Luxury At 11,000 Feet

MAR

Luxury At 11,000 Feet

The rugged Himalayas, one of the most alluring yet treacherous landscapes on Earth has long been out of reach for the luxury traveller. Not anymore. Banyan Tree Ringha is a new luxury resort built by Singapore-based Banyan Tree which operates some of the most unique resort environments in China, Thailand, Japan and Indonesia.

Located on the edge of Tibet in Yunnan Province the Ringha resort is set in a mountainous paradise with winding meadows, rustic villages and views that literally take your breath away.

...what I found in the minibar in my room: a 1.7-ounce bottle of Johnnie Walker Black for $31 and a canister of oxygen. I wanted the Johnnie Walker but I needed the oxygen, which, handily, was free.

The Ringha resort instantly lays claim to being China's highest, high-end luxury resort. Chances are, Ringha will have to share that moniker in the near future, as the once-called Zhongdian County, now officially renamed Shangri-La (2001) continues to attract a growing flow of tourism and developers.

Whether you are an adventure seeker, or a spiritual spa hound that wants to see, smell, taste and experience the roots of Buddhism without giving up your facial or hot tub, the Banyan Tree Ringha may be the 'soft adventure' trip of your dreams.

Thin veils of smoke rose from the chimneys of whitewashed farmhouses, and pack horses moved through meadows wending toward the shimmering Ringha River. A breeze blew past with the faint smell of smoke from cooking fires, charcoal wisps trailing the narrow length of the foothills of the snow-capped Hengduan Range, where Meili Snow Mountain, one of the most sacred peaks of Tibetan Buddhism, hides behind clouds for most of the year, unconquered by mountaineers. Just out of sight, the Mekong and Yangtze rivers tumbled out of the flats of Tibet. Laos was over one border; Myanmar beyond another. And in the great distance of the imagination, I could hear the magical scrape of prayer wheels endlessly turning as golden stupas caught the dying light.

A View That Takes Your Breath Away [LA Times]

TAGS: buddhism china resorts tibet