At the bases of the Liushao and Ailao mountains is the Honghezhou Autonomous Region in southern Yunnan. The Honghe River cuts through the villages, terraced rice fields, rainforests, and valleys of the region as it flows downwards into Vietnam. The ranging topographical contrast is one of the greatest scenic appeals of the region, where green karst peaks reach 3000 meters and plunge to the valleys below. 

The old city of Jianshui is worth a visit for its cultural heritage with more than 100 temples, 50 ancient bridges and 56 state-protected cultural relics. Some highlights of the area are: the Chaoyang Gate Arch built in 1389; the Jianshui Confucius Temple built in 1285; and the seventeen arches of Shuanglong Bridge, a Qing Dynasty masterpiece. 

Thirty kilometers from Jianshui is Swallow Cave where you can watch freestyle climbers scale the heights of this vast, cathedral-like cave, to retrieve swallow nests that sell at high prices as a culinary delicacies

The terraced fields that scale high up the mountains are the impressive legacy of the Hani minority. Nine ethnic minorities reside in Honghezhou, most of whom are Hani, Yu and Hui. Their presence provides cultural diversity and colour to the region as each minority has its own style of houses, dress and ceremony. 

Honghezhou is a region that was developed very early on and is considered to be one of the birthplaces of humankind on account of fossils of the ancient Lama apes found in Kaiyuan. Humans have been in the area for at least 1300 years. Jianshui, Mengzi, and Gejiu are the center of politics, economy and culture of south Yunnan. 

Hani language belongs to Yi branch of the Tibetan-Burmese language group of the Sino-Tibetan family. In 1887, the government signed the Sino-French Special Treaty for Continuous Trade which made Mengzi an important trading port. A French consulate was also established here. France, Great Britain, the United States, Germany, Italy and Japan set up their post offices, companies, banks and churches in Mengzi. In the late 19th century, a telegram bureau was founded in Yunnan province. In the present day, mining and agriculture are the two industries that power economy in this region. Many of the villages on the banks of the Hehong River were unaffected during the Cultural Revolution due to their remote location. 

Honghezhou is one of the largest fruit producers in Yunnan with bountiful crops of lychees, oranges, pineapples, grapes, pomegranates and bananas. The grain crops are rice and corn, while the cash crops are tobacco, sugar-cane, peanut, rape-seed and tea.