Classic Dunhuang Tour
Overview
Steep in this 2-day Classic Dunhuang Tour to grab Dunhuang highlights along ancient Silk Road with breathtaking scenery of desert and fabulous cultural relics. You can experience the amazing landform of Gobi and desert in Singing Sand Dunes & Crescent Moon Lake and camel riding is a must-try activity in northwestern China. Mogao Grottoes is another top attraction to appreciate Chinese treasure and traditional Buddhist art!
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Make your way to Dunhuang by flight or train. You will be met and greeted by our guide, and transfer to your hotel with a private vehicle.
After a short rest and fresh up, you will first visit the Singing Sand Dunes Scenic Spot. 6km south of the city center, Singing Sand Dunes is one of the most beautiful and famed deserts in China. Experience a camel riding to the Crescent Moon Lake inside the desert where it is a beautiful oasis. Clear water surrounded by reeds and an ancient buildings group accompanying the lake make an amazing picture. Breathtaking view back across the rolling desert sands towards the oasis is the reward for climbing up the dunes. If good weather, it’s also the best place to enjoy marvelous desert sunset. Here, popular activities like sand-sledding and desert motor-riding are available on your own choice and expense. Finally, transfer back to hotel.
Meal: L
In this morning, you will visit the top attraction of Dunhuang, Mogao Grottoes. It’s first built in 366 AD and lasted 10 dynasties’ construction forming what we can see now. It is famous as the world's extant greatest treasure house of Buddhist art with existing 735 grottoes, 45,000 square meters of murals and more than 2415 painted sculptures. You will first visit the Dunhuang Digital Exhibition Center and watch two amazing documentary movies. Then take sightseeing shuttle bus from the center to the caves area. After then, explore the caves in group. It generally takes 3.5hrs to finish the entire trip.
If enough time, after visit the Mogao Grottoes, you can also choose to visit the Western Thousand Buddha Caves or Dunhuang Museum.
The Western Thousand-Buddha Cave - it’s very close to the Mogao Grottoes, the murals here are similar in structure and artistic style to those in Mogao Caves, so the Western Thousand-Buddha Cave is considered as one of the important components of Dunhuang Buddhist art. And it was said that this cave may have been dug earlier than Mogao Grottoes according to the records stored in Paris.
Dunhuang Museum - As a comprehensive local museum, it exhibits the historical relics, folk arts, trail of ancient Silk Road and natural resources of northwestern China.
In the end, we will escort you to the airport / rail station for your departure. Welcome to Dunhuang next time!
Tips for Visiting Mogao Caves:
- The total number of visitors is limited to 6,000 per day, so it is necessary to book the ticket in advance, especially during the busy season (May 1 to October 31).
- There are 40 caves opened for tourists. Usually, visitors would be divided into groups in the tourist spot and led by the specific guide to visit 8 or 12 caves.
- If you want to have any specific caves included, please definitely let us know.
- Taking photo is not allowed when visiting inside the caves and Mogao Caves. But you can take photos of outside the caves.
Meal: B, L
Service ends.
