Our one-day Xian itinerary looks better on paper than in practice. Flying in and out of the former capital city of China on the same day left no room for error and gave us very limited time.
Our initial planning was based purely on our desire to see the army of the Terracotta Warriors of the Qin Dynasty. We did little other research and didn’t realize just how many fascinating things there are to see in Xian, therefore simply didn’t give ourselves enough time here.
(Note: Spelling the city name either Xi’an or Xian is correct.)
Located on the eastern end of the ancient Silk Road, Xi’an was the capital of China throughout 13 dynasties
Our Xian itinerary allowed for the three highlights that we pre-selected: the ancient city wall, the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, and the army of the Terracotta Warriors of the Qin Dynasty. To have enough time to see these highlights, we needed a very early flight, requiring an extremely early wake-up. As a result, we were tired throughout our long day.
While it worked out, the rushed one-day Xian itinerary below is not optimal. More importantly, we couldn’t have done it on our own. The key to our success was our guide. See details below.
Top things to do in a Xian itinerary
With 3000 years of history, there is plenty to see and do in Xian. In our opinion, the top three, the ones we did see are:
- Ancient city wall
- Giant Wild Goose Pagoda
- Terracotta Warriors
Sites we missed by having only one day in Xian
- The Bell Tower: Standing 36 meters (118 feet) tall, the wooden bell tower is the largest and best-preserved of its kind in China.
- Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum: resting place of the first Qin emperor (the terracotta army are in part of the burial grounds).
- Shaanxi History Museum: Opened in the early 1990s, it is the first modern national museum.
- Great Mosque: Built in the 8th century, it is a blend of Chinese and Islamic architecture.
Xian itinerary first stop: city wall
Built during the Ming Dynasty (in 1378), the ancient city wall stands 12 meters high. The wall’s wide path (12-14 meters across) makes it perfect for walking or cycling. Down on the ground, traffic flows through the city gates.
We walked a small portion of the wall’s 13.7-kilometre track, passing several of its 98 ramparts. Fog covered the city the day we visited, so our views were not too impressive, but I imagine the view from the wall is lovely on a sunny day.
Xian itinerary second stop: Giant Wild Goose Pagoda
The well-preserved Giant Wild Goose Pagoda (also called Big Goose Pagoda) is 64m tall. A Buddhist pagoda built in 652 AD during the Tang Dynasty, it has had multiple rebuilds and repairs throughout history. Built initially to house and study Buddhist materials brought from India and transported along the Silk Road.
It is a holy place for Buddhists inside the Da Ci’en Temple complex. Recognized by UNESCO as part of the Silk Roads Programme.
Xian itinerary final stop: Terracotta Warriors
The highlight of our day was seeing the terracotta warriors. More than 8000 hand-moulded sculptures represent the armies of the first emperor of China (Qin Shi Huang). Each life-sized statue is unique.
They were built 2000 years ago to be buried in the mausoleum with the emperor’s body to guide him into the next life.
The rediscovery of the site in 1974 happened by accident. Digging for a well, a farmer came upon one statue, which led the archaeologists to discover rows of terracotta warriors and their horses.
Several years later, they were open to the public. Today they are a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Honestly, words can’t define the flood of emotions on seeing the craftsmanship that went into so many individually carved warriors. If you look at some of the close-up images, you will notice that each warrior has a unique face. The army stands ready to lead the emperor to the next life.
Interestingly, many of the warriors were in ruins when discovered. According to our guide, the men who built the warriors also destroyed them in retaliation for having been forced to build them.
Finding a private guide for Xian
Throughout China (and much of the world), we have successfully used private guides. When we can, we book private guides here, as we can choose our specific guide prior to travel and we have flexibility over what we see and do.
In general, when choosing your guide, our top recommendations are to check their language ability, read the tour options to see if they do the kinds of things you like, read the specific guide’s reviews, and then make contact before you hire them. In addition, if you are trying to fly in and out in a day as we did, be sure your guide has a vehicle that can hide your luggage for the day.
Without a guide, doing Xian in a day would have failed. Reserve your private guide here.
Book your China trip: Logistical tips
- Flights: we use Expedia for the best and cheapest flight options.
- Accommodations: we use Booking.com (hotels) or Hostelworld (budget).
- Travel Insurance: while not required, we always opt for travel insurance and start at InsureMyTrip to compare coverage plans..
- VPN: Here’s a list of the top 7 VPNs that work in China.
Before you book your trip
Check out our travel resources page for the companies we use when you travel. We believe them to be the best in each category. You can’t go wrong using them on your trip too.
Travel Tuesday
Amazing to see those layers of history in some of your shots, Rhonda. Fantastic photos and the terracotta army is just amazing, isn’t it?
Rhonda Albom
So amazing. I could have stood there for hours admiring the faces and craftsmanship to create them.
Jill
I saw the traveling exhibit of the warriors at Atlanta’s High Museum a few years back. I wasn’t expected to be as moved by it as I was or think it was so incredible. And it was only about 6 of the warriors. I would love to see this in person and visit Xian.
Rhonda Albom
I don’t think the travelling exhibit made it to New Zealand. I hope you get to see the entire exhibit someday.
Rajlakshmi
the architecture looks stunning!! I hope I get to see this in real. Beautiful collection of photos
Rhonda Albom
Plan to spend more time in Xi’an than we did, if you can.
Paul F. Pietrangelo
WOW, how amazing about the Terracotta Warriors. My friends Al & Meilin , she’s Chinese and she told us last night that they were going back at the end of the month to China. This might be Al’s last time to visit. Al has been in very poor health so she wanted him to visit China for the last time and Meilin could visit her relatives. See ya Rhonda.
Cruisin Paul
Rhonda Albom
The size of the site that houses the Terracotta warriors is amazing. It’s larger than an airplane hanger for jumbo jets.
Helena
The pictures are beautiful… I felt like I was there.
Rhonda Albom
If you are able, do travel to China. I loved the experience.
Luci
Really great photography. I’ve been wanting to visit China, it seems like a beautiful country. Your pictures are really great.
indah nuria Savitri
Can you believe it..I haven’t been to China! I have wanted to come down here but haven’t got a chance. Great to see all your photos and stories!
Rhonda Albom
It is worth a visit. There is so much to see.
Malini
What an incredible trip! The photos are stunning.
Rhonda Albom
It was amazing but a bit too quick.
keerthi vydyula
Wow! The pictures are stunning. I haven’t seen anything like this before… I loved the image of terracotta warriors and the story behind it.
Rhonda Albom
We found it all to be fascinating.
melody pittman
Rhonda, you have such fascinating travels! I love seeing your posts. THis is definitely on my bucket list!
Rhonda Albom
We do our best to get to interesting places. And it was on my bucket list too.
Kate
Wow, the terracotta warriors must be so incredible to see in person… I can only imagine based on how impressive it looks in your photos here. Thanks for sharing!
Rhonda Albom
Yes, it is a surreal experience to stand there and look out over the faces of the army, and then to think about how old they are, and that they were all made to go into a tomb, never to be shared with the world.
Priya Vin
Beautiful pictures, thanks for taking us on this virtual journey. We have only seen the replicas in Epcot at Disney.
Rhonda Albom
I didn’t even know there were replicas in Epcot.
Patrick Weseman
Holy cow, your pictures are just so beautiful. Thanks for sharing them. It would be breathtaking to go there.
Grant
That is amazing… love the juxtaposition of old and new.
Rhonda Albom
We found that just about everywhere we travelled in China.
Alissa Apel
WOW! The building is so much more detailed then they are here. Both the inside and the outside are amazing! So artistic!
Rhonda Albom
They are also more detailed than the modern building in China.
Lois Alter Mark
Your photos are gorgeous. I haven’t visited China yet but would love to see all of this in person. There’s so much fascinating history here.
Rhonda Albom
Yes, it’s a city loaded with history in the center of a country loaded with history.
carrie @ frugal foodie mama
Such a great itinerary! 🙂 I have always wanted to see in the Terracotta Warriors in person.
Rhonda Albom
I hope you get there. They are worth the effort.
Amanda
Amazing history and culture but I’m not sure about the health implications of visiting China, how did you find the air quality?
Rhonda Albom
We were only in China for two weeks, and it was only Beijing that was really bad. Some of the other cities we visited probably had cleaner air than Los Angeles.
Louann Kristy
Wow you are incredibly lucky to be able to see the Terracotta Army! Amazing photos and what an experience just being there. 🙂
Thanks for sharing !!
I’ve only ever seen it on TV and thought it to be so fascinating.
Rhonda Albom
I do feel lucky. It was a highlight of our China travel.
Handmade Jewelry Haven Blog
I have been lucky enough to see a few of the soldiers on loan at our local museum. One day I hope to see them in their entirety.
How beautiful it must have been.
Thanks for sharing!
– Lisa
Rhonda Albom
The massiveness of the army all together is really impressive.
Britt Mont
Wow, the Xian looks like an amazing city to visit. I would love to visit the warriors, its fascinating to see how resources were used in the past years.
Britt Mont
Rhonda Albom
The terracotta warriors were a bucket list item for me.
Tam Warner Minton
Asia appeals to me greatly…I love these photos, especially of Kuan Yin and Buddha.
Rhonda Albom
We really enjoyed our visit to China.
Sandee
I would love to see the warriors. Impressive.
The smog. Yikes you can see the smog.
Have a fabulous day. ☺
Rhonda Albom
LOL – Looking at the photos I was thinking fog, but I bet you are correct.
Bill
Stunning I saw some examples in Chicago many years ago and if there is one place I’d love to visit it’s the terracotta army. Totally amazing
Rhonda Albom
I hope you get there some day.
Merlinda Little
Amazing place and what rich culture on display. I also notice how the old and the new lives harmoniously here.
Rhonda Albom
Very true, the city moves effortlessly between the two.
Hilary Melton-Butcher
Hi Rhonda – as I said in 2014 – they are extraordinary and I’d love to visit one day … cheers Hilary
Rhonda Albom
There are many more photos here now (only one of these was in the original post) so I hope you got a better feel for the city. We had such limited internet when we travelled.
Nancy
Amazing, Rhonda! And your photography captures things wonderfully – they gave me a sense of the place.
Rhonda Albom
That is my goal, to capture the essence of a destination.
Alex J. Cavanaugh
Smart to use wires to protect the statues.
Seeing the Terracotta Warriors would be amazing.
Rhonda Albom
We saw this a lot in Beijing also, at the Summer Palace and the Forbidden City. A lightning strike would cause a fire, and it would be such a devastating loss.
Marie
Your photos are amazing and although you were only there for a short time you made the most of every minute.
Rhonda Albom
Yes, that is usually our goal, except on our rest days.
Bob
I picked up a replica as well, on my way out after the 2008 Olympics. I stare at it for a few seconds every day, too. 🙂
Rhonda Albom
We travel with carry-on luggage, so very limited souvenirs. We opted for tiny replicas that stand about 3cm tall.
Lady Fi
Fabulous shots of the amazing architecture.
Julie
These are absolutely incredible! They even outnumber Alex’s clones!
Rosey
It does look amazing. I love that there are so many and they were all different. I bet I could stay in there for hours looking around. Awesome share.
Lexa Cain
I’ve only seen this in pictures, but I think it’s AWESOME!! I can’t imagine what it must look like up close. It must be so impressive! Great post, love the pics! 🙂
Rhonda Albom
All three sites were pretty awesome, and huge. It’s the magnitude that really doesn’t come through until you are standing on the wall, or in the museum or under the pagoda.
Shere
There are a lot of them!!! I thought I saw a lot in Vietnam, but it’s not comparable with these ones
posh
That is so amazing to actually see that in person.
tara tyler
i’ve always loved those warriors – i imagine how long it took to make them and how intimidating they would be to an enemy at that time. i bet it was extrememly cool to see them in person!
hope things are going well for you!
happy hump day!
Kiks
wow..that is amazing..good on you 🙂
Rajlakshmi
wow haven’t seen anything like this before… beautiful captures
Lady Lilith
Looks amazing. How they created 6000 different warriors must have taken a lot of talent.
Michele {Malaysian Meanders}
We went to visit the Terracotta Warriors, too, a few months ago. Aren’t they magnificent?!
Sukhmandir Kaur
It’s utterly amazing! I’ve hear each one is unique and them man who discovered them looked just like one of them.
Rhonda Albom
I hadn’t heard that the man who discovered them looked like one of them. I would imagine with 8000 everyone could find at least one with resemblance, but a doppelganger would be very cool.
Claudia
They really must be amazing – lucky you to be able to visit. And, yes, of course they are on my bucket list, like so many other things, too 🙂
Rhonda Albom
I only wish we had more time to explore the city. The fly in, fly out worked fine in concept but was too tight.
Ai Sakura
Xi’an is on my bucket list!
Alissa Apel
That’s so neat! I love the photos you captured of them in a group! I’m sure the room felt full of people.
Rhonda Albom
Actually, the room is so big, it didn’t feel crowded. Even the spectators’ areas had plenty of space.
L. Diane Wolfe
Wow, there are thousands of them!
Hilary
Hi Rhonda .. I can somewhat imagine what just one of the galleries might be like – but I saw the Exhibition at the British Museum, where they had a few different statues exhibited, some of the horses, the carriages and quite a few other items .. with some information panels about life then etc …
Somewhere I hope I’ve got some of the info .. but it was when my mother was ill, so possibly it’s gone awol … I’m glad I’ve seen the ones at the Brit Museum as I doubt I’ll get to those in China ..
Incredible aren’t they .. cheers Hilary
Rhonda Albom
I am glad they take pieces of the exhibit around the world so everyone can see it.
Susan
Wow, they are all huge. I didn’t realize that it was so big.
I’ve not seen these for real and will never travel to China, so no I won’t ever be seeing this.
Rhonda Albom
Honestly, I think the wall surprised me the most, as it was the one of the three I had done the least research on before arriving.
steve
That’s amazing I have never seen this before
Joycelyn
I didn’t realize there were so many statues in the exhibit. How cool!
Andy
I’ve seen a replica of it!