The Most Beautiful Self-Driving Route in Qinghai Loop

There are many self-driving routes in China, the most famous being the Sichuan-Tibet Loop and the Qinghai Loop. The “Sky Mirror” on Douyin successfully ignited the popularity of Chaka Salt Lake, but there are many beautiful scenery in Qinghai, Qinghai Lake is one of the most famous. If you want to visit all the places around Qinghai Lake, here are some recommended routes around Qinghai for a few days.

The first route, 3-day free travel

day1, Xining-Tashi Lhunpo Monastery-Mount Riyue, Reverse Flowing River-Erlangjian Scenic Area-Heima River; day2, Heima River-Chaka Salt Lake-Bird Island; day3, Bird Island-Gangcha-Xihai Town-Jinshawan-Xining.

This route focuses on a deep tour around Qinghai Lake. You won’t just catch a glimpse of the lake, but rather you will immerse yourself in it, circling around Qinghai Lake, witnessing its “mystery” and “beauty”.

Starting from Xining, head to Tashi Lhunpo Monastery to admire the “Three Wonders of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery Art”: butter sculptures, murals and thangka. (Ticket purchase required)

Mount Riyue is famous for its red mountain body. Since ancient times, it has been an important passage of the “Qiangzhong Road”, “Silk Road South” and “Tang-Tibetan Ancient Road”.

The Reverse Flowing River is located at the foot of Mount Riyue. Due to crustal movement, the original eastward flowing river had to flow westward into Qinghai Lake, hence the name.

Chaka Salt Lake: Chaka Salt Lake is one of the “Four Wonders of Qinghai”, along with Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, Qinghai Lake and Mengda Tianchi.

Jinshawan, more than 30 kilometers away from Xihai Town, is a place for fun activities, where you can enjoy sandboarding, dune buggy and surfing.

The second route, 5-day free travel route

day1, Xining-Huangyuan-Mount Riyue-Erlangjian Scenic Area-Heima River; day2, Heima River-Chaka Salt Lake-Bird Island-Gangcha; day3, Gangcha-Qilian; day4, Qilian-Zhangye; day5, Zhangye-Menyuan-Xining.

At the top of Mount Zhuoer, there is no obstruction around, the vision is exceptionally broad. You can not only see all the scenery below, but also admire the opposite Mount Niu Xin.

For Qilian Grassland, you must choose July or August, when you can see the vast grassland.

Zhangye has both the charm of the south and the characteristics of the north, hence the famous saying “If you don’t see the snow on top of Qilian Mountain, you will mistake Ganzhou for Jiangnan”.

The snacks in Zhangye are quite famous, such as “Cuo Yuz”, “La Tiao Zi”, “Sao Mian”, “Niang Pi”, “Chao Pao”, “Jiu Mian Pian”, “Yu Er Fen”, “Beef Small Rice” and other local snacks.

The Menyuan rape blossoms are located near Haomen Town, the county town. If you want to admire them, you can go to the Zhaobi Mountain Scenic Area and the Yuanshan Flower Viewing Platform (both require tickets).

The third route is a 7-day loop free travel route

day1, Xining-Huangyuan-Mount Riyue-Erlangjian Scenic Area-Heima River; day2, Heima River-Chaka Salt Lake-Delingha-Dachaidan; day3, Dachaidan-Dunhuang; day4, Dunhuang (Mogao Grottoes-Mingsha Mountain-Crescent Moon Spring); day5, Dunhuang-Guazhou-Jiayuguan-Zhangye; day6, Zhangye-Qilian; day7, Qilian-Menyuan-Xining.

Koluke Lake is a freshwater lake with a very good ecological environment and has not been overly developed. There is an alien site by the lake that you can visit at the same time. In the evening, go to Dachaidan for accommodation.

Dunhuang Ancient City: The architectural style has a strong Western Regions flavor. The city has three gates: east, west and south, with towering city towers.

Xi Qian Fo Dong, named after its location west of the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang. There are 16 existing caves, most of which were built in the Northern Wei Dynasty. Only 9 of them can be viewed.

Yangguan Ruins, commonly known as Gu Dong Tan, covers an area of about 5.5 million square meters. There are exposed remains of houses built with yellow earth, as well as kiln sites and tombs.