Impression Lijiang is a cultural show which demonstrates the traditions and lifestyle of local Naxi, Yi and Bai ethnics of the area. It is the second outdoor production (after Impression Liu Sanjie in Yangshuo, Guilin) of famous Chinese film director Zhang Yimou, who co-directed the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008. The open-air performance takes place inside Jade Dragon Snow Mountain Park at 3500 meters in an outdoor theater specifically designed to showcase the mountain which is used as a breath-taking backdrop.

 As an outdoor performance in full daylight, Impression Lijiang which Zhang Yimou has spent two years for the preparation was innovatively staged in the morning. The show is divided into two parts, "Snow Mountain Impression" and "Ancient City Impression", the production, which has cost 31 million U.S. dollars to make, is staged at the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and Dayan Ancient Town, two famous scenic spots in Lijiang, a scenic city in southwestern China. Aiming to provide an insight into the lives of the region's ethnic groups, all the songs and dances that includes within the show are largely portray the daily life of the local people. Around 500 local people from 10 ethnic groups have been selected from 16 towns and villages in Lijiang of Yunnan Province to perform daily folk songs, dances and rituals for tourists, which include folk songs, dances as well as rituals for tourists.