White Deer Plain

White Deer Plain, locally called Bailuyuan, is about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from downtown Xi'an. It is a huge loess field with an area of 260 square kilometers (102 square miles), surrounded by lakes on three sides and facing Zhongnan Mountains in the south. The land is mainly planted with wheat. Looking from afar, the green or yellow wheat plants form a giant blanket waving in the breeze, like a beautiful oil painting. The land is also dotted with rows of folk houses in typical central Shaanxi style. White Deer Plain got famous because of a novel with the same name, which won many prizes. In recent years, many tourist areas have been built for visitors to relax, learn the local customs and taste local delicacies.

Bailuyuan Studios

A Traditional Folk House in Bailuyuan Studios

This is the most striking spot in White Deer Plain, with a waterfall and a lake, both sides of which are covered with terraced fields. In the Whale Gully, pheasant fly out of the grass from time to time and ducks and egrets wander in the lake.

Located in the southeast of White Deer Plain, the Folk Village is an integrated tourism resort that perfectly presents the central Shaanxi’s culture through antique buildings, delicacies and specialties, traditional art performances and entertainment projects. The village retains the natural form of the original forest. It not only houses the graceful natural scenery of the luxuriant trees and gurgling streams, but is also a sightseeing spot for visitors to relax and be entertained. The most famous specialties in the Folk Village are hele, Liangpi and hand-pulled noodles. Hele is a kind of noodles made from buckwheat, sorghum flour and other flours. Liangpi is steamed cold noodles. Besides that, there are three well-known culture theme museums mainly about chefs, jades and folk customs.
 

Bailuyuan Studios houses many visiting zones to present the buildings, history and folk customs of the central Shaanxi area, for instance, ecological view zone, children's entertainment zone and White Deer Village. Lots of famous movies and TV Series like Song of the Phoenix, Mao Zedong and White Deer Plain were shot here. In addition, it has five ancient forts around as its important landmark spots. Standing under the wall of five forts, you may feel the magnificent war scene in ancient times. Besides, there is a slide program for visitors to go downhill, during which you can admire the beautiful natural scenery of the whole scenic zone.
 

In every May, the Cherry Orchard is filled with a large number of visitors who come to pick and taste the cherries here. The tastiest cherry in the orchard is on the slope of the Plain’s north side. After experiencing picking cherries in person, then you can also go to the farmhouse to enjoy the healthy and delicious farm food. You need pay for the cherries you pick.
 

The ski area usually opens from middle December to next February in winter. Bailuyuan Ski Area showcases a 300 meters (327 yards) long and 60 meters (65 yards) wide main skiing trail. It houses the complete skiing facilities, the good-quality service and various skating projects. The most suitable ratio of slope allows the visitors to glide an S route without supporting poles. Here, you can not only enjoy the luxuriant pleasure of skiing, but also appreciate the boundless magnificent snow scene. Besides that, there is a "snow amusement park" set up for children, which lets kids experience the enjoyment of playing with snow.
 

White Deer Plain is a very large area and the public transportation to different areas varies from one another.
To Whale Gully: take bus no. 240 and get off at the Dizhai Station, and then hail a minibus or taxi to Whale Gully at about CNY10. Bus no.240 departs from Xi'an Railway Station and the main pick-up stops include Kangfu Road and East Gate of Xingqing Park.
To Folk Culture Village: take bus no. 910 at Xi'an Bus Station and get off at Bailuyuan Folk Village Station. You can also get on bus no.910 at Nanmen or Xingqing Park Station.
To Bailuyuan Studios: take bus no. 927 at Tangdu Hospital and get off at the East Shewan Station, or take bus no. 920 at South Bus Station or South Square of Big Wild Goose Pagoda and get off at the Jiaodai Station; and then hail a minibus or taxi for about CNY15 to get there.
To Cherry Orchard: take bus no. 240 and get off at 62 Middle School (Vehicles College) Station, and walk northeast about 20 minutes.
To Ski Area: take bus no. 240 or 910 and get off at Air Travel College Station, then walk for 200 meters (218 yards).
Xi'an Bus / Metro Search

Ticket Price	Folk Culture Village: free Bailuyuan Studios: free Cherry Orchard: CNY40/person. Bailuyuan Ski Area: weekdays: CNY 138/person; weekends: CNY168/person except the rent of ski clothes, ski gears and locker.
Open Time	Folk Village: all day Bailuyuan Studios: 9:00-20:00 Cherry Orchard: all day Bailuyuan Ski Area: Middle December – Next February: 8:00 - 23:00.