This article provides information for 2 days in Xi’an: what to do in Xi’an, hotels in Xi’an and how to get around Xi’an on a budget.
- Xi’an: Home of the Terra Cotta Warriors #1 Must of the City
Xi’an is the old capital of China, current capital of Shaanxi Province, one of the oldest cities in China and home of the Terra Cotta Army.
What to do in Xi’an : Activities
– Terra Cotta Warriors: you can take public transportation, bus number 5 (306) from the rail station, (view link for complete information) to visit the Terra Cotta Warriors.
– Drum and Bell Tower: beautiful at nighttime when the lights are on
– Muslim Street : great street food and a good place to look for souvenirs for friends and family
– Big Wild Goose Pagoda: great for an afternoon walk inside the park
- Big Wild Goose Pagoda of Xi’an, perfect for a relaxing afternoon stroll
Cheap Hotels / Where to stay in Xi’an
Best hostel we had in China was in Xi’an and was a full-fledged apartment: Xi’an Zhonglou Mihua Aparthotel – 105RMB with 3 RMB for electricity. Great location as it was a few steps away from the Bell & Drum Towers but was incredibly hard to find especially at 11pm at night. We had a pretty good deal as it was new on booking.com, the next night was 150 RMB as of March 2013 (but you could easily fit 4 people). Note: As of July 2013, booking.com does not allow you to make reservations for this hotel.
Other cheap options to consider – please note prices increase during the high season (Spring – Summer)
– Tour International Youth Hostel
Local Transport / Getting around in Xi’an
– Good subway system: Xi’an Metro
– Bus system is efficient but can be confusing.
– Shuttle to airport for 26 RMB in front of the Melody hotel near Bell Tower. It takes about half an hour to get to the airport. There is a bus every twenty minutes, it leaves once the bus is full.
- The Xi’an Bell Tower at night illuminates the roundabout
Tips: Always take screen shots of the name, address and phone number of your hotel or write in down in Chinese if possible. It will be easier for people to help you out.
Happy Travels!!xx
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(Hi all, this is ooa revo – you just read my partner Coco’s, aka coconutwp, first post in the new Travel Tips section on ooaworld, which will seek to provide tips and resources based on our research during our travels and offer a few ideas for each locality including main attractions, transportation and accommodations. There will be many others and I hope these will be useful to all kinds of travelers, especially those on a budget. Some posts will be straight to the point, like this one, others will have a diary feel and give a complementary perspective to the content I usually post, both in words and pictures. Most photos are Coco’s, hope you’ll all help give her a warm welcome! As always, feedback is welcome, thanks!)
