XA20: Half Day Xi'an City Wall Walking or Cycling from South Gate

Xi’an, the former “Chang’an”, was the capital of up to thirteen dynasties in China’s history, and this identity has left it many ancient sites, like the City Wall you are visiting today. Standing amidst a myriad of modern buildings, this oldest and best-preserved City Wall in China has long been a widely admired landmark for both visitors to Xian and locals. Xi’an City Wall was first built in the Sui and Tang Dynasties (581 - 907) to defend the imperial city within, and after expansion and repair through several dynasties until the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644), it finally became what you see today. 

In the morning, your guide will meet you at your downtown hotel and escort you to take a metro or a public bus to the South Gate, where to start your Xi’an City Wall tour itinerary. The guide will buy you the entrance tickets and lead you to climb to the top of the City Wall. Standing on the Wall, you can look to the inside to admire ancient or archaistic architectural complexes with black bricks, grey tiles and angled cornices, and to the outside to find a forest of modern buildings interspersed with skyscrapers.
 

★ Cycling Adventure along City Wall
Bicycle rental is available on the City Wall, and if you are interested, your guide could help you to rent one at your own expense. On the wall there is no street obstruction, no cars and with few people, so it is quite spacious for riding. Don't be hurry, take your tour leisurely and stop to drink water, take photos and rest for a moment at every corner tower. In this way you can do the whole journey approximately in 2 hours. Of course, if you don't want to ride the whole way, it is ok to just experience a part of it.

Once up from the South Gate, you will find a bike rental point, but if you want to take a leisurely walk first, you can also rent one at the West Gate, East Gate or North Gate. Of course you can return the bike at any of these points. Service hours at the South Gate are from 8:00 to 22:00, while the other three gates are from 8:15 to 19:00. Rental price for a solo bike is CNY 45 for 3 hours, while for a tandem is CNY 90 for 3 hours. Besides, the deposit of CNY 200 per bike is required. Generally, 2 hours are enough to cycle around the Wall, but in case you run out of time, the overtime charge is CNY 5 every 10 minutes per solo bike and CNY10 every 10 minutes per tandem.

► Friendly Tips:
1. You own bike is not allowed to be brought onto the wall. Bicycles can only be rented from the bike rental point at any of the four gates mentioned above.
2. Please keep the rental deposit slip well, as it is needed to get your deposit back when you return the bike.
3. Some parts of the road on the Wall are not smooth enough and you may pass by a few walkers, so for safety, please do not ride too fast.
4. Children under 10 years old and adults over 65 years old are not allowed to cycle on the wall. Walking or sightseeing battery cars are optional for these ages.

Finishing the walking or cycling tour, you will be escorted back to your hotel by public transport.

 Following is the detailed introduction to the gates of Xi’an City Wall. Prepare yourself with it to get the most of your tour:

South Gate (Yongning Gate)
The Yongning Gate, which means the gate of eternal peace, is the most famous and time-honored among all eighteen gates of the Wall and was the one to greet distinguished guests in the past dynasties. Its name is derived from a folklore: the god of fire is located right in the south, so naming the gate Yongning was to pray that he could spare people fire disasters and let them be at peace forever. You will pass through a 1,100-year-old drawbridge to enter the gate.

South Gate to Zhuque Gate
Once on the Wall, you get to observe up close gate towers, battlements with numerous crenels on both sides of the wide walkway, corner towers as well as watchtowers on platforms extended from the wall. The extensions are also intriguingly called “horse-face”, because they are just like the protruding face of the horse. The equidistant interval between each two horse-faces was not decided by accident, but by the fact that half the interval was the effective range of bow and crossbow. Go west and you will reach the Zhuque Gate, the original south gate of the City Wall in the Sui and Tang Dynasties as Zhuque, a bird-like divine creature in Chinese mythology, symbolizes the southern direction. The emperors usually held important ceremonies here, and it was here that the renowned Monk Xuan Zang was warmly greeted by proxies of the Tang emperor at his time when he returned to Chang'an (the ancient name for Xi’an) after his arduous seventeen-year pilgrimage to India. Also according to historical materials, Japan's first imperial court in Nara was modeled after Chang'an and its main entrance was a replica of Zhuque Gate, so you can imagine how famous and grand the gate once was.

Zhuque Gate to Wumu Gate
In further west is the Wumu Gate (Small South Gate). Here you can reminisce about the story of Mr. Jin Wumu, which its name derives from, a revolutionary hero of China in the past. If you hike along the wall in the morning, look down from the wall and you might see that busy early morning market, an indispensable part of the everyday local life.

Wumu Gate to Hanguang Gate
As you continue to the southwest corner, you will pass Hanguang Gate, the best-preserved site of the capital Chang'an of the Sui and Tang Dynasties. Get down to the Hanguang Gate Site Museum to explore wall ruins, relics, and illustrations of the inner structure and the history of the City Wall. Sometimes you may come across free temporary exhibitions in a side hall here, usually in the themes of Chinese art.

Hanguang Gate to Southwest Corner (Best Part)
On the outside fringe of the City Wall, there is a recreational green belt known as the City Wall Park. Of all these parks, West Park, which extends from the southwest corner of the wall to the northwest corner, is the largest, with fitness facilities, lush trees and wide lawns. Overlook the locals doing morning exercises, taking a leisurely walk with their pet birds, playing table tennis, singing Shaanxi Opera, or just basking in the sun.

Southwest Corner to West Gate (Anding Gate)
Go north from the southwest corner, and you will get to the West Gate, where there are three well-preserved gate towers, Zhalou, Jianlou and Zhenglou. To the east of the Zhenglou tower, you can see a series of Tang-style buildings that stretch out all the way to one of Xian’s famous landmark, the Bell Tower. You can climb to a lookout on the north of the tower to find a better view of the imposing wall.

West Gate to Yuxiang Gate
The next stop is Yuxiang Gate, which was opened in memory of Feng Yuxiang, the great general who saved Xi'an in 1926 after the city had been under siege for more than eight months. Today a series of sculptures that depict Zhang Qian's Diplomatic Mission to the Western Regions standing in the square below the wall will also capture your attention. You can also take a peek inside the enclosure, where one of the busiest east-west traffic arteries lies.

Yuxiang Gate to Northwest Corner
Right beneath and inside the northwest corner of the wall is the only Tibetan Buddhist temple in Xian, the Guangren Temple, which was built in 1703 when Kangxi, the fourth emperor of the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911), came to Chang'an. From then on, it played a significant role in promoting national solidarity. With eight imposing white pagodas that celebrate the merits of Sakyamuni outside the gate, stately buildings, lush vegetation, the temple today is a quiet world in the bustling city.

Northwest Corner to Shangwu Gate
Walk eastward to the Shangwu Gate (Small North Gate), inside which you can spot a street called Xiwuyuan, which, as the name implies, was a place in the past to practice martial arts. The Shaanxi military and Kung Fu examinations were held in Xiwuyuan during the Sui and Tang Dynasties. It was also the parade ground for military training during the Qing Dynasty.

East Gate

Ancient Cultural Street of Shuyuanmen

Shangwu Gate to North Gate (Anyuan Gate)
Further east, you will see the Anyuan Gate, whose name implied that the imperial court hoped all its conciliatory approaches towards the minorities on the north frontier would lead to peace. When the 1911 Revolution broke out, the original gate towers, where the Qing Army had ammunition stored, were destroyed in the heavy fighting, and the current one was restored in 1983. So far, you’ve completed half the distance of your city wall hike.

Anyuan Gate - Shangde Gate - Jiefang Gate - Shangjian Gate - Shangqin Gate
On your way eastward, you will pass the Shangde Gate, Jiefang Gate, Shangjian Gate and Shangqin Gate. These four gates all offers busy traffic gateways leading to the Xi'an Railway Station. Besides, Shangde Gate, Shangjian Gate, Shangqin Gate and Shangwu Gate, their names all evince the virtues of Confucian ethics.

Shangqin Gate - Northeast Corner -Chaoyang Gate
After turning the corner, you will reach the Chaoyang Gate. Facing towards the sun, this gate is the first one kissed by sun rays every day, so that’s where it gets its name.

Chaoyang Gate to Zhongshan Gate
Continue your way to Zhongshan Gate (Small East Gate), opened in honor of Dr. Sun Yat Sen, the greatest revolutionary forerunner of modern China. Inside it there is a thriving antiques market.

Zhongshan Gate to East Gate (Changle Gate)
The Changle Gate, literally the gate of eternal joy, awaits you ahead. As Nanjing, the Ming capital, was east of Xian, this gate was named to proclaim the wish that the Ming Emperors desired their government to endure forever at ease. In October of 1643, Li Zicheng led his peasant rebellion force and stormed their way into the inner city from this gate. When he saw the horizontal tablet on the gate, he said to his army “what a miserable life for people if the emperor wants eternal joy”, so they indignantly burnt up the gate. Today you can see old defensive facilities like cannons and ballista rebuilt in the Qing dynasty there.

Changle Gate - Southeast Corner - Jianguo Gate
Go around the southeast corner and move westward to arrive at the Jianguo Gate, which was opened to mark that great historic event, the founding of PRC.

Jianguo Gate to Heping Gate
While enjoying the city views, you will see the Heping Gate. The name showed the war-weary Chinese people's deep desire for peace. Cast your eyes south to the end of the road to spot the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda.

Heping Gate to Wenchang Gate
The next stop is Wenchang Gate. There is a tower honoring the god of literature, the only construction that has nothing to do with military defense. Chinese scholars and students believe that the god of literature could bless them to get good grades in examinations and then a good job, so they always worshipped the god for inspiration and academic help before examinations.

Wenchang Gate to South Gate (Yongning Gate)

Walking further west to your starting point, the South Gate. At this moment, you will feel a strong sense of accomplishment after finishing this 14-kilometer hike. Congratulations!