Xining

No reviews yetCity Qinghai, China

Kumbum Monastery, Xining, Qinghai, China

Dongguan Grand Mosque, Xining, Qinghai, China

About Xining

At about 2,200 metres above sea level on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau, Xining is where the cultures of western China meet. The capital of Qinghai Province has been a trading post on routes between the Chinese heartland and Tibet for centuries, and today Han Chinese, Hui Muslims, Tibetans and other communities share its streets, markets and places of worship.

The great sight is Kumbum Monastery in Huangzhong district, a major centre of Tibetan Buddhism built around the birthplace of Tsongkhapa. In the city itself, the Dongguan Grand Mosque draws thousands of worshippers on Fridays, the cliffside Beichan Temple overlooks the river valley, and an astonishing painted thangka hundreds of metres long fills a hall of the Tibetan Medicine Culture Museum.

Xining is also the gateway to the plateau. Most visitors use it as a base for Qinghai Lake and the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, and take a day or two to adjust to the altitude while eating lamb skewers, hand-pulled noodles and thick Qinghai yogurt.

Best seasonJune to September is mild and green; winters are cold and dry.

Ideal stayTwo days, ideally before travelling higher onto the plateau.

ArrivingXining Caojiabao International Airport is east of the city; high-speed trains arrive at Xining Station from Lanzhou.

7 Reasons to Visit Xining

Temples and Shrines 3

Kumbum Monastery

South-west of the centre in Huangzhong district, this great Tibetan Buddhist monastery was founded in the 16th century at the birt...

Dongguan Grand Mosque

First built in the Ming dynasty and rebuilt many times since, this is one of the largest mosques in north-west China and the spiri...

Beichan Temple

Clinging to the red sandstone cliffs of the hills north of the Huangshui River, this temple complex links cave shrines, small hall...

Museums 2

Tibetan Medicine Culture Museum

This museum on the north side of the city is dedicated to the long tradition of Tibetan medicine, with displays on herbs, minerals...

Qinghai Provincial Museum

Set on Xinning Square in the west of the city, the provincial museum traces the long human history of Qinghai, from Neolithic pain...

Food and Drink 1

Mojia Street Food Market

Xining's best-known food street is the place to taste the city's mix of Hui, Tibetan and Han cooking. Stalls and small restaurants...

Wildlife 1

Xining Wildlife Park

On the hills west of the city, this zoo focuses on the wildlife of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, so you can see animals that are very...

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Photo credits

Photo: G41rn8, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Charlie fong, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

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Photo: Charlie fong, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

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Photo: ArishG, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: Byrnzie500, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Photo: 西安兵马俑, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: 西宁野生动物园, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0