The southwest part of the Chinese province of Gansu is home to a few of the region’s most visited areas and includes Bingling Si, Lanzhou and Langmusi that are all popular draws.
The capital of Gansu Province sits in the southwest of Gansu and is called Lanzhou. There is plenty to do in the capital such as temple visits, museums and hiking the local mountains to get a panoramic view of the city. It is located on the banks of the Yellow River and there is a night market that is popular with locals and tourists.
Xiahe is also set in this region and it is a great example of a peaceful Tibetan village that the majority of visitors flock to for a visit to the Labrang Monastery. It sits alongside the Daxia River and although there is not much to do, the village encourages visitors to get back to nature and experience rural Tibetan life.
The Ganjia Grasslands are another favourite visitor spot and the valley is filled with tall cliffs and the scenery is natural and untouched. Linxia is fairly quiet and the main community in the town is unusually (for China) Muslim meaning that there is a whole collection of interesting mosques and tasty food around.
Bingling Si is steeped in the Buddhist religion and there are many grottos and caves that are full of statues and religious paintings that were created by Buddhist monks back in the Tang dynasty. The Yellow River is also in the southwest of Gansu and there are many towns and villages located close to the river that are interesting to visit.
Getting There & Away
The capital of Gansu Province is Lanzhou and there is a busy airport there that welcomes flights to and from Beijing that take 1 hour and 30 minutes. From Linxia, there are buses to Xiahe that take 2 hours, while from Lanzhou to Xiahe by bus takes 5 hours. There is also an airport in Shenyang where there are regular bus services all around southwest Gansu.