Xi'an Travel Guide: How Many Days, Terracotta Army Booking and Getting Around

Plan three days for Xi'an: one day for the Terracotta Army and Huaqing Palace out in Lintong, one for the old walled city, and half a day for the Shaanxi History Museum and the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, staying on for the evening around the pagoda. Two days works if you are on a tight route; add a fourth if you want to climb Mount Hua. Most sights in Xi'an are booked online in your own name, usually through WeChat "official accounts" or "mini-programs" (small apps that run inside WeChat or Alipay), and two of them fill up days ahead. Terracotta Army tickets are sold only online, in your passport name, on the museum's website or its WeChat accounts. The Shaanxi History Museum is free, but its tickets are released on its WeChat account five days ahead at 17:00 and go quickly, so you need a working WeChat account. For the metro, plan to pay with an Alipay or WeChat QR code, because the gates currently do not take a tap of a foreign bank card.

How many days, when to go, and how Xi'an is laid out

Three days is the right length for a first visit. The Terracotta Army takes most of a day once you count the trip out to Lintong and back, and Huaqing Palace sits on the same route, so the two belong together. The old city — the City Wall, the Bell and Drum Towers, the Muslim Quarter and the Forest of Stone Steles — fills a comfortable day on foot. The south of the city, with the Shaanxi History Museum, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda and the lit-up pedestrian street below it, is best as an afternoon that runs into the evening. With only two days, you do the Terracotta Army on one and squeeze the old city and the pagoda into the other, and the museum only if you won a booking. With four, add Mount Hua or a slower museum day.

Spring (March to May) and autumn (September to November) are the most comfortable months. Summer is hot, and both the City Wall and the walk between the Terracotta pits have little shade, so start early and keep the middle of the day for museums. Winter is cold and dry, and it is the season with the most grey, polluted days, as the city heats its buildings; on clear winter days, though, the sights are quieter than at any other time of year. If you can, avoid Chinese New Year and the first week of October (the National Day holiday), when every major sight runs at its daily limit.

The city is easy to read. At the center is the Ming-dynasty city wall, a rectangle about 14 km around (13.74 km on the cycling loop). In the middle of it stands the Bell Tower (钟楼, Zhōnglóu), and four main streets run north, south, east and west from it to the wall's main gates. The Drum Tower is a short walk west of the Bell Tower, and the Muslim Quarter fills the lanes behind it. The Forest of Stone Steles is just inside the South Gate. South of the wall, a short metro ride away, are Xiaozhai (小寨), where the Shaanxi History Museum is, and Qujiang (曲江), the district around the Big Wild Goose Pagoda and Tang Paradise. Xi'an North Railway Station, where most high-speed trains arrive, is well north of the wall. The airport is northwest, in neighbouring Xianyang. Lintong (临潼), with the Terracotta Army and Huaqing Palace, is out to the east; Huaqing Palace's own directions put it about 40 minutes' drive from the city.

If you are flying in on China's 240-hour visa-free transit, Xi'an Xianyang International Airport is Shaanxi's one entry port for it. The permitted area covers the whole of Shaanxi province, so Mount Hua, Famen Temple and Qianling are all inside it. You need a confirmed onward ticket to a third country, booked before you arrive. Who qualifies and how the days are counted is in our 240-hour visa-free transit guide.

Arriving: the airport and the train stations

All international flights at Xi'an Xianyang (XIY) use Terminal 5 (T5), which opened on 20 February 2025; several domestic airlines also use T5, and the rest use T2 and T3. If you end up at the wrong terminal, free shuttle buses run between T5, T3 and T2.

The easiest way into the city is Metro Line 14. The Airport (T5) station is in the transport center on the east side of T5, about a five-minute walk from the departures level. Line 14 runs to Xi'an North Railway Station, where you change to Line 2 for the Bell Tower and the old city, or to Line 4 for the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. From Airport West, the stop for T1–T3, to Xi'an North takes about 35 minutes and costs 7 yuan; the T5 station is one stop closer to the city. On the timetable in use since 15 April 2026, the last train toward the city leaves Airport West at 22:20 and the T5 station at 22:24, so if your flight lands late, plan on a taxi.

Airport buses are the other option: 25 yuan to the city, with two lines to the Bell Tower area that take about 70 minutes, and a night service from 22:00 that keeps running until the last flights land — check the times at the bus counter, since they change. Taxis and DiDi cars pick up from the marked area in the same transport center on the east side of T5. The DiDi app shows the fare before you confirm the ride, which is the simplest way to know the price.

Most trains from Beijing, Shanghai and the east arrive at Xi'an North (西安北站, Xī'ān Běizhàn), the main high-speed station. Metro Line 2 runs from there straight to the Bell Tower with no change, and Line 4 goes to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda and Datang Everbright City. Since 30 June 2026 there is also Xi'an East Station (西安东站, Xī'ān Dōngzhàn), which handles many trains heading south and west plus slower conventional trains, and connects to Metro Line 5. Some conventional trains also use the old Xi'an Railway Station (西安站, Xī'ān Zhàn) just north of the wall, which is about 30 minutes from Xi'an North on Line 4. Check which of the three stations is printed on your ticket before you set off. With a foreign passport you go through the staffed lanes at the station entrance and the platform gates, because the automatic gates cannot read a passport; our guide to Chinese train stations walks through it.

Getting around: metro first, DiDi as backup

The metro does most of the work. It has 12 lines and 246 stations, and a handful of them cover almost everything a visitor needs. Line 2 runs north to south through the middle of the city: Xi'an North, the Bell Tower, Yongningmen (永宁门, the South Gate) and Xiaozhai. Line 4 runs from Xi'an North past the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Datang Everbright City and Tang Paradise. Line 9 is the line out to Lintong for Huaqing Palace and the Terracotta Army, and Line 14 is the airport line.

Fares go by distance: 2 yuan for the first 6 km, 3 yuan up to 10 km, 4 yuan up to 14 km, and one more yuan for each further band. A ride across the city center costs a few yuan.

There are three practical ways to pay:

• A QR ride code in Alipay or WeChat. Both apps have a metro ride code (乘车码, chéngchē mǎ — "ride code") that you scan at the gate going in and coming out. With a foreign card linked to the app, this is the easiest option and the one we recommend. Set it up and test it at your first station, where staff can help if it fails.
• A single-journey ticket. The ticket machines and service desks take cash, WeChat and Alipay. The ticket is only valid on the day and at the station where you bought it, and the exit gate keeps it.
• A foreign bank card at the service desk. At the moment you cannot tap a foreign card on the gates — if that changes, look for card logos on the gate readers — but the service centers in 13 stations — including Xi'an North, Bell Tower, Yongningmen, Xiaozhai, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Huaqingchi and both airport stations — have card terminals that take Visa, Mastercard, JCB, Diners Club, Discover, American Express and UnionPay for buying a ticket. It works, but it means queuing at the desk every time.

The local transit card, Chang'an Tong (长安通, Cháng'ān Tōng), gives 10% off metro fares, which is not worth the trouble of buying and topping up on a short trip. A day ticket also exists, but its price is not posted in the fare rules, so ask at the service desk if you plan a lot of rides in one day. A few rules worth knowing: each trip from gate to gate must be done within 210 minutes, each adult can bring two children of 1.3 m or under (or aged 6 or under) free, and luggage is limited to 30 kg. A bus–metro transfer discount has been trialled since 25 November 2025: paying with Alipay, changing within 90 minutes takes 0.2 yuan off each of up to three transfers, and whether the trial has become permanent is not yet announced, so check the latest notice; Tourist Bus 5 (306) to the Terracotta Army is not part of the scheme.

Last trains differ by line and station, and the evening sights (the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, the wall at night, the show at Huaqing Palace) can keep you out late. Check your station on our Xi'an last-train page, and use the Xi'an metro map and route planner to work out changes between lines. the WaysChina app

DiDi is the backup for anything the metro does not reach well, for late nights, and for groups of three or four who can share a car. The app works in English, shows the fare before you book, and saves you explaining the destination in Chinese. Street taxis use the meter. Our DiDi guide covers setup and paying with a foreign card.

Inside the wall, walk. The Bell Tower, the Drum Tower and the Muslim Quarter are a few minutes apart, and the Forest of Stone Steles is a short walk from the South Gate. Crossing the whole old city is a long walk, though — the wall is about 14 km around — so for longer hops take Line 2 or Line 6, which both stop at the Bell Tower. For how Chinese metros work in general, see our China metro guide.

Where to stay

Choose your area by how you will move around. For most first-time visitors, the old city around the Bell Tower is the best base.

• Bell Tower and inside the wall. The most convenient base for a first visit. You can walk to the Drum Tower, the Muslim Quarter and the wall, Line 2 takes you to Xi'an North with no change, and Line 6 also stops here; the Forest of Stone Steles' north gate is about 504 m from exit F of Bell Tower station. Streets right next to the Muslim Quarter are loud until late, so ask for a room away from the food streets.
• South Gate and the Forest of Stone Steles. Slightly quieter, still inside or just outside the wall, with Line 2 at Yongningmen. The South Gate entrance to the wall is open until 22:00, so an evening walk on the wall is easy from here.
• Xiaozhai and Qujiang (Big Wild Goose Pagoda). Newer, roomier hotels, close to the Shaanxi History Museum and to the evening crowd at the pagoda and Datang Everbright City, which is next to Dayanta station on Lines 3 and 4. The old city is a short ride north on Line 2 from Xiaozhai. Good if you care more about evenings than about walking to the wall.
• Near Xi'an North Station. Only worth it for one night before an early train. It is far from the sights, and Line 2 gets you from the old city to the station anyway.

Staying out in Lintong near the Terracotta Army makes sense only if you also want the evening show at Huaqing Palace and do not want the late trip back. Wherever you stay, the hotel registers you with the police using your passport at check-in; our hotel booking and registration guide explains how that works and why some cheap guesthouses turn foreigners away. Once you have picked an area, you can compare hotels there on Booking.com.

The Terracotta Army: booking, getting there, and seeing it properly

The official name is the Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum (秦始皇帝陵博物院, Qín Shǐhuángdì Líng Bówùyuàn). This matters, because touts near the site and in the city use names that sound official. The site has two parts: the Terracotta Army museum, with Pits 1, 2 and 3, and the Lishan Garden (丽山园, Lìshān Yuán), the archaeological park around the emperor's tomb mound.

Tickets

One ticket covers both parts: 120 yuan for adults, the same price all year, valid for the day you booked, with free shuttle buses between the two areas. Most discounts are for Chinese citizens only. Foreign adults, including those over 60, pay the full 120 yuan, and the student half price is limited to Chinese full-time students; children who are not from mainland China and are 1.4 m or under go free, but must still be booked in advance and come with a parent.

Booking

Every visitor books online with real-name details: on the museum website bmy.com.cn or on its WeChat accounts "秦始皇帝陵博物院" and "兵马俑票务在线". Foreign visitors book with their passport details and show the original passport at the gate. The museum's official ticketing page sets out the rules. The site takes up to 65,000 visitors a day and stops selling when it reaches that number. The museum does not publish how many days ahead booking opens, so check the booking page as soon as your dates are fixed, and book early for weekends, summer and public holidays. You can cancel online for a refund any time before you go through the gate.

Tickets are for a time slot. Be at the entrance about half an hour before your slot starts, and note that the museum's north gate is the only way in.

Opening hours

From 16 March to 15 November, entry runs from 8:30 to 17:00 and the site closes at 18:30; from 16 November to 15 March, the last entry is 16:30 and closing is 18:00. There is no weekly closing day.

How to see it

You enter by the north gate and follow a one-way route through the museum. Pit 1 is the huge hall of soldiers you have seen in photos; Pits 2 and 3 are smaller excavations. When you come out, go to the Terracotta Army car park and take the free shuttle bus to the Lishan Garden for the bronze chariots, described below. Allow three to four hours for the museum itself.

The bronze chariots are not in the pits. The two large painted bronze chariots with their horses are shown in the Bronze Chariots and Horses Exhibition Hall in the Lishan Garden. The shuttle and the Lishan Garden are on the same ticket. Inside each area there are also electric carts, which are not free: 5 yuan inside the first ticket gate of the museum and 15 yuan inside the Lishan Garden gate. Don't confuse them with the free shuttle between the two sites.

A guide makes a real difference here: how the figures were made, the traces of original paint and the different faces are easy to miss on your own. The museum's own guides are booked by phone on +86 29 8139 9047 or +86 29 8139 9048; the museum does not publish guide prices, so confirm the price and the language when you call. Turn down anyone outside the gate selling tickets or "guide packages"; tickets come only through the museum's own channels, and a legitimate tour company books your ticket there for you using your passport details.

Getting there

The museum's recommended route is by metro and local bus. Take Metro Line 9 to Huaqingchi station, leave by exit C, and walk about 200 m to the Huaqingchi bus stop. From there, Lintong bus 613 goes to Qinyongcun and Lintong bus 602 goes to the Terracotta Army stop. From the old city, reach Line 9 by changing from Line 1 at Fangzhicheng.

The old advice to take Tourist Bus 5 (游5, Yóu 5, also numbered 306) from the square at Xi'an Railway Station is out of date. Since 29 August 2026 the route starts at Xi'an East Station and goes via the Fangzhicheng hub and Huaqingchi to the Terracotta Army, from 7:00 to 19:00. It has a conductor collecting fares and you cannot tap a card, so carry some small notes and check whether a QR code is accepted when you board. The museum also lists a "Terracotta Army direct bus" (兵马俑景区直通车) from the Qinfeng bus terminus, about 310 m from exit D of Tonghuamen station on Line 3, but it does not publish the fare or timetable, so treat it as a backup.

A DiDi or taxi is the simplest choice for two or more people, especially for the ride back; check the plate number before you get in, as the car park is busy in the afternoon.

Adding Huaqing Palace on the same day

Huaqing Palace (华清宫, Huáqīng Gōng), the Tang-dynasty hot-spring palace at the foot of Mount Li, is on the same Lintong route, and the palace itself recommends visiting it on the same day as the Terracotta Army. It is right next to Huaqingchi station on Line 9, a 3- to 5-minute walk from exits B or C to the west gate. Tickets are 120 yuan and valid for two days with re-entry. It is currently open 7:30 to 17:30, with ticket sales and the last entry both at 17:00; hours can change with the season, so check the palace's latest notice. The usual order is the Terracotta Army in the morning and Huaqing Palace in the afternoon; leave two to three hours if you also want to go up Mount Li.

For tickets, opening hours and how to get there, see Terracotta Army.

Choosing your sights in the city

Decide on a museum first, because that is where the bookings are. If you only do one, make it the Shaanxi History Museum; the Xi'an Museum and the Qin-Han Gallery are the substitutes if you cannot get in. The wall, the Bell Tower area and the Muslim Quarter make one walking day, and the Forest of Stone Steles fits next to the South Gate if you like calligraphy.

City Wall

Walking or cycling on top of the wall is the classic Xi'an experience. Tickets are 54 yuan for adults, real-name, one per ID per day, and sold through the official "西安城墙景区" (Xi'an City Wall Scenic Area) mini-program or authorized travel platforms, up to seven days ahead; the ticket windows have closed. Check the ID options when you book; if the mini-program does not take a passport, use an authorized platform such as Trip.com. Hours currently depend on the gate: the South Gate (Yongningmen) and several southern and eastern gates are open from 8:00 to 22:00, and the North, East and West Gates and the corner entrances from 8:00 to 20:00.

For bike rental on the wall, local listings currently give about 45 yuan for a single bike and 90 yuan for a tandem, with a 100 yuan deposit — check the board at the rental point, as prices change. A full lap of 13.74 km takes about two hours at an easy pace, and after 20:00 bikes are returned at the South Gate.

Bell Tower and Drum Tower

The Bell Tower sits on the main crossroads and the Drum Tower a block west. Climbing them is optional — the view from the top is mostly of the crossroads and the traffic — but the halls inside are well restored. Tickets are 30 yuan each, or 50 yuan for both. They are sold online with real names, three days ahead; on Trip.com search "Xi'an Bell Tower" or "Xi'an Drum Tower", and foreign visitors enter their passport details. Hours are longer in summer than in winter, so check the closing time on the booking page.

Muslim Quarter

The Muslim Quarter (回民街, Huímín Jiē) is not one street but a cluster of lanes — Beiyuanmen, Xiyangshi, Dapiyuan and others — west of the Bell Tower, next to the Drum Tower. It is an open neighborhood with no ticket. The main Beiyuanmen food street starts right under the Drum Tower's archway, and the area has about ten mosques, the best known being the Great Mosque on Huajue Lane, which looks like a Chinese temple complex rather than a domed mosque. The main strip is packed in the evening; late morning is easier. Dress modestly for the mosque.

Forest of Stone Steles (Beilin Museum)

The Xi'an Beilin Museum (西安碑林博物馆, Xī'ān Bēilín Bówùguǎn) holds a huge collection of carved stone tablets: classical texts and famous calligraphy. A new north hall has opened, so the whole museum is open again. Tickets are 85 yuan for adults, it is open every day from 8:30 to 19:00 with last tickets at 17:30, and booking opens five days ahead on its WeChat service account, Alipay mini-program and website. Check the ID options when you book, or ask at the entrance. Free entry for seniors and young children is listed for Chinese citizens, so foreign visitors should expect to pay full price. The museum's own foreign-language guides cost 500 yuan per group of up to 8, or 65 yuan per person, for 90 minutes — worth it here.

Shaanxi History Museum

The Shaanxi History Museum (陕西历史博物馆, Shǎnxī Lìshǐ Bówùguǎn) is the city's best museum. The main building, near Xiaozhai, is free but must be booked. It is about 778 m from Xiaozhai station on Lines 2 and 3.

How the booking works (the museum's visitor guide has the full rules):

• The only official channel is the museum's WeChat official account "陕西历史博物馆", so you need a WeChat account to book; the museum has not authorized any other platform, travel agency or person to sell tickets.
• Tickets go on sale five days ahead at 17:00 Beijing time. Pre-fill the date, slot and visitor details, press "book" at 17:00, then check "successful orders".
• Foreign visitors can book with a passport. One booking can hold up to five people, and each ID can be used for one booking per day.
• If your plans change, cancel before entry for your time slot closes. A no-show blocks that ID from booking for 180 days.
• On the day, bring the original passport you booked with and arrive within your slot.

Through mid-November, the main museum is open from 8:30 to 19:00, with the last entry at 18:00, and there is no closing day. From mid-November it usually switches to shorter winter hours and closes on Mondays (last winter it was 9:00 to 17:30), so check the museum's notices for the dates.

The Tang Dynasty Mural Treasures exhibition inside the museum is a separate paid exhibition. It can be bought online in advance or at the museum, and if you buy a paid exhibition ticket online, you do not also need the free booking. Local listings put the adult price at about 270 yuan; the museum does not post the price on its website, so check it when you buy.

The newer Qin-Han Gallery is a separate site between the city and the airport. It is free, needs no booking, and accepts passports at the door. Through mid-November it is open 8:30 to 18:00, with the last entry at 17:00; in winter it has usually closed on Tuesdays, so check the museum's notices. It is about 666 m from Qingong station on Line 14, the airport line, so it fits well on your arrival or departure day.

Big Wild Goose Pagoda and Da Ci'en Temple

The Big Wild Goose Pagoda (大雁塔, Dàyàn Tǎ) stands inside Da Ci'en Temple (大慈恩寺, Dà Cí'ēn Sì), an active Buddhist temple. Entry is real-name with a daily limit: book ahead if you can, then at the gate show your booking QR code or your passport, and sales stop once the day's limit is reached. Local listings currently give 10 yuan for the temple, plus 25 yuan to climb the pagoda, which you pay inside — check the price at the gate, as it has changed before. The temple is open 8:30 to 18:00 from March to mid-October and 9:00 to 17:30 from mid-October to February. Seeing the pagoda from the squares around it is enough for most visitors.

Small Wild Goose Pagoda and the Xi'an Museum

The Xi'an Museum (西安博物院, Xī'ān Bówùyuàn) shares its grounds with the Small Wild Goose Pagoda (小雁塔, Xiǎoyàn Tǎ), just south of the wall. It opens 8:30 to 18:00, with the last entry at 17:00. Book on its WeChat account, website or Trip.com, where tickets are released daily at 18:00 for five days ahead; foreign visitors then swap the booking for a ticket at the staffed window with their passport. Entry is free with a booking. Last winter (November to April) it closed on Tuesdays, and it closes on Chinese New Year's Eve, so check its notices before you go. The jade gallery is closed and its pieces have moved to other exhibitions.

Tang Paradise and the Tang West Market Museum

Tang Paradise (大唐芙蓉园, Dàtáng Fúróng Yuán) is a large rebuilt Tang-style garden with lakes and pavilions next to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda area. Tickets are 120 yuan and it is open 9:00 to 22:00, with the last entry at 21:00. Free entry for seniors requires a Chinese resident ID, so foreign seniors should plan to pay. Take Line 4 to Datang Furongyuan station; exit A is about five minutes' walk away, and a walk around takes two to three hours.

For more Silk Road history, the private Tang West Market Museum (大唐西市博物馆) charges 60 yuan, takes passport bookings and closes on Mondays.

Xi'an in the evening

Datang Everbright City (大唐不夜城, Dàtáng Bùyè Chéng, "Great Tang Sleepless City") is a 2.1 km pedestrian street of lit-up Tang-style buildings running south from the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. Entry is free, next to Dayanta station on Lines 3 and 4. Free street shows run in the evening, and the "tumbler girl" act (不倒翁, bùdǎowēng) is currently a regular — check times on arrival. On public holidays the street can see more than 300,000 people a day.

The musical fountain on the North Square of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda is free to watch. At the moment it plays four times a day, at 12:00, 16:00, 19:00 and 21:00, for about ten minutes each; on Tuesdays only the two evening shows run, and shows can be changed or cancelled for weather or events. The 21:00 show, with lights, is the best.

Tang Paradise has a ten-minute water-and-light show at about 20:30 for ticket holders — check the time at the gate.

The City Wall at night is quieter: the South Gate section stays open until 22:00, and from there you can walk up the main street to the lit Bell and Drum Towers.

The Song of Everlasting Sorrow (长恨歌, Chánghèn Gē, or Everlasting Regret) is an outdoor dance drama at Huaqing Palace, staged on the lake below Mount Li. There are four shows a night, at 18:30, 19:55, 21:20 and 22:45, each about 65 minutes; the show is suspended from 1 to 24 December and resumes on 25 December, and being outdoors, shows are confirmed on the day. Seats range from about 250 to 400 yuan in the main sections up to 988 yuan for the best VIP seats, and you do not need a Huaqing Palace ticket to see the show. Tickets are real-name and cannot be refunded or changed. On the day, after 15:00, you collect your seat ticket with your passport at the East Gate ticket office. The Huaqing Palace English ticket page has the seating plan. Pair it with your Terracotta Army day.

Two days in Xi'an, in short

Day one: the Terracotta Army in the morning, Huaqing Palace in the afternoon, and the Everlasting Sorrow show or dinner back in the city. Day two: the City Wall early, the Bell and Drum Towers and lunch in the Muslim Quarter, then the Shaanxi History Museum if you got a booking, and the Big Wild Goose Pagoda into the evening. If you have no museum booking, swap in the Forest of Stone Steles next to the South Gate. Our 2-day Xi'an itinerary sets out the timings and the bookings to make for each day.

What to eat

Xi'an food is wheat, lamb and beef, with chili and cumin. Try yángròu pàomó (羊肉泡馍, flatbread torn into small pieces and soaked in lamb soup), ròujiāmó (肉夹馍, chopped stewed meat in a crisp flatbread), biangbiang noodles (wide hand-pulled noodles under hot chili oil), and liángpí (凉皮, cold noodles with vinegar and chili). Many restaurants in the old city are halal (清真, qīngzhēn); in Shaanxi, halal businesses must show the halal sign on their name board, and others may not use it, and food that is forbidden under halal rules, such as pork, may not be brought in. The main Beiyuanmen strip is mostly for visitors. A few lanes away, Dapiyuan, inside the quarter, and Sajinqiao (洒金桥, Sǎjīnqiáo), just west of it, have paomo shops, biangbiang noodles and other snack stalls; in our view they are the lanes with more old-name snack shops and fewer souvenir stalls. See our Xi'an food guide for what to order and where, and our halal food guide.

Money and internet

Almost everything in Xi'an is paid by scanning a QR code with Alipay or WeChat Pay, from the metro gates to street snacks. Alipay accepts Visa, Mastercard, JCB, Diners Club and Discover cards — check the add-card screen for the current list before you rely on yours. WeChat Pay accepts Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, JCB, Diners Club and UnionPay cards; confirm yours on the add-card screen. Our guides to using Alipay with a foreign card and using WeChat Pay with a foreign card go through the steps and fees.

Carry some cash as a backup. Chinese yuan cash is legal tender and businesses are not allowed to refuse it, which helps at small stalls. Tapping a foreign card at a till has mostly been limited to high-end hotels, big stores and airports.

For data, buy an eSIM before you fly so DiDi, maps and the booking apps work from the airport. Google, WhatsApp and Instagram are blocked on Chinese networks; a roaming eSIM usually gets around that, otherwise set up a VPN before you leave. Our China SIM and eSIM guide and internet and VPN guide compare the options.

Day trips and onward routes

Mount Hua (华山, Huàshān), with its steep granite peaks, is the big day trip. Dozens of high-speed trains a day run from Xi'an North to Huashan North, taking about 30 to 40 minutes. Mountain tickets are booked online with a time slot, there is no walk-up ticket window at the entrance, and the cable cars and shuttle buses are separate tickets. Hiking up and back in one day is tight; many people stay overnight or hike at night. Famen Temple and Qianling are to the west, where public transport is thin — the last direct bus back from Famen Temple currently leaves at 14:30 (check before you go) — so a car with a driver is the realistic way to see both in a day. Hanyangling, a Han-dynasty tomb site with an underground gallery built over the burial pits, is near the airport and makes a half day. A shuttle bus from the city's Administrative Center metro station has run only at weekends and on public holidays, so on weekdays take a taxi or DiDi — check the museum's notices. Tickets and booking are in our Xi'an day trips guide.

Xi'an is the starting point of the Silk Road route to Dunhuang and the middle stop of the classic Beijing–Xi'an–Shanghai route.

Frequently asked questions

If something goes wrong

Call 110 for the police and 120 for an ambulance. For non-emergencies such as a price complaint, call 12345. Shaanxi's 12345 line has offered live English on weekdays in office hours, plus written messages in several languages through the "陕西12345" mini-program — check the current hours. For English-speaking medical care, see our guide to finding English-speaking hospitals.

Xi'an has five foreign consulates-general: South Korea, Kazakhstan, Cambodia, Malaysia and Thailand. South Korea's consulate in Xi'an covers Shaanxi. Countries without a consulate here, such as the US, Canada and Germany, cover Shaanxi from their Beijing embassy; check which office covers Shaanxi for your country. See our embassy contacts guide and emergency numbers in China.

Last updated: October 2026