18 Sights in Xi'an, China (with Map and Images)

Giant Wild Goose Pagoda or Big Wild Goose Pagoda, is a monumental Buddhist pagoda located in southern Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. It was built in c. 652 during the Tang dynasty and originally had five stories. It was rebuilt in 704 during the reign of Empress Wu Zetian and its exterior brick façade was renovated during the Ming dynasty.

Wikipedia: Giant Wild Goose Pagoda (EN)

The Small Wild Goose Pagoda, sometimes Little Wild Goose Pagoda, is one of two significant pagodas in Xi'an, Shaanxi, China, the site of the old Han and Tang capital Chang'an. The other notable pagoda is the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, originally built in 652 and restored in 704. This pagoda, along with the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda and other sites along the Silk Road, was inscribed in 2014 on the UNESCO World Heritage List as the Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor World Heritage Site.

Wikipedia: Small Wild Goose Pagoda (EN)

Shaanxi History Museum, which is located to the northwest of the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda in the ancient city Xi'an, in the Shaanxi province of China, is one of the first huge state museums with modern facilities in China and one of the largest. The museum houses over 370,000 items, including murals, paintings, pottery, coins, as well as bronze, gold, and silver objects. The modern museum was built between 1983 and 2001 and its appearance recalls the architectural style of the Tang dynasty.

Wikipedia: Shaanxi History Museum (EN), Website

Tang Paradise is a large theme park in the city of Xi'an, the capital of Shaanxi province, Northwest China. The park is at or near the site of an earlier garden Furong Garden (芙蓉园) complex in the city of Chang'an, the capital of the Tang dynasty.

Wikipedia: Tang Paradise (EN), Website

The Terracotta Army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE with the purpose of protecting him in his afterlife.

Wikipedia: Terracotta Army (EN), Website

The Drum Tower of Xi'an, located in the heart of Xi'an, the capital of Shaanxi province, Northwestern China, along with the Bell Tower is a symbol of the city. Erected in 1380 during the early Ming Dynasty, it stands towering above the city center and offers an incredible view of Xi'an. The Drum Tower is in a predominantly Muslim district of Xi'an, known as the Drum Tower Muslim District (DTMD).

Wikipedia: Drum Tower of Xi'an (EN)

Banpo is a Neolithic archaeological site located in the Yellow River valley, east of present-day Xi'an, China. Discovered in 1953 by Shi Xingbang, the site represents the first phase of the Yangshao culture and features the remains of several well organized settlements—including Jiangzhai, which has been radiocarbon dated to c. 4700 – c. 3600 BCE). An area of 5 to 6 hectares was surrounded by a ditch, probably a defensive moat 5 to 6 meters wide. The houses at Banpo were circular, built of mud and wood on low foundations, with overhanging thatched roofs. There also appear to have been communal burials.

Wikipedia: Banpo (EN)

The Daming Palace was the imperial palace complex of the Tang dynasty, located in its capital Chang'an. It served as the imperial residence of the Tang emperors for more than 220 years. Today, it is designated as a national heritage site of China, and part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor". The area is located northeast of present-day Xi'an, Shaanxi Province.

Wikipedia: Daming Palace (EN)

Huaqing Pool (華清池), also known as the Huaqing Hot Springs (華清宫), are a complex of hot springs located in an area characterized by mild weather and scenic views at the northern foot of Mount Li, one of the three major peaks of the Qinling. The Huaqing Hot Springs are located approximately 25 kilometers (16 mi) east of Xi'an, in the province of Shaanxi, China.

Wikipedia: Huaqing Pool (EN)

Mount Li is a mountain located in the northeast of Xi'an in Shaanxi Province, China. The mountain is part of the Qinling mountain range and rises to a height of 1302 metres above sea level. It is one of the eight scenic spots of the Guanzhong Plain and popularly said to "shine like a beacon in the evening sunlight".

Wikipedia: Mount Li (EN)

Chongyang Palace, the full name of "Chongyang Wanshou Palace", is one of the three ancestral gardens of Taoism, and is as famous as Beijing Baiyun Temple and Shanxi Ruicheng Yongle Palace. It is located in Zu'an Town, Hubei District, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, People's Republic of China. The palace is the place where the patriarch of Quanzhen Dao, Wang Chongyang, cultivated and was buried.

Wikipedia: 重阳宫 (ZH)

Xi'an Forest of Steles Museum, located at the site of the Confucian Temple in Sanxue Street, Beilin District, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China, is a museum that collects and studies epitaphs and other ancient stone carvings. Gathering ancient Chinese exquisite stele art, there are many steles, like "stele forest", hence the name. There are abundant epitaphs of steles, stone carving art and some remnants of the ancient buildings of the Confucian Temple.

Wikipedia: 西安碑林博物馆 (ZH), Website

Xi'an Botanical Garden is one of the botanical gardens located in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, People's Republic of China. The botanical garden is mainly engaged in ex situ conservation of plant resources, plant scientific research, and popular science education. The botanical garden has collected and preserved more than 3,400 species of plants, and preserved more than 70 species of rare and endangered plants under national key protection. Xi'an Botanical Garden has been co-located with Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Botany since 2006.

Wikipedia: 西安植物园 (ZH)

The Great Learning Lane Mosque is located on the north side of the Great Learning Lane on West Street in Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, and is far away from the Huajue Lane Mosque. The temple building is larger, second only to the Huajue Lane Mosque located on its east side, and the two are called the two major mosques in the east and west. According to the existing stone tablets in the temple, the temple was founded in 705 AD. It was named Qingjiao Temple, Xuanzong Dynasty changed its name to Tang Ming Temple, Yuan Zhongtong gave the name back to the Four Thousand Shan Temple, and Ming Hongwu gave the name of the mosque. It is one of the oldest mosques in Xi'an. In 2013, it was included in the seventh batch of national key cultural relics protection units.

Wikipedia: 大学习巷清真寺 (ZH)

The former site of the Xi'an Office of the Eighth Route Army of the National Revolutionary Army is located at No. 1, Qixianzhuang, near Beixin Street, Xincheng District, Xi'an City; It was the earliest, longest-lasting and most influential office among the 15 offices of the Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army in the country; In 1959, it was rebuilt as the memorial hall of the Xi'an Office of the Eighth Route Army, including the first, third, fourth and seventh courtyards of Qixianzhuang; In 1988, it was announced as a national key cultural relics protection unit.

Wikipedia: 八路军西安办事处旧址 (ZH)

Daci'en Temple is a Buddhist temple located in Yanta District, Xi'an, Shaanxi. The temple is the cradle of East Asian Yogācāra in China. It is notable for the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda. The pagoda was originally built under the supervision of the monk Xuanzang, whose pilgrimage to India inspired the novel Journey to the West. Alongside Daxingshan Temple and Jianfu Temple, it was one of the three sutras translation sites (三大译经场) in the Tang dynasty.

Wikipedia: Daci'en Temple (EN)

Qinglong Temple, also known as Shifo Temple, is a Buddhist temple located in Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. In the mid-Tang dynasty (618–907), Huiguo taught Vajrayana at the temple, his Japanese disciple Kūkai introduced it to Japan, since then, Qinglong Temple became the cradle of Vajrayana of both Chinese and Japanese Buddhism. Qinglong Temple was completely damaged in 1086 during the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127) and gradually it became unknown to public, the nascent version was completed in the 1980s with Tang dynasty architectural style.

Wikipedia: Qinglong Temple (Xi'an) (EN)

Xi'an Mosque, located in Huajue Lane, northwest of Xi'an Drum Tower, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China, is also known as Huajue Lane Mosque, Halal Mosque, covering an area of about 13,000 square meters, with a construction area of more than 6,000 square meters. The whole temple is rectangular along the east-west direction, and is divided into four courtyards. Xi'an Mosque is one of the four major mosques in China and the earliest mosque in Xi'an.

Wikipedia: 西安大清真寺 (ZH)