#Zhangye City Museum Travel Recommendations for 2024 (Updated in Jun)
Museums
Address:
4 Xianfu Street
Opening times:
Closed Today
Recommended sightseeing time:
1-2 hour
Phone:
0936-8801818
Zhangye 6-day route planning guide, because of one person, fall in love with a city
Zhangye, this city, no one will ask you whether you love it or not, only people will ask you why you love it. The colorful colors, brilliant ethnic groups, inclusive religions, ancient history, galloping horses, young heroes, there are many reasons to fall in love with Zhangye, and it seems that no reason is needed.
Zhangye is located in the transition zone from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to the Inner Mongolia Plateau, and has gathered all the natural landscapes that people can imagine, such as glaciers, snow mountains, forests, grasslands, rivers, lakes, Danxia, wetlands, deserts, Gobi, mountains, and canyons. It can be called a world geomorphological landscape garden.
Zhangye was originally a place where ethnic minorities lived. In history, it was a necessary place for the Western Regions to enter the Central Plains. It was also a strategic point for a strong dynasty to achieve unification and strength. Various ethnic groups blend here, and the ethnic culture is brilliant and colorful.
As a 4,000-year-old civilization ancient city, Zhangye's history is old enough. The ancient history adds a bit of heaviness to this city. Rich historical relics have also become our carrier to look back at the past.
🚙Transportation
The scenic spots in Zhangye are far apart, public transportation is not convenient, it is recommended to drive or charter.
📜Itinerary details
D1️⃣: Zhangye Museum➡️Xilai Temple➡️Dafo Temple➡️Muta Temple
✅Zhangye Museum (2h)
The first stop is at the Zhangye Museum, overlooking the 4,000-year-old civilization ancient city and entering the important town of the ancient Silk Road.
Follow the footsteps of the commentator, step by step into the museum, in the exquisite cultural relics such as bronzes, pottery, coins, porcelain, etc., look back at the 4,000-year-old civilization ancient city, the important town of the ancient Silk Road.
✅Xilai Temple (1h)
Feel the incense after the reconstruction in the Xilai Temple, which was built in the Sui and Tang Dynasties.
✅Dafo Temple (2h)
Check in the only religious hall of the Western Xia minority in China, the largest indoor reclining Buddha Nirvana statue in China, and the murals of Journey to the West, which are 200 years earlier than the book.
✅Muta Temple (1h)
Take a walk outside the Muta Temple in the evening and see the life of the locals outside the ancient building.
D2️⃣: Biandukou➡️Binhe Jiuliang
✅Biandukou (3h)
Many people rush to Qinghai to see a field of rapeseed flowers, but in Zhangye Biandukou, under the Qilian Mountains, the rapeseed flowers bloom, also blooming the colors of Zhangye. Biandukou has travel photography, hot air balloons and other projects to check in.
✅Binhe Jiuliang (3h)
Come to the birthplace of Binhe Jiuliang, in the strong aroma of wine, from the Shen Zhou Qu Workshop to the brewing workshop, from the 10,000-ton wine cellar to the 10,000-acre sorghum raw material base, step by step to trace the roots, go into the past and present of Binhe Jiuliang, and explore this time-brewed Long legend.
D3️⃣: Colorful Danxia
✅Colorful Danxia (sunrise and sunset, rest at noon)
The colorful Danxia has long become the business card of Zhangye and the dreamland of many good “color” followers at home and abroad. When the colorful Danxia meets the hot air balloon, it is even more romantic in the summer of Zhangye.
D4️⃣: Gaotai Site➡️Zhengyi Gorge➡️Camel City Site
✅Gaotai Site (1h)
Not far from the Camel City site, history lovers check in, if time is tight, you can ignore it.
✅Zhengyi Gorge (3h)
You can see the wild gorge of the Great Wall, desolate and wild.
✅Camel City Site (2h)
Must check in, once the ancient capital of Beiliang, the military city of the Tang Dynasty, now only the broken walls remain, stubbornly standing in the desert alkali, desolate and solemn, telling the prosperity of the past with the wind and sand. The ruins are silent and persistent, this stubbornness that spans 1,800 years, makes people tearful.
D5⃣️: Sunan Matisi➡️Kangle Grassland➡️Wenshu Temple➡️Sunan County
✅Matisi (3h)
Mainly visit Matisi North Temple, Thousand Buddha Cave. Matisi North Temple is the most peculiar, most strictly arranged, and largest grotto in the Matisi Grottoes. Must check in Thirty-three days, Tibetan Buddha Hall.
✅Kangle Grassland (3h)
The grassland in summer is close to the sky and not far from the snow mountain, which is very similar to the appearance of the dream far away.
Here you can take a large travel photo of the Yugur style.
✅Wenshu Temple (2h)
The ancient grotto group under the main peak of Qilian Mountain, for thousands of years, Tibetan Buddhism, Han Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese religious sects have intersected and integrated here.
D6️⃣: Yanzhi Mountain➡️Shandan Horse Farm
✅Yanzhi Mountain (3h)
Shandan Yanzhi Mountain, the waist of the Hexi Corridor, the throat of the Ganliang Ancient Road, has always been a must for the military. Huo Qubing defeated the Huns here, laying the foundation for Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to "expand the Western Regions and open up the Silk Road". Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty held a "World Expo" here, which became the prototype of the modern World Expo.
✅Shandan Horse Farm (3h)
Must check in, although the distance is relatively far, but it is currently the largest and oldest horse farm in the world.
MADELINE MOSES
Gansu Travel Guide
Xiaojin Plateau Scenic Area
From Lanzhou Airport to the city center, you can choose the intercity high-speed train or a hotel near Lanzhou West Station.
Gansu Museum — Statue of Mother Yellow River — White Pagoda Mountain — Zhengning Night Market
Arrive in Lanzhou at noon, rest at the hotel, then head to the Gansu Museum (advance reservation required, closed on Mondays, seriously visit for 3-4 hours), afterwards take a taxi to the Statue Park, stroll along the Yellow River, reach the park via Baita Bridge, climb up to overlook the Lanzhou night view (after 12:00 midnight), there is a dessert shop downstairs, you can try it. (The night market food is so-so)
Day 1
Morning: From Lanzhou to Zhangye West/Overnight train
Evening: Take the train from Zhangye Railway Station to Dunhuang, sleep on the train
Day 2
Morning: Arrive in Dunhuang, admire the Danxia landform
Noon: Reach Zhangye Museum (advance reservation required, closed on Mondays, food may not be cheap, it is recommended to bring some snacks)
Afternoon: Visit Mogao Caves (it is recommended to stay near the train station for convenience)
Evening: Shazhou Night Market — Watch the 'Impression Dunhuang' performance
Day 3
Morning: Arrive in Dunhuang/Overnight in Dunhuang
It is recommended to stay near the train station for convenience.
WorldWandererDiaries#333
Exploring the Hexi Corridor - Zhangye Mati Temple, the unmissable Little Switzerland of the East!
🎈Day Eight: Zhangye Mati Temple
🎈Mati Temple is definitely the highlight of this Hexi Corridor trip! The name 'Little Switzerland of the East' is well-deserved!
🎈While watching a documentary about the Hexi Corridor, I knew there was a place called Linsong Xie Valley, a meeting point of Han and Tibetan Buddhism. When we drove to the entrance of the Mati Temple scenic area, we were stunned by the continuous peaks and snow-capped mountains. Upon entering the scenic area, a landscape of autumnal mountains and waters unfolded before us, a perfect fusion of natural and cultural landscapes, as if we were in a paradise.
🎈We drove to the visitor center, bought tickets, and drove straight into the scenic area. Due to time constraints, we only stayed at Mati Temple and didn't visit Jinta Temple, but at the Zhangye Museum, we saw a replica of the Jinta Temple grottoes, so we had no regrets.
🎈Although the Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes and the Thousand Buddha Caves have been severely damaged, their architectural forms are still worth exploring. The grotto plank road is built inside the mountain, winding and twisting, and some sections can be quite thrilling. Sometimes, we even felt like we were climbing up to a hanging temple.
🎈Standing at the top of the Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes, overlooking the Ximalian Beach, the view is magnificent. After descending the mountain, we continued to explore, following the road ahead, greeted by the splendid autumn scenery. Moreover, there are few visitors here, and the roadside is planted with a sea buckthorn trees, which are in the season of ripe fruits. Picking a few sea buckthorns to try, the taste was simply delicious.
🎈The preservation of the grottoes at Mati Temple is not complete, and visitors can only see four of them. However, the explanations in the scenic area are very detailed, leaving a deep impression. After leaving Mati Temple, we moved on to Wuwei. On the Lianhuo Expressway, we also saw the ruins of the Ming Great Wall, and even encountered a group of camels by the road, such unexpected beautiful scenery always brings a pleasant surprise.
V.ct0r.@ J0hns0n
Zhangye Museum in a Hanfu Attire
I got to wear Hanfu while immersing myself with the history of the Silk Road in the Northeast of China 🇨🇳.
It was a great experience and this was my first time to wear Hanfu 😄💕.
How to get there? If you are already in Zhangye city, you can go to there by bike 🚴 or by taxi. There’s also a famous temple just across the museum which is called Dafu Temple. You can just cross the street and buy a ticket 🎟 before entering the temple.
I hope you can visit the museum if ever you visit Zhangye.