Dunhuang
Dunhuang is a county-level city in northwestern Gansu Province, Northwestern China.
Dunhuang is a county-level city in northwestern Gansu Province, Northwestern China. According to the 2010 Chinese census, the city has a population of 186,027, though 2019 estimates put the city's population at about 191,800. Known as Sachu (沙洲), it was a major stop on the ancient Silk Road and is best known for the nearby Mogao Caves.
Adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Worth seeing in and around Dunhuang
4 places within 25 km that the world writes about, in the order of how widely: the ones a visitor has heard of first, then the ones only a local would name.
- 01Crescent Lake
Yueyaquan is a crescent-shaped lake in an oasis in the Singing Sand Dunes, 6 km south of the city of Dunhuang in Gansu Province, China.
6.1 km · lake in Dunhuang, Gansu, People's Republic of China · Wikipedia - 02Dunhuang Mosque
The Dunhuang Mosque is a mosque in Dunhuang City, Gansu Province, China.
400 m · mosque in Gansu, China · Wikipedia - 03Singing Sand Dunes
The Singing Sand Dunes in Dunhuang, China, are the sand dunes that, when the wind blows, give out a singing or drumming sound. They are part of the Kumtag Desert.
6.4 km · sand hill in Dunhuang, Jiuquan, Gansu, China · Wikipedia - 04Dunhuang Museum
Dunhuang Museum is a museum in Dunhuang, Gansu, China. The museum contains a number of Chinese and Tibetan items, such as manuscripts from Cave 17 of the Mogao Caves, and domestic items.
1.4 km · museum in Dunhuang, China · Wikipedia
Ranked by the number of language editions of Wikipedia with an article on each, from Wikidata; the sentences are the openings of those articles, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What Wikivoyage says to see
- 01Mogao Caves
A UNESCO World Heritage Site filled with exquisite Buddhist art and manuscripts.
- 02Singing Sand Dunes and Crescent Lake
- 03Yang Pass
A fortified mountain pass built during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.
- 04Yumen Pass
The Yumen Pass was built around the same time as the Yang Pass.
- 05Huyang Forest
It consists of a small forest of rare poplares (Populus Divesifolia).
- 06White Horse Pagoda
From Wikivoyage: Dunhuang, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Things to do
Summer of Dunhuang Variety Show. June–October. Performances of singing and dancing in the Silk Road traditions. Camel Trek, arranged by Charlie Johng's Cafe, Mingshan Road (Across the road and 50m north from the long-distance bus station), dhzhzh@163.com. Typically leave around 16:00-17:00. Get to know the desert firsthand on a 2- to 7-day camel trek across spectacular sand dunes.
From Wikivoyage: Dunhuang, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Where to eat
There's a normal-priced supermarket opposite the long-distance bus station (beside Feitian Binguan) to stock up on water, snacks and other groceries. Charlie Johng's cafe, Mingshan Road (opposite the long-distance bus station and 50 m north). Reasonably priced western meals available. Very helpful staff. ¥25 for English breakfast set. Shirley's cafe, Mingshan Road (opposite Charlie Johng's cafe).
- 01Lovina Pizza
A nice quiet pizza restaurant (only one in town) with good easy to read menu with English and pictures.
- 02Oasis
Run by an Oklahoman, this cafe has good coffee, milkshakes, and a small menu with pizza and hamburgers.
From Wikivoyage: Dunhuang, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Getting to Dunhuang
- Airports
- Dunhuang Mogao (DNH), 13 km
- Jiayuguan → DunhuangTrain, bus, flight, ferry and road, side by side
- Ürümqi → DunhuangTrain, bus, flight, ferry and road, side by side
- Haidong (Huzhu Tu Autonomous County) → DunhuangTrain, bus, flight, ferry and road, side by side
- Plan a tripFrom anywhereThe planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
No local-transport research exists yet for Dunhuang
Our researched notes are written from a sourced entry: every shared taxi, boat and village bus with its operator, its rule, its fare and the year we saw it, and what could not be confirmed. Nobody has done that work for Dunhuang. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.
- Go nextTwice daily minibuses run the 65 km in 1½-2 hours for ¥15 between Huatugou and Shimiankuang (石绵矿 literally: asbestos mine), a tiny worker hamlet north of a large surface-level asbestos mine.
- Go nextA minibus leaves from Shimiankuangs "bus station" to Charklik at 11:00, costs ¥80.
- Go nextThe minibus leaves from in front of the bus station in Charklik (Ruoqiang) at 08:00 Beijing time (06:00 unofficial local time) and arrives in Shimiankuang about 6 hours later, and generally in time to catch the afternoon minibus from Shimiankuang to Huatugou.
- Go nextThe 09:00 minibus from Huatugou meets the minibus leaving from Shimiankuang about 11:00.
From Wikivoyage: Dunhuang, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us; that article was last edited 2026-09.
- 011,348 km
- 021,381 km
- 031,420 km
- 041,481 km
- 051,521 km
If you know how people move in Dunhuang – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.