Things to do in Huangyuan

No. 17 of Best Things to Do in Gansu-Qinghai Area

Riyue Mountain

The Riyue Mountain are located on the route from Huangyuan to Qinghai Lake and serve as the only passage from Qinghai to Tibet. Legend has it that when Princess Wencheng entered Tibet, she shattered a stone mirror here that couldn't reflect her hometown, splitting it into two halves representing the sun and moon, hence the mountain's name. On either side of the mountain pass stand two small peaks, each featuring a pavilion—one for the sun andMoon PavilionTwo iconic buildings. visitors typically pass by Riyue Mountain on their way to Qinghai Lake from Xining. The area boasts lush grasslands, rolling mountains, and numerous prayer flags fluttering in the wind, creating a beautiful landscape. The attraction includes the Riyue Pavilion and...Moon PavilionThese are all imitation ancient structures, not actual historical relics, and you can also see the exterior from the mountain pass. Additionally, the Riyue Mountains (Sun and Moon Mountains) serve as the boundary between agricultural and pastoral areas, as well as between monsoon and non-monsoon zones. They also mark the westernmost edge of the Loess Plateau. When crossing the pass, you'll notice a striking contrast in the geographical views between the eastern and western sides, which is quite fascinating.

No. 3 of Night Attractions in Qinghai

Danggar Ancient Town

The Dange'er Ancient City is located in Wuyuan County, about 40 kilometers west of Xining City. It has been thriving in the history of tea and horses. Because of its unique location, it has the title of “sea Tibetan throat”. Today, there are many shops in the Dange'er Ancient City, which are prosperous and lively. Many tourists who go to Qinghai Lake from Xining will visit when they pass by. The ancient city is small in size, with a Dange'er Street as the center, and the houses on the street are all brick-and-grey buildings in the northern town.

Riyue Mountain - Princess Wencheng Memorial Hall

Riyue Mountain - Princess Wencheng Memorial Hall is located within the Riyue Mountain Scenic Area in Huangyuan County, serving as a tourist and cultural experience destination that deeply integrates natural geography with history and culture. Since ancient times, Riyue Mountain has been an important mountain pass connecting the Central Plains with the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Historically known as "Chiling," it was a vital passage on the Southern Silk Road and the Tang-Tubo Ancient Road leading to Tubo and the south. It also serves as the dividing line between agricultural and pastoral cultures, with fertile farming areas to the east and vast grassland views to the west. The memorial hall itself is solemn and dignified. Its exhibits primarily focus on the story of Princess Wencheng and the Tubo King Songtsen Gampo, recreating the historical scene of the princess's journey to the Tibetan region through statues, murals, and stone inscriptions. The hall houses statues of these two historical figures to express the historical significance of Han-Tibetan cultural exchange and ethnic unity, bearing witness to Princess Wencheng's significant contributions in spreading the advanced culture, agricultural techniques, and Buddhist faith of the Central Plains to the Tibetan region.

No. 3 of Best Things to Do in Qinghai

Kumbum Monastery

Kumbum Monastery is one of the important monasteries of the Gelug (Yellow Hat) sect of Tibetan Buddhism and the birthplace of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Yellow Hat sect. The monastery features magnificent architecture, abundant treasures, and a strong religious atmosphere, making it one of the more popular travel destinations in Xining. Overview of the visit It has distinct differences in architectural layout compared to Han Chinese Buddhist temples in inland China: the complex here is not symmetrically arranged along a central axis. The monastery is an ancient architectural complex composed of numerous halls, scripture halls, stupas, and colleges, with each sutra hall, main hall, and stupa irregularly distributed on a small hill. Travelers can explore the site in a relatively free manner rather than following a straight path along a central axis. The Great Golden Roof Hall of Kumbum Monastery is the center of the entire architectural complex. It is said that Master Tsongkhapa was born here, and when he was born, his umbilical cord blood dripped on this spot, from which a bodhi tree grew. Later, a stupa was built around the tree, and a monastery was constructed, hence the name. Believers hold that this tree and stupa are the embodiment of the master. The three unique features of the attraction: butter sculptures, murals, and appliqué embroidery. Butter sculptures are made by mixing butter with various pigments to mold and carve into figures of Buddhas, people, flowers, birds, animals, and pavilions. Travelers can admire exquisite butter sculptures at the butter sculpture hall inside the temple (located far from the main gate). Vibrant centuries-old murals can be appreciated in the main halls, corridors, and front galleries of the temple. Appliqué embroidery involves cutting colored satin into desired shapes, such as Buddha figures or animals, stuffing them with wool or cotton, and embroidering them onto cloth hangings. In the temple's great sutra hall, two rare large appliqué embroidery pieces—"Sixteen Arhats Displaying Divine Powers" and "Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea"—hang on either side. The four major religious festivals (based on the lunar calendar): 1. Cham dance (14th day of the first month) and butter sculpture exhibition (15th day of the first month); 2. Cham dance (14th day of the fourth month), Buddha unveiling, and Cham dance (15th day of the fourth month); 3. Buddha unveiling, Cham dance (6th day of the sixth month), and golden Buddha procession (8th day of the sixth month); 4. Full-day Buddha unveiling (22nd day of the ninth month) and Cham dance (23rd day of the ninth month). During these festivals, activities like Buddha unveiling and ritual dances take place, attracting large crowds of devotees and travelers, creating a lively atmosphere.

Daheigou Forest Park

There areThere are many beautiful and natural forest scenery. Here you can appreciate the gifts given to us by nature and see cute little animals. It is a good place to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city and get close to nature.

No. 2 of Best Things to Do in Qinghai

Qinghai Tibetan Culture Museum

Qinghai Tibetan Culture MuseumIt is a comprehensive museum themed on Tibetan medicine culture and featuring Tibetan culture.Qinghai Tibetan Culture Museum(also known as Qinghai Tibetan Culture Museum) is located in Xining, the capital of Qinghai Province in the eastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. It officially opened in September 2006. The museum has basically formed a "one museum with two halls" layout, featuring 16 exhibition halls including the Silk Road and Tibetan civilization, the grand view of Chinese Tibetan art painting, and the history of Tibetan medicine.Qinghai Tibetan Culture MuseumThe collection is rich, historic, and diverse, possessing high historical, scientific, and artistic value. The museum houses the Guinness World Record-holding thangka masterpiece, "The Grand Thangka of Tibetan Culture and Art," which is 618 m long. It was planned by renowned thangka master Zongzhe Lajie and completed by 400 painters over four years. Its content encompasses the Tibetan understanding of the universe, the formation of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, history, religion, medicine, culture, art, and folklore. With its intricate details and brilliant colors, it is a magnificent sight and can be called an encyclopedia of Tibetan culture, hailed as a "contemporary national treasure." Through four major series—ancient books and documents, Tibetan medical thangkas, ancient Tibetan medical instruments, and Tibetan material specimens—the museum comprehensively displays the long history, profound theoretical system, clinical practice, and unique preparation techniques of Tibetan medicine, with four ancient books included in the National Catalogue of Precious Ancient Books. The Silk Road and Qinghai-Tibet Civilization exhibition hall uses history as its temporal dimension and the vast plateau landscape as its geographical dimension. Through thousands of precious cultural relics such as silk, gold and silver ware, and coffin paintings, it highlights Tibetan cultural elements and showcases the origin, inheritance, rise, and prosperity of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau civilization throughout the long river of history. The Tibetan carpet exhibition hall is one of the largest exhibitions of ancient carpets in China, displaying more than 400 Tibetan carpet artifacts from different periods and eras, featuring magnificent patterns, intense colors, and unique ethnic styles and local characteristics. At the same time, there are also Tibetan-style architectural exhibition halls, Tibetan calligraphy art exhibition halls, as well as temporary exhibition halls, multimedia screening rooms, academic lecture halls, and cultural relic storage rooms, providing strong capabilities for inheritance, protection, and research, as well as conditions for cultural exchange.Qinghai Tibetan Culture MuseumIt will continuously improve the level of cultural relic preservation, exhibition design, scientific research, and management operations, becoming a platform for promoting ethnic unity and social development, a broad stage for cultural dissemination and academic exchange, a research center for cultural relic protection and Tibetan studies, and an exhibition center for treasured literature and collections, showcasing the splendid civilization and culture of the Tibetan Plateau to the world.

No. 1 of Family-friendly Attractions in Qinghai

Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Wildlife Park

The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Wildlife Park is located in Xishan, Xining. It is a beautiful zoo with some special animals such as snow leopards and desert cats. It is not easy to see in other cities. The size of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Safari Park is not large. There are mainly beasts and aboriginal areas, such as the Beasts Reserve Area, and the Aquarium. The famous beasts are scattered areas. Currently, the plank road is built. Visitors can watch the beasts on the plank road.

Zongjiagou Culture Tourism Sceneic Area

Zongjiagou Cultural Tourism Area is an original ecological tourism scenic spot integrating cultural root-seeking, cultural heritage, leisure sightseeing, adventure entertainment and eco-tourism. The Attraction is lush with vegetation and picturesque, forming a majestic, strange, dangerous and beautiful natural wonder. The mountains and rocks in the ditch are natural scenery, such as Foshan, Xiangshan, Shishan, Monkey Mountain, Rabbit Mountain and Turtle Mountain. The four ancient Chinese myths - Gonggong touching the mountain, Nuwa mending the sky, Houyi shooting the sun and Chang'e flying to the moon are all reproduced in the strange mountains and rocks of Zongjiagou. The water scenery, mountain scenery and cultural landscape in the Attraction are perfectly matched. The Main Hall of the Queen Mother of the West, the Queen Mother's Yaochi and the Elephant Mountain are peacefully dependent on each other, forming an auspicious picture of humanity and nature; the Kunlun Lion guards the main road at the mouth of the ditch, protecting the Millennium Sleeping Buddha and the Queen Mother's Stone Chamber, echoing with the Holy Elephant of the Fairy Sea in the distance, making people daunting; the glass plank road, glass bridge, glass platform, slide and stone and wood plank road complement the Monkey Mountain and water landscape, making people linger.

No. 3 of Family-friendly Attractions in Qinghai

Dream of Paradise

Xining Xinhualian Children's Dream Park is the first large-scale theme park in Qinghai. It is located in the core part of Xinhualian International Tourism City, covering a total area of 352.32 acres. Children's Dream Water World, Children's Dream Kingdom, Xinhualian International Tourism City Hotel Group and other large-scale cultural tourism and entertainment complexes integrating food, accommodation, tourism, shopping and entertainment. The park has built a high-altitude marine science museum, a large-scale indoor water park with context, a Silk Road town themed on the “Belt and Road”, and 56 ethnic style streets with ethnic architectural features and folk customs, forming an all-season and all-customer-level tourism. A leisure destination, a family vacation destination in the Northwest Territories.

xi wang mu da dian