Dunhuang In-Depth Tour

• Arrive in Dunhuang
  

• 4+stars Hotel

• None

Welcome to Dunhuang, your guide and driver will transfer you to your hotel to get a good night's rest for tomorrow's journey.

Recommended Free Activities:

The Shazhou Night Market is undoubtedly the best place to explore the city's vibrancy in your spare time. You can enjoy a leisurely stroll through the hustle and bustle of the crowd and savor a wide variety of cuisines. As the night draws to a close, you can step into a bar and let the soft music and the feeling of intoxication take away the fatigue of the day. A must-see is the wide range of handicrafts, which are not only the work of artisans, but also a vivid demonstration of the city's unique culture and charm.

• Mogao Caves Digital Exhibition Center - Mogao Caves - Mingsha Mountain - Lunar Spring

• 4+stars Hotel

• Breakfast

After breakfast, we will depart Dunhuang and drive across a stretch of about 10 kilometers to an up-and-coming cultural landmark, the Mogao Grottoes Digital Convention and Exhibition Center. Here, a perfect example of the fusion of technology and art, is dedicated to exploring the deep heritage of the Mogao Grottoes. Here you will have the opportunity to view two carefully curated educational documentaries. The short films provide a comprehensive and in-depth look at the history of the Mogao Grottoes, the art, and the lesser-known anecdotes that will form the cornerstone of your field trip.

Then, you will proceed to the sacred cultural site of Mogao Grottoes. Known as the "Louvre of the East", the Mogao Caves are famous for their exquisite murals and statues. There are now 492 grottoes with about 45,000 square meters of frescoes and 2,100 colorful painted statues, tracing the development of Chinese art over 1,600 years. About 40 common grottoes are open to the public. In the tour area, you will be divided into groups by different guides who will accompany you to visit the grottoes (usually 7 to 8 grottoes during April to November and 12 grottoes during December to March) and give you a detailed introduction. After that, you are free to choose or follow another guide if you want to visit more other caves. There are also 10 special grottoes (extra charge) for you to visit extensively.

Mingsha Mountain (also known as the Echoing Sand Mountain) and the Crescent Lake together form a unique scenic spot. Even if there is no wind, on a sunny day the sand hill echoes sounds like orchestra music. . You can clearly hear the echoes as you slide down the sand hill. There are many exciting activities for you to try (at your own expense) such as sandboarding, viewing by glider or helicopter, and motorcycle riding. Camel riding across the desert is a very popular activity. Surrounded by echoing sand hills, Crescent Lake is a beautiful oasis with some beautifully decorated traditional Chinese buildings, trees and flowers, and a lake that never dries up and is shaped like a crescent moon. After sightseeing, you will return to Dunhuang City.

• Yumenguan - Great Wall of Han - Yadan National Geological Park

• 4+stars Hotel

• Breakfast

After breakfast, you will travel about 100 kilometers to the west, and your first stop will be the famous Yumenguan. This was once an important military defense gateway, and in the history of the ancient Silk Road, it also played a role as an international trade border. According to legend, it was here that the famous jade was introduced to the Central Plains, hence the name "Yumen".

Not far from Yumenguan, about five kilometers away, there is a Han Dynasty Great Wall ruins eroded by the years, which was a strong defense line built in ancient times to resist the invasion of Xiongnu. Standing here, it is as if you can hear the echoes of history and feel the magnificent years.

Then, we continue to travel more than eighty kilometers west, will arrive at the breathtaking Yadan National Geological Park. Here, people figuratively call it "Devil City", because every time a strong wind blows, the desert seems to come from the devil-like whistling sound. You will find that the shapes of some of the rocks bear a striking resemblance to famous buildings, such as the Potala Palace in Tibet and the Tiananmen Square in Beijing.

After the adventure in Yadan National Geopark, we will return to Dunhuang along the established route. We will arrive at this historic city in the setting sun, where we have arranged comfortable accommodations for you.

• Dunhuang Departure
  

• None

• Breakfast

Our journey ends here, the guide and the driver will send you to the station or the airport according to your schedule, we hope that this Dunhuang trip will leave you with good memories and look forward to meeting you again.