Dunhuang

A UNESCO World Heritage Site filled with exquisite Buddhist art and manuscripts. Although the city had an early connection with Buddhism due to the passage of monks traveling the Silk Road, it was not until a monk had a vision of a thousand Buddhas above the desert at Dunhuang in 4th century that the famous caves were excavated and filled with the manuscripts and treasures. Nearby is the White Horse Pagoda, built by a monk from India in honor of his horse, which died in the process of bringing the monk to China. It is not possible to tour the caves on your own and all visitors are assigned to different guides (included in the ticket price). The tour takes about two hours and about 15 caves will be visited; all the rest are closed. The tours are different from group to group with every group visiting the main caves. You can arrange to visit closed caves; it will cost you ¥200 per person per cave. It can be handy to bring your own flashlight (torch).

Worth a trip. If you're not interested in seeing the lake from up close and just want to walk among the dunes just follow the fence to the right from Charlie Jongh's Dune Guesthouse. After a couple of minutes you will find an open gate and a path leading up to the dunes. From the top of the one on the left, you can see the lake.

A fortified mountain pass built during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Part of the Silk Road and the Great Wall of China.

Another fortified mountain pass. The Yumen Pass was built around the same time as the Yang Pass.

It consists of a small forest of rare poplares (Populus Divesifolia). Some are more than 600 years old. Can give an opportunity for a walk far from town. Not to be confused with the Huyang Forest in Jinta County.

The construction of this 12-meter stupa was ordered by Kunarajiva, a Buddhist translator, in 384. It was rebuilt in the 1840s.

The 5-m-high Playing Pipa Statue is the symbol of Dunhuang. It was modelled after a figure of a pipa player that features in a wall painting in Cave 112 of the Mogao Caves.

The Land-forms are an area in the Gobi Desert where wind erosion has left striking rock formations 10-20 meters high. The area contains named formations resembling fleets of ships, The Sphinx, as well as camels, birds, and many others. The land-forms are an interesting contrast to the sand dunes at Dunhuang in terms of the terrain of the Gobi Desert. Tours of the area will likely also include stops at an ancient section of the Great Wall, a Han Dynasty fortress, and a small set of caves similar to Mogao. If you take any bus in Dunhuang, the conductor will likely be selling daytrips to see the Geopark and 4-6 other sights, for ¥100-120 (bus only).