1. Inner Mongolia

10. Regional map

12. Capital city  As the capital city of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Hohhot, which, in Mongolian, means Eternal City (alternatively "Green City"), is the political, economic and cultural hub of the region. It lies in the center of the southern part of the Tumote Plain, facing the Yellow River to the south and with the rolling Yinshan Mountains to the north as its backdrop, in the area of Inner Mongolia that borders Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Hebei Provinces to the south.

13. Hotels  Inner Mongolia Huachen Hotel Hohhot  Pinnacle Hotel Hohhot  Inner Mongolia International Hotel  Inner Mongolia Hotel Hohhot  Shangri La Hotel Hohhot  Holiday Inn Hohhot

14. Mongolian yurts

21. Hohhot attractions  Hohhot attractions can be roughly classified into two categories: grassland scenery and historical sites. Two grasslands, Huitengxile Grassland and Xilamuren Grassland, provide you with a magnificent scenery and a wide green “sea” decorated with flocks of sheep, cattle, and horses. By visiting ancient lamasery, temples, tombs or pagodas, you can retrace the history of Hohhot.  Our Hohhot tours will take you to explore the beauty of vast grassland and the history of Hohhot.

22.  Five Pagoda Temple  Xilamuren Grassland  White Pagoda  Dazhao Lamasery  Gegenda Prairie  Huitengxile grassland  Inner Mongolia Museum  The Great Mosque of Hohhot  Xilituzhao Palace  Zhaojun Tomb

23.  Location: It is located on the southern bank of the Dahei River in the south suburb of Hohhot, nine kilometers from downtown.  Ticket Price: 65 yuan each  Opening Time: Summer: 8:00-18:00; Winter: 9:00-17:00  How to get there: Take bus No.44

25. Statue The statue is a lasting reminder of Zhaojun's greatness

26. Zhaojun Tomb Zhaojun and Shang lived in a happy life.

29.  Zhaojun Tomb, also called Green Mound or Green Grave, is located south of the city of Hohhot. It is the tomb of Wang Zhaojun, a commoner who married a Xiongnu chief in order to preserve the nation’s unity, and is mentioned in historical documents and folklore as far back as the Tang dynasty.

30. Xilamuren grassland  Xilamuren, which means "yellow water" in Mongolian, is also known as Zhaohe. Xilamuren Grassland is the nearest grassland tourist attraction to Hohhot and the earliest one in Inner Mongolia. The average temperature in summer season is about 18 ℃ -21 ℃. The grassland has rolling hills and lush green grass. On the riverside of Xilamuren lies a Lama temple which was built in 1769 in the Qing Dynasty. This Lama temple had been used as a temporary abode for the Six Living Buddha in the Xilizhao Temple to spend summers. The main hall, gateway and the east and west wing-rooms remain intact up to now.  During the Nadam Fair held in each summer, the whole grassland is throbbing with excitement and full of activities. Tourists can experience a great many activities, such as living in a yurt, a camp fire party, singing and dancing, watching camel racing, horse racing, and wrestling. You can even take part in some of the competitions you are interested in; perhaps a big surprise is waiting for you!

31. Huitengxile Grassland  Cold in winter and cool in summer, Huitengxile Grassland has an average highest temperature of 18 centigrade. Lying over 1800 meters above the sea level, it stretches over 100 kilometers from east to west, dotted by 99 lakes. Tourists can enjoy a wide variety of entertainments including horse riding, camel riding, shooting, archery, Mongolian wrestling, or you can choose to climb the Aobao Mountain, visit a herdsmen’s house, tasting the ethnical favor of milk food like milk tea, hare’s milk wine and so on.  You can set up a tent for an overnight stay to enjoy the fresh air and tranquil night on the vast grassland or choose to stay in a yurt or an inn. A night spent in a herdsman’s cave dwelling guarantees an unique experience of county life.

32. Gegenda Prairie  The Gegenda Prairie, renowned the world over as one of the most beautiful grasslands in China, if not one of the most beautiful grasslands on the planet, offers some of the most big-sky grasslands scenery that one can hope to find anywhere on this beautiful blue planet. It is doubly enjoyable when a grasslands like Gegenda Prairie is combined with strongly flavored local traditions, such as one will find here in this corner of Inner Mongolia.  As a visitor to the home of a local Mongolian family, you will be invited to experience the contemporary life of a herdsman family. You will have the unique opportunity to sit in a traditional Mongolian yurt and sip hand-made dairy products that are made in the same way today as they were made when Genghis Khan sat in his yurt – perhaps in the very spot where you will be sitting – and sipped goat's milk or drank Mongolian milk tea.

34. Dazhao lamasery  During the period of Emperor Longqing in Ming Dynasty from 1567 to 1572, Aletanhan, a lead of Tumote Mongolia, was conferred as the Shunyi Emperor of the Mongolian. Owing to the special honor, he decided to enlarge Guihua, the old city of Hohhot and Hongci Temple, an old Buddhist temple. Because the statue of Sakyamuni in the temple was made of silver entirely, so the Hongci Temple is also called the Silver Buddha Temple. In the center of the main hall, the sliver statue of Sakyamuni, which stands 2.55 meters high, is worshipped. Before the statue there are a couple of gold wooden huge pillars, each engraved with a dragon. In front of the hall there are a couple of hollow stone powerful lions cast in 1627. Besides, there are other buildings in the temple, like passing hall, east and west side halls, the nine-room building and so on. Just in front of the temple, there is a well whose water tastes cool and fresh, and it wins the reputation as the best spring in the region.

35. Five Pagoda Temple

38. Five-Pagoda Temple,  also called Jingangzuo Sheli Baota ("Precious Pagoda of the Buddhist Relics of the Diamond Throne"), was formerly only one of a number of buildings belonging to the now all but destroyed Cideng Temple – only the Five-Pagoda temple structure remains. The temple is a massive structure that looks more like a mausoleum with five, minaret-like pagodas atop it than a pagoda or a temple. The design of the Five-Pagoda Temple in Hohhot belongs, however, to the special "diamond throne" pagoda style of Indian Buddhist architecture. It, along with 5 other similar Five- Pagoda Temples round about the country, is a copy of the Gaya Temple in India.

39. Inner Mongolia Museum

46. Genghis Khan Mausoleum  The Mausuleum of Genghis Khan, located some 50 kilometers south of the city of Ordos. The mausoleum, which was built in 1954 in honor of the memory of Genghis Khan, is in fact a cenotaph: its coffin contains no bodily remains, only replicas of personal effects (headdress and other personal accoutrements) believed to have belonged to the Mongol leader, since the actual site of the remains of Temüjin, aka Genghis Khan, remains a mystery to this day, and may very likely remain a mystery forever, for the last testament of Genghis Khan specifically stated that upon his death, the Mongol leader was to be buried "anonymously" - i.e., in an unpublicized site and without any grave markings - and it seems that his loyal followers followed Temujin's last wish to a tee, for nowhere was the site of Genghis Khan's grave recorded, either privately or publicly, nor was knowedge of the gravesite's whereabouts ever made public by word of mouth.

47. Entertainment: Hohhot Nightlife/Activities  Hohhot, as an ethnic-featured city, has its own charms. Entertainment in Hohhot is rich and colorful. In some places and theaters, there are wonderful Mongolian singing and dancing shows. While visiting Hohhot you can join in different activities such as Mongolian wrestling, horse & camel riding, rodeo competitions, archery, visit traditional families and enjoy the graceful Mongolian singing and dancing. At night, you can take part in bonfire party and live in a yurt in Gegentala or Xilamuren grasslands.

48. Hohhot food  In Hohhot, you will have a taste of typical Mongolian food and drinks, such as milk tea, toasted millet, boiled skim milk, cream, and tender finger mutton. People from Inner Mongolia eat almost every part of the lamb. Roasted lamb chop, fried mutton, parched lamb intestines, steamed lamb heart, mutton stuffed bun, and boiled lamb viscera soup are all authentic dishes worth trying. The most famous dish in town is undoubtedly the Mongolian hotpot, which can be found in most restaurants here. And wine is an essential part of the Mongolian dinner table. Every tourist will enjoy the food here.

49. Roasted lamb

50. Mongolian hotpot

51. finger mutton

52. Naked Oat Flour

53. Shaomai

54. Hare’s milk wine  蒙语 “ 乞戈 ” 或 “ 艾日戈 ” 。

55. cheese

57. cream

58. The 3-day Essence Tour Of Hohhot  Day 1    Place & Transport: Arrive in Hohhot, Flight not included  Today's Activities: Airport Transfer (Hohhot), Dazhao Lamasery, Zhaojun Tomb, Five Pagoda Temple, Huhhot Mengliang Minmao CO.LTD  Meals: Chinese Lunch at Xibei Youmian Cun Restaurant The 3-day Essence Tour Of Hohhot

59.  Day 2   Place & Transport: Hohhot  Today's Activities: Xilamuren grassland, Plain pasturing area  Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch at Grassland Xingfa restaurants

61.  Day 3  Place & Transport: Depart Hohhot, Flight not included  Today's Activities: Hotel to airport Transfer (Hohhot)  Meals: Breakfast

62. Bye bye