4.5Ancient City of Pingyao(1.370 reviews) - Peaceful. Beautiful and Fascinating Historic Sites
Spent two days here with my colleagues. This amazingly well preserved Qing city is a visual spectacle. From the city walls you can see the order behind the apparent chaos as walking through it is easy to lose yourself. Dozens of museums, hundreds of historic buildings and years of history unfold before your eyes. At night red lanterns illuminate everything with a gentle glow. Stay in a boutique courtyard hotel, enjoy the local food, sample the locally produced drinking vinegar, shop till you drop and finish the day off at a bar. This place has it all. Couldn't recommend more highly. See more..
4.5Yungang Grottoes(974 reviews) - Very Cool History Monday: 8:30 AM - 5:20 PM Historic Sites • Ancient Ruins • Caverns & Caves
There are over 50 caves with over 50,000 well-preserved Buddhist statues from the 5th century.See more..
4.5Hengshan Hanging Temple (Xuankong si)(778 reviews) - Impressive cliff-hanging temple Monday: 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM Historic Sites • Points of Interest & Landmarks • Architectural Buildings • Religious Sites
The monastery was built on the cliffs of Mt. Hengshan, one of the five most sacred mountains in China. The caves and halls are connected by winding corridors and bridges.See more..
Consisting of five high plateaus, this area is one of China's four sacred Buddhist Mountains.See more..
4.5City Wall of Pingyao(393 reviews) - Awesome ancient defensive walled-city Points of Interest & Landmarks
The impressive, ancient 6.2 kilometres in length, and averaging 10 metres in height, wall around the city is estimated to have been built over the 827BC to 782BC period. Since the 14th century, this has been a city of the Chinese Han people. Inside the city walls, there are temples of Shuanglin and Zhenguo. There is a lot of history here, and since 1982, it has been protected by a number of Chinese laws, including, the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Protection of Cultural Relics. The ancient city walls of China a very spectacular. Other than in size, this has many of the same characteristics as the ancient walls of Xi’an and Nanjing.See more..
This 9,000 square metre, private residential compound was constructed in the last half of the 18th century. It has 313 room and 25 courtyards of varying sizes. The courtyards include a grand courtyard, five other large, and 19 smaller ones. Its most famous resident was Qiao Zhiyong (1818 to 1907), a famous Chinese financier of the 19th century. The Qing dynasty architecture, wooden carvings, brick and stone carvings, and many other features are spectacular. The compound is sometimes used in movie sets. The movie “Raise the Red Lantern” was filmed here. The property is now used as a folk culture museum of Qixian CountySee more..
4.5Hukou Waterfall(209 reviews) - Hukou Waterfall - a place you never forget! Monday: 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM Bodies of Water • Waterfalls
The Hukou Waterfall is the second largest waterfall in China and the largest on the legendary Yellow River. As a result it is often claimed that this is "the only yellow waterfall in the world." It is right on the border between Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces. The 300-meter wide Yellow River suddenly narrows and is forced violently through a 20-meter-wide gorge before falling turbently as a waterfall. As with the other applications I've submitted, I'd be happy to provide a major write up should you wish to give this a listing. On another note, I would suggest you consider reorganizing the categories of your listings for Shanxi. Listing them completely by counties doesn't really make sense. I'd be happy to make an alternative suggestion if you'd like. (Heather Pickerell, alias ShanxiFan)See more..
4.0Ying Xian Wooden Pagoda(178 reviews) - The wooden Sakyamuni Pagoda of Fogong Temple Architectural Buildings • Religious Sites
A work of fine craftsmanship and art. In 1056, Emperor Daozong of Liao had the wooden pagoda built at what was his grandmother's home. It is the world's oldest wooden pagoda and has withstood earthquakes and and wars.See more..
This "family" compound was for the ruling clan of the province. The courtyard community consists of 3 large groups of courtyard homes that look like 3 castles on a hillside, connected by bridges across ravines. I've been to many places in China. Wang is definitely a must see.See more..
4.0Mian Mountain(166 reviews) - Photogenic and really beautiful in parts, but really tacky in parts and an expensive day trip Monday: 8:00 AM - 7:00 PM Mountains
November 2014, after a day in Ancient City Pingyao, instead of hiring a guide, and or taxi, we took a train early morning to Jiexiu. It took about half an hour, and saved a lot of money. We paid 50 RMB to the taxi to go to Mian Shan Scenic area. After procedures with tickets and hotel accomodations, in central tourist office, we were transfered into tourist bus, which run every half an hour. Magnificient fews around cannot be described into words, and put into photos and video. High altitude and clear air create feeling of Switzerland, high drop cliffs of Big Canyon in Nevada, and only Taoist Temples remind that you are in the East. Our family of four, with two kids, 7 and 10, consider trip to Mian Shan as a Highlight of all our trip to China. And ,when I asked everyone, which place in China you would like to visit again...Mian Shan was named the First! (Even we visited seven major places on our trip, like Beijing, Mutianyu Great Wall, Pingyao Ancient City, Jiexiu with Mian Shan, Xi'an, Qingdao, Lao Shan, Shanghai, and town on water Zhujiajiao) Views are outstanding in Mian Shan, and if we go next time, we spend at least three-four days there, just hiking and wondering. Rooms in Yunfeng Hotel are very comfortable, restaurant prices are reasonable, and food is excellent. You can view some of my photos on panoramio... http://www.panoramio.com/user/2191248See more..
4.0Rishengchang Former Bank(166 reviews) - You can bank on it..... one of the first banks Monday: 7:55 AM - 5:31 PM Historic Sites
This former bank is now a museum to banking in Pingyao that was the banking capitol of China. At one point the bank had 33 branches. Banking center from 1823 to 1932 and introduced paper money in 1920. See more..
Confuious practiced his way and educated many. He was born in 551 BC and lived until 479 BC. The temple is a holy space dedicated to his life and teachings. Beautiful facilities and gardens. See more..
4.5Jinsi Temple(151 reviews) - Wonderful gem! Religious Sites
I absolutely loved visiting Jinsi. It was a beautiful day when I went, and the climate was excellent. There is a lot to see there, and it is surrounded by beautiful scenery and a clear flowing creek. There weren't any English speaking tour guides there, but there was ample English to read, so I don't feel like I missed out too much. I would definetly recommend visiting here if you are in Shanxi. Bonus: it wasn't very crowded! See more..
4.0Huayan Temple of Datong(144 reviews) - Beautiful view Monday: 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Religious Sites
This is in the middle of the Ancient City, a very large Temple complex, 50RMb entrance fee. If I recall correctly, almost the entire place is a rebuild for <15 years ago, in fact almost all the Ancient City is a modern rebuild. If you like Chinese Temples, go have a look see. It’s the same pattern and architecture you’ll see at almost all Chinese Temples, so if you don’t have the time to have a look, you’ll be okay. Two cool parts, they have a relic of the Buddha in the underground part of a Temple, his finger bone. There is also a huge Temple you can climb up and get a great view of the city. As Temple complexes go, it’s very well done, lots of photo opportunities. If you have the time, go have a look.See more..
4.5Jinci Park(118 reviews) - Excellent place to spend a day Amusement & Theme Parks
Another amazing history site back to 3000 years more ago. Building in this park are thousand years old. A spring fountain still working even after several thousand years.See more..
4.0Shuanglin Temple(117 reviews) - Don't bicycle here unless you have a death wish! Religious Sites
This temple has beautiful sculptures and is well worth the short trip from Pingyao. On the advice of Lonely Planet, we biked here--what a mistake! The distance is only 7 km, but you must bike along a major highway that is full of tractor-trailers. Not only did we fear for our lives, but the route was completely devoid of scenery. Highly recommend taking a taxi instead.See more..
4.0Datong City Walls(114 reviews) - Nice place and must to see. Historic Sites
I visit Datong city wall November 2020 and it was very pleasant experience. Basically just me and my friend there. No rush no crowd just enjoyable wandring around wall. City wall itself is well rebuild and top of it can see old datong as well as new part of Datong. Rent bike is also available and recommed if want to see whole wall.See more..
Lots to see and do here. There's even daily shows (see photo) re-inacting an old Court Trial. Make sure you arrive early to get to the front for the best views. The Torture museum is also very interesting with, amongst others, a rare original photo showing a male Eunuch after his bits were removed (our Tour-Guide told us about this rare photo when we were in the Forbidden City in Beijing).See more..
4.5Shanxi Museum(96 reviews) - Impressive Museum Monday: Speciality Museums
The Shanxi Museum is a wonderful provincial museum managed by the government of Shanxi Province, home of some of the oldest history in China. The museum is located in Taiyuan, the capital city of Shanxi, in a modern four-storey building. It was wonderful collections of old history, Chinese money, architecture, Buddhist sculptures and much more. I'd be happy to write a full description if this listing is approved. I am not an official representative of this property but have clicked the box as you should seriously consider listing it.See more..
It is probably the main highlight to visit in Pingyao. Quiet place if you want to escape the crowded Pingyao.See more..
4.5Mengshan Mountain Buddha(60 reviews) - Nice spot to visit Points of Interest & Landmarks • Architectural Buildings
I used DiDi to visit there. From the southern part of Taiyuan(near Wucheng Residential District), it took 40min and ¥40 to the closest parking lot. From the parking lot, we walked a few minutes to the ticket office. There are some stores on the way to the office, so I recommend to get a bottle of water and some snacks if you like. A ticket was ¥50 to enter the sight, including round trip bus ticket. Through the entrance gate, bus station is very close. We ride the bus for a couple of minutes. After that, all the visitor must walk to the top of the mountain. The staff told me it would take 40-60min, but I thought it took us only 20-30min to the Buddha. The road was clean and easy to walk, there were so many benches, rest rooms and bins on the sidewalk. I saw some cleaning staff were sweeping the street. I went here on spring, so the weather was just perfect. I enjoyed watching trees and creek so I didn’t feel it was a long walk. When you climb up the last stairs to the top, the Buddha is there. Mesmerizing. Lucky for us, very few people were there. And you can walk up a little more to the top, right under the Buddha. I prayed, took some awesome pictures, and meditated. The trip was something like this. The staff here did not speak English, but if you know there process you will not have trouble. See more..
I'm not 100% sure if this is the same place we were at. Hard to tell by the names given to attractions. My attraction ticket is mostly all Chinese.See more..
4.0Datong Drum(54 reviews) - Drum Tower Monday: 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM Points of Interest & Landmarks • Architectural Buildings
Entrance fee is 10 RMB. Its restored and gives you feeling of the Asien time. You can walk up and have a 360 degree view around. Inside are also some old pictures of the city and new drawings of some sightseeing spots around. The location is very central to other spots. In the area around a lot of restore work is ongoing so some renovation spots will be open or other are close due to that work. Thanks for reading my review and I hope it was helpful for your trip. See more..
4.0Zhangbi Ancient Castle(49 reviews) - Built 1300 years ago..... Quite a site.... The tunnels Monday: 8:00 AM - 7:00 PM Historic Sites
This ancient castle was just fascinating. My wife and I were guided through the tunnels by our guide from Pingyao. We learned a lot about life in a Castle 1300 years ago. This was a military compound when first built and then became a place for local folk. There were 10000 meters of tunnels built under the castle. Now 1500 meters are open to the public. The tunnels have wells for water, storage for food, weapons, etc.See more..
4.0Gushi Tower(47 reviews) - Nice Photo Op Points of Interest & Landmarks • Architectural Buildings
It's basically a well preserved pagoda in the middle of town. Nice place to take a few photos and have a bite to eat since there were some interesting nearby restaurants.See more..
4.5Yingze Park(46 reviews) - Beautiful Oasis in the City Parks
Could spend hours walking through this park. Very beautiful during the day but absolutely stunning at night with all the beautiful lights. Feels very safe at any time of day.See more..
All the streets insides Pingyao ancient city are fascinating and worth a stroll, either during the day or at night. They are always busy, always full of people and the atmosphere is always exciting. Every shop front is a museum in itself and worth a photo stop. Strolling the streets is free, but you will need the Pingayo ancient own ticket to stop in any of the museums or temples en route.See more..
I paid my visit by the end of March, when was not many tourists. I was the only one on the cable car. To be honest, I felt quite scary, when seeing all empty cabins around me. I tried to focus on taking photos to ignore my fear. The view was fantastic!! Be aware that the entrance for cable car is not the same entrance for hikers. I was lost when I came down on foot. But luckily I hire a car with chauffeur and he knew where I would came out. The mountains were still covered by the snow, with the green pine trees. I’d say this is the best season for visiting Mount Heng. It was very quiet. You might be the only one visitor. It was a bit raining, so the steps were very slippery. I fell down on a quite steep road. According to Taoist culture, the stairs to the temple are long and steep! So be careful in a rainy day.See more..
This was a wonderful experience! I love nature, hiking and visiting historical architecture bursting with culture and this experience combines all three. The paths leading up to the many temples and lookout points are surrounded by fragrant pine trees that help to cleanse your lungs of all the coal pollution from Datong. I highly recommend combining this trip with visiting the Hengeng Monastery which is practically next door. We ate lunch at a little stand next to the carpark and was impressed with the cleanliness and fresh taste of the food. Be warned, the cable car officially closes at 3pm so unfortunately, we did not get a chance to take it down from the top because it was already past 5pm when we realized and ended up trekking back by foot.See more..
4.0Twin Pagoda Temple (Shuangta si)(37 reviews) - Most interesting thing to do in Taiyuan Points of Interest & Landmarks • Architectural Buildings • Religious Sites
I spend 2 days in Taiyuan, the most interesting thing is to visit Shuangta Temple, traditional architecture are are amazing... the highlight is climbing the bigger temple and take a photo of the small temple.See more..
4.5Chang Family Compound(36 reviews) - Ought to be better known! Historic Sites • Points of Interest & Landmarks • Architectural Buildings
The Chang Family Compound, between Taiyuan and Pingyao, is a wonderful place, built by a family who made their fortune by trading tea. It is not an exaggeration to call it magnificent; it is absolutely huge with many different buildings and interesting insights into China's history, and a lovely garden. So few westerners come here that we were a curiosity and all the locals wanted their photos taken with us.See more..
4.5Shanhua Monastery(36 reviews) - Good experience Monday: 6:30 AM - 7:00 PM Ancient Ruins • Religious Sites
Honestly, in China it is so very easy to get “Templed-out” from all the temples and monasteries there are. They all follow the same patterns, architecture, style and colours. Eventually you dread going to yet another “famous” temple, because they all start to look the same. That all being said, I’m happy I paid a visit to this place. It doesn’t feel like many other temples that came from the same temple factory. Yes, the place has been around for 1000 years and has likely been rebuilt a dozen times in that period, including recently, but there are some buildings here that look and feel, “old”. It’s a nice change. There are great opportunities here for some photos. There is a wonderful water area that makes for great photos. Very few people as it is away from the main tourist area. Free admission. There is a 5-dragon wall outside. If you only have time for one temple or monastery on your trip, head to this one.See more..
The small entrance is deceptive of the large courtyards and building complex behind! Audio guides make the visit very enjoyable. These guides can be kept for the day and used on 17 or so of the refurbished buildings in Pingyao. Free admission for those over 60.See more..
4.5Jinci Museum(32 reviews) - This is ancient China! Speciality Museums
The Jinci temple complex is a fascinating group of very ancient buildings, with beautiful statues, a unique bridge and a tall pagoda. The dragons on the pillars of the Holy Mother Hall are amazing, and there are some huge statues inside. Jinci is not on the normal tourist circuit, but it is well worth visiting; it can be easily reached from Taiyuan on your way to Pingyao.See more..
4.0Taiyuan Zoo(32 reviews) - fun Monday: 7:30 AM - 6:00 PM Zoos
I went to the zoo in winter and saw lots of parents taking their kids after spring festvial. It is hard to forget those bears.See more..
Definitely a must see on the city tour ticket. Great architecture and decor to see and the vaults are unique in the city and not to be missed. More like a temple than a bank and well worth exploring.See more..
4.5Zhenguo Temple(29 reviews) - This is an undiscovered gem Religious Sites
There's only one thing to see here: Wanfo (Ten Thousand Buddhas) Hall, the only surviving building of a once much-larger Buddhist monastery. But what a building it is! Built in 963, it's one of the oldest wood buildings in China, or in the world, for that matter. The architectural details---particularly the bracketing and eaves----are extraordinary. Inside is an ensemble fo eleven painted-clay Buddhist sculptures, also dating from the tenth century---both beautiful and intensely spiritual. Zhenguo is a short drive (12k) outside Pingyao and is surrounded by cornfields. It's completely off the tourist circuit. We were there for half an hour, and during that time only two other visitors dropped by.See more..
4.0Yuci Ancient City(29 reviews) - A beautiful ancient city Ancient Ruins • Architectural Buildings
When we arrived in this city we didn't think we had enough time here as it is so beautiful. There is so much history here and so much to do. We visited two temples and the ancient city wall, that is a lovely night life here as well with lots of shops and lots of places to visit in the evening. Two days is not enough. We did have a bad experience when we visited the massage place. One day we had a foot and a pedicure which was amazing and very cheap so we decided to visit the massage place again the following day and have a back massage, although at the time the back massage was invigorating the next day all three of us had huge bruises all on our backs!!! Do not get the back massage!!See more..
4.0Beyond the Great Wall(27 reviews) - Best guide ever to The Great Wall - China Historic Sites
We just returned from a visit to the Great Wall in China. Excellent tour guide picked us up at airport - Shane will gladly give u his contact info on request. See more..
4.0Qikou Scenic Area(25 reviews) - Authentic experience and still loving it Historic Walking Areas
This is the Lijiashan you have been reading about. It is a 550 year old village and everyone there either has the surname Li, or is relative with one. Tucked away from the rest of China, other than occasional group of Chinese tourists dropping by for day trip, you pretty much get to enjoy it raw. It's a 5/6-hour (long-distance) bus ride from Taiyuan to Qikou and from there you can pay for a (very skilled) private taxi to drive you to the doorstep of your homestay family. We stayed with Mr Li HP 138 3583 2614, for about 50yuan per person per night, 3 meals inclusive. At the time of our stay, they were installing a western shower toilet so we are expecting things to get more convenient by the time you go. But we loved it the way it is, naturally cool room in summer, underground natural fridge for storage of drinks and vegetable, rock bed with thin mattress and traditional homemade Shaanxi noodle by the Mrs Li.See more..
Very interesting. The foam spray from the lake lands all over the grass and bushes and looks like snow.See more..
4.0Liu Lane South Road(21 reviews) - lively Points of Interest & Landmarks • Architectural Buildings
a vivid shopping lane for youngsters and students. Loud music and touting boys and girls along the street.See more..
4.0North First Escort(21 reviews) - Great site Points of Interest & Landmarks • Architectural Buildings
Part of the combined ticket for all of ancient Pingyao, this complex of buildings and courtyards is well worth a stop as you wander through the narrow, bustling streets.See more..
4.5Great Wall-Yanmenguan Section(20 reviews) - The pass is rebuilt and new, but there is an earth wall north of it Monday: 12:00 AM - 11:59 PM Historic Sites
We came down from Datong and our driver stopped short of the pass and stopped and showed us a section of earth wall. It is unrestored and free. It is easy to walk bits of it and you really can imagine the hordes coming down here. Well worth a visit. The pass itself is rebuilt and quite interesting, but no feeling of history for me.See more..
A wonderful experience. The fact that one can step into the cave from 20 degrees Celsius and find a miraculous world of icicles and stalagmites makes this one of the most interesting places in China and the world See more..
Although the exhibits here are not all that interesting, like everything else in Pingyao, it's really the buildings, the courtyards and the history that you come to experience. There's a lot of atmosphere and great architectural detail to soak up.See more..
4.0Guguan Great Wall(19 reviews) - The Perfect Stone GreatWall Monday: 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Ancient Ruins • Architectural Buildings
The wall was repaired recently by the local citizens and the wall is really nice and it's about 150 years earlier than the great wall in Beijing Few tourists ,empty place i think it worthy to visit but the traffic is really not easy there is no public transportion system there and you have to take taxi and ask tazxi to wait for you and bring you back maybe this is the reason why not many people go there many famous people ( such as Kang xi emperor , etc) visited this area befoe and if you wish to lear more about China Greatwall history ,its a necessary place to visitSee more..
4.0Tayuan Temple(19 reviews) - Great place to visit for buddhist. Religious Sites
This temple is the largest monasteries of Gelugpa sect in Wutaishan . The best period and date to visit this temple is during Autumn and the first and fifteen of the Chinese calendar, This white pagoda is built by one Indian Monk. On the way to this temple there a few temple which worth visiting and further up the hill top is the another great temple called Pusa Ding. The entrance fees per person is CNY145.See more..
4.0The Grand Mosque(19 reviews) - Nice Monday: 8:30 AM - 6:00 PM Architectural Buildings • Religious Sites
It is in the middle of the mosque place and even when it is very animated zone, it was a palace before and it keeps the luxury.See more..