I was on the Kunming Dali Express Bus last week and I saw that the Muoding Mushroom Festival was advertising heavily. I think that the signs said the 26th of July as the opening day, but I was hoping that somebody here could confirm that?
Also, has anybody stayed in the mushroom houses that are visible from the road?
I know that Shiping festival starts on the 6th of August but I Muoding is much more convenient for me.

I do not know anything about the Mouding event, but Yimen 易门 holds its annual Wild Mushroom Trade Fair 野生菌交易会 from July 20-26.

As far as I know, the event in Shiping county is in Longpeng 龙朋 township.

The mushroom houses you have seen are most likely the ones close to Nanhua 南华, the bus from Dali does not pass anywhere near Mouding 牟定.

Can anyone else confirm the date of the Trade fair? I found a conflicting date before.

Anymore info on the fair would be great!

Can anyone else confirm the date of the Trade fair? I found a conflicting date before.

Anymore info on the fair would be great!

Just a few links, the event seems to be held every year from July 20-26:

www.yn.chinanews.com/pub/2012/yunnan_0717/63417.html

en.kunming.cn/index/content/2012-07/17/content_3021442.htm

news.k618.cn/reporter/201207/t20120710_2261619.htm

Yimen is actually a pleasant town with good public parks and a nice nearby temple area built around a spring 龙泉寺, go up to the reservoir dam and follow the walkway around it, about 20min walk from the main square.

does anyone know the finer details of the Shiping festival? exact dates, style of festival (heard the Yimen one was for mushroom high-rollers), accommodation possibilities, etc. anyone know any websites covering this festival? thanks..

As I said before, the festival is not in Shiping 'City', but in Longpeng on the 6th of August.

news.kunming.cn/yn-news/content/2012-07/06/content_3010186.htm

www.hh.cn/news_1/xw01/201207/t20120726_390255.html

I doubt that you can find an accurate programme online, but after a 'receiving guests' period there will be an opening ceremony where I assume they will drag out the Huayao Yi in their splendid costumes, followed by lunch (mushrooms?).

The main mystery is what 跳万人烟盒舞 the 10000 men cigarette dance will be.

Longpeng lies on the old road between Tonghai and Shiping. There is a bus about every hour on this road, Longpeng has a (small) number of hotels, which will either be booked out or heavily inflated for the event.

I will probably go, leaving KM for Tonghai in the morning of the 5th and travel on to Longpeng in the hope of getting a room there. If that is not possible, there are other options in Xincheng (the next smaller town) or Shiping. After the event in Longpeng I will travel on to Jianshui for the annual harvest of the swallow nests in the swallow cave on August 8th.
If someone wanted to come along, drop me a line.

I will probably go, leaving KM for Tonghai in the morning of the 5th and travel on to Longpeng in the hope of getting a room there. If that is not possible, there are other options in Xincheng (the next smaller town) or Shiping. After the event in Longpeng I will travel on to Jianshui for the annual harvest of the swallow nests in the swallow cave on August 8th.
If someone wanted to come along, drop me a line.

Summer Mushroom Festival coming - Sometime in July.

www.gokunming.com/[...] - Wild Mushroom Season in Chuxiong.

Many articles about mushrooms here on GoKunming.