10-Day Northwest China Tour - Qinghai Gansu Grand Loop
Returned from the Northwest on July 6th. A brief record to give some references to friends who are about to go to the Northwest.
Two people, self-driving, pure play for 10 days, total cost about 12,500 (airfare 2,400 + accommodation 2,400 + car rental 2,600 + gas 1,000 + tolls 600 + meals 2,500 + tickets 1,200). The cost is for reference only; due to the pandemic, it is lower than usual.
Overall feeling, the entire trip was very satisfying, far exceeding expectations. Most scenic spots are not 5A, but the scenery surpasses many 5A spots.
Qinghai and Gansu are vast, with rich terrain. Along the way, I passed many landforms I had only seen in books.
Traveling from one place to the next often spans hundreds of kilometers, but the journey was not boring; the scenery and experiences on the road are still something I keep savoring.
The overall service attitude was excellent, and the prices of food inside scenic areas were not unreasonably high.
Day 0, Shanghai to Xining;
Day 1, Xining to Kumbum Monastery (Tar Temple), to Erlang Sword (Erlangjian) at Qinghai Lake, to Heima River (Heimahe);
(On the road from Tar Temple to Qinghai Lake, I began to see mountains with black and white dots on them. The black dots were yaks, the white dots were sheep. Also saw snow-capped mountains for the first time, very excited. Qinghai Lake was nothing special; I tasted it and indeed it's a saltwater lake...)
Day 2, Heimahe to Sky No.1 at Chaka Salt Lake, to Chaka Salt Lake, to Delingha;
Day 3, Delingha to Emerald Lake (Feicui Lake), to Yadan Devil City, to Water Yadan, to West Taijinaier Lake (Xitai Jinaier Lake), to Dachaidan;
Day 4, Dachaidan to Emerald Lake, Petrol Town (Shiyou Xiaozhen), to Dunhuang;
Day 5, Yumen Pass, to Yang Pass, to Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring;
Day 6, Wedding photos, Dunhuang Night Market;
Day 7, Mogao Caves, Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring;
Day 8, Dunhuang to Jiayuguan, to Rainbow Danxia (Colorful Danxia), to Zhangye;
Day 9, Zhangye to Wetland Park, to Alxa Right Banner (Alashan Youqi), to Zhangye;
Day 10, Zhangye to Biandukou, to Qilian Mountains, to Xining;
Day 10+1, Xining back to Shanghai.
(Day 6 and Day 8 are our own itinerary; friends can skip them directly.)
Shanghai to Xining, by plane.
Grand loop, self-driving, 3,000 km; booked online in advance, car pickup and return at the airport parking lot, very convenient.
(The rented car was an automatic T-roc. Cruise control is very suitable for driving in the Northwest, saving a lot of leg effort; the tiptronic transmission can switch to manual mode on long downhill stretches for safety; opening the sunroof when the outside temperature is pleasant is comfortable and saves fuel.)
Xining to Shanghai, by plane.
Delingha, Dachaidan, Dunhuang, Zhangye are important supply stations.
Heimahe, Delingha, Dachaidan, Dunhuang – this is the order of the itinerary and also the order of decreasing prices. Dunhuang has very low prices.
Refuel when the fuel level is below half; the distances in the Northwest are really great.
Don't run out of water in the car; keep a small amount of dry food.
Lamb, lamb, and more lamb...
Hand-grabbed lamb has a strong mutton flavor, while roasted lamb is much milder.
The roasted lamb in Qinghai and Gansu are different; Qinghai's is moister, Gansu's is drier. I prefer Gansu's roasted lamb, similar to the Xinjiang-style roasted lamb often eaten in Shanghai. Dunhuang's roasted lamb is very delicious, and milk is also cheap.
Qinghai has a plateau climate, with large temperature differences between day and night and low average temperatures. High altitude makes it easy to get altitude sickness. According to many people's advice, don't shower or wash your hair in the first few days, and avoid vigorous exercise. Heimahe is the first place where altitude sickness was obvious; the prices at small shops are high, but the glucose drinks in the shops seemed to relieve my altitude sickness.
Gansu's altitude is lower, generally no altitude sickness. Dunhuang and Jiayuguan have arid climates, with high temperatures and low humidity. East of Zhangye is milder.
Many ethnic minority compatriots in Qinghai, sincere.
The Hexi Corridor has always been a main part of Han culture, enthusiastic.
Questions that might be asked,
1. Why did you go to Emerald Lake twice?
Because the scenery is very beautiful, and it's free, you can drive around inside casually...
2. Why did you go to Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring twice?
Actually, we went three consecutive days, including the day of taking wedding photos. The ticket for Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring is valid for three days, as long as you scan your face when exiting on the first day. It gets dark very late in Dunhuang, so we just went for a stroll when we had nothing to do at night...
3. Favorite scenic spots?
Dachaidan Yadan Devil City, Dunhuang Mogao Caves, Mingsha Mountain Crescent Spring, Zhangye Colorful Danxia, and the scenery along the entire route.
4. Why did you go to Alxa Right Banner one day? Is there anything fun?
We were on the road and found it was very close to Inner Mongolia, so we drove over to take a look and experience what's different in Inner Mongolia. It wasn't a planned stop. We went to a Mongolian restaurant for dinner, and the flavors were indeed very different.
5. Are there any itinerary optimizations?
On the second day of play, you should go directly to Dachaidan, which can free up more time for the third day. The scenery on the third day is very beautiful.
