Mogao Caves--Singing Sand Dunes--Crescent Spring
In the morning, we will pick you up from your hotel and take you to the Mogao Caves scenic area. Construction of the Mogao Caves began during the Former Qin dynasty of the Sixteen Kingdoms Period and continued through successive eras including the Sixteen Kingdoms, Northern Dynasties, Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Western Xia, and Yuan dynasties. Today, there are 735 caves, 45,000 square meters of murals, and 2,415 painted clay sculptures, making it the world's largest and richest existing site of Buddhist art. Among these, 492 caves remain well-preserved.
In modern times, the discovery of the Library Cave, containing over 50,000 ancient artifacts, further enriched the site. The vast Mogao Caves complex encompasses not only the traditional cultures and arts of ancient China and the Western Regions but has also earned accolades such as "World Art Gallery," "Museum on Walls," and "World Treasure House of Art" for the magnificence and richness of its mural and painted sculpture art, as well as the profound depth of its content.
Alongside the Yungang Grottoes and Longmen Grottoes, the Mogao Caves are ranked as one of China's Three Great Grottoes. In 1961, the Mogao Caves were designated among the first group of Major National Historical and Cultural Sites by the State Council of the People's Republic of China. In December 1987, they were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Here, you can admire the iconic Nine-Story Pagoda, housing a 35.5-meter-tall Tang Dynasty statue of Maitreya Buddha. You can also immerse yourself in the art of the caves through the digital exhibition center's dome theater film Dreamlike Dunhuang and the documentary The Millennium Mogao (advance booking is required). Additionally, you can appreciate the various exquisite sculptures, architectural features, and more within the caves.
In the afternoon, we will drive to the Singing Sand Dunes to enjoy the magnificent desert scenery. The Singing Sand Dunes are a renowned natural landmark in Dunhuang. Together with the Mogao Caves and Crescent Spring, they form Dunhuang’s "Golden Triangle" of tourism.
Here, you’ll witness the spectacular sand mountains, whose peaks ripple across the landscape, reaching a maximum elevation of 1,715 meters. The sand is fine and golden in color. When the wind blows, it creates a singing or humming sound, giving the dunes their name. Remarkably, despite centuries of wind erosion, the dunes never shift significantly, creating the natural wonder known as "sand never buries the spring."
Nestled within the embrace of the Singing Sand Dunes lies Crescent Spring, named for its distinct crescent-moon shape. Even after countless visitors climb the dunes, any footprints and shifted sand are naturally restored by the wind. Despite the constant strong winds and swirling sands, the Singing Sand Dunes and Crescent Spring have coexisted harmoniously for millennia.
