Datong Travel
As the second largest city in Shanxi Province, Datong is located in the north of the Shanxi province of China with the vast expanses of the Loess Plateau in the southwest, Inner Mongolia in the north and Hebei Province in the east, covering a total area of 14,176 square kilometers with the urban area of 2,080 square kilometers. The even altitude of Datong City is 1,000 to 1,500 meters with the top peak of 2,420 meters. It is also the junction of Jing-Bao railway (from Beijing railway to Baotou railway) and Da-Qin railway (from Datong to Qinhuangdao of Shandong Province). Datong administers 11 county-level divisions, including 4 districts and 7counties, namely: Cheng District, Nanjiao District, Xinrong District, Kuang District; Datong County, Tianzhen County, Lingqiu County, Zuoyun County, Yanggao County, Hunyuan County, Guangling County. Datong has been a multi-ethnic region with a tota... Datong Overview
Datong Attractions
As an ancient city with more than 2,300-year history, Datong is abundant in precious historical and cultural relics in the forms of ancient architectures and ancient remains such as grottoes, temples, pagodas and museums as well as marvelous natural sceneries. Datong Attractions
- Yungang Grottoes: As the best-known historical relics in Datong City, Yungang Grottoes is 16 kilometers (10 miles) in the west suburb of Datong City in Shanxi Province of China, extending 1 kilometer from west to east, which is rich in contents and stately in style. There are 45 main grottoes with 252 niches of different sizes, including more than 51,000 statues of different sizes and shapes, representing the outstanding Buddhist grotto arts of ancient China in the 5th to 6th century. Now it is considered as: “One of the Four Grotto Collections in China” together with Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang of He’nan Province, Maijishan Grottoes in Tianshui of Gansu Province and Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang City of Gansu Province.
- Huayan Monastery : As an important monastery of-Avatamsaka Sect, Huayan Monastery is located in the west of Datong City, built in the Liao Dynasty (907 A.D.-1,125 A.D.) according to the classic Buddhism sutra-Avatamsaka Sutra, and it was destroyed in the war in 1,122 A.D. during the Liao Dynasty (907 A.D.-1,125 A.D.) and rebuilt in 1,140 A.D. in the Jin Dynasty (1,115 A.D.-1,234 A.D.) in the Liao architectural style, which actually can be divided into the Upper Huayan Monastery and the Lower Huayan Monastery with a door between them.
- Hanging Monastery: Located on the west cliff of Jinlong Vallay at the foot of Heng Mountain as the key culture relics under state protection, the Hanging Monastery is 65 kilometers (40 miles) from Datong City center, which is the only unique existing Monastery that combines the Confucianism, the Taoism and the Buddhism as one, with the statues of Confucius, Lao-tzu, a Chinese philosopher in the Spring and Autumn Period (770 B.C.-476 B.C.), and Buddha Sakyamuni placed in the same temple.
Datong Restaurants
There are many first-rate restaurants in Datong City, which are good value for money. If you want to find even cheaper food options, street venders are the best choice for you. Now here are some Chinese and western restaurants just for your references in Datong City. Datong Restaurants
- Yonghe Hongqi Gourmet Food Restaurant: Yonghe Hongqi Gourmet Food Restaurant is famous for its low price and first-rate service as well as authentic Shanxi Food. The specialties in the restaurant are mutton-chops and donkey-meat as well as Yungang Beers.
- Xiangdu Gourmet Food Restaurant : Xiangdu Gourmet Food Restaurant is a very ideal place for get-together, mainly operating Sichuan Dishes and Hu’nan Dishes as well as the local dishes.
- Tonglelou Hotpot Restaurant: Tonglelou Hotpot Restaurant is recommended for its elegant atmosphere, delicious food and its reasonable price with the specialties such as Spicy Donkey Meat Hotpot and the Pork Chop with Peas.
Datong Food
Datong food plays an influential role in Chinese cuisine, there are many delicate and delicious foods in Datong, most of which are bit salty and oily and which are based on the wheaten food. These are the food that you should have a try, for example: the Crisp Soybeans, the Pork-Chop with Peas, the Naked Oats Noodles, the Mutton Chop, the Rabbit head, the Pea Noodles, the vermicelli soup, Yingzhou Cattle Waist and the Instant-Boiled Lamb, which are in the authentically local flavor. Datong Food
Datong Shopping
As the collecting and distributing center of commodities in Shanxi Province, Hebei Province and Inner Mongolia, the shopping centers in Datong City are very attractive and fascinating as its culture relics. There are plenty of the local specialties and some souvenirs which will catch tourists’ eyes, for example: the Wool Carpets, Bronze-Ware for Chafing Dishes, Yungang Juanren, and the Colored Porcelain. Datong Shopping
- Walking Street: The main walking streets in Datong City are mainly concentrated on Daxi Avenue, Sipai Lou and Xiaonan Avenue, where there are the most famous and biggest department stores, shopping malls, supermarkets and mansions such as Zhongxing Mall, the Oriental Mansion and Huafeng Mansion. The Commodities here are not only cheap, but also of high quality if you bargain with the owners, so you can purchase lots of commodities at reasonable price here as you wish.
- Department Store: Most convenient department store in Datong.
- Supermarket: Here are some supermarkets for your reference.
Datong Weather
Datong has continental monsoonal climate in the North Temperate Zone with the annual average temperature of 5.5°C. The climate in Datong is very distinctive with four seasons because it is located on the vast areas of the Loess Plateau: windy and warm in spring, hot and dry in summer, cool in autumn and cold and dry in winter. Datong Weather
Datong Transportation
The transportation in Datong is very modern and convenient. The visitors can get there by air, by train or by long-distance buses from Datong to the major Cities in China. You can get to the scenic spots of Datong easily by inner- city buses and taxis, and you can go almost every corner of the city with the comprehensive transportation facilities. Datong Transportation
- Railway: As the transportation hub in Shanxi Province, Datong Railway Station is located on North Xinjian Road, which connects Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei Provnice, Shanxi Provnice, and Inner Mongolia, and there are 5 electrified railways intersecting in Datong.
- City Transportation: The public buses in Datong City can almost reach all the corners of the city as well as some distant suburban areas, so you can take a bus to the scenic spots in Datong City directly. Taking taxi is also very convenient in Datong. Price is CNY 6 for the first 3 kilometers and the price will be CNY 1.2 per one kilometer from 7: 00 to 22:00.
- Air: Datong Airport is located in the north of Beijiazao Town in Datong County, which is about 15 kilometers away from the Datong City center. There are direct flights available from Dongtong Airport to the major cities throughout China, including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
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