10-Day Qinghai-Gansu & Dachaidan Tour

The first night on the plateau always begins with a bowl of piping-hot hand-torn lamb.We stayed at the Wanda Yuehua in downtown Xining, just a short walk from Moji Street....No need to hassle with hailing a taxi anymore—once you arrive and drop off your luggage, you can immediately immerse yourself in the authentic, lively atmosphere of Xining.

As the starting point of the Qinghai-Gansu Grand Loop, Xining sits at an elevation of about 2,200 meters. With its unhurried pace, the city serves as the gentlest buffer zone before entering the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

➤ Mo Jia Street: Just a short walk from the hotel, this is Xining’s most authentic food street, where you’ll find hand-torn lamb, Qinghai-style stuffed pancakes, yogurt, and sweet fermented grain—all on this street. You can easily reach it with a stroll after dinner.
➤ Dongguan Grand Mosque: A prime example of Northwest Islamic architecture, featuring intricate brick carvings and painted decorations, offering a religious atmosphere distinct from that of the Central Plains.
➤ Ma Bu-fang Mansion: A historic building from modern-day Northwest China, featuring a well-preserved brick-and-wood structure, ideal for travelers interested in cultural and historical sites

★Helpful Reminder: Xining is located at an elevation of approximately 2,200 meters, which is considered a mild high-altitude environment. We recommend avoiding strenuous exercise and alcohol on your first night after arrival to allow your body to gradually adjust to the high-altitude environment.

Known as the “Mirror of the Sky,” the Qarhan Salt Lake features salt crystals as white as snow. On clear days, the lake’s surface perfectly reflects the sky and clouds, and walking across it feels as if you’re treading the boundary between heaven and earth. Today, we continued on to Qarhan Salt Lake to witness another aspect of the grandeur of China’s largest salt lake cluster.

➤ Chaka Salt Lake: Famous for its pure white salt crystals and endless reflections, the sky, clouds, and distant mountains intertwine on the lake’s surface to create a dreamlike scene.
➤ Qarhan Salt Lake: One of China’s largest inland salt lakes, where layers of salt crystals form unique patterns, and the jade-green waters intertwine with the pure-white salt shores like an artist’s canvas.

★Helpful Reminder: The Qarhan Salt Lake is located at an elevation of approximately 3,100 meters, and the lake water has a high salt content; we recommend wearing waterproof shoes or the shoe covers provided by the scenic area. Today’s drive is quite long; when passing by the Qarhan Salt Lake, please follow the scenic area regulations and avoid entering restricted areas.

Today’s journey carries a touch of desolate poetry. The black peaks of Heidu Mountain intertwine with the Gobi Desert, creating a minimalist beauty reminiscent of an ink-wash painting. Most tours of Qinghai and Gansu skip this stretch to save time, making it a hidden gem you rarely get to see with your own eyes; Passing through the abandoned oil town of Lenghu, the crumbling walls and ruins tell the story of the rise and fall of the oil frontier in the last century.
We arrived in Dunhuang after dark. Our hotel, Ufun·Youfang, was right next to the Shazhou Night Market, so we could drop off our luggage and head straight out to explore the market and find something to eat,Whether it's charcoal-grilled meat, apricot peel tea, or hand-mixed rice—whatever you're craving is right at your fingertips. For two nights in a row, you can fully immerse yourself in the warm, down-to-earth atmosphere of Dunhuang's bustling streets.

➤ Heidu Mountain (Yan Zhi Mountain): A little-known hidden gem across from the ruins of the Lenghu Oil Base; its desolate and isolated setting offers natural photographic appeal, making it a rare stretch of road that isn’t typically included in most itineraries.
➤ Cold Lake, an Abandoned Oil Town: Once an industrial hub that rose to prominence in the 1950s thanks to its oil reserves, it has now fallen into silence following the closure of the oil fields; the outlines of the buildings from that era can still be seen amid the ruins.
➤ Dunhuang Shazhou Night Market: Just a short walk from the hotel, this market offers everything from charcoal-grilled meat to apricot peel tea, from hand-mixed rice to local desserts—it’s one of Dunhuang’s most welcoming and down-to-earth spots.

★Helpful Reminder: Today’s drive is quite long, and the Gobi Desert is prone to strong winds and sand. We recommend bringing a windbreaker and sunglasses. The terrain at the Lenghu Ruins is complex, so please watch your step when taking photos and avoid getting too close to unsecured structures.

Dunhuang is the most dazzling cultural landmark along the Silk Road. At Mingsha Mountain and Crescent Lake, golden sand dunes encircle a crescent-shaped body of emerald water that has never run dry for a thousand years; from a high vantage point, one can see the desert sunset painting the horizon red. The Mogao Caves, meanwhile, preserve more than 40,000 square meters of murals and over 2,000 colored sculptures, serving as a dialogue of civilizations spanning millennia.

➤ Mingsha Mountain and Yueya Spring: Golden sand dunes rise and fall in wave-like layers, with a crescent-shaped pool of emerald water resting peacefully within—a desert oasis that has stood watch for millennia, never buried by the sands.
➤ Mogao Caves: Founded in 366 A.D., they preserve more than 40,000 square meters of murals and over 2,000 colored sculptures, making them the most dazzling cultural treasure along the Silk Road.
➤ In-Depth Desert Experience (at your own expense): You can add camel riding, UTV desert racing, or a desert glamping dinner to your itinerary to explore deeper into the vast expanse of the desert.

★Helpful Reminder: Dunhuang has intense sunlight and a dry climate, so please bring sunscreen and moisturizer; when visiting the Mogao Caves, please follow the cultural heritage protection guidelines—photography inside the caves is prohibited.

After leaving Dunhuang, a striking cluster of contemporary art sculptures stands tall in the Gobi Desert. The dialogue between humanity and nature is particularly profound in this wilderness, making it an unexpected delight on the journey to Jiayuguan. The real highlight is the Jiayuguan Fortress—the first major pass at the western end of the Ming Dynasty Great Wall, built against the mountains. The fortress walls stretch across the desert and the Gobi, and the brick watchtowers remain intact despite six centuries of wind and weather. Climb the corner towers to admire the craftsmanship of the vermilion-painted eaves up close, while the Qilian Mountains stretch across the horizon in the distance. This is the best-preserved of the Great Wall’s many fortresses and stands as the most majestic testament to the ancient Silk Road.

➤ Son of the Earth: A massive sculpture depicting a child’s face, lying quietly in the desert, symbolizing the connection between humanity and nature and their mutual watch over one another
➤ Boundless: A signature piece of the Gobi International Sculpture Art Corridor, its form shifts with the play of light and shadow and the viewer’s perspective, standing tall in the vast wilderness.
➤ Jiayuguan Fortress: The first major pass at the western end of the Ming Dynasty Great Wall, featuring well-preserved brick walls and hand-painted eaves. From the watchtower, visitors can gaze out at the Qilian Mountains. It is the best-preserved of all the Great Wall passes and is hailed as “The Most Majestic Pass Under Heaven.”

★Helpful Tip: The Jiayuguan Fortress covers a vast area, so we recommend wearing comfortable shoes that are easy to walk in; temperatures drop quickly in the evening, so we suggest bringing a light jacket.

The layered Danxia landforms, bathed in sunlight, display a magnificent interplay of orange-red, golden yellow, and ochre hues, earning them the nickname “God’s spilled paint palette.” Millennia of geological changes and weathering have sculpted the unique textures and layered hues of these mountains, adding the most vivid highlight to any trip through Qinghai and Gansu.

➤ Colorful Danxia: A palace-like Danxia landscape featuring interlacing orange-red, golden yellow, and ochre hues arranged in a lattice pattern—the most representative example of its kind in China in terms of scale.

★Helpful Reminder: The Colorful Danxia Scenic Area covers a vast area, and shuttle buses are the primary means of transportation between the various viewing platforms. As there are many trails and stairs, we recommend wearing comfortable athletic shoes. The sun is intense and there is almost no shade, so please apply sunscreen and stay hydrated.

The return journey along the Qilian Mountains marks the gentlest conclusion to the Qinghai-Gansu Grand Loop. Colorful prayer flag towers stand amidst the grasslands, their five-colored flags fluttering in the wind, carrying blessings to distant lands; The Daban Mountain Viewpoint is one of the most breathtaking vantage points for overlooking the Qilian Mountains, where, as the morning light breaks over the peaks, clouds and mist surge between the peaks and valleys.

➤ The array of prayer flags on the grasslands at the foot of the Qilian Mountains: The five-colored prayer flags radiate outward from towering flagpoles, creating one of the most moving scenes of the interplay between highland faith and nature.
➤ Dabanshan Viewpoint: The highest vantage point overlooking the Qilian Mountains, with the Haomen River Valley stretching for a hundred li below and the snow-capped peaks of Gangshika glistening silver in the distance
➤ Menyuan’s Hundred-Li Rapeseed Flower Sea (Seasonal): Every year around July 5–25, more than 600,000 mu of rapeseed flowers bloom in a vast expanse, with golden waves reflecting against the snow-capped mountains in the distance.

★Helpful Reminder: The Dabanshan Viewpoint is located at an elevation of nearly 4,000 meters, where there is a significant temperature difference between day and night; even when traveling in summer, we recommend bringing a jacket. The Menyuan Rapeseed Flower Fields have a specific blooming season; if you miss the blooming period, we will not make special arrangements to visit.

The journey ends in Xining. All-weather shuttle service, whether early in the morning or late at night flights, arranged for a special car to the Xining airport or train station, no carpooling, no waiting, to ensure that you feel at ease on time to embark on the return journey. In seven days, you have traveled through Qinghai and Gansu, from the Mirror of the Sky to the Silk Road Grottoes, from the salty sea of the plateau to the colorful hills, the vastness of the Great Northwest has been left in your memory and is waiting for you to savor it slowly.

★Thoughtful reminder: If you need assistance in purchasing air or train tickets to leave Xining, please inform us in advance so that CITS can make arrangements for the trip together and make it more hassle-free.