Traps in the transformation of ethnic cultural resources find expression mainly in the formal alienation(cultural distortion and destruction), ecological alienation(excessive transformation or exploitation of cultural resources) and alienation at a stationary state(depending on cultural resources). The case study of the Ancient Dayan City and the Ancient Xizhou Town reveals that the causes of the traps in the transformation of ethnic cultural resources are related to market turbulence(commercialization, interest-related motivation and short-term rent-seeking), cultural extrusion(impacts of strong external cultures) and internal disorder(poor protection of ethnic cultural resources). It finally puts forward the following solutions: sustainable development(rationally exploiting ethnic cultural resources), due acknowledgement(enhancing the public’s sense of esteem and identity with ethnic cultures) and good management(strengthening the protection of ethnic cultural resources and preventing alienation or vanishment of ethnic cultural resources).