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Xian Attractions

Being a famous tourism city in China, Xian owns thousands of attractions.   Name and brief introduction of Xian top attractions are listed on this page.

Bell Tower
Built in 1384 of the Ming Dynasty, the Bell Tower is one of the grandest of its kind with an area of 1377sqm and a height of 40m. Situated at the junction of four main road, the Bell Tower has been the city symbol of Xian. The Tower is an exquisitely constructed wooden architecture, housing a number of large bronze-cast bells from the Tang Dynasty.

Big Wild Goose Pagoda
The Big Wild Goose Pagoda was first built in 652AD for the storage of Buddhist sutras and figurines which were brought to China from India by the Buddhist translator and traveller Xuanzhang. The present 7-storey Pagoda was built with layers of bricks without any cement in between. The Big Wild Goose Pagoda has been a master piece with its marvellous architectural styles.

Daxingshan Temple
Daxingshan Temple was first built in the third century and rebuilt several times later till 1956. The temple was once the center of Buddhist art and learning during the Tang Dynasty, especially a venue to translate Buddhist sutras. The present temple is a tranquil and small complex which houses the Xian Buddhist Association.

Drum Tower
Drum Tower was built in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and four years older than Bell Tower. The two-storey Drum Tower features an architectural style of the Tang and Qing Dynasties. The tower houses a number of large drums with intrinsic Chinese writings and a drum museum with a variety of ancient drums.

Epang Palace
The Epang Palace was an extremely luxurious construction built as the imperial palace of the first and second emperors of the Qin Dynasty(221-206BC). The palace mainly consists of two sites, including the Emperor Shihuang's Heaven Platform with a perimeter of 310 meters and the Meiwu Mountain Ridge with an area of 260,000 square meters. It is said that the Epang Palace was built by over 700,000 people.

Famen Temple
The Famen Temple was first built during the Eastern Han(206BC-220AD) and reached its heyday in the Tang Dynasty. The temple is famous for housing the Sakyamuni's finger bone, the only remaining one in the world. The temple was once an imperial temple. In 1987, an underground palace with 2400 treasures are discovered in the temple which belongs to Tang(618-907) and previous dynasties.

Forest Park of Lishan Mountain
Lishan Mountain(pure-black horse mountain) is a northern branch of the Qinling Mountains,which is 1,301.9 meters high above sea level. The mountain got the name because of its resemblance with the pure black horse. The Forest Park of Lishan Mountain features a number of ancient and historic sites, including the Laojun Palace, Bingjian Pavilion and the relics of Huaqing Palace Court.

Great Mosque
Built in 742 AD during the Tang Dynasty, the Great Mosque is one of the oldest and best-preserved mosques in China. Unlike most mosques in Middle Eastern or Arab countries, the Mosque is a construction with strong Chinese architectural features. The Great Mosque has been a sacred site for muslins in Xi'an.

Hanyang Museum
The Hanyang Museum is the largest museum in China,built on the basis of the joint tomb of Emperor Jindi(188BC-141BC) and his Empress. The highlights of the museum include Emperor's Tomb, Empress' Tomb, South and North Burial Pits, Luojing Stone Site and Outside Pits Exhibition Hall. The museum showcases profound culture of Han dynasty, ancient burial custom, exquisite relics, unique underground museum and enchanting sceneries.

Huangdi Mausoleum
Huangdi Mausoleum is said to be the mausoleum of the legendary Huangdi, the founder of the Chinese nation. Covering an area of 4 square kilometers, the Huangdi Mausoleum is surrounded by thick forest. The highlight of the mausoleum is the Xuanyuan Temple, consisting of Temple Gate, Chengxin Kiosk, Stele Pavilion and 'Renwen Chuzu' Hall.

Huaqing Hotspring
The Huaqing Pool was first built in Qin Dynasty (221-206BC) and enlarged later for several times in the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD) and the Tang Dynasty (618-907). The Huaqing Pool has been used as a hot spring site for over 6000 years and royal gardens for 3000 years. Meanwhile, many anecdotes are related to the pool,especially the love story between the Emperor Xuan Zong and his favorite concubine Yang.

Maoling Tomb
The Maoling Mausoleum is the biggest mausoleum among the imperial mausoleums of the Western Han Dynasty. It took 53 years to finish the construction of the tomb which was built for the Emperor Wudi in the Western Han Dynasty (206BC-8AD). There are over 20 satellite tombs of high officials and noble relatives around the mausoleum, such as the tombs of Huo Qubing , Huo Guang, Wei Qing and Jin Ribei.

Cuihua Mountain
The Cuihua Mountain belongs to the Qin Mountian Chain, consisting of a variety of metamorphic rock from middle geological Epoch, one billion years ago. Because of its most complete diversity of landslide appearance and its most typical structure, the Cuihua Mountian has been renowned as Chinese landslide miracle scenery and geological museum. The Cuihua Moutian features 8 distinctive scenic spots with over 68 attractions.

Museum of Shannxi History
The Museum of Shannxi History was built between 1983 and 1991,featuring an architectural style of the Tang Dynasty. The museum is the first huge state museum with modern facilities in China. The Museum of Shannxi History houses over 300,000 items including murals, paintings, pottery, coins, as well as bronze, gold, and silver objects.

Qinling Zoological Park
The Qinling Zoological Park is the first wildlife park in the northwest region in China. The zoological park has more than 300 species of animal, with many different types of birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles. The Qinling Zoological Park offers a great opportunity to connect with nature and wild animals.

Qianling Mausoleum
The Qingling Mausoleum is the tomb complex housing the Emperor Gaozhong (628 AD-683 AD) and his wife Wu Zetian (624 AD-705 AD), the first and only governing empress. The highlights of the mausoleum are many Tang Dynasty stone statues and the mural paintings on the subterranean walls. There are also a total of 17 smaller attendant tombs in the mausoleum, 5 of which have been excavated for archaeological research.

Qin Mausoleum
Discovered in 19784, the unexcavated Qin Mausoleum is said to consist of an interior city and an exterior city. The Qin Mausoleum is the resting place of the first unifier of China, the Emperor Qin Shihuang (259BC-210BC). The mausoleum is at the center of a complex which is designed to resemble the urban plan of the capital, Xianyan.

Small Wild Goose Pagoda
The Small Wild Goose Pagoda was built between 707 and 709AD during the Tang Dynasty. The pagoda was originally a multi-eave, square-brick 45m high structure with 15 storeys. But a big earthquake in 1556 reduced it to the present 43m high pagoda with 13 levels of tiers. There is a staircase inside the pagoda which enables guests to reach the top.

Stele Forest
Covering an area of 31,000sqm, the Stele Forest is the largest stone library in China. With 3000 steles in the museum, the Stele Forest is divided into seven major exhibition halls, presenting works of calligraphy, painting and historical records. Most of the steles are from the Han Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty and the successive dynasties.

Tang Paradise
Tang Paradise is a large theme park built on the basis of a garden complex of the Tang Dynasty. The 165-acre paradise is surrounded by a willow-lined lake,featuring buildings, squares and gardens. The Tang Paradise is not only the biggest cultural theme park in the northwest region of China but also the first royal-garden-like park to display the culture of the Tang Dynasty(618-907) .

Terracotta Warriors
Beijing the Eighth Wonder of the World, the Terracotta Warriors, dating back to 210 BC, is a form of funerary art buried with Emperor Qin Shihuang, the first unifier of China. More than 6,000 different looking pottery figures depict the history of the Qin Dynasty from 221 BC-206 BC. Each terracotta figure differs in height, facial features, clothing, hairstyle and gestures. 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses are scatted in three excavated pits.

Tomb of Concubine Yang
Concubine Yang is not only one of the most beautiful lady in ancient times but also an excellent singer and dancer. She won the emperor Xuan Zong's favor all alone, but she was later forced to commit suicide for the emperor. The Tomb of Concubine Yang tells visitor the heartbroken love story as well as the ups and downs in the reign of the emperor Tang Xuan Zong.

Xian City Wall
The Xian City Wall is the oldest, largest and best preserved city wall in China, which used to be an important military defensive system to fortify the city. With a deep moat surrounding it, the present city wall stands 12 meters high, 12-14 meters wide on the top, 15-18 meters thick at bottom and 13.7 kilometers in length. There are altogether 98 ramparts on the wall, which were built to defend against the enemy climbing up the wall.

Xiangji Temple
Xiangji Temple was built by Huai Yun in memory of his teacher Shandao, one of the initiators of a branch of Buddhisim, Pure Land Buddhism. The temple has been considered as the center and cradle of the Pure Land Sect. The Xiangji Temple houses two famous pagodas, one is the Shandao Pagoda and the other is a smaller pagoda to commemorate an ardent follower of Shandao,Jingye.

Xianyang Museum
Xianyang City was the capital of the Qin Dynasty (221-206BC) and also the central location of the Han Dynasty's (206BC-220AD) Mausoleum. Thus, most of the relics in the Xianyang Museum belongs to the Qin and Han Dynasties. The highlights of the museum are the 3000 painted terracotta warriors and horses of the Western Han Dynasty (206BC-24AD)

Xingjiao Temple
Built in 669, Xingjiao Temple was one of Fanchuan Region's Big Eight Temples in the Tang Dynasty (618-907). The five-storey Buddhist Relic Pagoda in the temple preserves the remains of Xuanzang, the prestigious monk who wrote Report of the Regions West of Great Tang. The pagodas of Xuanzang's disciples, Kuiji and Yuance, also stand inside the temple.

Zhaoling Mausoleum
Zhaoling Mausoleum is the joint tomb of Emperor Taizong (599-649) and Empress Wende in Tang Dynasty. Located in Jiuzong mountain of Shaanxi, the mausoleum is the largest among the 18 mausoleums of the Tang Dynasty. Covering an area of 20,000 hectares, the Zhaoling Mausoleum houses a number of satellite tombs and large quantities of calligraphy, sculpture and painting works.