In many people's travel lists, the city of Yinchuan does not seem to appear. When it comes to travel, everyone may immediately think of going to Hainan and Southeast Asia to experience the tropical style, go to Suzhou and Hangzhou to wander in the Jiangnan water town, go to Lijiang and Dali to experience the romance of the ancient city, and go to Dunhuang to feel the lonely smoke in the desert. What about Yinchuan?

In fact, after we played in Yinchuan for a few days, we still couldn’t get enough of it. Visiting mosques, hiking in wetland deserts, and visiting Xixia ruins... There are so many things to play in four days.

Some people may think that Yinchuan is located in the northwest and is located in a remote place. The transportation must be inconvenient. In addition, there is no high-speed rail, so the air ticket should be very expensive, right? Quite the opposite! Air tickets to Yinchuan are very cheap. Taking Chengdu and Chongqing as examples, the perennial one-way price is between 200-500 yuan, and there is no pressure to fly back and forth!

This is the latest air ticket price, which is super cost-effective (click to enlarge)

Next, follow in the footsteps of Evan, and explore this city, Jiangnan, which is very different from other cities!

The Loess Plateau is dry and lacks water all the year round, but the surrounding areas of Yinchuan are full of rivers and a lot of water. Therefore, it is known as "the land of fish and rice on the top of the Yangtze River". The article marks all the core attractions for you, and divides them into three levels: must-see/recommended/alternative according to personal experience. A map can clearly understand the entire layout!

Must-visit TOP1——Sand Lake, a wetland desert with many entertainment projects

Evan has been to many cities in the Northwest and some deserts, but based on the comprehensive score, he thinks that Sand Lake is still the best, because it is really comprehensive, with both the majesty of the desert and the Gobi, and the beauty of the Jiangnan water town. As the first batch of 5A-level scenic spots in the country, it is not blown out. The key is that Shahu Lake is not far from the downtown area of ​​Yinchuan, only 50 kilometers away, and it takes less than an hour to get there by expressway, which is very convenient.

The Sand Lake scenic spot is different from other single deserts. The whole desert and the wetland are accompanied by each other. There is a very large wetland lake between the yellow sands, which is covered with lush reeds. Next to a large wetland is a vast desert, which I have never seen in other deserts!

Here, you can not only watch the desert, but also experience many entertainment items. Compared with the Mingsha Mountain in Dunhuang, in addition to the most basic camel riding, there are desert off-road vehicles, paragliders, cable cars, hot air balloons, sand boarding and other items , Enough for you to play all day! If you want to play, it is recommended that you buy a package ticket online in advance, the price is much more cost-effective.

Counting the time from Yinchuan to and from the scenic spot, Shahu Lake is very suitable for playing for a whole day. If you don’t play entertainment, it will take more than half a day, and you can fully experience the desert scenery in the south of the Yangtze River in one day.

[Landscape uniqueness] ★★★★★ Watch the desert, visit the wetland and enjoy the reeds

[Landscape Tiredness] ★★☆☆☆ There is transportation throughout the whole journey, and it is not tiring

[Long time-consuming landscape] ★★★★☆ Very flexible, depending on whether you want to play entertainment, half a day to one day

Must-visit TOP2——Zhenbeibao Film and Television City, the filming location of classic movies

The filming base of countless classic film and television dramas such as Westward Journey, New Dragon Inn, Red Sorghum, etc., is here! All the familiar scenes in the movie have been preserved, wandering in them, vividly in mind.

Before we set off to Zhenbeibao Film and Television City, we thought it was a film and television base. It was estimated that it would take an hour or two to take pictures casually. Unexpectedly, it took more than four hours to walk and shoot along the way!

There is not much to explain here, just take pictures as much as you like!

[Unique landscape] ★★★★★ A famous film and television base throughout the country, where you can see many classic movie locations

[Landscape Tiredness] ☆☆☆☆ No need to travel through mountains and rivers, just stroll around and take pictures comfortably

[Long time-consuming landscape] ★★★☆☆ About two to four hours, depending on how much you love taking pictures

Must-visit TOP3—China Homecoming Cultural Park, a magnificent Islamic architectural complex

Unlike the ranking of recommended attractions on many travel websites, I ranked the Chinese Homecoming Cultural Park as the third must-visit. Perhaps there are similar deserts, film and television bases, monuments and ancient towns in other places, but such a magnificent Islamic complex is really rare. The China Huixiang Cultural Park is actually a cluster of various large mosques, but it is different from the various mosques I have seen before. Its scale is really large, especially there is a very large mosque in the core area, which is not inferior to Europe at all. The cathedral, the photos taken without PS are also excellent. At that time, many friends thought I went to the Middle East, hahaha~

Therefore, judging from the uniqueness of taking pictures, it deserves the third place in the top row, completely crushing the Xixia Royal Tomb and Shuidonggou.

[Landscape uniqueness] ★★★★☆ There are quite a lot of mosques in the northwest, but not many are so magnificent and beautiful

[Landscape Tiredness] ☆☆☆☆ Mainly to visit the mosque, like a small park

[Long time-consuming landscape] ★★☆☆☆ It takes about two hours

After visiting the Huixiang Cultural Park and returning to the urban area, it happened to be dinner time, so I ordered a rice noodle at the food court in the mall, and the waiter brought a super huge bowl of rice noodles. Is the portion of Northwest food so sturdy- -

Suggested TOP4——Shuidonggou, Paleolithic Human Site

Shuidonggou is famous because it is the earliest Paleolithic cultural site excavated in China. It is known as "the birthplace of Chinese prehistoric archaeology" and is a national 5A-level scenic spot. It is precisely because of this that it does not rely on natural scenery to win, but contains cultural genes in it. Of course, this is not to say that Shuidonggou is not beautiful. It is still full of desert style in the northwest and covered with loess hills. But to be honest, the scenery of the scenic spot is still far behind the Mingsha Mountain in Dunhuang and Yadan Devil City. .

Shuidonggou is a place where you need to understand the background, understand the history, and experience how human ancestors lived tens of thousands of years ago. There is a museum inside, and now there are ancient cultural relics left over from that time. Otherwise, if you just look at the scenery, you will think that this is the loess desert and hills, and there is nothing special about it.

As an additional note, there is a cave for Tibetan soldiers inside which is very interesting. It is the only and most complete military defense system of the Great Wall in China. It was the fortress of the local defenders in ancient times. The entire cave was dug underground, and many dark paths in the cave meandered and criss-crossed, like a maze, and felt a bit like a groundhog's nest. As a must-visit link, you will not miss it.

[Landscape uniqueness] ★★★☆☆ In addition to the unique cultural heritage, the scenery has no uniqueness

[Landscape Tiredness] ★★★☆☆ The scenic spot is quite big, and it is still a bit tiring after the whole journey

[Long time-consuming landscape] ★★★☆☆ It takes about half a day

Suggested TOP5——Helan Mountain / Western Xia Royal Tomb / Huangsha Ancient Ferry

The reason why these three scenic spots are recommended side by side is because these three are considered to be very popular places in Yinchuan that everyone will go to, but personally think that they are inferior to the first four scenic spots in the list of must-sees. If you have enough time, you can all Go all, if the time is tight, such as 3-4 days, you should have a choice, here Evan also gives his own opinion.

About Helan Mountain.

Helan Mountain is the boundary mountain between Ningxia and Inner Mongolia. As a Sichuan boy, I have climbed many mountains. Qingcheng Mountain, Emei Mountain, Xiling Snow Mountain, Niubei Mountain... all left my footprints, so with only a four-day trip, I resolutely gave up Helan Mountain. The entire scenic spot is very large, with petroglyphs, Suyukou, Baier Temple and other scenic spots. There are two main attractions, one is the ancient rock paintings left by primitive nomadic tribes in ancient times, and the other is the unique animal blue sheep in Helan Mountain. Because it is located in the northwest, the vegetation coverage is not so rich, and it has a desolate aesthetic feeling. If you have seen many famous mountains and rivers in China, unless you have enough time, it is not necessary to come to Helan Mountain.

About Xixia Royal Tombs.

The Tomb of the Western Xia Dynasty is a small regret of this trip. The fourth day was originally planned to go to the western film and television city of Zhenbei + the Tomb of the Western Xia Dynasty. I didn’t expect that I was too involved in taking pictures in the film and television city. The time-consuming completely exceeded expectations. In addition, I have to catch a plane in the afternoon, so I have to give up the Xixia Royal Tomb. Therefore, Evan can’t give more suggestions about the Xixia King’s Mausoleum, but I can be sure that its ranking is not as high as the top four, because it mainly looks at historical sites. In my opinion, historical sites are just like ancient towns, and it is easy to be aesthetically fatigued. .

About Huangsha Ancient Ferry.

Huangsha Ancient Ferry is actually somewhat similar to Shahu Lake. They are both waterfront desert areas. There are a lot of desert entertainment items to play, and Huangsha Ancient Ferry has an advantage that it is closer to the urban area. In short, you can choose one of these two attractions, and there is no need to go to both. However, Evan still recommends giving priority to Sand Lake.

Alternative TOP6——Nanguan Mosque, just punch in

The Nanguan Mosque is completely inferior to the Huahua Homecoming Cultural Park, but its advantage is that it is in the urban area and very close to the city center, so it will not take you much time. As long as you live in the urban area, you can take a bus at any time to take a look, punch a card, and you can get it done in half an hour. Let's see the picture and feel it.

[Landscape uniqueness] ★★★☆☆ The temple itself is quite beautiful, but it is very unique.

[Landscape Tiredness] ☆☆☆☆ There is only one temple, there is no such thing as tiring to play

[The landscape takes a long time] ☆☆☆☆ Make a card, take a few photos, and it will be done in half an hour

Alternative TOP7 - Haibao Pagoda Temple, visit the municipal park in the northwest

Haibao Pagoda Temple is actually an ancient temple with a history of more than one thousand years in the urban area, and Haibao Park was built around this temple. So going here is not only to see the temple, but also to visit a municipal park. If you live in the urban area and have two hours of free time, you can consider coming here for a walk to experience the spare time life of local citizens. The traffic is very convenient, you can go directly by bus. Note that there is a fee to enter the interior of Haibao Pagoda Temple, but the fare is very cheap, and you can get it for about 20 or 30 yuan.

[Landscape uniqueness] ★★☆☆☆ Add attractions, nothing unique

[Landscape Tiredness] ★★☆☆☆ The park is not small, and there are water features

[Long time-consuming landscape] ★★☆☆☆ If you still want to visit temples, it will take two to three hours to add the park

TIPS: Traffic Suggestions for Traveling in Yinchuan

1. For intercity transportation, the preferred plane

Yinchuan currently does not have high-speed trains, and it is located in the northwest, so the most efficient way to travel is by plane. Air tickets in Yinchuan have great discounts all year round, often 1-20% off, and it doesn’t cost much to fly back and forth. Of course, if you have enough time or are not far away, taking the train is also an option.

2. Regarding the traffic in the city, buses/didi/taxi are very convenient

As the provincial capital, there must be buses, and because Yinchuan is underdeveloped and the urban area is small, it is actually very convenient to take the bus, and it is not far from anywhere. In addition, taxis in Yinchuan are really cheap and can also be considered. Of course Didi will not talk about it.

3. Regarding tourist transportation, chartered car/rental car/group day tour is the first choice

Since the tourism industry in Yinchuan is not very developed, and the distribution map of the scenic spots at the beginning of the travel notes can also be seen that the scenic spots are very scattered, there are all in the southeast and north, so if you choose public transportation, you will waste a lot of time on the road. It is recommended to choose to rent a car. There is a car rental point at the airport. There are various platforms to choose from. You can pick up the car when you leave the airport, and return the car when you return to the airport. It is very convenient. Of course, you can also choose to sign up for a day trip and directly connect several major attractions.