Dunhuang by rail: the last oasis on the Silk Road

From the Mogao Caves to Mingsha Mountain and the Gobi

A visit follows a carefully managed route designed to protect the fragile artwork. It typically begins at the Mogao Caves Digital Exhibition centre, followed by a shuttle to the cliff, where a guide leads each group through a rotating selection of caves. Photography is not permitted inside the caves. Visitor numbers are limited, so advance reservations are particularly important during summer and Chinese public holidays. The original passport used for booking should also be carried on the day of the visit.

Dunhuang is also featured in Trip.com Group’s global Go China campaign with Jackie Chan, Global Ambassador for China Travel, highlighting the city as a gateway to China’s Silk Road heritage and western desert landscapes.

Donkey noodles, lamb and Dunhuang’s Silk Road flavors

Dunhuang eats like the desert crossroads it has been for centuries, with wheat noodles, lamb, vinegar and dried fruit shaping much of the local food culture. Influences from Gansu, Xinjiang and the wider Silk Road come together in dishes that tend to be hearty, savory and well suited to the dry climate.

The city’s best-known specialty is donkey meat yellow noodles, made with thin handmade noodles served with a savory sauce and slices of donkey meat. Huyang menbing is another filling local dish, combining lamb with pieces of flatbread that absorb the rich sauce as they cook. Lamb also appears throughout Dunhuang’s everyday food scene, particularly in grilled skewers, soups and noodle dishes.

For something lighter, apricot skin water is one of Dunhuang’s characteristic drinks. Made from dried apricots, it has a distinctive sweet-and-sour flavor and is usually served cold, making it especially refreshing after an afternoon in the desert.

After dark, Shazhou Night Market is the easiest place to sample several local flavors in one evening. Lamb skewers, handmade noodles, dried apricots and local melons fill the stalls, while the relaxed street-side atmosphere offers a lively contrast to the caves and vast desert landscapes that define Dunhuang during the day.

Following the Hexi Corridor east from Dunhuang

Dunhuang’s desert excursions, however, are road trips rather than rail trips. Mingsha Mountain is close enough to the city for a half-day visit, while Yumen Pass, the Han Great Wall and Yadan National Geopark are usually combined into a full-day journey through the Gobi.

Dunhuang Station or Liuyuan South: Which one should you use?

From Dunhuang Railway Station, the main sights are relatively straightforward to reach:

• Mogao Caves: Around 20 minutes by taxi from the station. A dedicated bus connection also operates between the railway station and the Mogao area.
• Dunhuang city centre: Around 15 minutes by taxi, with taxis and ride-hailing services particularly convenient when travelling with luggage.
• Mingsha Mountain and Crescent Spring: Around 20 minutes by taxi from central Dunhuang, with local bus services also available.
• Yumen Pass, Yangguan Pass and Yadan National Geopark: These desert sites lie much farther from the city and are typically visited by hired car, shared vehicle or organized day tour.

Dunhuang has no metro network, but the city itself is compact and distances within the urban area are relatively short. The main exception is the western desert route, where longer road transfers need to be factored into the itinerary.

Train travel around Dunhuang requires a little more planning than routes between China’s major eastern cities. There are far fewer departures. Current schedules show around eight daily trains between Dunhuang and Jiayuguan and around nine between Dunhuang and Lanzhou, compared with the dozens or even hundreds of departures available on some major high-speed corridors. 

Booking through Trip.com allows international travellers to search train schedules in English, enter passport details and pay using international payment methods. Eligible journeys can also be reserved before tickets officially go on sale, with the booking submitted when the railway sales window opens.

Paper tickets are generally unnecessary for mainland China rail travel. Keep the original physical passport used to make the reservation with you, as the booking is linked to your identity document and the passport is used when entering the station and boarding.

Seat options depend on the particular service. On D-series trains, Second Class is comfortable for the roughly 2.5-hour trip to Jiayuguan, while First Class offers wider seating and more personal space. Dunhuang also has conventional Z-, T- and K-series services, so always check the train type, journey duration and arrival station rather than assuming every departure is a high-speed train.

For a longer Gansu journey, the railway follows a natural eastbound sequence: Dunhuang → Jiayuguan → Zhangye → Lanzhou. Each stop reveals a different part of the Hexi Corridor before the route gradually reconnects with China’s broader high-speed rail network.

Ready to continue along the Silk Road? Lock in your passport-verified train tickets on Trip.com and connect Dunhuang with Jiayuguan, Lanzhou and the rest of Gansu.