1 Day Private Tour to Terracotta Warriors & Huaqing Palace

This morning, your private guide and driver will meet you at the lobby of your downtown hotel and then escort you on our comfortable private vehicle for about 1 hour to the eastern suburbs of Xi’an, where the world-renowned Terracotta Army Museum and Huaqing Palace await your exploration.

Upon arrival at the Terracotta Army Museum, built over the mausoleum of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, who founded the first feudal dynasty in Chinese history, the Qin Dynasty (221 - 207 BC), take on a 2-3 hours’ in-depth tour accompanied by an informative commentary of this UNESCO-honored wonder by our knowledgeable guide. After a 15-minute walk straight ahead from the entrance, we’ll reach the largest and the earliest excavated Pit No.1, where thousands of life-sized pottery soldiers and dozens of bronze chariots arrayed in a battle formation will amaze you. Then walk a few steps east to Pit No.2, housing a more diverse range of terracotta warriors like kneeling archers and cavalries. Examine curious Chinese characters engraved on them, which have been proven to be the name of each responsible artisan and the place where the crafting took place. The smallest Pit No.3 is believed to be the command center, with one of the strongest evidence being the remains of a chariot with four horses in front and four soldiers who might be in the service of a commander in the back. Next, let’s move to a new exhibition where 230 representative artifacts are on show, a third of which are being made public for the first time, including the only terracotta warrior with a green-painted face and lifelike bronze waterfowls, to dive deeper into the Chinese history.

Lunch today is on your own. There are many restaurants outside the museum, but most of them are touristy restaurants with inadequate service. Clean Western or Chinese fast-food chains may be better choices. Consider Weijia Cold Noodles, a popular local Xi’an brand, and try its signature cold noodles and Chinese hamburger. Your guide will be glad to help you locate it. The average cost per person here is CNY 25 (USD 3.5). Also, you can refresh yourself later with a cup of pure additive-free pomegranate juice from the nearby food street for about CNY 15 (USD 2). You would love it as it is made from locally grown pomegranates, which rank first in China.

Afterward, let’s head to the Huaqing Palace, aka Huaqing Pool, famous as an imperial garden at the foot of Mount Li. With your guide, travel to the scenes thousands of years ago through some interesting royal anecdotes behind those red-walled palace halls. The Lotus Pool, named for its appearance, was the private bathing pool of Emperor Xuanzong, the seventh emperor of the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907). Beside it is the Concubine Pool, specially built by the emperor for his most beloved concubine, Yang Yuhuan. Great importance was attached to the etiquette at that time, so the Star Pool you see, which belonged to Emperor Taizong, the grandfather of Xuanzong, was the largest one. There is no shelter around it, so it was only possible to bathe at night while admiring the stars. The other two are the Prince Pool and the Official Pool, and you can definitely tell for whom they were built from the names. Regrettably, luxurious decorations by the pools have disintegrated into ashes over time and there was no hot spring water inside either.► A Recommended Visit to Mount Li If Time Permits:
If you are interested, you can climb the Mount Li on your own (entrance fee included). The whole journey on foot takes 2-3 hours, and you are recommended to take the energy-saving round-trip cable car at your own expense to complete the tour in 1.5-2 hours, including time for sightseeing at the top. From the summit of Mount Li, you can appreciate a stunning panoramic view and discover more wonderful spots, including the Beacon Tower, where once King You (795 - 771 BC) arbitrarily lit the signal fire to tease the vassals to win a smile from his favorite concubine, and the Laomu Palace, used to worship Nvwa, the goddess in Chinese legend who created human beings out of clay.

★ Night Treat: Fantastic Live Show of ‘The Song of Everlasting Sorrow’

More than 1,000 years ago, it was in Huaqing Palace that the romantic but tragic love story of Emperor Xuanzong and concubine Yang began. For a truly immersive experience, in the evening, we’ll offer you an exceptional chance to watch a large-scale real-scene historical stage drama, the Song of Everlasting Sorrow. With Mount Li as the backdrop and Nine Dragon Lake surrounded by pavilions, halls, corridors and willows as the natural stage, it presents you with a delightful feast for the eyes and ears through wonderful lighting, sound, costumes and dances. Ten scenes in one hour will take you through the journey from Yang Yuhuan's first entry into the palace, to her love with the emperor, and then to her execution to pacify people’s anger caused by the emperor’s indulgence in love and wine. Yang's death is a deeply moving part, but there's no need to be overly sad, as folk tales offer a different perspective, suggesting that the emperor's love for her was so deep that he couldn't bear to have her killed; thus, he arranged his most trusted eunuch to find a look-alike to be killed in her place and secretly transferred Yang to the mountains to spend the rest of her life. This version might bring you some comfort.

Now it’s time to bid farewell to your one day private tour to Terracotta Warriors and Huaqing Pool, and your guide and driver will transfer you back to your hotel. Hope you had a good time with us today!

► If you have a longer stay in Xi’an, don’t miss our classic day tour covering the downtown highlights like the City Wall, Shaanxi History Museum, Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, and Muslim Quarter, or a day trip to Mt. Huashan, one of the Five Sacred Mountains in China. Welcome to contact us anytime for a customized Xi’an tour to your liking.