Things to Do in Dunhuang
Check out must-see sights and activities:
Mogao Caves, Mingsha Shan - Echoing-Sand Mountain, Ancient Ruins, Points of Interest & Landmarks. For personalised recommendations, try our AI trip-planning product.
Mogao Caves, Mingsha Shan - Echoing-Sand Mountain, Ancient Ruins, Points of Interest & Landmarks. For personalised recommendations, try our AI trip-planning product.
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Book these experiences for a close-up look at Dunhuang.
- fromper adult (price varies by group size)RM 3,546
- fromper adult (price varies by group size)RM 1,061
Historical Toursfromper adultRM 395
Historical Toursfromper group (up to 10)RM 888
Historical Toursfromper adult (price varies by group size)RM 9,759
Historical Toursfromper adult (price varies by group size)RM 795- fromper adult (price varies by group size)RM 1,594
Full-day Toursfromper adult (price varies by group size)RM 720
Historical Toursfromper adult (price varies by group size)RM 1,505- fromper adult (price varies by group size)RM 1,999
Historic Sites
Hot Springs & Geysers
National Parks
Ancient Ruins
Theatres
History Museums
Points of Interest & Landmarks
Historic Sites
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Other Top Attractions around Dunhuang
What travellers are saying
- xcschlrMilwaukee, WI816 contributionsFor Chinese tourists, the only way to book a visit is to do it online. Even though the online booking site does not work for visitors from overseas (i.e., those who do not have a Chinese ID), the ticket office always reserves tickets for overseas visitors to purchase. You first watch a widescreen film about the religious artwork to gain some understanding of the historical background, and then take a museum bus to see the caves. The carvings are magnificent. In summer 2024, the number of English-speaking tourists was relatively small, and the museum did not provide many curators who can speak English and resulted delays in the English tours. We took a Chinese tour to avoid the delay, and I acted as the interpreter for my English-speaking companion.Written 27 August 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- F8124KTlucyb29 contributionsThe crowds have died down now the frenzy of Chinese summer tourism has abated, and the kiddies are back in the classroom. My mobility impairment meant the sand mobiles were the only option to scale the epic dunes. The yellow ones are the way to go as they are faster than the green. While pricey, at 450RMB to scale the first dune and an additional 450 to proceed to a dune further afield, it was absolutely worth it. Our driver was a lead foot and it was very exciting. He doubles as a photographer, getting us to pose and using our phone to take many fantastic shots. We were relatively undisturbed and had a spectacular view of the sunset. Our driver was in no hurry to get back and we spent a good 60 minutes appreciating the views. Weather was perfect. Much better than the Disney spectacle below.Written 1 September 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- C BEurope72 contributionsThis is a nice pool nestled in the sand dunes. It is important to note that you cannot just go to this pool it is completely contained within the larger park that includes the sand dunes. The admission to the park is around 100 RMB, but once you pay you can either walk about 20 minutes to the pool or buy a ticket on a small shuttle.Written 13 July 2021This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- xcschlrMilwaukee, WI816 contributionsI’ve been to a few geoparks in different parts of the world (e.g., Cappadocia in Türkiye and Yehliu in Taiwan) that have rock formations somewhat similar to those in this park, but they all differ in color and shape. In Dunhuang Yadan Geopark, the shapes of the rocks are more varied, the color is much lighter, and the areas that some clusters of rocks occupy seem significantly larger. Because the traffic of tourists can be very large in the high season, visitors must ride in the park’s eco buses to see the formations for the purpose of protecting the environment, and the length of time for which the bus stops at each scenic spot is strictly controlled. Each scenic spot looks desolate, and unusual shapes of the rocks make you feel that you are on a different planet. We had a great experience there and also enjoyed the 2-hour drive from Dunhuang to the park, as we saw the largest solar farm in the world with many extremely bright sunlight reflectors and wild horses in a nature preserve that looks like African prairie.Written 27 August 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- F8124KTlucyb29 contributionsWe had some challenges initially but fortunately there were not many people visiting at the time, so we were able to navigate them with assistance from staff.
Firstly, there is an audio guide available in English, that has GPS and will play content depending on your location. It was timed perfectly and provided excellent context. We had trouble hiring it but staffed helped.
Next there is a museum which has good information.
We needed to buy a bus ticket separately from the entry ticket, and only found out when going to board the bus. Staff again were helpful, but they didn’t speak English.
A bus runs every 1/2 hour to 2 destinations, where you are given 20 minutes before re-boarding. The third spot is the gate itself, which is waking distance from the museum.
There are a fair amount of remnant fortifications and the views are vast and quite special.Written 3 September 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - xcschlrMilwaukee, WI816 contributionsDunhuang offers several shows that are all quite good according to people who have watched every one of them, but the only show that we saw was “Seeing Dunhuang Again” (You Jian Dunhuang), which was creative by a female director whose talents are comparable to those of Zhang Yimou – the famed film director who also directed the Opening Ceremony of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Depending on how fluent your Chinese is and how much you know about Chinese history, what you enjoy most from show will differ. If you cannot follow what the actors are saying in Chinese, you enjoy primarily the dances and the beautiful images projected on the screens. For Chinese language speakers familiar with the relevant historical background, the performances can give them a deeper artistic and emotional experience. When I was in this immersive show with actors walking around and performing, I noticed that many in the audience had tears rolling down their cheeks.Written 27 August 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Ian AndersonShanghai, China158 contributionsDefinitely worth the visit if you are in Dunhuang. Well curated, lots to see, read and learn about the rich local area history with the important information in English. Dunhuang’s importance in the Han to before Ming dynasties was such that the museum will also give you good insight into the wider Chinese history of those ~1500 years. And entrance was free of charge!Written 7 May 2023This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Gary, AustraliaChina79 contributionsI visited the Shazhou Night Market, Yangguan Middle Road, Dunhuang on the last night of 2020. The Market has two entrances on this road as well as exits to other streets. It was minus 15 centigrade and unsurprisingly, most of the stalls were closed. However, I can imagine it would be a bustling scene in warmer seasons.
I had a meal in a traditional 2-table café and for 100RMB had a delicious fare of roast mutton on skewers, donkey meat and vegetable-filled pastries (apologies to vegetarians and donkey breeders), broccoli in garlic and chili sauce, steamed rice and warm sweet tea. There were 10 food stalls open and all the food looked delicious.
I ate what seemed like a quarter of a sheep on another occasion.
Some gift shops were open and a few had better quality wooden sculptures … especially of the various representations of Guanyin, and loads of jewellery made of semi-precious stone. And of course camel ornaments.
Even if it was cold, it was a great place to eat and browse after sunset.Written 1 January 2021This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - OlegButenko1974Ukraine333 contributionsTibetan statues are the real masterpieces of art. Great and unexpected experience. The most striking fact is that statues are real. Rest of items and pictures in the Center are copies.Written 5 August 2015This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Andrew M7,589 contributionsWe visited the Leyin Temple on the way to Crescent Lake. Bus # 3 is the easiest option to get here, as there is a bus stop opposite the Temple. We showed the bus driver a photo of the temple when boarding, and he indicated where to get off. The temple is free to enter. A red gate with orange roof is the first sight, and there are white sculpted lion dogs on either side. The roof had dragon figures on top, and other protective animals on the curved edges.
On entering the complex, there is a buddha statue with protectors at either side. The guard told us that photos of the sculptures were not allowed. There are many halls within the temple complex, the main halls were; Compassion, Great Vows, Paradise, Great Practice, Wisdom and Lapis Lazuli. We had read that there are 37 statues in the complex. Other attractions on the compound are the bell and drum towers. The final palace at the end of the complex, is known as the Palace of Light. No nails were used in its' construction.
The Temple hosted Monk Faxian before his trip to India in 400. The monk Xaunzang visited Turpan, but left China without the Emperors permission on his trip to India in 629, so didn't visit this Temple. There is said to be a plaque in the Temple which honours the visit of Faxian. The complex was rebuilt in 1991, based on a drawings found in the Magao Caves. We thought that this was a great visit, without the crowds that you would usually expect at this type of attraction. Your visit should be completed before 6pm, when the monks have supper. Other nearby attractions are Mingsha Shan, Crescent Lake and the Minsu Museum.Written 26 August 2019This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - xcschlrMilwaukee, WI816 contributionsThere is a low-cost tour bus that goes from Dunhuang to the Yadan Geopark and several historical sites including Yangguan, but the trip takes a whole day and often does not end until after midnight. Our main interest was to visit the geopark, so we hire a car for 60-70 U.S. dollars to go there. We could have easily skipped Yangguan, but we had lunch at a fantastic restaurant in a nearby town and stopped by the historical site. Yangguan has a small museum and remnants of a very old fort. The vista of the desolate landscape with snow-capped mountains in the background is something I enjoyed seeing, and the stories told in the museum and reflected in the ruins of the fort are also very interesting.Written 27 August 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- The Vista SeekerNew York City, NY502 contributionsIt is great to see the remains of the Great Wall of Han Dynasty. It was not built with bricks, instead it was by interleaved layers of hay and sand. It is much shorter than the Great Wall of Ming Dynasty. Another difference is that the Han Great Wall is on the planes while the Ming Great Wall runs on the mountains ridges.Written 4 August 2019This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
