Kunming is the provincial capital of Yunnan Province, which has an area of 15.6 thousand square kilometers and a population of 3.6 million. Kunming is situated at the high plateau of the eastern part of Yunnan Province. To the south is the biggest Dian Lake of Yunnan Province. It belongs to the subtropical plateau monsoon climatic zone; the annual average temperature is 14.7 and the yearly precipitation, 1024 mm. It is rich in phosphorus, salt mine and quartz and other such mineral resources as mirabilite, iron, bauxite, copper, coal, etc; it is also rich in ground water and geothermal energy resources.

Tomb of Princess Zhaojun: General Introduction

The Tomb of Princess Zhaojun, located near the bank of Da Hei River, about 9 kilometers south of the Hohhot city center, is one of the most beautiful scenes of ancient times. The story of the concubine Wang Zhaojun, one of China’s four historical beauties, is a Chinese morality tale of political alliance and sacrifice. The tale has been obfuscated over time into numerous versions. The Tomb of Princess Zhaojun is one hundred feet tall, occupying an area of 1.3 hectare. The pyramid-shaped mound is 98 feet high and is crowned by a pavilion on its summit. From the pavilion the views are nice of the grasslands, farms and the small park that surrounds the foot of the tomb. The park contains a couple of interesting features, a statue of the couple together on horseback, and a rose garden that within contains a museum that holds a couple of steles, and clothing, jewels and books that allegedly belong to the deceased.

It was said that each year when the weather turned cold and grasses became yellow, only this tomb remained green and thus it is also called Green Tomb. However, the tomb is famous not only for the scene but also for the Lady Wang Zhaojun. She was not really buried here and nobody knows where and when she died. The Tomb of Wang Zhaojun itself is also shrouded in mystery, in which no one knows whether the true concubine Wang lies beneath.

Tomb of Princess Zhaojun Travel Tip:

Admission Fee: CNY 35

Opening Hours: 08:00-18:00

Dazhao Monastery: General Introduction

The Dazhao Monastery, meaning large monastery in Mongolian, is located in the old town of Hohhot, Inner Mongolia. It is the oldest building and the largest temple in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia. Local people usually call itSilver Buddha Temple (Yinfosi) because there is a silver statue of Buddha that measures 2.5-meter-high (8.2-foot-high). The construction of the temple was completed in 1580 during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It went through a large scale renovation in 1640 with much of the original architectural style was retained.

Dazhao Monastery owns its fame to a visit by the third Dalai Lama from Tibet in 1586 when the Dalai Lama brought the monastery the Silver Buddha statue. Since then Hohhot became the center for people from all overMongolia to practice Buddhism. Another notable event in the temple's long history was a visit by Emperor Kangxi during the early part of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

Dazhao Monastery Travel Tip:

Admission Fee: CNY 30

Opening Hours: 08:00-18:00

Hohhot has a large Muslim community. The center of Hohhot Muslim community is Hohhot Great Mosque built in the Ming Dynasty 600 years ago. Hohhot is also famous for the scenery of Mongolian grassland. IslamiChina has summarized the following Hohhot Muslim travel tips to our Muslim brothers and sisters to travel Hohhot during a short period of time.

Tour Itinerary Planning

For Muslim Business Travelers

If you are in Hohhot for a business trip and you have one day free to travel around Hohhot, you may arrange one night stay at Xilamurn or Gegentala Grassland. Back to Hohhot you may join local Muslims at Hohhot Great Mosque for Salat prayers.

For Muslim leisure travelers

3 Days and 2 Nights Hohhot Muslim Tour is the best choice for Muslim leisure travelers because this tour itinerary allows you to have enough time to know both Hohhot’s culture heritages as well as Muslim heritages. You are not in a hurry to get around Hohhot from one place to another. Please check IslamiChina’s Hohhot Muslim Tour 3 Days for details.

Accommodations

There is no Muslim hotel in Hohhot, you may choose to stay at international brand name hotels such as Sheraton, Hilton, Holiday Inns and dine at local Halal restaurants in Hohhot.

Halal Restaurants in Hohhot

The easiest way to find a Halal restaurant in China is to look for local mosque. Mosque is always located in the center of a Muslim community, no doubt, Halal restaurants can be found around Mosque serving local Halal food. In Hohhot, Halal restaurants are also located in other part of the city serving local Hohhot Halal cuisine and Xinjiang Uyghur Cuisine, Lanzhou Beef Noodles can be found in many parts of Hohhot.

Mosques in Harbin

There are 17 mosques in Hohhot. Hohhot Great Mosque is the earliest and largest mosque among those eight mosques in Hohhot, the capital city Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Hohhot Great Mosque was built in 1693; renovated in 1789 and 1923. It now covers an area of 4000 square meters. The layout of Hohhot Great Mosque is west and east. Right in front of Hohhot Great Mosque, there used to be a screen wall which was torn done in history. There are lecture rooms, water house, minaret, imam’s rooms and prayer hall and other facilities in the mosque. The prayer hall is supported by 12 wooden pillars where Koran was carved on. The prayer hall of Hohhot Great Mosque is big enough for five hundred people to pray together. The most eye-catching building of Hohhot Great Mosque is the minaret which is 33 meters high, built in 1933.

Money Exchange

You can exchange traveler's checks or cash at most banks, and most 5-star and 4-star hotels always have a money exchange counter. You can also get a cash advance on your credit card on ATM machine. The exchange rate all over China are the same fixed by Bank of China. To change money, you have to have your passport at hand. If you want to change money in a hotel, you usually have to be a guest there. Sometimes if you are not a guest in a hotel but need to change money there, you can just say a random room number, but this doesn't always work. Remember to keep the exchange slip well because you need this slip to change the Chinese Yuan back to your currency if you do have this need at the end of the tour. At present, the RMB is not exchangeable on the International market, so it is only usable within the country. So when you are changing money, don't change too much, because it is difficult to change back into other currencies. To change RMB back into your home currency, you must retain the exchange slips that are given to you at the bank or money exchange counter.