One of the Danba County's best-known villages, Jiaju Village is perched above Zhanggu Town, Danba's biggest town. Jiaju appeared on the backpacker and adventure tourist map after three Tibetan sisters opened their home to a traveler from Hong Kong, who then spread the word. Soon enough, the whole village began supplementing traditional farming and herdsing with income from tourism.

Fortunately for seekers of authentic traditional culture, the village is remote enough and difficult enough to reach to have, to date, avoided the crass, highly commercial development typical of many recently "discovered" destinations.

The road from Chengdu to Danba runs through Zhanggu; generally, if you say "Jiaju" to locals, they will direct you to the village. The three sisters still live near the top of the mountain, and they, along with many of their neighbors, welcome visitors.

Nothing beats wandering the quaint mountainside village and the surrounding fields in spring or huddling around a fire with a bowl of hot barley porridge and yak butter in winter, secure in the knowledge that local hospitality and gorgeous mountain views are yours in exchange for a little extra effort.

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