Tianshui

Tianshui (天水; Tiānshuǐ) is a city in Gansu Province.

Understand

Tianshui is located on 1,170 m above sea level. It consists of two main area with an industrial area in between. The eastern area is called Maijishan District and the western area is called Qinzhou District. Longcheng Rd connects both sections which lie 18 km apart.

In the Western area, the central point of the city is the Central Square (天水市龙城广场) along the Dazhongzhong Rd (大众中路) (the main commercial road of the city), next to Jiefang Rd (解放路).

Get in

By train

• 1 Tianshui South railway station (天水南站). A major stop on the high-speed line from Xi'an to Lanzhou, Xining, and Urumqi. Also has high-speed sleeper train service to Shanghai. (updated Oct 2019)
• 2 Tianshui station (天水火车站, Tiānshuǐ Huǒchēzhàn). Station for low-speed sleeper trains. Destinations include Lanzhou (4 hours), Urumqi (28-35 hours), Xian (4 hours), Xining (8 hours), and Yinchuan (14 hours). (updated Oct 2019)

By bus

Long Distance Bus Station is at Xinhua Road, Qincheng.

• Gangu - takes about 2 hours
• Lanzhou - takes about 4 hours
• Linxia - takes about 10 hours
• Pingliang - takes about 8 hours
• Xi'an - takes about 5-6 hours

By plane

• 3 Tianshui Maijishan Airport (天水麦积山机场). A small airport with limited service to major domestic hubs, centrally located. (updated Oct 2019)

Get around

If you come from Tianshui South Railway Station, you can find Tourist Bus terminal on the ground floor, and the city bus on the B2 level. Most city bus cost ¥2-3.

See

• 1 Tianshui City Museum (天水市博物馆), 110 Fuxi Road, Qinzhou District (秦州区伏羲路110号) (on the west side of the Fuxi Temple; bus nos. 7, 14, 18, 21, 24, 26, 83 and 96), ☏ +86 938 8291377, +86 938 8227304, tssbwg1015@163.com. 08:30-18:00, no entry after 17:30, closed Mondays. Museum with an extensive collection of ancient pottery and bronzeware from the area. Free. (updated Sep 2024)
• Tianshui Ancient Town (天水古城), Jiefang Lu (near Fuxi Temple, there are multiple roads to enter, look for a big Chinese gate.). An ancient town blending directly with modern buildings. Many stores selling food and merchandise. Can be explored slowly in about 1-2 hours. The complex lights up at 8pm for a different experience. (updated Aug 2024)
• 2 Tianshui Industry Museum (天水工业博物馆), 289 West Xihuang Road, Qinzhou District (秦州区羲皇大道西路289号) (bus no. 9, 18, 21, 26), ☏ +86 938 6850000. 09:00-18:00, closed on Monday (except when Monday is a public holiday). A former electrical equipment factory that has been turned into a museum. It displays various types of old machinery and tells the story of the city’s industrial history. Free. (updated Mar 2024)

Religious Sites

3 Taizi mosque (台子清真寺). Mosque located in Da Zhong Zhong Lu, with Halaal food available nearby. (updated Oct 2019)

4 Fuxi Temple (伏羲庙). 08:00-18:00. Ancient Taoist temple dedicated to the inventor of the trigram and a number of other mathematical systems, games, and tricks. Fuxi is a mythical deity that introduces the bagua (八卦) or eight trigrams. Not a huge complex, but well worth visiting. ¥20. Passport needed.. (updated Aug 2024)

5 Yuquan Temple (玉泉观). 08:00-18:00 April-October, 08:30-17:30 November-March. Ancient Taoist temple overlooking Tianshui, dating from the Yuan dynasty. It is still possible to drink from the spring, for a donation. ¥20. (updated Oct 2019)

Outside the city

• 6 Maijishan National Park (麦积山) (Direct tourist bus from the South Train Station. from 07:00, around an hour, ¥8-10. 45 kilometers (about 28 miles) southeast of Tianshui City.). 08:00-17:00. Best known for the Maijisjan Grottoes, a series of nearly 200 ancient Buddhist grottoes on a vertical mountain cliff, well-preserved but be prepared to climb some stairs. The park also has a botanical garden. ¥70/¥90 (off/peak season). (updated Aug 2024)
• 7 Immortals' Cliffs (仙人崖), Maijishan District (麦积山区) (if coming from the city, take bus no. 37, which stops near the Tianshui Railway Station; if coming from Maijishan National Park, you can choose to ether take bus no. 39 or use the special shuttle bus), ☏ +86 938 2656590. 07:30-18:30 (Apr-Oct), 08:30-18:00 (Nov-Mar), no tickets sold after 17:00. Temples built under the shelter of enormous overhanging cliffs decorated with Buddhist carvings. Requires a lot of walking uphill in order to see everything, so you might only see one of the cliffs if your time is short. ¥40 (entry fees only), ¥50 (entry fees plus sightseeing car fare). (updated Sep 2024)

The Lashao Temple Buddha at the Water Curtain Cave Scenic Area

• 8 Wushan Water Curtain Cave Scenic Area (Wushan Shuiliandong Jingqu, 武山水帘洞景区), Wushan County (武山县) (take a bus to Wushan County from either the Tianshui Bus Terminal or the Tianshui West Bus Station. Get off at Luomen Town. The fare is about CNY 30. After arrival, take a cab or public bus to the scenic area - the bus stops at an unmarked bus stop opposite Luomen Bus Station.), ☏ +86 938 8884639. 08:00-17:30 (summer and autumn), 08:30-17:00 (winter and spring). Situated in Luban Gorge in Wushan County to the west of Tianshui, covering an area of 2,000 square meters. The park features several cave temples with ancient rock paintings and carvings. The star attraction is the Lashao Temple Buddha, which is said to be the largest cliffside Buddha carving in the world. ¥30 for entrance. ¥10 for shuttle bus. (updated Aug 2024)

Buy

• Antique Market, Jiefang Road (Under Central Square). 
• Tianshui Lacquer Carvings. Decent prices on lacquarware compared to the rest of China. Bargain hard and you may be a winner! 

Eat

• Huimin (Muslim) Street Food at night (around 6pm onwards) on Zizhixiang Lane (自治巷), on the western side of Dazhongzhong Rd.
• Night Market at Guan Quan Lane and the East Guangming Xiang Lane, on the East side of Dazhongzhong Rd. Lots of stalls selling grills, noodles, Muslim food, nuts, fruits, spices. Be sure to compare price a little, as a handful of vendors seems to double their price for foreigner.
• Unnamed food alleys along the East side of Dazhongzhong Rd.

Sleep

Budget

• Hongqiao Hotel (Hongqiao Binguan) (Eastern edge of train station parking lot, Maijishan District), ☏ +86 938 2618882. 
• Tianyao Hotel (Tianyao Zhaodaisuo), Minzhu Road, Qinzhou District, ☏ +86 938 8287503. 

Mid-range

• Maiji Hotel (Maiji Dajiudian) (Right side of train station as you exit the station, Maijishan District), ☏ +86 938 4920000. 
• Youju Hotel (Youju Binguan), Central Square, Qinzhou District, ☏ +86 938 8295566. 

Go next

• Gangu and Great Statue Mountain - temple complex that hugs the ridge overlooking a small tourist-free town
• Lanzhou - the capital of Gansu province to the West.
• Xi'an - the capital of Shaanxi province to the East.

Routes through Tianshui

Lanzhou ←

W  E

→ Baoji → Xian