Datong Travel Recommendations for 2024 (Updated in May)

Datong in the Winter.

We stayed in Datong for 1 full day during January 2023. The temperature ranged between-10 and -20 so was pretty chilly and you need lots of layers. There are two main activities/ attractions in Datong, the Yungang Grottoes and The Hanging Temple. the Yungang Grottoes are close to the city about a 20min taxi from the centre and definitely worth a visit. The Hanging Temple is further away and requires a 1hr to 1hr and half taxi. Which our hotel helped organise. but this is definitely worth doing the Temple is just magical.#2023travelwish #datong

Yungang Grottoes

It’s a Buddhist cave-carving complex. All the statues are carved in caves or small grottoes. They are dated 5th and 6th centuries. It’s a UNESCO heritage and it’s amazingly beautiful! Statues really impress. Some of them are big like skyscrapers, some statues are very small, but cover the whole wall in the cave. The complex is big, you can walk around. There is a part with caves, but the other part of mountains is surrounded by beautiful natural landscape. You can walk in the park, or alone the river. You will spend at around 4 hours there, so food 🥢🥡 options are available on the territory. #bucketlistreboot

We visited these caves as well as the Longmen caves. Both are remarkable although Longmen has a greater “wow” factor. Keep in mind if you do go to Datong that it is a coal city and the air is often polluted. #wintergetaway #wintergetaway

Yungang grottoes is located near the city of Datong. It is a very common place for tourists who come to visit Datong, as it is easy to reach. Public bus will take around 40 minutes so it is quite convenient. Inside, you will see really massive statues from the history which are just beautiful. There is also a museum inside. #HalloTrip  

When it comes to Shanxi Datong, many people know that the coal industry is very developed. In fact, this city is also the capital of the Northern Wei Dynasty, and it is also the capital of the Liao and Jin Dynasties. The long history of building a city has left Datong with a lot of cultural and architectural heritage, and Huayan Temple is one of them. Huayan Temple was built in 1038 AD, which is the northern emperor-Liaozhongxi seven years. In the early days, it was the royal ancestral temple of the Liao Kingdom. It was not open to ordinary people. Because you are the royal ancestral temple, the architectural community of Huayan Temple is laid out and constructed according to the specifications of the palace. The temple is from west to east, and more than 30 buildings are arranged on the two main lines of the south and the north. Standing on a high point, the panoramic view of the temple is quite a bit like the Beijing Forbidden City. Because it was a Buddhist temple built during the Liao Dynasty, the Buddha statues in the temple reflect the aesthetics of the time. Compared with the thin winds of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Buddha statues carved in the Liao Dynasty were partial and strong. Huayan Temple is the best-preserved Liaojin temple complex in China. It was destroyed in various periods due to war and other reasons. It has undergone several re-constructions and has its current appearance. Many dynasties in China have changed, and you sing me to the stage, and finally the East-West fusion, East and North culture. Looking at China, there are countless ancient temples, but there are not many historical scales close to Huayan Temple.

On the inner walls of the temple, there is a vivid picture of the story, which is a fairy story of the clouds. They have different expressions and different looks, only indicating the difference in identity between costumes and headwear. The gems in the rhyme of the clouds, the two worlds fly together. Long bowed to the golden body and prayed for a lifetime. No worries, no worries, and the heart is old with Cangshan. Sitting in lotus, accepting the dignified Buddha of worship and prayer. For thousands of years, he sat quietly here, his eyes wide open, and his compassionate tenderness. For thousands of years, he silently listened to the deep desires of his followers, the unsatisfactory realities in the real world, and the secrets of his heart. Then he used his compassionate eyes to penetrate the darkness to bring dawn, and to resolve the troubles and sorrows. .

Listening to Zen Buddhism, Zen tea, this is the bliss of life.

This temple is located in the ancient city of Datong. It was originally built in 1038 AD, which is the seven years of Liaozhongxi. After that, it was unfortunately destroyed in the war. Although the war destroyed the "recorders" of many civilizations, the foundation still exists. In 1140, because of the need to rebuild Buddhism, Huayan Temple was reborn. There are more than 30 buildings in Huayan Temple. The synchronous is distributed on the two main axes of the north and the south. It has a unique layout style and gives visitors a sacred and steady impression. The whole temple has these main tourist attractions: First, the Shanghuayan Temple consists of the Daxiong Hall, the Shanmen, the Temple, the Guanyin Pavilion, the Tibetan Pavilion and the hatchback; second, the Huayan Temple is The Bojiajia Tibetan Temple is the center, and it is composed of the surrounding Liao Dynasty statues, Shijing Building, pavilion-style Tibetan cabinets and Tiangong Pavilion. Third, the Huayan Pagoda is made of 100 tons of pure copper. Because it is a monastery, it must be inseparable from the Buddha. Therefore, the tower contains a statue of Sakyamuni Buddha, Guanyin Bodhisattva, and Jiaozuo Bodhisattva carved with centuries-old incense sandalwood. It is a treasure of Huayan Temple.

Datong in the Winter.

We stayed in Datong for 1 full day during January 2023. The temperature ranged between-10 and -20 so was pretty chilly and you need lots of layers. There are two main activities/ attractions in Datong, the Yungang Grottoes and The Hanging Temple. the Yungang Grottoes are close to the city about a 20min taxi from the centre and definitely worth a visit. The Hanging Temple is further away and requires a 1hr to 1hr and half taxi. Which our hotel helped organise. but this is definitely worth doing the Temple is just magical.#2023travelwish #datong

THE HANGING TEMPLE

Built more than 1,500 years ago, this temple is the only existing one combining 3 Chinese traditional philosophies or 3 religions (Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism). According to legend, the temple construction was started at the end of the Northern Wei dynasty by only one man, a monk named Liaoran (了然), in 491 AD. Over the next 1,400 years, many repairs and extensions have led to its present-day scale. #china #asia #hangingtemple #temple #ancient #architecture #buddhism #taoism #confucianism

The hanging temple is becoming more and more famous in the world. Noted as one of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, this temple has a very unique story behind and it is also located surrounded by beautiful range of mountains. The queue to go up the temple can be very long during holiday season, so estimate about 1-2 hours of queuing before climbing up. #happynewyear #hangingtemple #china #happynewyear

[Shanxi Temple] Hang Kong Temple, also known as Xuankong Temple, located in Wuyuan County, Shanxi, 65 kilometers away from Datong City, is the only existing Buddha, Tao, Confucianism and the three unique in China temple. It was built in the late Northern Wei Dynasty more than 1,500 years ago. Later, the dynasty of the Northern Dynasties repaired the Hanging Temple. Because the Northern Wei Dynasty moved the Taoist Taoist Temple from Pingcheng to Datong, the ancient artisans The Taoist temple "has not heard the sound of cockerels and dogs" has built a hanging temple, and it has the wonders of today. Hanging Temple is built between the cliffs of Cuiping Peak on the west side of Henglong Mountain, facing the Hengshan Mountain, facing the Tsui Ping, carrying dangerous rocks, descending the deep valley, hanging the pavilion, and the structure is wonderful. There are forty temples in the Hanging Temple. The mechanics are based on semi-inserted flying beams. The rock is concealed by the rock, the pillars are connected up and down, the corridors are connected to each other, and the twists and turns are surprising. There are more than 80 statues of bronze, iron, stone and mud in the temple. It is like a delicate and embossed relief. It is set in the cliffs of Wanli, and there is a volcanic atmosphere. The word "spectacular" on the rock under the temple is the treasure of the poetry of the Tang Dynasty. The ancients said: "The tower is suspected of the sea, the bird road is not in the clouds." Xu Xiake, a great traveler of the Ming Dynasty, sighed as "the giant view of the world."

Traveling to Datong, Shanxi in the off-season of winter is really great!

Traveling to Datong in winter is really great! There are hardly any tourists, you can enjoy the happiness of contracting the whole scenic area!! You can visit and take photos as much as you want, and the temperature has started to rise recently, with the highest temperature during the day approaching 0 degrees, and it's warm when the sun is shining, making the trip very comfortable. The entrance tickets for the scenic spots in the off-season are cheaper! Accommodation is also very cost-effective! Four or five stars are only about 200! There are so many delicious foods, such as Guo You Rou, Sha La Juice, Datong Knife-cut Noodles, Shao Mai, etc.~ It's a paradise for lovers of carbohydrates, meat and sweet and sour taste. I found that the portion of food here is so large, half a portion is close to the portion in the south!

Datong's Ancient City Wall At Night!

Datong's city wall was built in 1372 (early stage of Ming Dynasty, 1368-1644). Towering to 14 meters high with a perimeter of 7270 meters and 4 main gates, 4 turrets, and 46 watch towers. During the Ming Dynasty, the ancient wall was designated as one of the nine military towns along the Great Wall of China, defending against the steppe nomads from the north. #china #ancient #ancientWall #citywall #datong #shanxi #traditional #architecture #traditionalArchitecture

Datong is the city located in the Northern part of Shanxi Province. Here you can visit some of very famous places. One of them is the city wall. The city wall of Datong is one of the oldest in China. Inside the city wall, there are some temples and museums as well as great places to eat and shop. Spend some time to walk around here as it is beautiful especially at night time. #HalloTrip

The existing ancient city wall of Datong was built by the Ming Dynasty general Xu Da in the five years of Ming Hongwu on the basis of the Han, Wei, Tang, Liao, Jin and Yuan old cities. There are four main buildings, the main city gate, Yang, Yongtai, Qingyuan and Wuding. At the same time, there are also moats, suspension bridges and castle towers. The ancient city wall is free of visits to tourists. After boarding the city wall, you can choose a battery car or rent a bicycle to ride around the city for a week, 360 degrees to see the true Datong ancient city more than a thousand years ago. It coincides with the setting sun, and the beauty of the scenery cannot be described.

In the morning light, I visited the Beiyue Hengshan, one of the five mountains, to see its Fanghua. According to legend, Pangu opened the world, chaos first opened, Qing is the sky, and turbid is the ground. He turned his body into a five-yellow, head to the east, and Beiyue Hengshan became the right arm of Pangu. Because it is located in the north, it is the place where everything is undone, so it is called Hengshan. For the lord of Wanshan in the North, it is also known as Hengzong. Hengshan West is Yanmenguan, East is Taihang Sanshan, Nanshi Sanjin, and the north is overlooking Yunmeng; the peaks are rushing, the momentum is magnificent, the towering, and the cross. This is too early, it is still hazy in the mountains, covering the clouds, only a little bit of sunlight in the thin layer of the clouds, this is still the most attractive. Yunxia hides gold and silver enamel, faintly circling the sun and moon. Sunny, the smoke is flying, and the fun is full of fun. When the clouds dispersed, the sky was more open, and Hengshan showed its original appearance. Under the lush greenery is a layer of dangerous rocks, the cliffs stand sideways, stone clips blue sky, as if a heart will fall into the abyss. The canyon is deep and you can only see the green cliffs under the cliff. It is no wonder that ancient poems have clouds: the rock is so heavy that it is unpredictable.

Traveling in Datong, climbing the Range Rover and exploring the ancient temple are also very good, so we drove to Hengshan in the morning. Beiyue Hengshan is located in Wuyuan County of Datong. It has been a famous scenic spot and the birthplace of Taoist culture since ancient times. It was approved by the State Council to be included in the first batch of national-level scenic spots with the perfect combination of human landscape and natural landscape. In 2009, Beiyue Hengshan was included in the National Natural and Cultural Heritage List. Hengshan is the Beiyue in the "Five Sacred Mountains" and also a Taoist holy place. It is said that Zhang Guo, one of the Eight Immortals, is practicing in Hengshan. The Beiyue Hengshan Scenic Area includes Tianfengling, Cuipingfeng and Qianfoling. The current development is Cuipingfeng and Tianfengling. Generally speaking, Hangshan Hengshan refers to the Tianfengling scenic spot. Hengshan main peak is divided into east and west peaks, east is Dafengling west to Cuiping peak, two peaks face each other, style is unique, the cliff green belt, the level is distinct. Hengshan cloud, change endless, but we did not encounter good time, see a lot of pictures of Hengshan cloud on the network, really super beautiful.

As one of the Five Sacred Mountains, Beiyue Hengshan is the universal sacred place of Taoism in the world. According to legend, Zhang Guo, one of the Eight Immortals, is practicing in Hengshan. The highest altitude is more than 2,000 meters, but don't be too nervous. You can choose to take the bus to the Hanging Temple and climb up. You can also choose the cable car to the Hengshan Mountain. Individuals are still advised to drive by car, or choose a transportation vehicle in the scenic area, or go to the middle of the mountain, or look at the scenery along the way. These ancient buildings are the essence of it.

Beiyue Hengshan is one of the five famous mountains in China. It has a history of more than 5,000 years. Countless emperors and literati singers have climbed to the top. It is also a place where everyone should come at least once in their lives. Hengshan sky high cloud, the platform is the cliff, the big white clouds are like the top of the head, at your fingertips, as the wind blowing from the valley continues to surge, people can not help but think of the poem "swinging chest" Stratus clouds."