Duhuang Ancient City Ruins, Gansu, China
3.5 (57 reviews) Wednesday: 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM Spent < 1 hour Ranking #17 in Dunhuang Historic Sites • Ancient Ruins • Points of Interest & Landmarks
A pleasant hour ot two
I had not intended to visit but the 'old city'was in my free guide in the hotel so I thought I'd visit the old town. I pointed to the picture and the taxi took me right there....BUT it is not the 'old city' - it is a film set! The old houses are from five different regions in China and it is here that the 19th and 20th century soaps are filmed!! Once I got over my disappointment, it proved great fun..but not for too long.
Address
Qiliqiao Town, Dunhuang 736200 China
Working hours
Monday : 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Tuesday : 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Wednesday : 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Thursday : 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Friday : 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Saturday : 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Sunday : 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Current local date and time now
Wednesday, May 15, 2024, 9:02
User Ratings
3.5 based on (57 reviews)
Reviews
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3Andrew M 5:00 PM Aug 24, 2019
Small protected ruins site
The Shazou ancient city ruins are officially known as the "Dunhuang Ancient City Ruins". In this section, I realise that it has been confused with the "movie" village. The ruins are located at the intersection of the G215 (215 National Road) and Gucheng Road. It is a small area that is protected by a perimeter fence, but the ruins are slowly eroding and there is not much to see. There are four storyboards placed around the site that provide information on the ancient city. The topics of the storyboard included Ink pond, Confucianism, 6th century succession Battle in Shazou and how Shazou received its' name. The Shazou Region dates back to the 2nd Century, and was made up of Dunhuang, Goachang and Jinchang. In 564, the Zhou Dynasty renamed the city Shazou, and Dunhuang was renamed Mingsha. We were disappointed that more care was not taken to preserve the earthen city, and there were many construction activities taking place nearby. For further information on the ancient city, I would suggest that you visit the city museum. We walked here from the city center in 20 minutes and passed the River park and Pipa statue along the way. If you continue south on Gucheng Road, a left at the first intersection will lead you to the White Horse Tower.
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3SingaporeGirl 5:00 PM Jan 20, 2017
Reconstructed tourism
Gives you a good idea of what 'would have been' -- an 'extra' after you've visited the caves and city museum. Personally, I'd spend more time in the new Dunhuang Mogao Caves museum with its replica caves really reading and studying the exhibitions; the time would be better spent.
