Jan.12th-13th Datong | YunGang Grottoes+Hot Spring Resort Tour

# Deep Tour to Explore China #

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Hanging Temple & Yungang Grottoes

(CETtrip to Datong 2017-10-21)

As the second largest city in Shanxi Province, Datong is situated in the far north, near the border with Inner Mongolia, a 6-hour train ride or 5-hour drive from Beijing. Because of such location, Datong has always been the center city in northern China historically and once as the capital of Northern Wei Dynasty for about 1 century (398-493). 

In the year of 398, Datong was set up as the capital city of Northern Wei Dynasty (386 -557). In 493, Northern Wei Dynasty moved its capital city to Luoyang. The 97-year as a Northern Wei capital has left huge cultural heritage of that time to Datong. 

In a valley at Yungang, there are more than 45 recesses dug into the hills and filled with Buddhist statues of various sizes and shapes, 51,000 altogether, later called Yungang Grottoes ( Cloud Ridge Caves ) listed UNESCO World Heritage in 2001. 

At the foot of Mt.Hengshan, 65 kilometers from downtown Datong City is located Hanging Monastery with over 1500-year history, first built 491 AD. The temple hangs on the west cliff of a hill with over 50 meters above the ground, hence Hanging Monastery. The biggest attraction of Hanging Temple is the fact that the temple includes Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. 

Four hundred years later after Northern Wei Dynasty, Datong was designated as the west capital of Liao Dynasty (916 - 1125). Located in the Yingxian County 75 km south of Datong, Yingxian Wooden Pagoda was first built in 1056 during the Liao Dynasty. It is the oldest and largest wooden Buddhist pagoda in existence in the world. It is admired as one of the "Three Wonders of Pagoda in the world" together with Eiffel Tower in France and leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy. 

In the city center of Datong, there are many historic sites like Huayan Temple, Nine-dragon Wall and Old Datong City Wall with over 1000-year history.

Highlights of this tour

Featuring the world Heritage, Yungang Grottoes is the must-see for Datong Tour, apart from that, the hanging Temple with its unique stunning structure draws tourists attention. And many other scenic spots in Datong all provided for you in this 2-day tour.

• Appreciate over 50,000 various shapes of Buddhist statues in Yungang Grottoes;

• Be marveled at the Hanging Temple stand firmly in the dangerously cliff-side;

• Live in the Nature Hot Spring Resort to relax your travel fatigue；

Trip Overview

The 2-day CLASSIC itinerary will make you not only get the essential parts of Datong city, but also fully enjoy the the nature hot spring at night.

• Day1: Beijing-Datong-Yungang Grottoes-Hot Spring Resort, Live in Hot Spring Resort.

• Day2: Hot Spring Resort-Shanhua Temple-Nine-dragon Wall-Datong City Wall--Beijing 

Note: As the Hanging Temple is closed during the Winter, so this schedule we will have not to visit it.

Basic Tour Information

Activity place: Datong City Shanxi province

Activity date:

• 4th Tour: Jan.12th-13th
  

• 5th Tour: Jan.26th-27th

• 6th Tour: Feb.2nd-3rd

• 7th Tour: Feb.7th-8th

• 8th Tour: Feb.23th-24th

Meeting point 1:Weigongchun subway station, line 4, Exit B 

Meeting time: 6:35am

Leaving time: 6:40 (no waiting)

Meeting point 2: Huixinxijie Nankou Subway Station, Exit B

Meeting time: 7:00am 

Leaving time: 7:05(no waiting)

Meeting point 3: South gate of BLCU

Meeting time: 7:25am

Leaving time: 7:30(no waiting)

Traffic tools: Travelling Bus

Trip Fee:  Round bus fee+Hotel+Hot Spring+Meal+CET Party

• Normal Price: 425RMB

• VIP Price：395RMB/pax  (Click it o join CET VIP)

• Group Price: 395RMB/pax if 3 or more than 3 pax booked seats together! 380RMB if 5 or More than 5 ppl booked together

• Kids Price:295RMB if Children are less than 1.2m and no needs bed.

Participants: Min 15 (if less than 15 participants, this trip will be cancelled)

Booking Hotline: [phone](English & Mandarin) 

Statement:  No changing to other CETtrips or refund within 72 hours of departure.

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How to join our this trip wechat group after you booked?

• If you pay by Alipay: after you finish the payment , then go back to wechat page, wait for a second, you will see our wechat group QR code.

• If you pay by wechat: after you finish the payment, then click "Done"or  完成，then you will see our wechat group QR code.

• If you failed to join in this trip wechat group, please scan the QR code again and you will see our trip leaders contacts, contact him/her to join our activity group.

Statement about the trip fee

What is included in the cost?

• Transportation: Round traveling bus fee from Beijing to Datong and back from Datong to Beijing.

• Meals during this tour: D1 Dinner + D2 Breakfast (Because D1 Lunch time we will visit Yungang , Grottoes, there is no good place for us to have group meal, but we can taste local noodles at the gate. D2 lunch we will visit local food street and will have our chance to taste the local food there by ourselves)

• Hotel: One night in hot spring resort: 2 people share one room, independent washroom.

• Hot Spring Entrance tickets

• Hot Spring Party!!! YOUR Surprise!

• Datong City Wall Entrance tickets

• Nine Dragon Wall Entrance tickets

• Shanhua Temple Entrance tickets
  

• CET guide fee for whole trip

• 2 Days outdoor insurance

What is not included in the cost?

• Entrance tickets of YunGang Grottoes is 125RMB, Students can get discount.

• Entrance tickets of  Hanging Temple  is 30RMB, geting on the temple is 100RMB, students can get discount. (If it is open, then we will visit it)

• Personal expenditures

• Note: We want to have a positive effect everywhere we go, we don’t take commissions or kickbacks, and we don’t take you on detours for shopping.

About the Local Food: Local staple in Datong is mainly noodles and other food made of flour. In addition to the commonly seen Shanxi Noodles, various local snacks may give you a different experience of taste.

• Liangfen (Cool Agar): Liangfen is made of potato flour or Chinese yam flour. It is a bit softer than vermicelli and chewier than common noodles. The liangfen can be blocks as well as strips according to people's liking. Adding in salt, bean sauce, vinegar, chilli oil and some shredded cucumber and caraway, the liangfen tastes much cool and refreshing.

• Shaomai (Pork Dumplings) in Datong is also worth mention. As one of the main dishes in the feast of Datong, Shaomai satisfies people's appetite by its flower-like appearance and strong flavor meat stuffing.

Notes

• Food: We would take most of our meals at local restaurants where we are visiting. Please take some snacks during thetrip as we will spend a lot of time on bus. Bring enough cash because ATM isnot available everywhere at local attractions.

• Things to bring: Passport; Student card orbook;  cash; Waterproof jacket andtrousers; Sturdy shoes, hiking boots if possible; Camera and charger,batteries; Mobile phone, charger; Hayfever medication; Tissues and wipes.

• Please take your student book for this trip. Master and PHD don't work. Our leader will trip to get discount entrancetickets for the group

Full Itinerary

【Day1】Beijing-Datong-Yungang Grottoes-Hot Spring Resort, Live in Hot Spring Resort

Leave south gate of BLCU for Datong city ; it will take us around 5 hours to arrive at Datong City. Then have lunch when we arrive.

Today’s tour starts to visit the famous Yungang Grottoes, The Yungang Grottoes are ancient Chinese Buddhist temple grottoes. They are excellent examples of rock-cut architecture and a famous ancient Buddhist sculptural sites of China. World Cultural Heritage, which hold 53 grottoes with 51,000 statues. The Grottoes are the highlight of your visit to Datong, for it is the treasure of traditional Chinese art that also influenced by Greek and Indian style.

After Yungang Grottoes, we will head back to our hot spring resort to have dinner then lets do our Hot Spring Party at the resort. Stay overnight at the resort.

【Day2】Hot Spring Resort-Shanhua Temple-Nine-dragon Wall-Datong City Wall--Beijing

Get up around 7:20am and the have breakfast, check out and leave to Shanhua Monastery before 8:00

Shanhua Monastery consists of a set of well-preserved buildings of Liao Dynasty (905-1125). Then, continue to have a look at Nine Dragon Screen, the oldest and largest glazed screen in China. The dragons on the wall appear so vivid and marvelous that you can’t imagine they were built over 600 years ago. Later, head for Huayan Temple, a key cultural site from Liao Dynasty, keeps the largest wooden structure of Buddhist temple hall, with elegant mural and scriptures engraved here.

And then we will go to visit Datong City Wall. The local government has done a good job to update and maintain the city wall to allow younger generation to understand history of the city of Datong. The structure was built recently, copying the old wall erected 800 years ago as much as possible. New and old district of Datong can be viewed on top of this wall, showing the drastic difference modernisation can be so powerful and critical for development of a city.

Around 14:30 we will head back to beijing.