4 Days Private Trip to Dunhuang & Jiayuguan

This morning, after the hotel pick-up, your guide and the driver will first accompany you to the Western Thousand-Buddha Caves excavated from the 6th century, a sibling of the well-known Mogao Caves. Its scale once far exceeded that of the Mogao Caves, but most caves were washed away or buried by floods after the river changed path. However, the four caves open to the public span over 500 years, displaying mural art and the original painted sculptures from various periods. Cave No.11 is noticeable with its yurt-like shape, a one-of-a-kind cave in the Dunhuang region, and you can watch portraits of those who funded the cave’s construction on the east and west walls. 

Then, let’s step back in time at Jade Gate Pass, also called Yumen Pass. Although only a small square mound was left, this checkpoint was once a bustling gateway on the Silk Road. Ancient caravans needed to present their stamped and authenticated ‘passports and ID cards’ to pass through and head further west to Xinjiang and the Central Asian regions. Our journey will continue to the Great Wall of the Han Dynasty (202 BC - 9 AD), built to defend against the north nomadic tribes and protect Silk Road caravans. Equipped with border towns, fortified posts, beacon towers, and military roads, it was a comprehensive defensive system, with sands laid in the outer moats to observe the enemy’s footprints. You can view some remnants of rammed-earth walls and beacon towers.

Today’s last stop is the Hecang Fortress, a strategic supply warehouse for soldiers stationed along the Jade Gate Pass and the Great Wall. Surrounded by lakes on three sides, it is concealed behind an earthen platform about 3 meters (10 feet) high. Much of it has collapsed, but you’ll find two walls that divide this rectangular structure into three sections, complete with round openings for ventilation. After a day of exploration, your guide and the driver will escort you back to your hotel.

Meal: Breakfast
Accommodation: Tianrun Yibo Hotel, Dunhuang (4 stars)

For Dunhuang, the strategic location and abundant history are merely foreshadowing, while its soul lies in the Buddhist mural art that emerged from their collision in the Mogao Caves. After the hotel pick-up, let’s explore this jewel on the crown! Legend has it that in the 4th century AD, a monk witnessed the Thousand Buddhas’ revelation in the nearby valley, which inspired merchants, artists, and monks traveling the Silk Road to carve their beliefs into the ochre-hued cliffs. Over a millennium, these cliffs transformed into a honeycomb of 735 caves, housing stunning murals that would stretch more than six standard football fields if laid out end to end!

Your guide will accompany you to watch two 3D films for background information, and then let’s step into 8 classic caves. Feast your eyes on murals featuring figures such as refined Chinese scholars, sociable Central Asian merchants, and elegant flying asparas scattering flowers or dancing in the Buddhist realm. They appear in a series of comic stories depicting the spread of Buddhism, the journeys of Silk Road merchants transporting goods and the dangers they faced, as well as the Buddha’s lifetime. Moreover, diverse vibrant colors and artistic styles, including mineral painting and gold foil inlay, endow the characters with distinct traits and textures.

 Note: The caves are dimly lit by natural light to protect their colors, and your guide will illuminate artworks with professional flashlights. Please refrain from using personal lighting or taking photos inside the caves to help safeguard their timeless beauty.

Following that, with your guide and the driver, you’ll embark on a 4-hour private car transfer to Jiayuguan, and check into a downtown hotel. Here, Gobi deserts constrict into a narrow corridor and form a natural barrier that is challenging for nomadic armies; thus, the Jiayuguan Pass of Great Wall here is dubbed the ‘First Pass under Heaven’. Tomorrow, your guide will show you around some vital fortifying facilities. Sweet dream!

Meal: Breakfast
Accommodation: Holiday Plaza Hotel Jiayuguan (4 stars)

After breakfast, your guide and the driver will greet you at your hotel lobby and then let’s set off to Jiayuguan Pass. Its fortress’s construction perfectly echoes the defensive needs, including an inner city, outer city, barbican, and a deep moat. If enemies breach the outer city gate, they would face a barrage of arrows from three directions. Even if they infiltrate the inner city, the zigzagged walkways along the city walls make it difficult for them to climb. We’ll ascend the city tower to understand its layout and overlook the desolate Gobi Desert.

Our next stop will be the First Beacon Tower of the Great Wall, which marks the westernmost starting point of the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644 AD). Perched on a cliff edge, it offers panoramic views of the rushing river below. Along the riverbanks, sculptures that depict soldiers and horses enhance the poignant sentiment of war. We’ll conclude today’s sightseeing at the Mural Tombs of Wei-Jin Period (roughly 220-420 AD), with an abundance of well-preserved polychrome brick murals, presenting a vast underground gallery. The murals unveil scenes from the inhabitants’ everyday lives: herding sheep, engaging in thrilling hunts, or preparing and enjoying a barbecue party, a testament to the region’s relatively peaceful era during the 3rd to 5th centuries AD. Remember to bring a light jacket to cope with the low temperature underground.

Your 4 days Dunhuang tour with Jiayuguan ends here, and then your guide and the driver will escort you to the airport or railway station and see you off. Please book a flight or train departing after 17:00. Wish you a safe journey! If you want to extend your trip to Zhangye or Xi’an, don’t hesitate to contact our travel consultants to customize your itinerary.

Meal: Breakfast