Private Day Trip to Binxian Great Buddha Temple, Qianling Mausoleum from Xi'an

Tour Highlights
• Admire Binxian Great Buddha Temple, an exceptional Tang Dynasty rock carvings listed as a World Heritage Site.
• Visit Qianling Mausoleum where China's only empress regnant, Wu Zetian was buried with her husband Gaozong.

About This Tour
• Departure: Daily departing from Xi'an.
• Tour Duration: Approximately 10 hours.
• Pickup Time: Between 07:00 and 10:00, choose a departure time most suitable for you.
• Pickup & Drop-off Place: Your accommodation in Xi'an
• Advice on Meals: Lunch is not included in this tour. We recommend having a substantial breakfast and bringing snacks in case you get hungry while sightseeing. If you'd like to experience authentic local cuisine for lunch, feel free to inform your guide, who will be happy to assist.

Tour Itinerary at a Glance
• Pickup from your accommodation in Xi'an
• Drive to Binxian Great Buddha Temple (approximately 150km, 2 hours)
• Visit Binxian Great Buddha Temple (1 hour)
• Drive to Qianling Mausoleum (about 1 hour)
• Visit Qianling Mausoleum (1 hour)
• Visit the Tomb of Princess Yongtai (30 minutes)
• Transfer back to your accommodation in Xi'an

Tailor This Itinerary to Meet Your Needs 
• If you want to customize this itinerary, contact us via WhatsApp (+86 139 1083 0737) or email (info@GrandChinaTravel.com). We'll create a tailor-made tour package just for you.

Price Remark
• Prices are not valid during National Day (Oct 1-7), Chinese New Year, and Labor Day (May 1-5).

Price Inclusions
• Professional English language speaking tour guide.
• Air-conditioned vehicle with an experienced driver.
• Admission tickets to sightseeing places.
• All government taxes.

Price Exclusions
• Hotel accommodation.
• Your personal expenses.
• Meals are excluded allowing you flexibility on menu.
• Travel insurance is not included. Please purchase before your trip to provide for any unforeseen circumstances.
• Gratuities to guide & driver. They are customary and would be of great encouragement and reward for quality service.

Additional Info
• Confirmation will be received at time of booking.
• Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately.
• The itinerary is subject to change due to traffic conditions or bad weather.
• The itinerary is flexible; changes can be made upon written request from travelers.
• IMPORTANT: It is required by the government regulations that travelers must provide their name, gender, nationality, passport number and date of birth to their tour operator upon booking a tour. Failure to do so could result in being denied access or admittance to sites and attractions during sightseeing. When you book this tour, please complete all required fields at checkout. Please bring your passport with you on the tour.

Cancellation Policy
• Cancellations made 24 hours prior to the scheduled departure time will receive a 100% refund.
• Cancellations made within 24 hours of the tour's start time or after the tour begins are non-refundable.
• Cancellation request will be confirmed within 2-5 business days, with refunds issued within 14 working days.

Know Before You Go
• Keep your passport with you throughout the tour; it may be needed to buy entrance tickets.
• Pickup time, guide's name, and contact information will be confirmed via WhatsApp or email.
• Your guide will be at the meeting point, holding a GoGrandChina sign with your name.
• Meals are not included; please feel free to ask your guide for recommendations.
• If you book an Airbnb, please note that door-to-door pickup and drop-off might not be provided.
• There's a 20-minute grace period for waiting. Failure to show up will result in tour cancellation & no refund.

Hotel Pickup, Transfer to Binxian Great Buddha Temple
Your private guide will be holding GoGrandChina pick-up sign and waiting for you in your hotel lobby (or other appointed meeting place) at the appointed time. You will be transferred to Binxian Great Buddha Temple by a comfortable air-conditioned private vehicle. Binxian Great Buddha Temple is located approximately 150km northwest of Xian. The ride is about two hours.

Visit Binxian Great Buddha Temple
Binxian Great Buddha Temple is a UNECO world heritage site. There are more than 130 caves with over 1980 Buddhist sculptures, carved on the sandstone cliff on the mountains of Jing River Valley. The Great Buddha enshrined is Amitabha, Buddha of the Western Pure Land. It was completed on Nov 13, 628 during the Tang Dynasty. The Amitabha Statue is 20 meters in height with a 13-meter-wide shoulder. The Binxian Great Buddha is an important Buddhist Temple adjacent to Chang’an, capital of Tang Dynasty. With the largest clay sculptured Buddhist figure of Tang Dynasty in Chang’an city and surrounding areas, it embodied the transmission of buddha carving art from Central China and its prevalence in Guanzhong Basin.

Drive to Qianling Mausoleum
It will take about one to drive from Binxian Great Buddha Temple to Qianling Mausoleum

Visit Qianling Mausoleum
Qianling Mausoleum is the only royal tomb in China and in fact the whole world to contain the remains of a royal couple, both of whom once ruled as emperor and empress. Interred within Qianling is the third emperor of the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907), Li Zhi and his wife, China's only woman to rule as empress in her own right, Wu Zetian. More importantly, since Qianling was sealed about 1300 years ago it has remained untouched to this day. Leading into the mausoleum is a spirit way, which is flanked on both sides with stone statues including horses, winged horses, horses with grooms, lions, ostriches, officials, and 61 statues of foreign diplomats representing the actual foreign diplomats who were present at Emperor Gaozong's funeral. Qianling Mausoleum is renowned for its many Tang dynasty stone statues located above ground and the mural paintings adorning the subterranean walls of the tombs. Besides the main tumulus mound and underground tomb of Emperor Gaozong and Wu Zetian, there is a total of 17 smaller attendant tombs. Presently, only five of these attendant tombs have been excavated by archaeologists.

Visit the Tomb of Princess Yongtai
Li Xianhui, known as Princess Yongtai, was the seventh daughter of the Tang Emperor Zhongzong and a granddaughter of Empress Wu Zetian. Empress Wu Zetian heard of remarks that Princess Yongtai supposedly made and had her flogged to death, or alternatively she was made to hang herself. She was originally written to have suffered a traitors death, though this was untrue and merely what the Empress ordered to be recorded. In contrast, the epitaph from her tomb states that she died in childbirth. After Wu Zetian's death in 705, she was recognized posthumously as Princess Yongtai and was then reburied in Xi'an. Princess Yongtai's Tomb was excavated in 1964. It had been robbed in the past, probably soon after the burial, and items in precious materials taken, but the thieves had not bothered with the over 800 pottery tomb figures, and the extensive frescoes were untouched. The robbers had left in a hurry, leaving silver items scattered around, and the corpse of one of their number. The tomb had a flattened pyramid rising 12 metres above ground, and a long sloping entrance tunnel lined with frescoes, leading to an ante-chamber and the tomb chamber itself, 12 metres below ground level with a high domed roof. Most of the contents, including the frescoes, are now in the Shaanxi History Museum.

Transfer Back to Your Hotel
After visiting the Tomb of Princess Yongtai, your private guide and driver will transfer you back to your hotel.