Dunhuang

During the Han and Tang Dynasties, Dunhuang was a major point of interchange between China and the outside world – a stopping-off post for both incoming and outgoing trading caravans. The area has a certain haunting beauty, especially at night under a star-studded sky. It’s not so much the desert dunes and romantic nights that attract so many tourists, but the superb Buddhist art at the nearby Mogao Grottoes, which scooped into mountain cliffs 25 km southeast of Dunhuang. It has found its niche on the UNESCO list of the world's cultural heritages for its 1,600 years of accumulation of cultural, architectural and art treasures.

Highlights:

Muogao Grottoes - 25km southeast of Dunhuang, It comprises well-protected 492 caves and 2150 statues, which was once a center of Buddhist culture on the Silk Road until 14th century.
Crescent Moon Spring and Singing Sand Mountain - a shimmering crescent-shaped pool surrounded by golden sand dunes, where the oasis meets the desert.