where the people in the courtyard eat and chat together. The ancient road within the village, about 1,900 meters long, belongs to the Dali section of the Yunnan-Tibet Tea Horse Road. Fengyangyi began to develop from the Han Dynasty and gradually took shape during the Nanzhao and Dali Kingdoms periods, showcasing its rich historical background.Introduction to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism's "Windy Journey".

After entering the village, don't rush straight to the courtyard. Take a leisurely stroll along Wensheng Street, where you'll see earthen houses, screen walls, stone-paved roads, as well as tea rooms, pottery spaces, and indigo dyeing workshops converted from old courtyards. The Windy Courtyard is currently an operational venue, and its opening procedures, reservation rules, and experience content may be subject to change.

Some tourists have discovered upon arrival that advance reservations are required, so it is recommended to search for the latest announcements for "Youfeng Courtyard" on popular Chinese travel platforms before departure. Even without entering the courtyard, the external alleyways and the Ancient Tea Horse Road are still open for normal visits.

 The most time-efficient mode of transportation is by taxi or by car. The village roads are narrow, and it is not advisable to drive into the core area during holidays; instead, follow the on-site instructions to park outside the village and walk. Early morning is suitable for shooting empty scenes, while the light from the earthen wall is warmer in the afternoon; there is little shade at noon, so sun protection and rain gear are necessary in summer.

Breeze Cafe: Shaxi Mint Coffee is just one stop in the ancient town

The "Windy Cafe" where Xu Hongdou works in the drama was actually filmed at Mint Cafe in Shaxi Ancient Town. The shop is located near the core area of Sideng Street, and while the space is small, you may have to wait during peak hours. If you are only taking photos at the entrance, please avoid the entrance area and respect the shop's operating order.

The real reason Shaxi is worth preserving lies beyond the small restaurants. Sideng Street was once an important market on the Ancient Tea Horse Road, and the area around Sifang Street still retains an ancient stage, Xingjiao Temple, village gate, and front-shop-back-courtyard style buildings. The Dali Prefecture government calls it...The only surviving ancient market on the Tea Horse RoadThe scenes of Grandma setting up her stall, villagers filming promotional videos, and characters walking through the ancient town can be found in familiar locations such as Sideng Street, the ancient stage, and Yujin Bridge.

Recommended walking order: Visitor Center, East Gate, Sideng Street, Mint Coffee, Sifang Street, Ancient Stage, Xingjiao Temple, South Gate, Yujin Bridge. Arrive in the afternoon and explore the ancient town first, then walk to Yujin Bridge at dusk. Stay overnight and take photos of the bridge, Heihui River, and fields the next morning. Shaxi is quite far from Dali Ancient City; hiring a car, driving yourself, or taking public transport is more practical. Return bus schedules and pick-up points may change; please confirm with your guesthouse before checking in.

Xizhou Ancient Town: The colors of the fields depend on the season; only in autumn can you see golden waves of rice.

The focus of photography in Xizhou is divided into two layers. Inside the ancient town, one can see the Bai ethnic minority residences, while outside the town, one can see the flat and open farmland. Xizhou preserves a large number of "three-room-one-screen-wall" and "four-sided-five-courtyard" courtyards. According to Dali Municipal Government records, there are 88 well-preserved Bai ethnic minority courtyard houses in the area. Architectural details can be seen from...Introduction to Bai ethnic minority dwellings in Xizhouunderstand.

The golden fields depicted in the drama cannot be replicated year-round. While rapeseed flowers or gradually ripening wheat fields are common in spring, golden rice paddies are more likely to appear in autumn. Planting and harvesting dates are still influenced by the year's weather and agricultural arrangements. If the fields have just been harvested when you arrive, changing cafes won't make the rice fields grow back. Before taking photos, check recent photos taken by other travelers and treat the fields as the farmers' production space. Do not step on crops, move farm tools, or walk onto unopened field ridges for the sake of taking pictures.

You can walk through the ancient town from near the Zhengyi Gate, visiting the Corner Tower, the area around the Yan Family Courtyard, and Sifang Street in that order, before heading out to the countryside. Xizhou Baba (a type of pancake), Rushan (a type of cheese), and the Bai ethnic group's Three-Course Tea are good choices for lunch, but the queues at popular old shops can be long. If you plan to visit Zhoucheng that day, leaving before 3 PM will allow you more time.

Filming locations at Erhai Lake: Cycling on the west side, driving on the east side.

The scenery around Erhai Lake is scattered across different sections of the shore, and simply entering "Erhai" into your navigation app can easily lead you to locations far from your destination. If you want to capture quiet scenes like those of characters strolling along the lake or pausing under trees, you can go to the Erhai Covered Bridge near Xiangyangxi Village in Haixiwanqiao Town. This arched structure was originally a lakeside canal, and the bridge arches, solitary trees, and lakeshore are common vantage points for framing the shot.

 The Haixi Ecological Corridor restricts the entry of outside cars and electric vehicles, making it suitable for walking, cycling, or taking sightseeing buses. Self-driving vehicles should be parked in designated parking areas on the outskirts. For photos of the coastal highway, reefs, and distant views, the route can take you through Wase Town, Luwoshan, Xiaoputuo, and Wenbi Village in Haidong. The Haidong highway has many curves and narrow shoulders in some areas; please exit your vehicle in designated parking areas and do not temporarily stop in the roadway to take photos.

Camping needs to be understood more conservatively. Television footage does not mean that camping, fire-making, or entry to any lakeside area is permitted. The Erhai Lake area involves water resources and ecological protection. If you wish to arrange tents, barbecues, or team-building activities, you should choose licensed campsites and inquire beforehand. The scenes in the drama depicting alpine meadows, stargazing, and horseback riding also involve Tiandeng Haiping in Yunlong County, which is far from the Erhai Lake loop and not suitable for a single day trip.

Zhoucheng Indigo Dyeing: Making Your Own Piece of Cloth at the Puzhen Tie-Dye Museum

Zhoucheng Village, located north of Xizhou, is an important village for Bai ethnic tie-dyeing in Dali. The Puzhen Bai Tie-Dyeing Museum, built in 2015, covers an area of over 5,000 square meters and combines tie-dyeing displays, craft inheritance, and hands-on experiences; more background information can be found here.Introduction to Puzhen Tie-Dyeing on Yunnan Copyright Website.

A tie-dye piece typically involves designing, tying, dyeing, oxidation, untying, and washing. Short-term experiences usually involve small handkerchiefs or fabric items, while complex patterns require more time to create.

When making a reservation, you should confirm the included fabric size, number of dyeing sessions, whether the finished product can be taken away on the same day, and whether an apron is provided. Indigo dyeing may stain your fingers and light-colored clothing, so wearing dark clothes is more convenient.

Xizhou and Zhoucheng are not far apart, so it's suitable to visit both places on the same day. If you want to understand the craft, allow at least two hours to see the demonstrations before trying it yourself. Even when buying finished products, be aware that each piece of hand-dyed fabric has slightly different patterns; fabric that looks like a printed image may not come from a traditional handmade process.

Three-day, two-night binge-watching route

On the first day, stay in Dali Old Town. In the morning, head to Fengyangyi, return to the Old Town in the afternoon to rest, and then watch the sunset over Erhai Lake from the covered bridge. On the second day, visit Xizhou and Zhoucheng. In the morning, explore Bai ethnic minority houses and fields, and in the afternoon, try tie-dyeing. If driving, you can stop along the eastern coastal road depending on the weather. On the third day, head to Shaxi early in the morning, stay overnight, and then return to Dali or continue to Lijiang.

 If you only have two days, keep Fengyangyi, Xizhou, Zhoucheng, and a section of Erhai Lake; Shaxi needs to be deleted. Shaxi itself is enough to support a day and night trip. It is too costly to spend four hours round trip just to get a photo in front of a coffee shop.

Four things to confirm before departure

The Dali Plateau has strong sunshine and significant temperature differences between day and night, and the duration of road travel during the rainy season is also difficult to estimate.

Confirm before departure

1. Reservation methods for the Windy Courtyard and Tie-dye Experience
2. Transportation to and from Shaxi
3. Recent crop status in Xizhou
4. And the latest traffic and parking regulations along Erhai Lake.

Using Google Maps within China may be affected by network conditions and map data updates. On-site navigation can be checked with Amap or Baidu Maps to verify Chinese place names.

The Yunmiao Village in the drama is pieced together from multiple real locations. Fengyangyi provides the courtyards and ancient roads, Shaxi provides the ancient town life, Xizhou provides the fields, Zhoucheng provides the crafts, and Erhai Lake brings these stories back to the open landscape. Understanding this layering makes the journey less anxious about finding the exact same shooting locations and closer to the original rhythm of life in Dali.

Reference source

• Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People's Republic of China: A Breezy Spring Trip to Yunnan
• Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture People's Government: Shaxi Ancient Town, Shibao Mountain
• Yunnan Provincial Ethnic and Religious Affairs Commission: Zhoucheng Tie-dyeing Paves the Way to Rural Prosperity

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