About Dunhuang
What to see and do in Dunhuang
Weather in Dunhuang
Airport in Dunhuang
Visa
Dunhuang is a city (pop. 150,000) in Jiuquan, Gansu province, China. It is sited in an oasis. Dunhuang is a city on the old Silk Road. It is located in Gansu Province in north west China.
This desert town near the old Silk Road rewards visitors with an astonishing archeological treasure carved out of bedrock and cliffs: the Mogao Caves. The caves' Buddhist paintings and artifacts are stunning and Dunhuang itself is worth a stay for its relaxed oasis atmosphere. Historically the last Chinese outpost on the Silk Road, Dunhuang has a long history of taking care of weary travelers.
Dunhuang sits at the edge of the Gobi Desert at the juncture of the western provinces of Gansu and Qinghai and the Xinjiang autonomous region. Historically, the town prospered as a fertile agricultural oasis (it's especially famous for its melons and grapes) and as the country's westernmost military garrison during the Han (202 BC-220 AD) and Tang (618-907 AD) dynasties. Founded by Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty in 111 BC, Dunhuang served as a base for soldiers watching over Silk Road caravans. For centuries, Dunhuang was the last familiar stop for Chinese traders heading west, sometimes even going as far as the Roman Empire.
The Dunhuang train station (Dunhuang huochezhan) is located about 12km outside the town to the northeast. There is also a ticket agent in town, across the street from the Dunhuang binguan, which sells tickets for most (not all) trains. Note that the train connection to Dunhuang is relatively new and many travel blogs and guidebooks do not mention it, and some travelers may be unaware it exists. However, travelers have used it, and you can be assured it is functional.
Travel times and train numbers for departures from Dunhuang as of early 2008:
Jiayuguan - #7528, departing at 16:10, arriving at 21:49
Lanzhou - #N858, dep. 19:25, arr. 09:14
Urumqi - #T216, dep. 20:44, arr. 10:48
Xian - #K592, dep. 09:39, arr. 09:26
Yinchuan - #N854, dep. 14:30, arr. 08:27
By bus
Dunhuang has 2 bus stations diagonally across from each other. Most frequent buses leave from the main bus station and not the long distance bus station.
Golmud - takes about 15 hours
Hami (3 weekly) - takes about 8 hours
Jiayuguan - takes about 4-8 hours
Lanzhou - takes about 17-24 hours
Liuyuan - takes about 3 hours
Xining
Zhangye - takes about 13 hours
What to see and do in Dunhuang
Mogao Caves, (25km from town; most people visit on pre-arranged tour or arrive by taxi. City buses to the caves have been seen; further details presently unknown). English tours at 9am, 11am and 2pm daily. A UNESCO World Heritage Site filled with exquisite Buddhist art and manuscripts. Although the city had an early connection with Buddhism due to the passage of monks traveling the Silk Road, it was not until a monk had a vision of a thousand Buddhas above the desert at Dunhuang in 4th century that the famous caves were excavated and filled with the manuscripts and treasures. Nearby is the White Horse Pagoda, built by a monk from India in honor of his horse, which died in the process of bringing the monk to China. RMB 180 for English tour (docent is required). RMB 80 for students.
The famous Mingshashan'Yueyaquan National Park with Mingsha (Humming Sand) Hill and Crescent Moon Spring are found south of Dunhuang while to the north there is Jade Gate Pass (Yumen Guan) and Sun Pass (Yangguandao), last Han outposts on the Great Wall of China.
A visit to the sand dunes next to Crescent Lake is worth a trip:
Entrance fee for the dunes and lake park is RMB 120; an additional RMB 60 per person for a camel ride (as of September 2008). The park can be reached by bus #3.
"Summer of Dunhuang" Variety Show - offered from June to October, performances of singing and dancing in the Silk Road traditions
Camel Trek, arranged by Charlie Johng's Cafe, Mingshan Lu (Across the road and 50m north from the long-distance bus station), 13893763029 (dhzhzh@163.com). Typically leave around 4 to 5 pm. Get to know the desert firsthand on a 2 to 7 day camel trek across spectacular sand dunes. A typical trek goes for 3 days and includes a visit to the Mogao cave. Alternately, just camp out in the desert for a night to experience the Gobi desert's night sky, sunset and sunrise. Bargain hard, but going rate is between RMB 250 to 500 per day
Silk Road - The route between Dunhuang and Cherchen (Qiemo) is probably the hardest to do in all of the Silk Road travels since public transit is complicated between the two points.
One leg of the trip is often closed due to washouts in the river canyon or landslides in the mountains, and is closed to most traffic in the winter. Be sure to ask, before you leave Dunhuang, whether the road between Shimiankuang and Charklik (Ruoqiang) is open.
Regular buses run daily each morning from Dunhuang, Gansu Province, 731 km to Huatugou, a small oil drilling town in northwest Qinghai Province, and daily each morning the other direction. This road, a paved highway the entire way, crosses the Altun Mountains over Dangjin Pass (3680 m) at the provincial border between Qinghai and Gansu which runs along the crest of the Altun Mountains. One source says that the road rises from 1000 m to the 3680 m pass in just 20 kilometers. This road is subject to delays or closure in winter due to icy conditions.
Twice daily minibuses run the 65 km in 1.5-2 hours for RMB 15 between Huatugou and Shimiankuang literally: asbestos mine), a tiny worker hamlet north of a large surface-level asbestos mine. It's better to stay overnight in Huatugou than in the very basic lodging at the asbestos mine. Ask the Huatugou taxi driver for the Petroleum Guesthouse -- shi you bin guan. There's also very basic lodging across from the Huatugou bus station -- ask the bus driver to point you in the right direction.
Some maps do not show Huatugou (2,859 m) and instead show Youshashan, about 5-10 km southwest. If neither town is shown, Huatugou is just northeast of Gaz Hure Hu lake. Some maps do not show Shimiankuang (3,200 m) and instead show the small oil refinery village of Mangnai Zhen, about 10 km southeast. If neither town is shown, Shimiankuang is right where Highway 315 crosses the provincial border. Older maps show Shimiankuang and Mangnai Zhen in Xinjiang Province, but the area was moved administratively some years ago into Qinghai Province.
The 241 km road from Shimiankuang, at the border of Qinghai and Xinjiang, to Charklik (Ruoqiang), Xinjiang, is a rough road, much of it unpaved, over a 4,000 m pass and through a narrow river valley as well as across the desert. This is the rough leg mentioned above. Buses cannot manage this road, so "public cars" run once a day (sometimes twice a day, depending on demand) along this route. These are apparently semi-official 4WD SUVs, but you don't buy tickets at the bus station. The cost in 2007 was Y100, paid to the driver upon arrival. These cars run quite packed, so arrive early. The "public cars" do not operate in winter.
The "public car" usually leaves from in front of the bus station in Charklik (Ruoqiang) at 08:00 Beijing time (06:00 unofficial local time) and arrives in Shimiankuang about 6 hours later, and generally in time to catch the afternoon minibus from Shimiankuang to Huatugou. The 09:00 morning minibus from Huatugou meets the "public car" leaving from Shimiankuang about 11:00. (The minibuses are scheduled to leave Huatugou at 09:00 and 17:00. This implies that the departures from Shimiankuang to Huatugou are at about 11:00 and 19:00.)
From Charklik (Ruoqiang) to Cherchen (Qiemo), the bus leaves at 10:00, takes 5 hours to cover the 351 km and costs RMB 58. In the other direction, a daily bus leaves Cherchen (Qiemo) for Charklik (Ruoqiang) at 10:00.
Dunhuang city centre
Dunhuang's city centre is relatively highly developed, including much commercial activity
and many hotels. Bookshops and other souvenir shops sell materials relating to the Caves and
the history of the region.
A night market is held in the city centre, popular with tourists. Many souvenir items are sold, including such typical items as jade, jewelry, scrolls, hangings, small sculptures, and the like. A sizable number of members of China's ethnic minorities engage in business at these markets. A Central Asian dessert or sweet is also sold, consisting of a large, sweet confection made with nuts and dried fruit, sliced into the portion desired by the customer.
Crescent Lake
Echoing-Sand Mountain (Mingsha Shan)
These attractions are essentially part of the same area. The Crescent Lake is within the Sand-Mountain. This lake is apparently an oasis surrounded by the highly sandy area composed of high dunes. The Mingsha Shan is so named for the sound of the wind whipping off the dunes. The area is very popular with tourists, the great majority of them Chinese. A street lined with souvenir stalls leads up to the entrance to the complex. Most tourists ride camels, organized by the complex operators, to reach the sand dunes. Typically the camels are guided by a local camel guide, who include both women and men. At the dunes, a popular activity for tourists is to ride sleds down the sand slopes, much like snow-sledding during winter in temperate zones. Along the side of the Crescent Lake is a pagoda in traditional Han Chinese architecture.
Mogao Caves
Here, over 1,600 years ago, in over 1,000 caves scattered throughout the rocky desert near modern-day
Dunhuang, Buddhist monks traveling east from India and Tibet settled, establishing, along with China's
first Buddhist monasteries, a revered tradition of filling the area's arid caves with stunning paintings
and sculptures.
Today, only some of the caves are open to the public, as conservation and restoration work is under way. Expect to be able to tour about 10-12 caves in a single day for the price of admission (RMB 120 base, with visits to additional individual caves running up to RMB 500).
Tour buses and minibuses depart from Dunhuang frequently, especially during the summer high season. Expect to pay around RMB10 - 15 for the half-hour trip, one way.
Winter can be more expensive and difficult, and travelers often wind up arranging a round-trip taxi for anywher between RMB 75 - 250 (bargaining power drops with the temperature and number of tourists).
The fluctuation in temperature between day and night suggest tourists should bring a warm, winter clothing for use in the morning and evening. Other essentials are sunglasses, caps, sunscreen and gauze-kerchiefs. The air here is extremely dry in most of the time for the frequent wind. Lip balm is thus highly recommended. It is necessary to have enough water and fruits every day here.
Winter is bitingly cold season and is not suitable for traveling. March to October is suitable for visiting, with May to September offering the most clement weather, especially for visiting the caves, as there are no lighting facilities inside but the sunshine perfuse the caves with radiance at this time.
January -2 C to -16 C
February 3 C to -12 C
March 12 C to -4 C
April 20 C to 3 C
May 26 C to 8 C
June 30 C to 13 C
July 32 C to 15 C
August 31 C to 14 C
September 26 C to 7 C
October 18 C to -0 C
November 7 C to -7 C
December -1 C to -14 C
Dunhuang Airport is an airport in Dunhuang, Gansu, China (IATA: DNH, ICAO: ZLDH).
Location: Situated east of Dunhuang City, Dunhuang Airport is about 13 kilometers (about 8 miles) from the downtown area. The Mogao Caves are closer to the airport than to the downtown area. If you are pressed for time, you can go to the Mogao Caves directly from the airport.
Brief Intro: Dunhuang Airport (DNH), a small airport that offers only a domestic service. Established in 1982, Dunhuang Airport now has a 2,800-meter (about 1.73-mile) runway, a 4C flight area, five gate positions and a 12-thousand-square-meter (about 14,352 square yards) Terminal Building. It serves about 38 domestic flights weekly to destinations such as Beijing, Xian, Lanzhou, Urumqi and Jiayuguan, etc. In the peak season, the airport offers many more charter-flights than in the off-season.
Airport Transportation: From the airport to downtown Dunhuang, the most convenient vehicle should be taxi. The starting rate for taxies in Dunhuang ranges from RMB 5 to RMB 10 depending on the type of taxi. If you ask other people to share a taxi with you, it will cost you less than if you take it by yourself.
Important notice:
1. Airport Ticket Office in downtown: No.12 Yangguan Dong Lu
2. Taxis outside the airport will cost less than those inside.
Airlines and other destinations of Dunhuang
Air China (Beijing)
China Eastern Airlines (Lanzhou)
China Southern Airlines (Xi'an, Urumqi)
To be able to travel to Dunhuang you need to have a valid China Visa, issue
from your local government at the China Embassy, Chinese visa fall into four types:
diplomatic visa, courtesy visa, service visa and ordinary visa. Ordinary visa
is further divided into the following 8 categories each marked with a letter:
(1) Tourist and family visit visa (L-visa) is issued to a foreign citizen who comes to China
for tourist purpose, family visit or other personal affairs.
(2) Business Visa (F-visa ) is issued to a foreign citizen who is invited to China for visit, research, lecture, business, exchanges in the fields of science, technology, education, culture and sports, or attending various kinds of trade fairs or exhibitions, or short-term study, intern practice for a period of no more than 6 months.
(3) Student Visa (X-visa) is issued to a foreign citizen who comes to China for the purpose of study or advanced study for a period of six or more months.
(4) Work Visa (Z-visa) is issued to a foreign citizen who comes to China to work and his or her accompanying family members, or to give commercial performances in China.
(5) Transit Visa (G-visa) is issued to a foreign citizen who is to transit through China on his or her way to a third country (or region).
(6) Crew Visa(C-visa)is issued to crew member performing his/her duties on board an international train, or on an international airliner, to a sailor on board an international ocean-liner or freighter, and also to their accompanying family members..
(7) Journalist Visa (J-visa)is issued to foreign journalists. J-visa has two categories: J-1 visa and J-2 visa. J-1 visa is issued to resident foreign journalists in China and their accompanying spouses and under-age children, J-2 visa to foreign journalists who visit China for temporary news coverage.
(8) Permanent Residence Visa(D-visa)is issued to a foreign citizen who has been approved by China's public security authority to reside in China permanently.
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