Gansu is a remote province in northwest China. It is a long, thin strip of land spanning several plateau regions and featuring some of the most striking, desolate land in all of China.
Gansu is best known for its associations with the Silk Road, the military/trade route that opened up China to Central Asia. The Hexi Corridor covers the northern part of the Silk Road and is a 1,000km strip of land between Lanzhou (the Gansu capital), Dunhuang in the northwest, to the border at Xinjiang.
The province of Gansu is very different from the modern and burgeoning eastern part of China, being largely empty and rugged. Those who find remote areas appealing will really enjoy Gansu.
The capital of Gansu is Lanzhou, situated in the south. There’s as fair bit of history here but Lanzhou suffers from bad pollution. Dunhuang is one of the most interesting centers in Gansu; an art city located in the northwest. Dunhuang comes with an airport and is known for its nearby Mogao Caves and Crescent Moon Lake oasis.
The Mogao Caves are one of Gansu’s star attractions and will appeal greatly to historians and art types. A UNESCO World Heritage site, the caves feature close to 500 separate grottoes with dazzling Buddhist artwork and manuscripts.
Southeast of Dunhuang is the interesting town of Jiayuguan, which provides access to the westernmost part of the Great Wall, known as the Overhanging Wall. Views from the fort’s towers here are superb. Trips go to the nearby 500m-high July 1st Glacier from Jiayuguan.
Other parts of Gansu worth seeing are the market town of Linxia, near Lanzhou, for its colorful markets and teahouses, and Luomen, for its Water Curtain Thousand Buddha Caves. Wuwei, in the center, is visited for its section of the Great Wall, while Zhangye, the middle town on the Hexi Corridor, is also a popular stop off.
National parks to check out in Gansu include the Taoist-orientated Kongtongshan National Park, the Buddhist-orientated Maijishan National Park, and the singing sands of Yueyaquan National Park. For Tibet-like trekking, Xiahe is the place to head to. Camel riding and horseback riding are popular here. There are many important Tibetan monasteries in this region of Gansu, which generally require climbing up plateaus.
Lanzhou Zhongchuan Airport is 75kms from town and is the main gateway to Gansu. It is a 2-hour flight from Beijing. Zhangye (central Gansu) and Dunhuang (northwest) also have airports. The train journey from Beijing to Lanzhou takes 25 hours, or 23 hours from Shanghai. Traveling here by bus is not advised.