Hanging Temple, A Miraculous Monastery Clinging to Cliffs

203 Provincial Road, Daci Kiln Town, Huyuan County, Datong City, Shanxi Province, at the foot of Mount Heng

A building that can be considered a human architectural marvel

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Introduction

The building previously known as "Xuankong Ge" is now called "Xuankong Temple" because the entire temple is suspended on a cliff. Xuankong Temple has a wooden framework structure consisting of 40 buildings including halls and pavilions. Despite its relatively small size, its impressive use of mortise and tenon joints allows it to be firmly embedded in the cliff. Created in the Northern Wei Dynasty, Xuankong Temple has a history of over 1500 years and is the oldest and most well-preserved high-altitude wooden structure cliff building in China. The various halls and pavilions of the temple are connected by plank roads, and although its scale is not large, its exquisite craftsmanship impressed the poet Li Bai and was praised by Xu Xiake as the pinnacle of harmony in the world.

Address

203 Provincial Road, Daci Kiln Town, Huyuan County, Datong City, Shanxi Province, at the foot of Mount Heng

Opening hours

8:30-16:30 (ticket selling time) (Monday-Sunday, November 1st to February 28th of the next year) 8:00-18:00 (all day)
last entry time: 18:00 (Monday-Sunday, March 1st to October 31st) Note: Ticket selling and entry times may vary depending on tourist flow and national holidays.

Transportation

Take a long-distance bus from Datong Bus Station to Huyuan. You can charter a car to Hengshan and Xuankong Temple, with prices around 50 yuan. When driving by yourself, take the Beijing- Datong expressway and exit at Malianzhuangkou. Then take the provincial road 203 and follow the straight path to arrive.

Phone 0352-8324212;0352-8327795