[imcarthur]

Just a few Xi’an tips:

We stayed at the 5* Western-style Howard Johnson’s just outside the South Gate. Great views of the South Gate & the city walls. There are a lot of hotels in this vicinity. There is a night market on Dongxin Street that I wanted to go to for food but we ran out of time & energy. The Qin tomb (the main event) is ˝ - 1 hour east of the city center. The big sheds with the warriors are further east of the mound. Pit 1 is the picture above. There are also several smaller burial mounds northwest of the city (across the river near the airport) with a small museum at the Mausoleum of Liu Qi.

We managed to avoid a Dinner Theater which the Internets say is touristic & annoying with bad food. Assuming you will hire a guide or driver, you will undoubtedly see the terracotta factory & probably a silk factory – avoid both if you can. You could probably arrange a drive into the countryside to see some rural Shaanxi although the roads to/from the tombs will give you a glimpse.

Fwiw here is my Trip Report.

Ian