Things to do in Gansu - Gansu Attractions

No.1 Maijishan Grottoes

Type: Ancient Ruins, Historic Sites

Recommended Length of Visit: 2 hours

Location: Maijishan Scenic Area, Maiji District, Tianshui City, Gansu Province, China 甘肃省天水市麦积区麦积山风景区

The Maijishan Grottoes, together with Longmen Grottoes, Yungang Grottoes and Dunhuang Groggoes, are known as the "Four Greatest Grottoes in China." Caves were chiseled on a hill shaped like a stack of wheat. The ancient artisans carved more than 7800 Buddhist statues with different colors and size. The largest statue, Dongyan Giant Buddha, has a height of 15.8 meters. More Details about Maijishan Grottoes>>

No.2 Labrang Monastery

Type: Buddhist Monastery

Recommended Length of Visit: half day

Location: 252 Renmin West Street, Labrang Town, Xiahe County, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu Province 甘肃省甘南藏族自治州夏河县拉卜楞镇人民西街252号

Built in 1709, Labrang Monastery is by far the largest and most influential monastery in Amdo Tibetan Region, also ranked as one of "Six Greatest Gelug School Monasteries". It is located in the western Labuleng Town.

Labrang Monastery is famous as "Word Tibetan University", because it has established a complete system of Buddhism study. There are six academies teaching different theories of Esoteric Buddhism and Exoteric Buddhism, also medicine, astronomy, etc. It takes about fifteen years to complete some of the studies. Labrang Monastery has now the largest number of monks outside of the Tibet Autonomous Region. You have chance to observe their daily living and study. If lucky, you will see the spectacular ceremony of Buddhism Debating. More Details about Labrang Monaster>>

No.3 Bingling Temple Grottoes

Type: Sights & Landmarks, Ancient Grottoes

Recommended Length of Visit: Half day

Location: 35km South of Yongjing County, Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu Province, China 甘肃临夏回族自治州永靖县县南35公里处

Bingling Temple Grottoes, also called Binglingsi Grottoes or Bingling Thousand-Buddha Caves, is a 1600-year-old site on Yellow River with 183 caves and niches, 694 stone statues, 82 clay sculptures, and 900 square meters of murals. On June 22, 2014, Bingling Temple grottoes were successfully included in the world heritage list as a site of the "Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor". More Details about Bingling Temple Grottoes>>

No.4 Yulin Grottoes

Type: Sights & Landmarks, Ancient Grottoes

Recommended Length of Visit: Half day

Location: By Yulin River, 75KM south of Guazhou County, Jiuquan City, Gansu Province, China 甘肃省酒泉市瓜州县南75公里榆林河

The Yulin Caves or Yulin Temple is a Buddhist cave temple site located about 160 km east of the oasis town of Dunhuang. It was named after the elm trees (Yulin in Chinese) lining the River, which flows through the cliffs from which the caves have been excavated. It was listed on the UNESCO World Heritage sites as part of the Chinese Section of the Silk Road. There are 43 existing caves in the Yulin Caves, with a total of 5,200 square meters of murals and more than 259 colored sculptures. Because the Yulin Caves are similar with the Mogao Caves in history, grotto architecture, sculpture and mural. Therefore, it is called "sister caves" of the Mogao caves. More Details about Yulin Grottoes>>

No.5 Langmusi

Type: Ethnic Minority Village, Tibetan Buddhism Temples

Recommended Length of Visit: 1 day

Location: Langmu Temple scenic spot, Langmusi Town, Luqu County, Gannan Prefecture, Gansu Province 甘肃省甘南州碌曲县郎木寺镇郎木寺景区

Langmusi literally means Langmu Temple in Chinese. So many people may mistake it as a temple. But actually, it is a small town on the border of Sichuan and Gansu Province where two famous Tibetan Buddhist temples - Kirti Gompa in Sichuan and Serti Gompa in Gansu - locate. Nicknamed as “Little Oriental Switzerland”, Langmusi is surrounded by grassland, forests and hills. Stepping into Langmusi, you can feel a strong atmosphere of religion seeing the colorful temples and prayer flags, which also adds a sense of Zen to the primitive nature scene. More Details about Langmusi>>