Maijishan National Park (麦积山国家公园) is in Gansu province.

Understand

The 194 cave shrines of this "Gallery of Oriental Sculpture' on a perpendicular mountain cliff southeast of Tianshui, provide shelter for 7200 stone and clay figurines and 1300 m² of murals. The clay figures, crafted to the smallest detail and blending lifelike imagery with spiritual resonance, are paragons of ancient Chinese clay sculpture.

Get in

Bus from Beidao district of Tianshui. From Tianshui South station, take bus 5 or 60 (7¥, about an hour, last return at 16:40). From Tianshui station, take bus 34 (5¥, about an hour, slightly longer hours of operation).

Fees and permits

Admission to the park is 90¥. If you don't want to walk 1.5km to the base of the cliff, you can pay 15¥ extra (return) to ride a shuttle golf cart.

Get around

You can pay for a shuttle to get you 1.5km closer to the base of the cliff. The grottoes themselves can only be accessed on foot, via a complex network of walkways and stairways.

See

• Colossal Buddhas - several colossal buddhas grace the side of the mountain
• Gallery views - view from the gallerys of the surrounding landscape
• Botanical gardens - plants brought from near and far

Sleep