Best of Xian in 1 Day: Shaanxi History Museum, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Xian Great Mosque, Muslim Quarter

Tour itinerary

In the morning, our tour guide will pick you up at Xian train station or your hotel lobby with a welcome signage "Xian Private Tour". And Your Xian city day tour includes the following attractions and activities.

Our Xian Pick Up Sign "Xian Private Tour"

Your first destination is Shaanxi Provincial History Museum. Shaanxi History Museum is located in the northwest of the Xian Wild Goose Pagoda, is China's first large-scale modern national museum; it marks that China's museum career has entered into a new development mileage. The Museum has the style of Tang dynasty buildings of "central palace hall with four worship houses around" with orderly, harmonious, vigorous and grave construction, melting the national tradition, local characteristics and the spirit of time into an organic whole. 

Shaanxi History Museum is a comprehensive history museum. Since its opening, it gives full play to the advantages of cultural relics. Adhering to the principle of "effective protections, reasonable use, strengthen management", collection, scientific research, education and publicity are combined into an organic whole; a variety of forms of display and exhibitions are held. 

Later, move to Big Wild Goose Pagoda. The Big Wild Goose Pagoda is one of the most famous Chinese pagodas and was built inside the Ci En Temple in the south of Chang'an city (today's Xian) in 652 BC in Tang Dynasty (618-907). It is said that the pagoda was designed and built to consecrate and store the Sankrit Classics and Buddhist statues and relics by the eminent monk, Xuan Zang, who brought them from the ancient Indian. At the southern square of the Ci En Temple, there stands a bronze statue of Xuan Zang to commemorate the great achievement he has made in developing the Buddhism.

This brick-build 7-story pagoda is over 64 meters high and used to be the highest building of the Chang'an City, so is regarded as a symbolic building of the city. According to the recent survey, the pagoda has leaned more than one meter so far.

Later, you'll pay a visit to the Great Mosque. The Great Mosque of Xian is the largest mosque in China. It's an active place of worship within Xian Muslim Quarter, this courtyard complex is also a popular tourist site. The majority of the mosque was built during the early Ming dynasty. It now houses more than twenty buildings in its five courtyards, and covers 12,000 square meters.

Your final stop is Muslim Quarter. The Muslim Quarter is the largest of Muslim's quarters, covering 31 hectares (76 acres) and housing 22,000 residents. Sitting in the northwest corner of the Xian Old City, the Mislim quarter is accessed through St. Stephen's Gate (Lion's Gate), Herod's Gate, and Damascus Gate. At the southern edge of the quarter sits the Temple Mount, where the Al-Aqsa Mosque now stands.

At the heart of the Muslim Quarter is the shuk, a bustling confluence of outdoor marketplaces, consisting of a maze of intertwined streets and alleyways, some of which date back a thousand years. One can find spices, textiles, meats and vegetables, along with the usual touristy fare.

Walking along this twisted, narrow street which is aligned with stores on both sides, you can see that Muslim men with white hats sit inside the stores and talk leisurely with each other. In front of the doors of some stores, old men with white beards sit on the cane chairs enjoying the tender touch of the sun and having fun with the little children running along the street. The main goods of these stores are authentic hand-making Muslim food which tastes very good. While still there are small stores selling the special local products of Shaanxi Province and yet others provide you with exquisite souvenirs.

After the tour ends, drive you back to your hotel or Xian train station.

Price Per Person in US Dollars