Under its Tang dynasty name of Chang'an, Xi'an was the largest city in the world — a million people inside a walled grid, the terminus of the Silk Road, and cosmopolitan in a way that would not be matched anywhere for centuries. Persian merchants, Sogdian traders, Nestorian Christians, Japanese monks and Central Asian musicians all lived here.
That history is still visible in the food, in the Hui Muslim community whose ancestors arrived along the Silk Road, and in the extraordinary archaeology buried in the surrounding plain.
How long you need#
Two nights minimum, three is better. One day for the Terracotta Army and the Shaanxi History Museum; one for the city wall, the Muslim Quarter and the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. A third day buys Han Yang Ling, the Forest of Steles, or Mount Hua.
The Terracotta Army#
Discovered in 1974 by farmers digging a well, the funerary army of Qin Shi Huang — China's first emperor — comprises an estimated 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots and 670 horses, each face individually modelled.
Practicalities:
- ¥120, open 08:30–18:00 (last entry 16:00 in winter)
- 40 km east of Xi'an. Take tourist bus 5 (306) from Xi'an railway station east square (¥8, one hour) — the official green bus, not the touts alongside it. Or DiDi, ¥120–150 each way.
- Go at opening or after 15:00. The middle of the day at Pit 1 is a wall of people.
- Order: most visitors go straight to Pit 1, the huge famous one. Do the opposite — start with the bronze chariots exhibition hall, then Pit 3 (the command post), then Pit 2 (where you can see figures still half-excavated), then Pit 1 last, when the tour groups have moved on.
- A guide genuinely helps here. The site has almost no explanatory context otherwise, and audio guides are ¥40.
The tomb mound of Qin Shi Huang itself sits 1.5 km away and has never been excavated — Sima Qian's account describes rivers of mercury inside, and soil surveys have found anomalously high mercury concentrations. You can walk up the mound; there is nothing to see, but standing on it is a strange feeling.
The city wall#
Xi'an has the most complete surviving city wall in China: 13.7 km around the old city, 12 m high, 15–18 m thick, rebuilt in the Ming dynasty on Tang foundations.
Rent a bicycle at the South Gate (¥45 for 3 hours, ¥200 deposit) and ride the full circuit — about 100 minutes at a gentle pace, on top of the wall, with the old city on one side and the modern city on the other. It is the best two hours in Xi'an. Tandems are available; the surface is uneven brick, so it is a bumpy ride.
Entry to the wall is ¥54. Go at sunset, when the lanterns come on.
The Muslim Quarter#
The Hui neighbourhood behind the Drum Tower, where the descendants of Silk Road traders have lived for over a thousand years. Beiyuanmen is the main food street: crowded, loud, touristy, and still serving genuinely excellent food.
What to eat:
- Roujiamo (肉夹馍) — braised beef or lamb in a crisp flatbread. The original, and better than any sandwich has a right to be
- Biangbiang noodles — hand-slapped belt noodles, whose character has 58 strokes and is one of the most complex in Chinese
- Yangrou paomo — mutton soup poured over bread you tear up yourself into small pieces; the tearing is the ritual
- Liangpi — cold wheat-starch noodles with chilli oil, vinegar and sesame paste
- Persimmon cakes (huangguishi bing), fried and sold hot from a griddle
- Pomegranate juice, pressed to order in autumn
Walk one street back from Beiyuanmen — Xiyangshi and Dapiyuan — for the same food with fewer people and lower prices. Then find the Great Mosque (¥25), a Ming-era complex built entirely in Chinese architectural style, with a pagoda-form minaret and courtyards laid out like a temple. It is one of the most unusual buildings in China.
Museums#
Shaanxi History Museum — free with advance booking, and one of the finest museums in China: 370,000 objects covering the Zhou, Qin, Han and Tang. Book seven days ahead through the WeChat mini-program; slots go fast. The separate Tang Dynasty Treasures gallery (¥30) is worth the extra.
Xi'an Museum and the Small Wild Goose Pagoda — free, quiet, and set in a lovely garden.
Forest of Steles (Beilin) — 3,000 engraved stone tablets, the physical archive of Chinese calligraphy, including the 781 CE Nestorian Stele documenting a Christian community in Tang China.
Han Yang Ling — the tomb of Emperor Jing of Han, 20 km north, with a glass-floored underground museum over the excavation. Thousands of one-third-scale nude terracotta figures, originally clothed in silk with wooden arms. Far less visited than the Terracotta Army and, for some visitors, more atmospheric.
Also worth doing#
- Big Wild Goose Pagoda (¥50 + ¥30 to climb) — built in 652 to house the sutras brought back from India by the monk Xuanzang. The square in front has a large musical fountain show that is beloved locally.
- Tang Paradise / Datang Everbright City — a large-scale Tang-themed night district. Unashamedly a reconstruction, but the lighting and the crowds in Tang costume make it a genuine spectacle after dark.
- Mount Hua (Huashan) — 120 km east, 1.5 hours by high-speed train plus a bus. One of China's five sacred Taoist mountains and the site of the famous plank walk. A long, hard day trip; go early.
Getting around#
The metro is modern and bilingual, ¥2–8. The old city inside the walls is walkable end to end in about 40 minutes. Xi'an North railway station handles high-speed trains: 4h20 to Beijing, 3h to Chengdu, 6h to Shanghai.
Frequently asked questions#
Is the Terracotta Army worth visiting?#
Yes — it is one of the genuinely singular archaeological sites on earth, and photographs do not convey the scale. Go at opening or after 15:00 to avoid the worst crowds, and consider a guide, since the site offers little explanation on its own.
How do I get to the Terracotta Army from Xi'an?#
Take tourist bus 5 (306) from the east square of Xi'an railway station — ¥8, about an hour, and it is the official green bus rather than the touts beside it. A DiDi costs ¥120–150 each way and takes 50 minutes.
How many days do you need in Xi'an?#
Two nights minimum — one day for the Terracotta Army and Shaanxi History Museum, one for the city wall, Muslim Quarter and pagodas. Three nights adds Han Yang Ling, the Forest of Steles or a day trip to Mount Hua.
Can you cycle the Xi'an city wall?#
Yes, and you should. Bikes rent at the South Gate for about ¥45 for three hours plus a deposit, and the full 13.7 km circuit takes around 100 minutes at an easy pace. Wall entry is ¥54 separately.
What food is Xi'an famous for?#
Roujiamo (braised meat in flatbread), biangbiang hand-pulled belt noodles, yangrou paomo (mutton soup with torn bread) and liangpi cold noodles. The Muslim Quarter is the centre of it, and the side streets are better than the main one.