Dun Huang is an oasis in a sea of sand. The Gobi Desert surrounds this city and the surrounding area on all sides. The Silk Road used to run through Dun Huang connecting the Middle East and China, enabling them to trade with one another.
The city of Dun Huang truly exceeded my expectations. In China, usually the more remote the area the less advanced the city. Dun Huang is VERY remote, which led me to believe that it would follow suit. However, this city had very sophisticated infrastructure with shopping malls and name brand stores (not only Chinese name brands but Western brands as well). There were nice hotels and overall the city looked like one of the cleaner cities that I have been in, while traveling in China. Not to mention possibly the best part, there weren’t a great amount of people in the city!
The Mò Gāo Grottoes 莫高窟
The Mo Gao Grottoes are the main attraction in Dun Huang and honestly the only reason anyone would travel so far out of the way into the desert. Nowadays there aren’t many people just passing through Dun Huang.
The Mo Gao Grottoes are without a doubt the most impressive of the three main (most popular) grottoes in all of China. The grottoes contain:
- Ancient murals on the walls of the grottoes
- Symbolic Buddhist sculptures
- The world’s third largest Buddha
The Mo Gao Grottoes are preserved astonishingly, especially considering their age. These grottoes are estimated to be created at approximately 366 A.D. There are a limited number of grottoes that are open to the public and so regardless of which tour group you are in you will not view any different grottoes.
All visitors to the Grottoes must join a tour group. You can not see the grottoes by yourself. English tour guides are not the easiest to find, but there are usually 1 or 2 tours in English per day (based on demand there could be more or less).
DO NOT!
Do not touch the walls or statues and do not take any flash photos of the murals or statues. I am sure that the tour guide will tell you that multiple times during the course of the tour. The flash from the cameras or photos will affect the paint on the murals as will the oils on your hands.
Also, do not try to view the grottoes on your own. Tour groups are small and (especially if you’re a foreigner) you will stick out like a sore thumb if you try to tag along with another tour group. Furthermore, the grottoes are all locked with pad locks and re-secured once the tour is done. You will not be able to view the grottoes without a guide.
Where are all of the pictures???
There is a reason why you do not see any pictures of the inside of the grottoes and that is because photographs of the inside of the grottoes are forbidden, even if the flash is off. Also, you travel in small groups so it is difficult to sneak a photo (without the flash). It is best not to try as you will only succeed in upsetting your tour guide and possibly getting kicked out of the grottoes.
IMPORTANT!!!
In order to gain entrance to the Mo Gao Grottoes you must first by a ticket (if that wasn’t obvious enough). There are two options for buying entry tickets to the grottoes, one is to go online and buy the tickets, the other to buy them at the ticket office at the site.
If you buy the tickets online or have a Chinese friend help you buy the tickets on Alipay or another app, BE ADVISED, that tickets bought online need to be purchased a day prior. You should not buy tickets the online or through an app the day that you wish to go to the grottoes.
You can always buy tickets to the Mo Gao Grottoes the day of, however, in order to preserve the condition of the grottoes they only let a certain amount of people in per day. This means that there are a certain amount of tickets that are sold each day and once that number is reached, no more people for that day can enter. So, if you intend to buy the tickets at the tickets office the day of, you run the risk of being denied entry due tickets being sold out.
How much time should be allocated to spend in the Mo Gao Grottoes?
The grottoes are a fun a place to go to and you’ll want to spend all day there, all the same, you can only view the grottoes with a group. The tour will take a couple of hours, which will put the total time that the average person will spend at the Mo Gao Grottoes somewhere between 3-5 hours.
The grottoes are also very close to Dun Huang. It will only take between 20-30 minutes more or less to get to the Mo Gao Grottoes. That means that you can take a taxi to get there. Taxi’s in Dun Huang are also not very expensive. So, it is not only quick way to go, but also economical as well.
Allocate 1/2 day to visit the grottoes either in the morning or in the afternoon. Be advised the later you go the less likely that you are to get an English tour guide.
How to get to Dun Huang?
Dun Huang is a very remote city. Not to mention that it is in the middle of the desert. So unless you are departing from another city in Gansu Province, the best way to go would be to fly into Dun Huang. Taking a train would be cheaper but take a significant amount more time, making it not worth the trouble.
Sandstorms
Let me be clear though there is no such thing as a perfect place and Dun Huang is no exception. One thing that you should be aware of while traveling in Dun Huang and that is the potential for sandstorms to pass through with little to no warning. If a sandstorm hits. Dun Huang while you are there seek shelter and wait it out. If you need to go out be sure to cover up (eyes especially) and limit your time outside.
Side note:
Do yourself a favor and invest in some chapstick before going to the Dun Huang. You are heading to the center of a desert it is going to be very dry and you wouldn’t want to have a cracked lips as a reason to think badly of this trip. Of course, you can buy chapstick in Dun Huang as well. Chapstick in Chinese is Run Chun Gao 润唇膏.
International Kev 