Getting there / away:
Yangshuo --> Guilin --> Longsheng (Heping) --> Pingan/Jinkeng

Yangshuo has one bus leaving early in the morning for Longsheng. Otherwise you can go first to Guilin. Guilin Bus Station has non-stop express buses and normal buses leaving for Longshen every 15 minutes. There are also buses every half an hour connecting Longsheng either to Pingan or to Jinkeng. It takes one and half hours from Longsheng to Jinkeng (33km, Y7.-).

* Heping Option: If you take a normal Longsheng bus from Guilin, you can get off at Heping (15km before Longsheng) and wait for the Longsheng-Jinkeng bus or Longsheng-Pingan bus at Heping instead of changing the bus in Longsheng. Anyway it takes only 10 minutes by bus from Heping to Longsheng.

In Pingan parking, bus descends to the main road in the lower river valley, passes Huanglo, Heping and goes further to Longsheng. Check the schedule in the hotel. To go back to Guilin, ask the driver to drop you off in Heping and wait for a bus from Longsheng to Guilin. Normally you would not wait for more than half an hour.
Many backpackers go to Longshen and take a bus from there to further plunge into Sanjiang Dong Minority County and discover the wonderful Chengyang Wind and Rain Bridge. (See Iitinerary From Yangshuo to Kaili)

Lodgings/Food:
In 2002, most of traditional wooden houses in Pingan were transformed to simple lodges. I stayed at Longying Hostel (see left photo).It offered simple clean rooms for Y15/per bed with a fairly good view (see right photo), and a public shower bathroom with hot water and clean WC.
Tell the friendly hostess what you want for breakfast: pancakes, rice soup, or noodles, so that she can prepare in advance. As for her family, they usually take copious dishes in the morning: meat, vegetables and rice in order to get enough energy to work in the fields. While I was enjoying the delicious pancake as my breakfast, six locals gathered at a round table piled with more than 10 dishes, meat vegetables and wine. As for dinner, go to their kitchen to see what they have: fresh vegetables, tofu, and meat, order what you like. Their chicken tastes quite good, much more tasty than those in the big cities.
To find Longying Hostel, enter into the village, take the stone path turning to the left, in the direction of no.2 viewing spot.
*** In 2008, Pingan was packed with mass tourists coming from Guilin for one-day-excursion. Meals were ridiculously expensive.

Accommodations in Jingkeng:
There are a lot of family-run hostels in Jinkeng except Xiaozhai. The guesthouse Quanjinglou situated at the highest Viewpoint in Jinkeng, overlooking rice terraces and beautiful traditional Yao villages, offers the best view. Clean dormitory rooms: Y20 per bed, shared bathroom and good restaurant. The owner can arrange the guide for you to walk to Pingan: Y40/ per day. (price indication as per our 2005 visit).
Xiaozhai is worth a visit, as it has not been developed to a tourist site. It takes two hours to walk from Quanjinglou to Xiazhai. There is no restaurant in Xiaozhai.

Photo Albums: Pingan, Jinkeng Rice Terraces . Go to all destinations,, Go to Guangxi