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Spending a week in Xian!
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Itinerary:
Day 1 Took train T231 from Beijing to Xian.
Day 2 Arrived in Xian at 10:02, visited Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Bell and Drum Towers and stayed at Youth Hostel
Day 3 Visited to Great Mosque, Moslem Street, Forests of Stone Steles and City Wall.
Day 4 Went to Huaqing Hot Springs, Terra Cotta Warriors, Shaanxi Provincial History Museum and Tang Dynasty Sleepless Town
Day 5 Climbed Mt. Huashan
Day 6 Took train T232 back to Beijing
Day 7 Arrived in Beijing at 06:29
Total cost: CNY 1700
Day 1
It was raining cats and dogs in Beijing. Lucky me! The rain stopped at 19:40 so that caught a taxi to Beijing West Railway Station. It took me about 1 hour but the fare wasn’t expensive. I paid the driver CNY 43 and then bought a bottle of mineral water at the railway station. The water cost me CNY 2.
I am a budget traveler. I reserved a room at Qixian Youth Hostel in Xian when I planned my trip. The hostel required me to pay CNY 35 as deposit. No problem! But it was a problem to take the train. The sleeper tickets were sold out so that I just got a hard seat. It cost me CNY 150.
Day 2
The hard seat was really uncomfortable but I survived at last. The train was late for several minutes but eventually arrived at 10:02. Walking out of the railway station, I took a bus to Qixian Youth Hostel.
Accommodation fee: CNY 135 plus CNY 100 (deposit). In fact, it costs CNY 50 per night. I stayed there for three nights but I paid CNY 15 in advance on the website.
I ate Biang Biang Noodles for lunch and drank a bottle of soda water. It cost me CNY 8.5. Near the hostel is a post office. I sent some postcards to my friends and then walked to Beidajie (North Avenue) subway station. There I took subway line 2 to Nanshaomen Station and walked to Small Wild Goose Pagoda.
Spending around 1.5 hours in the Small Wild Goose Pagoda, I went out and took public to Xiaozhai and then changed a bus to Bell Tower. I bought a package ticket which allowed me to visit Bell and Drum Towers. It cost me CNY 40. However, I just visited Drum Tower. Afterwards, I walked to the Walmart located on the West Avenue.
Tip: Bell Tower is located at the center of the city. A roundabout is built around the Bell Tower. You have to go through the underground passage to visit the Bell Tower because it is forbidden to reach the Bell Tower by crossing the roundabout.
Well, I was exhausted when I walked out of the Walmart. Thus, I took a taxi back to Qixian Youth Hostel.
Today’s cost: CNY4 for subway, CNY 2 for public bus, CNY 11 for taxi, CNY 1.5 for mineral water and CNY 20 for post cards.
Day 3
It was 10 o’clock when I woke up. I got out at 10:30 to visit the Memorial Museum of the Eighth Route Army. It is not far from the Qixian Hostel. Then I headed to Moslem Street to have lunch. I went to taste Jiasan Steamed Stuffed Bun Restaurant and drank a bottle of yogurt. It cost me CNY 20. After lunch, I visited Great Mosque.
Well, I am not a Muslim and know nothing about Muslims. Thus, I finished my visit very quickly and then went to the Forests of Stone Steles. Unfortunately, I didn’t spend much time appreciating Chinese calligraphers’ works because the museum was closed.
There was a bookstore which was not far from the Forests of Stone Steles. I went in and bought a book and a map. It cost me CNY 40. Then I tasted Xian Liang Pi (cold noodles) at a restaurant and visited Xian City Wall. It was already 22:00 when I went back to the Youth Hostel.
Today’s cost: CNY 40 for a book and a map, CNY 19 for supper, CNY 20 for City Wall Entrance fee, CNY 3 for public bus and CNY 8.5 for yogurt and mineral water.
Day 4
I planned to visit Terra Cotta Warriors today. Thus, I got up very early and had breakfast at Mc Donald’s. Then I went to the railway station to take You 5 tourist bus. When I got on the bus, the conductor told me that the bus stopped at Huaqing Hot Springs. So I changed my mind to visit Huaqing Hot Springs first.
I was disappointed at the Huaqing Hot Springs so that I just spent less than 1 hour inside the scenic area and then took You 5 to Terra Cotta Warriors. The terra Cotta Warriors were amazing. I spent nearly 2 hours in the museum. Then I took You 5 back to Xian and took public bus to Shaanxi Provincial History Museum. I didn’t hire a tour guide so that I just spent 1 hour in the museum.
I felt a bit hungry after getting out of the museum so that I went to the Tang Dynasty Sleepless Town to have dinner.
Tip:
1. Huaqing Hot Springs is not worth a visit. The admission fee is really expensive (CNY 60) but I didn’t find any highlight inside.
2. There are many You 5 tourist bus at the East Square of Xian Railway Station. Some of them are private ones. The drivers might charge you more. Remember to take light gray ones. If you take You 5 tourist bus to Terra Cotta Warriors directly, you should pay CNY 7.
When you get off the bus, remember where the bus stops because you need to get back to take return buses.
3 The Museum of Terra Cotta Army is a bit far from the ticket office. But I do not suggest taking electric sightseeing cars to the museum except that you are old and can’t walk.
Don’t worry about where to eat. There are small restaurants, Subway and KFC near the museum.
4 I suggest you hire a tour guide when you visit the museum. He/she will tell you more about the terra cotta army.
A tour guide asks for CNY 90 for a group of five tourists. You can ask some other people to form a group. However, remember to hire the professional tour guide in the scenic area.
5 If you are interested in history, better hire a tour guide in Shaanxi Provincial History Museum. Otherwise, you just see relics and never know stories behind them. By the way, it is free to visit the museum but you need to get a ticket first. Usually, there is a long queue in front of the ticket booth. If you do not want to queue up, just pay CNY 20 to get a ticket at the other side of the ticket booth.
6 There are Starbucks, Pizza Hut, Walmart and shopping malls at the Tang Dynasty Sleepless Town. You may go there to have dinner.
7 The fountain show at the north square of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda is amazing. But I didn’t have time to enjoy it.
Today’s cost: CNY 20 for breakfast, CNY 13 for You 5 bus (a round trip), CNY 60 for entrance fee to Huaqing Hot Springs, CNY 7 for a peach and a bottle of mineral water, CNY 75 for Terra Cotta Warriors, CNY 25 for post cards, CNY 20 for Shaanxi Provincial History Museum, CNY 23 for dinner.
Day 5
Having heard much steep and dangerous Mt. Huashan is, I decided to conquer it today. I arrived at the railway station at 06:40 and had breakfast at Mc Donald’s and then took tourism bus line 1 to Mt. Huashan. It took nearly 2.5 hours from Xian to Mt. Hua. Then I took the sightseeing bus to Mt.Hua Scenic Area. It took another 30 minutes.
I made a big mistake to take the cable car to the top of the Mt. Hua. There were too many people at the cable car terminal. I waited for 1 hour and 45 minutes and then got on the cable car. 15 minutes later, I arrived at the North Peak of Mt. Hua. Then my journey to conquer Mt. Hua began.
It took 1.5 hours for me to reach middle Peak. Then I paid a short visit to Jade Maiden Temple and kept climbing and finally reached East Peak at 15:00. I was almost frustrated when I saw the long and steep could ladder but I told myself that I couldn’t give up. At last, I got to Southern Gate to Heaven.
Near the gate is ‘Sky Plank Walk’. I didn’t have the courage to walk on the plank because it was too dangerous. A few minutes later, I got to South Peak and then took a photo at the Summit of Mt. Huashan. Then I headed to the West Peak. It took me 1 hour from South Peak to West Peak and then 1 hour from West Peak to North Peak.
It was 18:00 o’clock when I arrived at the North Peak. Again, a long queue of tourists was waiting for the cable car. I didn’t want to wait here so that I refunded my ticket and went down Mt. Huashan on feet. It was already 19:15 when I reached the foot of the Mt. Huashan. Then I took the sight-seeing bus to Dongshanmen and took bus back to Xian.
Tip:
1. Tourism bus line 1 departs very early at Xian Railway Station. The ticket fare is CNY 22. It stops by Jade Spring Temple and stops at Dongshanmen. Except the You 1 tourism bus, there are other buses from Xian Railway Station to Mt. Huashan. The tickets are a bit expensive (CNY 36 for a single trip and CNY 60 for a round trip).
2. You can buy the entrance ticket on the tourism bus line 1. Entrance fee: CNY 180. Sight-seeing bus: CNY 40 for a round trip. Cable car: CNY 150 for a round trip. You needn’t queue up to buy the tickets if you buy it in advance.
3. Better reach the Mt.Huashan as early as you can if you plan to use the cable car. Otherwise, you will wait for long to take the cable car.
4. The scenery near the ‘Sky Plank Walk’ is amazing. You shouldn’t miss it.
5. Tourism bus line 1 leaves Mt. Huashan at 17:00. If you miss it, go to Dongshanmen to take long distance bus back to Xian. It finally stops at Xian East Bus Station. The ticket fare is CNY 35.
6. The mineral water is sold from CNY 7 to CNY 10 on Mt. Huashan.
Day 6
When I got up, I found that my legs were sore. Climbing the Mt. Huashan really hurt but I made it. Due to my sore legs, I decided not to visit any attraction today. Instead, I went to see a film. It was nearly 16:00 when I got back to Qixian Youth Hostel. I packed up my luggage, checked out and went to the railway station. My train departed at 18:30.
In the end, my trip in Xian was really nice.
Day 1 Took train T231 from Beijing to Xian.
Day 2 Arrived in Xian at 10:02, visited Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Bell and Drum Towers and stayed at Youth Hostel
Day 3 Visited to Great Mosque, Moslem Street, Forests of Stone Steles and City Wall.
Day 4 Went to Huaqing Hot Springs, Terra Cotta Warriors, Shaanxi Provincial History Museum and Tang Dynasty Sleepless Town
Day 5 Climbed Mt. Huashan
Day 6 Took train T232 back to Beijing
Day 7 Arrived in Beijing at 06:29
Total cost: CNY 1700
Day 1
It was raining cats and dogs in Beijing. Lucky me! The rain stopped at 19:40 so that caught a taxi to Beijing West Railway Station. It took me about 1 hour but the fare wasn’t expensive. I paid the driver CNY 43 and then bought a bottle of mineral water at the railway station. The water cost me CNY 2.
I am a budget traveler. I reserved a room at Qixian Youth Hostel in Xian when I planned my trip. The hostel required me to pay CNY 35 as deposit. No problem! But it was a problem to take the train. The sleeper tickets were sold out so that I just got a hard seat. It cost me CNY 150.
Day 2
The hard seat was really uncomfortable but I survived at last. The train was late for several minutes but eventually arrived at 10:02. Walking out of the railway station, I took a bus to Qixian Youth Hostel.
Accommodation fee: CNY 135 plus CNY 100 (deposit). In fact, it costs CNY 50 per night. I stayed there for three nights but I paid CNY 15 in advance on the website.
I ate Biang Biang Noodles for lunch and drank a bottle of soda water. It cost me CNY 8.5. Near the hostel is a post office. I sent some postcards to my friends and then walked to Beidajie (North Avenue) subway station. There I took subway line 2 to Nanshaomen Station and walked to Small Wild Goose Pagoda.
Spending around 1.5 hours in the Small Wild Goose Pagoda, I went out and took public to Xiaozhai and then changed a bus to Bell Tower. I bought a package ticket which allowed me to visit Bell and Drum Towers. It cost me CNY 40. However, I just visited Drum Tower. Afterwards, I walked to the Walmart located on the West Avenue.
Tip: Bell Tower is located at the center of the city. A roundabout is built around the Bell Tower. You have to go through the underground passage to visit the Bell Tower because it is forbidden to reach the Bell Tower by crossing the roundabout.
Well, I was exhausted when I walked out of the Walmart. Thus, I took a taxi back to Qixian Youth Hostel.
Today’s cost: CNY4 for subway, CNY 2 for public bus, CNY 11 for taxi, CNY 1.5 for mineral water and CNY 20 for post cards.
Day 3
It was 10 o’clock when I woke up. I got out at 10:30 to visit the Memorial Museum of the Eighth Route Army. It is not far from the Qixian Hostel. Then I headed to Moslem Street to have lunch. I went to taste Jiasan Steamed Stuffed Bun Restaurant and drank a bottle of yogurt. It cost me CNY 20. After lunch, I visited Great Mosque.
Well, I am not a Muslim and know nothing about Muslims. Thus, I finished my visit very quickly and then went to the Forests of Stone Steles. Unfortunately, I didn’t spend much time appreciating Chinese calligraphers’ works because the museum was closed.
There was a bookstore which was not far from the Forests of Stone Steles. I went in and bought a book and a map. It cost me CNY 40. Then I tasted Xian Liang Pi (cold noodles) at a restaurant and visited Xian City Wall. It was already 22:00 when I went back to the Youth Hostel.
Today’s cost: CNY 40 for a book and a map, CNY 19 for supper, CNY 20 for City Wall Entrance fee, CNY 3 for public bus and CNY 8.5 for yogurt and mineral water.
Day 4
I planned to visit Terra Cotta Warriors today. Thus, I got up very early and had breakfast at Mc Donald’s. Then I went to the railway station to take You 5 tourist bus. When I got on the bus, the conductor told me that the bus stopped at Huaqing Hot Springs. So I changed my mind to visit Huaqing Hot Springs first.
I was disappointed at the Huaqing Hot Springs so that I just spent less than 1 hour inside the scenic area and then took You 5 to Terra Cotta Warriors. The terra Cotta Warriors were amazing. I spent nearly 2 hours in the museum. Then I took You 5 back to Xian and took public bus to Shaanxi Provincial History Museum. I didn’t hire a tour guide so that I just spent 1 hour in the museum.
I felt a bit hungry after getting out of the museum so that I went to the Tang Dynasty Sleepless Town to have dinner.
Tip:
1. Huaqing Hot Springs is not worth a visit. The admission fee is really expensive (CNY 60) but I didn’t find any highlight inside.
2. There are many You 5 tourist bus at the East Square of Xian Railway Station. Some of them are private ones. The drivers might charge you more. Remember to take light gray ones. If you take You 5 tourist bus to Terra Cotta Warriors directly, you should pay CNY 7.
When you get off the bus, remember where the bus stops because you need to get back to take return buses.
3 The Museum of Terra Cotta Army is a bit far from the ticket office. But I do not suggest taking electric sightseeing cars to the museum except that you are old and can’t walk.
Don’t worry about where to eat. There are small restaurants, Subway and KFC near the museum.
4 I suggest you hire a tour guide when you visit the museum. He/she will tell you more about the terra cotta army.
A tour guide asks for CNY 90 for a group of five tourists. You can ask some other people to form a group. However, remember to hire the professional tour guide in the scenic area.
5 If you are interested in history, better hire a tour guide in Shaanxi Provincial History Museum. Otherwise, you just see relics and never know stories behind them. By the way, it is free to visit the museum but you need to get a ticket first. Usually, there is a long queue in front of the ticket booth. If you do not want to queue up, just pay CNY 20 to get a ticket at the other side of the ticket booth.
6 There are Starbucks, Pizza Hut, Walmart and shopping malls at the Tang Dynasty Sleepless Town. You may go there to have dinner.
7 The fountain show at the north square of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda is amazing. But I didn’t have time to enjoy it.
Today’s cost: CNY 20 for breakfast, CNY 13 for You 5 bus (a round trip), CNY 60 for entrance fee to Huaqing Hot Springs, CNY 7 for a peach and a bottle of mineral water, CNY 75 for Terra Cotta Warriors, CNY 25 for post cards, CNY 20 for Shaanxi Provincial History Museum, CNY 23 for dinner.
Day 5
Having heard much steep and dangerous Mt. Huashan is, I decided to conquer it today. I arrived at the railway station at 06:40 and had breakfast at Mc Donald’s and then took tourism bus line 1 to Mt. Huashan. It took nearly 2.5 hours from Xian to Mt. Hua. Then I took the sightseeing bus to Mt.Hua Scenic Area. It took another 30 minutes.
I made a big mistake to take the cable car to the top of the Mt. Hua. There were too many people at the cable car terminal. I waited for 1 hour and 45 minutes and then got on the cable car. 15 minutes later, I arrived at the North Peak of Mt. Hua. Then my journey to conquer Mt. Hua began.
It took 1.5 hours for me to reach middle Peak. Then I paid a short visit to Jade Maiden Temple and kept climbing and finally reached East Peak at 15:00. I was almost frustrated when I saw the long and steep could ladder but I told myself that I couldn’t give up. At last, I got to Southern Gate to Heaven.
Near the gate is ‘Sky Plank Walk’. I didn’t have the courage to walk on the plank because it was too dangerous. A few minutes later, I got to South Peak and then took a photo at the Summit of Mt. Huashan. Then I headed to the West Peak. It took me 1 hour from South Peak to West Peak and then 1 hour from West Peak to North Peak.
It was 18:00 o’clock when I arrived at the North Peak. Again, a long queue of tourists was waiting for the cable car. I didn’t want to wait here so that I refunded my ticket and went down Mt. Huashan on feet. It was already 19:15 when I reached the foot of the Mt. Huashan. Then I took the sight-seeing bus to Dongshanmen and took bus back to Xian.
Tip:
1. Tourism bus line 1 departs very early at Xian Railway Station. The ticket fare is CNY 22. It stops by Jade Spring Temple and stops at Dongshanmen. Except the You 1 tourism bus, there are other buses from Xian Railway Station to Mt. Huashan. The tickets are a bit expensive (CNY 36 for a single trip and CNY 60 for a round trip).
2. You can buy the entrance ticket on the tourism bus line 1. Entrance fee: CNY 180. Sight-seeing bus: CNY 40 for a round trip. Cable car: CNY 150 for a round trip. You needn’t queue up to buy the tickets if you buy it in advance.
3. Better reach the Mt.Huashan as early as you can if you plan to use the cable car. Otherwise, you will wait for long to take the cable car.
4. The scenery near the ‘Sky Plank Walk’ is amazing. You shouldn’t miss it.
5. Tourism bus line 1 leaves Mt. Huashan at 17:00. If you miss it, go to Dongshanmen to take long distance bus back to Xian. It finally stops at Xian East Bus Station. The ticket fare is CNY 35.
6. The mineral water is sold from CNY 7 to CNY 10 on Mt. Huashan.
Day 6
When I got up, I found that my legs were sore. Climbing the Mt. Huashan really hurt but I made it. Due to my sore legs, I decided not to visit any attraction today. Instead, I went to see a film. It was nearly 16:00 when I got back to Qixian Youth Hostel. I packed up my luggage, checked out and went to the railway station. My train departed at 18:30.
In the end, my trip in Xian was really nice.
1. Vintage Sidecar motorbike ride in the countryside around Xi'an TUDOU from China Apr 24, 2012 21:00
2. Xi'an: Delhi Darbar Indian Restaurant: Nothing special but good for China PATRICK MACDONALD from UK Mar 27, 2012 06:09
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1.
Oct 6, 2015 07:25 Reply
Mr.EC from Malaysia said:
quite informative, thank you
2.
Sep 20, 2013 16:15 Reply
Mr.NG SK from MalaysiaA said:
very good account of your tour. TQ.
3.
Dec 7, 2012 03:15 Reply
Mr.ADEKOYEJO O LAWAL from Nigeria said:
visiting china for DEC
with my family