Qinghai–Gansu Grand Loop

8-Day Qinghai–Gansu Grand Loop Tour

Day 1 — Arrival in Lanzhou

• 10:00 AM — Free time. Fly to Lanzhou/Xining, where you'll be greeted by a staff member holding a welcome sign and transferred directly to the city. Check in to the hotel and rest after arrival.
• 3:00 PM — Yellow River Tower, Lanzhou (optional, go on your own). A scenic complex blending culture, sightseeing, recreation, dining, and folk experiences. It showcases Yellow River culture, Silk Road culture, and multi-ethnic heritage, and has become a landmark celebrating Yellow River culture and the Lanzhou riverfront.

Day 2 — Lanzhou → Zhangye Colorful Danxia → Zhangye

• 8:00 AM — Depart by coach. After breakfast, drive from Lanzhou toward Zhangye via Menyuan/Wuwei (depending on the season).
• 10:00 AM — Gangshika Snow Mountain. Enjoy distant views of snow-capped Gangshika Peak, known as the "first peak of the summer capital."
• 2:00 PM — Zhangye Danxia National Geopark. (Shuttle bus not included: RMB 20/person.) The Danxia landforms are vast, dramatic, and vividly colored—even more striking for their color than for their unusual shapes, forming a magical rainbow landscape.
• 7:00 PM — "Memory of Zhangye" Live Show. (Complimentary; performed when operating—subject to schedule. No refund if not attended.) An epic show that brings Zhangye's thousand-year legends to life and retraces the Silk Road.
• 8:00 PM — Free time. Check in and relax. Please take care when exploring on your own.

Day 3 — Zhangye → Jiayuguan → Guazhou → Dunhuang

• 8:00 AM — Depart by coach via Guazhou toward Dunhuang.
• 10:00 AM — "Child of the Earth" Sculpture. Visit the giant "sleeping baby" sculpture in the desert and the "Mirage" installation on the Gobi.
• 2:00 PM — Mogao Caves (or Western Thousand Buddha Caves; about 3 hours; includes Mogao Class B ticket covering 4 actual caves; digital film not included). Richly colored murals depict Buddhist stories, landscapes, architecture, flowers, flying apsaras, and Buddha figures.
• 6:00 PM — Dune buggy ride. One complimentary ride on an off-road desert buggy.
• 7:00 PM — Desert bonfire party. Live performances, interaction, and dancing under the stars in the desert.
• 8:00 PM — Free time after check-in. Please take care when exploring on your own.

Day 4 — Mingsha Mountain → Da Qaidam Emerald Lake → Delingha

• 9:00 AM — Mingsha Mountain & Crescent Lake. Explore the desert wonder of Mingsha Mountain and Crescent Lake, a spring nestled among the singing sand dunes and named for its crescent-moon shape.
• 11:00 AM — Drive by coach toward Delingha.
• 12:00 PM — U-Shaped Highway. Pass the famous U-shaped road.
• 2:00 PM — Da Qaidam Emerald Lake. A group of salt lakes of varying size, shape, and depth. Differences in mineral concentration create a spectrum of colors; on calm days the water acts like a mirror, reflecting blue sky, white clouds, and mountains.
• 2:30 PM — 360° drone photo/video shoot (complimentary).
• 6:00 PM — Free time after check-in.

Day 5 — Delingha → Chaka Salt Lake → Qinghai Lake

• 8:00 AM — Depart by coach for Chaka Town.
• 10:00 AM — Chaka Salt Lake. Like an enormous world of mirrors: white clouds and distant snow mountains reflect on the water, poetic and picturesque. Walking over the lake feels like stepping into a world of salt. (Internal shuttle not included.) Due to crowd control, you'll visit either the "Mirror of the Sky" or "Sky No.1" scenic area as arranged.
• 6:00 PM — Free time after check-in.

Day 6 — Chaka → Qinghai Lake → Xining

• 8:00 AM — Depart by coach for a Tibetan folk village.
• 9:00 AM — Tibetan folk village. Experience Khampa Tibetan customs, visit a traditional Tibetan village, and learn about the historic tea-horse trade in this Han–Tibetan cultural region.
• 1:00 PM — Drive to Qinghai Lake after lunch.
• 1:00 PM — Qinghai Lake. Also called "Cuowenbu," Tibetan for "blue-green sea." Set in the Qinghai Lake basin in northwestern Qinghai, it is both an inland lake and a saltwater lake.
• 2:00 PM — Complimentary horseback riding experience.
• 2:00 PM — Erlangjian Scenic Area. Vast and magnificent, often described as a giant mirror bestowed on the Qinghai plateau. The lakeside air is fresh, with clear water and beautiful rapeseed flowers in season.
• 6:00 PM — Tibetan home visit. Get close to Tibetan life and culture—hand-grabbed lamb, roast beef, butter tea, highland barley wine, wild fern vegetables, and tsampa, with singing and dancing together (about 60 minutes). (Complimentary; no refund if not attended.)
• 8:00 PM — Free time after check-in.

Day 7 — Xining → Kumbum Monastery → Lanzhou

• 9:00 AM — Kunlun Jade Exhibition Center. (A shopping stop featuring Kunlun jade; purchases are entirely optional—no forced buying.)
• 2:00 PM — Kumbum Monastery (Ta'er Temple). (Electric cart and guide fees on your own.) Admire the monastery's "three artistic wonders": butter sculptures, murals, and appliqué embroidery—especially the lifelike, renowned butter sculptures. Afterward, return to Xining or continue to Lanzhou.
• 5:00 PM — Drive by coach to Lanzhou.
• 8:00 PM — Free time after check-in.

Day 8 — Departure from Lanzhou

• 10:00 AM — Free time. After breakfast, transfer to the airport or railway station based on your departure schedule, bringing your Grand Loop journey to a close.