Yushu/Jyekundo Travel Guide

The traditional town of Amdo, now the county of Qinghai Province. The inhabitants are mostly Tibetan. The three world famous rivers - the Yantze River, the Yellow River and the Lancang River - all originate from this beautiful region. Yushu was a center of commercial importance in Tang Dynasty and was filled with commodity transaction, especially between the people of Han and the Hui nationality. There are lots of merchant here. It is so rich in clothes making, handicrafts and health drug ingredients. It's a paradise for unique shopping and artifacts.

Yushu is called "the sea of dances and songs" and "the hometown of dances and songs". Famous scenic spots include: Temple of Wencheng Princess, Gyegu Monastery, and the largest Mani Stone stack in the world. With numerous snow-capped mountains, glaciers, lakes, grasslands and other natural scenes, Yushu is abundant in natural animals including wild yak, snow leopard, Tibetan antelope, argali, wild donkey, wild camel, golden eagle, common kestrel, totaling more than 230 categories, of which more than 20 belong to Categories and 2 of wild animals protected by the nation. Sitting at an altitude of 5300 meters above sea level, Yushu is over 800 kilometers from Xining, and an ideal place to see wild animals and beautiful scenery at the "the rooftop of the world".With its beautiful grassland is a good place for horse racing and dancing. On July the 25th of each year the grand Yushu Kham horse racing festival is held here.

Major Attractions

Yushu Horse Racing Festival

A grand celebration to succeed and promote traditional cultures. It is an exciting show for traditional features and is famous at home and abroad. The festival will begin with Wei Sang Ceremony, a plant-burning rite to worship God that originates from an ancient religious sacrificial ritual.

In ancient times, people worship the God of Mountain or War by Wei Sang Ceremony for blessings. This ancient convention now has become an opening ceremony for the Horse Racing Festival. In the Wei Sang Ceremony, riders with Cha-zi, with guns hanging over their shoulders and long knives on their waists, walk their horses run around the Wei Sang Platform for 3 rounds, are of which brings intrigue to the festival. The introductory ceremony for the dance-song performing team, horse team and religious honor guards are after the Wei Sang Ceremony.

The activities of the festival mainly cover Arrow-Shooting running horse, On-Horse Shooting, Pulling Hada on Running Horse, Turning Upside Down on Running Horse, Hanging on Running Horse, Long-Distance Horse Racing, Horse Walking Race, Tibetan Yak Race, and other performing programs. These include traditional dances in traditional clothes performance and special ritual performance.

There are also some trade activities including materials exchange and business discussions during the festival, and performances of splendid folk artisans from the south of Tibet, Qinghai, Sichuan, Yunnan, etc.

How to Get in?

By Plane

Travelers can take flights to Yushu from Xi'an or Xining. Two daily flights are operated by China Eastern Airlines. Yushu Batang Airport is 26km from Gyegu Town, capital of Yushu Tibetan Region.

MU2001 leaves Xining Caojiabao Airport at 07:30 a.m, and arrives in Yushu Batang Airport at 08:30 a.m. For the return flight MU2002, it leaves Yushu at 09:00 a.m, and reaches Xining at 10:00 a.m.

Travellers can also fly to Yushu from Xi'an, but have to stop in Xining for 50 minutes. MU2313 flies from Xi'an at 11:20, lands at Xining at 12:40, then leaves Xining at 13:50, finally arrives in Yushu at 14:50. MU2314 Yushu-Xining 15:30-16:30, then Xining-Xi'an 17:20-18:20.

By Road

The most beautiful places to visit are always the hardest to reach Yushu is no exception. There are no trains between Xining and Yushu.

To get there, first find the best way to Xining, the capital of Qinghai province and then from the Xining long-distance bus station, take a shuttle bus to the Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, about 819 kilometers away from Xining.

Best Time to Come

The best time to visit Yushu is in July or August. During this time of year the Yushu grassland is a luxurious green and you can experience the Yushu Horse Racing Festival and the Kangba Culture and Arts Festival. It's the perfect time to feast your eyes on beautiful scenery and colorful Tibetan culture.