Gansu Provincial Museum
Gansu is traversed by the Silk Road, and most travelers will not have enough time to explore all its historic sites. This museum is highly recommended as a way to gain a comprehensive understanding o…
Gansu Provincial Museum, Lanzhou · AI illustration for China Trip
Key facts
- Admission
- Free admission
- Opening hours
- 9:00–17:00 (closed on Mondays)
- Time needed
- 1–3 hours
- Getting there
- Near Gansu Provincial Museum (bus stop)
- Guidebook rating
- 5 / 5
From China Self Guided Travel 2025, page 721. Open in Google Maps
About Gansu Provincial Museum
Gansu is traversed by the Silk Road, and most travelers will not have enough time to explore all its historic sites. This museum is highly recommended as a way to gain a comprehensive understanding of Gansu's history and to view a wide range of cultural relics, including the national treasure “Flying Horse of Gansu” (Galloping Horse Treading on a Swallow).
Frequently asked questions
How much does Gansu Provincial Museum cost?
Admission to Gansu Provincial Museum is Free admission, as listed in the 2025 guidebook. Prices can change; check the official channel before you go.
What are the opening hours of Gansu Provincial Museum?
Gansu Provincial Museum is open 9:00–17:00 (closed on Mondays).
How do I get to Gansu Provincial Museum?
Near Gansu Provincial Museum (bus stop)
How long should I spend at Gansu Provincial Museum?
Plan on 1–3 hours for Gansu Provincial Museum.
Where is Gansu Provincial Museum?
Gansu Provincial Museum is in Lanzhou, Gansu Province, in the Northwest of China.
More places in Lanzhou
Qingcheng Ancient Town
Historically, Qingcheng was a distribution hub for goods such as water-pipe tobacco, with excellent transport links, and merchants from Beijing, Shanxi and Tianjin gathered here. As a result, its architecture combines the luxurious grandeur of Shanxi mansions with the elegant symmetry of Beijing siheyuan courtyard houses. Here, visitors can admire the antique Ming and Qing dynasty residences, see the 10,000-mu lotus fields swaying in the breeze, and listen to the moving Xixiang folk tunes.
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Binglingsi Grottoes
Binglingsi Grottoes were first carved during the Western Qin period of the Sixteen Kingdoms. Today there are 183 caves, 694 carved stone Buddha statues, 82 clay sculptures and 900 square metres of murals. On the cliff wall of Tangshu Cave, the largest cave, ink inscriptions dated to the first year of the Jianhong era (420 CE) survive, the earliest explicitly dated inscription among China's grottoes. The site is divided into the Upper Temple, Donggou and the Lower Temple. The Lower Temple has the most spectacular scenery, and its relief stupas and esoteric Buddhist murals rank alongside those of the Mogao Caves and Maiji Mountain Grottoes.
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White Pagoda Hill Park
Located in the heart of Lanzhou on the north bank of the Yellow River, the hill takes its name from the White Pagoda Temple built on its summit. The pagoda was erected to commemorate a famous Tibetan Sakya lama who was traveling to Mongolia to meet Genghis Khan, but died in Jincheng along the way. On White Pagoda Hill, the “Three Treasures of the Mountain” are said to be an elephant-hide drum, a bronze bell, and a Chinese redbud tree (which later withered and died after its roots dried out). From the summit, you can overlook the cityscape of Lanzhou and the Yellow River Iron Bridge.
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Zhongshan Bridge (Yellow River Iron Bridge)
Also known as Zhongshan Bridge, this was the first true bridge over the Yellow River in history. Its predecessor was a Ming Dynasty pontoon bridge, in which 24 large boats were linked together, with four “general pillars” on the banks to secure the cables. Completed in 1909 by the Qing government at a cost of several hundred thousand taels of silver, the bridge was renamed in 1928 in honor of Dr. Sun Yat-sen. Today, the Yellow River Iron Bridge has been converted into a pedestrian bridge. Standing on it, you can gaze at the White Pagoda rising above White Pagoda Hill in the distance, or look down to watch the “Mother River” flowing beneath you. It is one of the highlights of Lanzhou.
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Xiguan Mosque
Xiguan Mosque, known locally as the “Guest Mosque” (Kesi), was first built during the Hongwu or Yongle reign of the Ming dynasty. The mosque is majestic and solemn, with a distinctive Islamic style. Its compound includes the main prayer hall, a lecture hall and other buildings, and the prayer hall can hold more than 3,000 people. Every year, over a hundred foreign Muslims visit and pray here. Not far north of Xiguan Mosque, on the west side of Zhongshan Road, is Qiaomen Mosque, a gathering place for local Muslim worshippers.
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Waterwheel Expo Park
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