Things to do in Xihe

Yunhua Mountain Scenic Area

Mount Yunhua features Danxia landform with steep and elegant peaks, where the main summit towers into the clouds. It was once a sacred site where Emperor Qin Shi Huang worshiped his ancestors and has been a renowned Taoist mountain in Longshang for millennia.

Wanxia Lake Scenic Area

The Wanxia Lake Scenic Area is located about 5 kilometers west of the county seat of Xihe County, Longnan City, Gansu Province. It used to be a reservoir, but now it has been transformed into a natural scenic area with elegant scenery. The scenic area is mainly composed of Wanxia Lake, and many sightseeing and entertainment attractions have been built. Here, you can stroll around the lake to experience the beautiful scenery, watch the lotus pond, visit ancient buildings, etc., and you can also play water entertainment projects to experience the fun of playing in the water. It is a tourist attraction in Longnan. a good place to go. The area of the Wanxia Lake area is not too large, with a length and width of about a few hundred meters. You can walk in the scenic area or take a sightseeing battery car to visit. The scenic area has built antique pavilions and corridors around the lake, which can be strolled and watched. There are a lot of lotus flowers planted in the lake area. It is very good to come to view the flowers every summer. In other seasons, there are also beautiful reeds for sightseeing and photography. There are also several lake islands on the lake, you can take a speedboat to play on the islands.

2026 Global 100 - Best Things to Do

Jiuzhaigou National Park

Jiuzhaigou National Park features towering snow-capped peaks, lush forests, and stunningly colorful pools and shoals. Crystal-clear streams meander through the forests and shoals, complemented by traditional Tibetan wooden houses, prayer flags, and the unique traditional customs of the Tibetan and Qiang ethnic groups, earning it the name "beautiful fairy-tale world." Jiuzhaigou National Park is shaped like a "Y" and consists of three valleys—Shuzheng Valley, Rize Valley, and Zechawa Valley—with a total length of over 60 km. Fall is the golden season for sightseeing, as the mountain forests gradually shift in color from emerald green to golden yellow and then to fiery red, contrasting beautifully with the azure lakes and presenting an unforgettable picture.

No. 10 of Best Things to Do in Sichuan

Huanglong National Scenic Area

Huanglong National Scenic Area is a Attraction famous for its fantastic and beautiful calcified pools. The water in the numerous calcified pools in the Attraction is crystal clear and colorful and very beautiful. There are also many natural landscapes such as forests, canyons, snow-capped mountains and waterfalls in the Attraction. It is known as the "Fairyland on Earth". Huanglong National Scenic Area is mainly divided into two parts, Huanglong Headquarters and Munigou. Huanglong Main Gou in Huanglong Headquarters is the main Attraction of ​​Huanglong National Scenic Area, and is also the place generally referred to when talking about Attraction. The Attraction is located in Songpan County. The best time to visit here is in summer and autumn, when the lake is in its flood season, with a large pool area and beautiful scenery. In winter and early spring, the water volume is smaller, but the scenery is still good.

Qiuchi Mountain

No. 1 of Family-friendly Attractions in Gansu

Lanzhou Danxia Geological Park

Lanzhou Danxia Geological Park is a key cultural tourism project in Gansu Province and a comprehensive cultural tourism initiative prioritized by the Lanzhou Municipal Committee and Government. Located by the Yellow River, the park is just 13 km from downtown Lanzhou and 30 km from Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport, making it one of the closest Danxia landform clusters to a major urban center in China. With a total planned area of 400 sq km and a core visiting area of 25 sq km in its first phase, it ranks among the largest discovered landscapes of its kind in the country. The park primarily features red mountain bay formations, along with spectacular Danxia cliffs, isolated peaks, secluded valleys, narrow gorges, and balancing rocks. Its colorful mountains set against winding waterways create a masterpiece of Danxia landform scenery. The attraction features seven viewing platforms showcasing the Danxia landforms: Silk Road Glow, Silk Road Eagle, Flying Apsaras Exploration, Nine-Colored Danxia, Danxia Reflecting Sky, Emerald Peaks Rippling Sky, and Danxia Summit Scenic View. It also includes the Ancient Silk Road Gateway, Shajing Tribe Cultural Square, Desert Bells Scenic Boulevard, and a 2,550m Danxia boardwalk viewing area. As a key cultural tourism project in the province, Lanzhou Danxia Geological Park adheres to the principles of "ecological protection, green development, preserving original features, and moderate development." Leveraging Lanzhou's unique resource advantages and focusing on the domestic tourism market, it aims to cultivate new growth drivers for Lanzhou's cultural tourism industry and establish a new highland for cultural tourism in the city.

No. 17 of Best Things to Do in Sichuan

Jianmen Pass

The Jianmen Pass is located in Jiange County between Dajian Mountain and Xiaojian Mountain. It has been famous throughout history, holding an important position militarily due to its precipitous topography and ease of defense. Visitors to the scenic area can take the easier “Bird Path” of the mountain, or the “Ape Route,” which requires renting professional mountain climbing equipment.

No. 1 of Night Attractions in Gansu

Zha Ga Na

Zha Ga Na, also known as Zha Ga La, is located in Yiwa Town, Diebu County, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. In Tibetan, the name means "stone box." Surrounding limestone cliffs enclose the area like natural city walls, and Tibetan-style wooden houses are arranged in tiers along the slopes, forming a unique stone-city Tibetan village view. In the 1920s, the Austrian-American botanist and explorer Joseph Rock visited and stayed here many times, marveling that it resembled "the birthplace of Adam and Eve." Zha Ga Na consists of four natural villages arranged sequentially from bottom to top—Dongwa Village, Yeri Village, Dari Village, and Daiba Village—connected by a winding road. At the entrance of Dongwa Village at the foot of the mountain stands a massive rock known as the Great Stone Gate, and the small hillside beside it is a vantage point for capturing low-angle panoramic shots of the village built along the mountain. At the higher elevation of the village sits Lasang Temple, a Gelug Tibetan Buddhist monastery originally built during the Shunzhi era of the Qing Dynasty, with its assembly hall and Guanyin Hall nestled among the rocky peaks. Following the road upward to Yeri Village, Tibetan villagers can often be seen working in the open highland barley fields nearby, and the village also has a "Rock's Cabin" homestay where visitors can stay. Continuing upward past Dari Village, there is a viewing platform with an expansive field of view that overlooks the entire village and the full face of the cliff behind it—the ancient wooden roofs and earthen-wall buildings are clearly layered within the surrounding precipices, making it an ideal spot for panoramic photography. In the early morning, clouds and mist often swirl among the cliffs, while at night the sky is filled with brilliant stars—two of the most recognizable natural scenes here. A walk of about one hour up the mountain behind Dongwa Village leads to a hilltop temple, and the Tibetan-style houses passed along the way retain traditional mortise-and-tenon wooden structures. There is another hiking route of about two days behind the mountain leading to stone forests and alpine lakes, with pristine scenery along the way, suitable for outdoor enthusiasts; it requires one night of camping, and you can rent a horse in the village and hire a groom to guide the way.

Bafeng Cliff

The Eight Peaks Cliff is adjacent to the West High Mountains in the south, Tianziping in the north, the Eight Peaks is connected to the sky, and the grass grows in front of the cliff. Among the eight peaks is a mountain with a relative height of more than 200 meters. There is a natural cave on the mountainside, where statues of the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties are preserved. There are 14 niches in the Bafengya Grottoes, which are divided into upper and lower floors, with 10 niches on the upper floor and 4 niches on the lower floor. There are statues of Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties preserved. In particular, the Maitreya Buddha in the 10th niche, which is about 4 meters high, has fine statues, vivid expressions, realistic expressions, and is well preserved, which is comparable to the works of Maijishan in Zhou Dynasty.

No. 14 of Best Things to Do in Gansu

Maijishan Cave-Temple Complex

The Maijishan Cave-Temple Complex is carved into the cliff face of an isolated peak resembling a farmer's wheat stack in the Xiaolong Mountains. Alongside the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, the Yungang Grottoes, and the Longmen Grottoes, it is renowned as one of China's four great cave-temple complexes and serves as the core attraction of the Maijishan scenic area. The caves were first excavated during the Later Qin period of the Sixteen Kingdoms and underwent continuous construction for over 1,600 years through the Northern Wei, Western Wei, Northern Zhou, Sui, Tang, and up to the Ming and Qing dynasties. The site preserves over 200 caves and niches, more than 10,000 clay and stone sculptures, and nearly 1,000 square meters of murals. Featuring predominantly clay sculptures with an unbroken lineage across dynasties, the complex showcases a complete and clear stylistic evolution, earning it the title "Oriental Sculpture Gallery." In 2014, it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the "Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor." Maiji Mountain stands alone amidst surrounding peaks, with most of its grottoes carved into sheer cliffs dozens of meters above ground, connected solely by tiered aerial walkways spanning over ten levels. The visit itself becomes a cliffside adventure: at the base, gaze up at the exposed rock face and the colossal cliff-carved Buddha over ten meters tall, then ascend via winding walkways suspended dozens of meters high—both thrilling and offering panoramic views of lush forests. Grottoes along the path vary in size, with smaller ones protected by nets, while larger ones dominate the upper sections. The upper eastern cliff's Sanhua Tower (Upper Seven-Buddha Pavilion) is an unmissable highlight. This seven-bay, eight-pillared hall with a single-eaved hip roof replicates wooden architecture carved directly into the cliff, featuring a grand front corridor and rear chamber. Its ceiling showcases the unique "thin relief" flying apsaras—faces and limbs rendered in shallow sculpture while flowing robes are painted, creating a distinctive fusion of painting and sculpture unparalleled in ancient Chinese murals. As you walk and observe, the stylistic evolution of clay sculptures becomes distinctly visible: the elegant and slender figures of the late Northern Wei, the refined and serene style of the Western Wei, the plump and graceful forms of the Northern Zhou, and the full and rounded shapes of the Sui and Tang dynasties—like flipping through a three-dimensional history of sculpture. On overcast or freshly cleared days after rain, when mist swirls around the peaks and drizzle veils the landscape, the solitary haystack-shaped peaks emerge and fade in the clouds, creating the famous "Maji misty rain" scenery. The plank road is narrow, and visitors may need to queue and proceed slowly when crowded. Travelers with acrophobia should proceed with caution. Flash photography is prohibited in the grotto area, and touching the statues is not allowed. A few classic grottoes are designated as special grottoes and are not included in the regular tour route, such as Cave 133, famous for the "Oriental Smile" novice monk, and Cave 127, known for its large-scale sutra illustration murals. Travelers with a strong interest in statue art can check the special grotto visiting arrangements in advance. Most of the other caves and niches can be viewed in sequence along the plank road.