Yardang National Geopark in Dunhuang

Attractions Overview: A national park in Dunhuang
Attraction Type: Natural; Geo Park
Chinese Name: 敦煌雅丹国家地质公园
English Name: Yardang National Geopark in Dunhuang
Best Time to Visit: All Year Round
Recommended Visiting Time: 2 Hours
Open Hours: 6:00 - 22:00
Admission Fee: 50 RMB / Person
Address in English: Dunhuang City, Gansu Province
Address in Chinese: 甘肃省敦煌

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Why is Yardang National Geopark So Special?

Yardang National Geological Park is a wonderful park with large scale yardang landforms, formed by wind erosion. The park shows the Yardang geological feature of the area. Yardang has been created over time by the soft part of the earth’s surface being eroded by wind and rain, with the hard part of the rocks remaining in the desert.

Where is Yardang National Geopark?

Dunhuang Yardang National Geopark is sited in China’s Gansu Province, 108 kilometers (67 miles) to the northwest of Dunhuang city. It is located on the border of Gansu and Xinjiang provinces, close to the mysterious Lop Nur.

How to Get to Yardang National Geopark?

Travel with China Dragon Tours (top recommended)

If you want to get rid of hustle of transportation and troublesome navigation, you can book a private tour package which covers visiting, dining and transfer from us. Our local tour guide and driver will escort you to Yardang National Geopark with speed and convenience, and take care of all the details. You just need to focus on travel.

Independent Travel

For independent travelers you can

The park is about 200 kilometers (124 miles) from the Dunhuang urban area. Considering the long journey, it’s better to hire a car or take a taxi. Alternatively, visitors can take a direct bus at the city bus station from Dunhuang to the park. You can take a western line bus in front of Dunhuang Hotel on Mingshan Road to the Yardang National Geopark. The bus will stop at Dunhuang Old City, Western Thousand-Buddha Caves, Yangguan Pass, Yumenguan Pass, Great Wall ruins in Han Dynasty in the midway. Take note that there are only three buses per day.

Main Attractions in Yardang National Geopark

Yardang Landform

The yardang landform is formed by wind erosion in dry regions. The word “yardang” comes from a Uyghur word, meaning “a small hill with steep walls”. China’s yardang landforms cover an area of about 20,000 square kilometers. The yardang landforms in Dunhuang have hard, light red soil covering an area of about 50 square kilometers (about 19 square miles). They typically exist in dry areas.

Yardangs are the result of severe weathering, where wind and rain have stripped all of the soft material from the rocks and left only the hard material behind. Over a period of approximately 700,000 years, this erosion produced the wonderfully bizarre rock formations that we find today. They have characteristically wide bottoms that gradually taper off towards the top, giving them an appearance similar to the hull of a boat, although there are huge variations in their size and shape.

The Sunset

The beautiful sunset in Yardang National Geological Park is a wonderful scene you can’t miss. Clouds are dyed in red or orange. All is enveloped in bright golden light. It is quiet all around. The whole desert takes on a different appearance in the afterglow of sunset. The sunset usually occurs between 6:00 pm ~ 7:00 pm from October to March and 8:00 pm ~ 9:00 pm from April to September.

Ghost City

Yardang National Geological Park is known in the locality as ‘Ghost City’, because when the wind blows through, there are sounds similar to ‘ghosts screaming’.

Useful Travel Tips

Half-price ticket for children of 1.2 -1.4 meters;
Free of charge for children below 1.2 meters.
There is no shelter in the Geological Park. It will be very hot in summer. Make sure you bring a hat, plenty of water, and some sunblock.