One-Day Private Tour to Luoyang from Xi'an

Your one-day Luoyang tour from Xi’an starts with a 1.5-hour high speed train journey. Please arrive at Xi’an North Railway Station at least 30 minutes before the train departs. The train ticket will be booked for you in advance and you just need to show your passport for boarding. Upon arrival, your local private guide and driver will pick you up at Luoyang Longmen Railway Station.

After a warm greeting, we will drive to the Longmen Grottoes, one of the Four Great Grottoes of China and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. With more than 100,000 vivid Buddhist statues carved out of rock in over 2,000 caves of different sizes, Longmen Grottoes represents the pinnacle of Chinese stone carving art and Buddhist art. The Grottoes was first constructed in the Northern Wei Dynasty (386 - 534), flourished in the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907) and kept expanding in the following hundreds of years. Here, mainly explore those thousands of caves sculptured into the steep cliffs on the West Hill, including Fengxiansi Cave featuring the 17-meter-high (56-ft.) Cosmic Buddha Vairocana, Binyang Cave containing several large Buddha figures, and Wanfo Cave with over ten thousand little Buddha statues. Listen to our professional guide sharing detailed stories behind the sculptures. Look for changes in the artistic styles that developed over dynasties, and you will see how the Tang era packs a punch! Besides the awe-inspiring stone sculptures and ancient stupas, also appreciate Chinese inscriptions on steles.

► Get a Taste of China’s Grottoes Culture
India is the earliest place where Buddhism originated. With its spread to the northeast, it first came to Xinjiang region, which provided the basis for the combination of painting and sculpture in the construction of grottoes throughout the Central Plains. Along the Silk Road, the Dunhuang Grottoes group formed, including famous Mogao Grottoes. Continuing eastward to the northern central plains, the third largest distribution area retained ancient grottoes built by the royal family and nobles, such as Luoyang Longmen Grottoes, which feature stone carving technique. Finally, Buddhism reached Chengdu, where the grottoes were mainly carved on cliffs.► Restaurant Recommendation for Lunch (at your own expense):
It is almost time for lunch when we finished our visit to the Longmen Grottoes. Perhaps take a five-minute walk from the exit to Luoyang Water Banquet Restaurant · Eight Large Bowls to try the famous Luoyang cuisine. Aged more than 1,000 years, the Luoyang Water Banquet is one of the oldest of its kind in China and has been included in the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List. There are 24 dishes in total, of which all hot ones all soak in soup, and you can order just a few of them based on your preference. Try their Peony Swallow Dish, as it tops the list of the Water Banquet. The main ingredients are shredded radish, ham, mushroom and meat, with steamed egg shaped in peony embellished on it. 
Average cost per person: CNY 55 (USD 8)
Address: Intersection of Yidong Road and Yingbin Avenue, Luolong District

In the afternoon, continue to explore another UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Shaolin Temple, the birthplace of Chinese Zen Buddhism and Shaolin Kung Fu. Dating back to the Northern Wei era 1,500 years ago, Shaolin Temple will amaze you with its varied traditional Chinese structures, exquisite Buddhist statues, and beautiful mural paintings about Buddha legends. Step into the Pagoda Forest, a graveyard for eminent monks, and you will marvel at hundreds of pagodas from the Yuan Dynasty (1271 - 1368). We will move through the monuments and points of interest, and on our way stop before a large pot on the ground in front of the depositary of Buddhist texts. The pot, weighing more than 1,300 jin (1,433 lb), is a testimony to the monks’ proficiency in both kung fu as well as cooking - monks would cook food with it while hanging themselves from the tree upside down to practice kung fu in ancient times. Imagine the crazy cooking scene! Another highlight is watching a brilliant Shaolin Kung Fu Show, which is performed 4 times a day, each lasting for about 30 minutes. According to your visit time, you will be guided to watch the most recent one. Just indulge in the fascinating Chinese martial arts demonstrated by the well-trained Shaolin monks. If you want to see more, go watch students about 5 to 18 years old from nearby kung fu schools practicing in the yard.

After sightseeing, your guide will see you off at the Luoyang Longmen Railway Station and you will board the high speed train back to Xi'an. If you have any plans to other destinations, please contact your travel consultant. The itinerary is flexible and can be customized to suit your needs.