Xi'an (9 983 square km) is located in the Guanzhong Basin of the middle section of Yellow River Valley in the center area of mainland China. Qinling Mountains (2 000-2 800 m) span in the south of the city, is an important geographical dividing line of South and North China. To the north of Xi'an, along the border of Huangtu Highland, the Beishan mountain system (Liang mountain, Yellow Dragon Mountain, Yaowang Mountain and Long Mountain) forms a barrier around the Guanzhong Plain. Wei River, the largest branch of Yellow River, flows across Guanzhong Plain. Guanzhong Plain came into being due to the alleviation of Wei River and its branches, so it is also called Weihe Plain. The Plain begins from Baoji in the west, and reaches the Yellow River in the east, known as "800-li Qinchuan".

There are sharp distinctions among seasons in Xi'an. Xi'an is in the area of Eastern Asia warm temperate zone continental monsoon climate. Xi'an is warmer and more humid than its surroundings, with an annual average temperature between 6.4 and 13.4 C. The annual average temperature of the urban district and the counties on the plain area is between 13.0 and 13.4 C, and the annual average precipitation of this area is between 538 and 1029 mm. The annual average precipitation of the urban district is 585 mm.

Xi'an is not only the birthplace of Chinese Nationality, but also the important human birthplace and one of the prehistoric culture centers in Asia. From Xizhou with the flourishing slavery to Tang Dynasty with the peak of feudalism, 13 dynasties built capitals here.
Starting point of the "Silk Road", Xi'an served as an important pivot and center for economy and culture exchange. After the 10th Century A.D., with the focus of Chinese economy, politics and culture moved eastward, Xi'an attracted high attentions from rulers of Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing, because it was, first of all, taken as an important town militarily and politically in northwest, serving as an important strategic position to maintain the stability in northwest and guard the safety in central China.

XI'AN MAIN TOURIST ATTRACTION

Great Wild Goose Pagoda

Great Wild Goose Pagoda spires loftily in the Daci'en Temple, in the south suburb of Xi'an, the ancient capital. After Rabbi Xuanzang, the heir arch of the Tang Dynasty, fetched the sutra from India, where Buddhism originated, having experienced a lot of adversity and dangers, the emperor of the Tang Dynasty welcomed him ceremoniously, and let him preside in the newly built Daci'en Temple. In 652 A.D., Rabbi Xuanzang presented a memorial to the emperor to build the grand Dayan Tower for storing up the sutra. It's the sanctum for Rabbi Xuanzang to translate and explain the sutra of Buddhism, also the place where Number One Scholars, Jinshi and Juren of the past dynasties superscripted, and where longhairs and artists wrote poems and drew pictures. Various poets of the Tang Dynasty stepped on the tower and expressed their feelings, leaving countless peaks of the poetic perfection, especially the supernatural tales like "Xi You Ji" (means a westward joumey) for the later generations to appreciate. Mounting the grand Dayan Tower, looking into the distance while leaning on the handrail, you can see the whole ancient city of too many beautiful things.

The Bell Tower

The Bell Tower situated in the center of the Xi'an City was built in 1384 originally at the end of today's Guanji Street, and was moved to the current position in 1582, rebuilt in 1740. In the past time, the copper bell was hung in the tower to give the correct time at dawn, so it's named as the Bell Tower. Made of blue bricks, the base platform looks like a square, 8,6 meters high and 35,5 meters wide, and covers more than 1370 square meters. Its height altogether is 36 meters from the ground to the top of the tower. It's a magnificent construction rich in national style of classic elegance and beauty. It's totally made of bricks and wood covered with deep green colored glaze tile, eaves and rooms overlapping, each of the four corners has 4 peaks, hoppers, Zaojing (also decorations), woodcarving and colored drawing are decorated at each floor. The whole city will appear before your eyes if you climb the tower and look into the distance.

Museum of Emperor Qinshihuang's Tomb Figures of Soldiers and Horses

In March 1974, villagers of the Xiyang Village, while welling, found by chance the delves of Emperor Qinshihuang's Tomb Figures made up of Soldiers and Horses that were buried in the Yanzhai Village Lintong County. They named them respectively N1 Delve, N2 Delve and N3 Delve according to the time when they were founded. The total acreage of delves is 22 780 square meters. In the N1 Delve, there are 210 tomb figures in military suits, arrayed as in the actual ombat. In the N2 Delve, more than 100 pottery tomb figures are unearthed, and more than 500 horses and carriages are found. And in the N3 Delve, there are only 4 horses and 1 carriage and 568 pottery tomb figures. Finely made and nicely sculpted, Qinshihuang's tomb figures are high and big, and they're artworks of relatively high level. Implements ever used in the actual combat numbered in 10 thousands are exhibited in the delves. All kinds of them were finely made, and they're transcendental artworks. The Museum of Emperor Qinshihuang's Tomb Figures of Soldiers and Horses are announced as the world cultural heritage by UNESCO.

The Xi'an Circumvallation

Built between 1370 to 1378, the Xi'an circumvallation of the Ming Dynasty is the most completely preserved site of ancient circumvallation in China. Its perimeter is 13,7 kilometers with earthen cities on each gate of the city, on which city towers and arrow towers were built.
The west gate is regarded as the jumping off point of the Silk Road, and in its earthen city, there is a big sweet water well excavating in the Kangxi Era, on which all people of the Xi'an city lived before they began to use the tap water. In order to let the visitors know more about the history of the Xi'an city, "Exhibition of the History of the Development of the Xi'an City" is held chronically inside the city tower.
"The Archaized Welcoming Ceremony to the Ancient City" is held inside the earthen city of the north gate. When the visitors enter the city, ranks of dagger holding knights in armatures will welcome them, light holding ladies-in-waiting will blaze a way, the civilian will present the gold key of the city and the customs declaration form.

The Tomb of Emperor Qinshihuang

Emperor Qinshihuang (259-210 B.C.), founded the first feudal empire in Chinese history after annexing the 6 Kingdoms of Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao and Wei in 221 B.C. He began to have his tomb that took 38 years built oncehe came into power. The tomb is in the east of the Lintong County, 35 kilometers from the Xi'an city away. As surveyed, it hasn't been robbed off. As recorded in "Shiji" (Record of the History), there were water and silver in the tomb to represent all the rivers and seas. With the development of the technology, especially the archeological technology, the palace and the treasury under the earth of the tomb will see the light again.

The Huaqing Pond

The Huaqing Pond situated at the foot of Mount Li, almost 35 kilometers eastward from Xi'an City, was built in 747 A.D. Tang Xuanzong ordered to build palace around the mountain, and to build cities around the palace. Huaqing Place was perished during "Anshizhiluan" (The Rebel of An Lushan and Shi Siming). In the Qing Dynasty, Huaqing Pond was rebuilt and based on that, today's Huaqing Pond appeared after constant construction, covering 85560 square meters. In 1982, the site of the bathes of the emperor of the Tang Dynasty in Huaqing Palace was found by accident, and among them there was "Haitang bath" (Haitang is the name of a flower), also called "Guifei Pond" (Guifei means the high-ranked imperial concubine) which Tang Xuanzong built for his favorite wife, Yang Yuhuan.

The Huajue Alley Mosque

The Huajue Alley Mosque is the main place for the more than 60,000 Muslims in Xi'an to live their religious life, and it's also the major protected unit of cultural relic in Shaanxi Province. It's different from the ordinary Arabian Mosques of Islam. There are scaling platforms, buildings, pavilions carved girders and painted ridgepoles everywhere in the Mosque, and it possesses both the traditional style of the Chinese people and the characteristic and touch of Islamic temples from design, construction to artistic sculpt. It was built in 742 with altogether 4 compounds, covering more than 12 000 m, while the construction coverage is almost 4 000 m. Huajue Alley Mosque is not only the biggest Mosque in Xi'an, but also one of the earliest built and the most completely preserved Mosques in China.

The Shaanxi Historical Museum

The Shaanxi Historical Museum, a large scale national modern museum 1 kilometer northwest of the Dayan Tower, was open in June 1991, costing 144 million yuan, covering almost 70 000 m. In the museum, 113 thousand unearthed fine cultural relics are stored in a 1 100 m exhibition room. The room is divided into 7 parts for exhibitions of the prehistoric age, the Zhou Dynasty, the Qin Dynasty, the Han Dynasty, the Wei Jin Nanbei Dynasties, the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the Song Yuan Ming Qing Dynasties, and showed the history of Shaanxi from 1 150 000 years ago to 1840.

Xi'an Jiefang Hotel

Founded in 1958, the Xi'an Tourism Lt. Company Jiefang Hotel is listed as the country's designated two-star rated hotel concerning foreigners and the country's second-class enterprise. The hotel has 360 guestrooms with IC card locks, management through computers and completeand advanced equipments and facilities. The guest rooms are classified into 3 grades : the high (330-420 yuans), the average (250-320 yuans), and the low (180-240 yuans). All of the guestrooms are comfortable and graceful, equipped with Satellite TVs, closed circuit TVs, central air conditioners program controlled phones and advanced toilet facilities.
The hotel is located in Xi'an's downtown south to the Railway Station Square, and 45 km away from the Xianyang International Airport. On both sides of the hotel are the taxi square and the long distance bus station respectively. It has a convenient transportation with 7 major routes starting and ending here.
The front desk offers comprehensive services including the reservation of airplane and train tickets, and exchange of foreign currencies.
Address : 321, Liberation Road, Xi'an, Telephone: 029-7428946, Fax: 029-7422617

Urban Traffic

Linking all scenic spots on the east line, the N : 306/307 sighting buses from Xi'an to Lintong are provided. The full length is 40 kilometers with 17 bus stations.
In Xi'an, the N : 610 buses for sighting in the city are provided. The full length is 15 kilometers, and luxurious passenger buses with air conditioners are used. In the bus, travel guide services both in Chinese and English is provided.

N : 611, Railway Station-East Avenue-Bell Drum Square-Great Mosque-West Gate Circumvallation

N : 603, Railway Station-South Avenue-Circumvallation-Circumvallation (Stele Forest)-Tangle Palace

N : 8, Bell Tower-East Avenue-Xingqing Palace Park-Zoo

N : 5, Railway Station-Liberation Road-Circumvallation-Dayan Tower-Historical Museum

N : 401, Historical Museum-Dayan Tower-Xingqing Palace-Banpo Museum

N : 21, Emperor Qin's Palace-Dayan Tower-XiaoyanTower

N : 509, Tangcheng Hotel-Circumvallation (north gate)-Weiyang Lake Amusement Park

N : 14, Railway Station-Liberation Road-Stele Forest-Tangle Palace (Grassland Slope)

How much does it cost ?

For exemple : start Friday to Xi’an from Beijing West railway station train T27 (21:30-08:36, 280 CNY hardsleeper, 430 CNY softsleeper). 150 CNY for Qin Terracota Warriors, and about 600 CNY for all others places to visit and lunches. Return Sunday from Xian train T232 (18:10-06:22, 280 CNY hardsleeper, 430 CNY softsleeper).

Do it yourself by train (hardsleeper) from Beijing. About 1250-1350 CNY / 132-142 / 165-178 US$.