11 Things You Need to Know About Visiting the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang

1. You must book in advance: 1. Book all your accommodation in advance (especially in peak season). 2. Book a Type A ticket for the Mogao Caves in advance. If you can't book either of these, we recommend you change your travel dates. 2. The only booking channel: Search for "Mogao Caves Visit Reservation" on WeChat. 12,000 tickets are available per day in peak season, and 6,000 tickets are available per day in low season. Type A tickets cost CNY 238. Note: Tickets for the Western Thousand Buddha Caves can be booked through the same channel. 3. Be punctual: Tickets are time-limited, with a session every 15 minutes. Choose your session when booking, and arrive 30 minutes in advance. 4. Visit process: First, go to the Mogao Caves Digital Exhibition Center and wait in line. You'll watch two amazing movies (worth the CNY 238 ticket price alone). Follow the instructions after the movies. 5. Visit time: About 3 hours, not including any additional special caves (see point 10) or the Dunhuang Souvenir Store (see point 11). 6. Study in advance: If you don't have time to study the history of the Mogao Caves before your visit, don't worry. The two movies will give you a brief introduction to the history of the Mogao Caves. 7. Movie seating suggestions: Choose a seat at the back for the first movie, as you'll need to change theaters for the second movie. The passage is at the back, so sitting at the back will give you a better choice of seats for the second movie. The second movie is shown on a dome screen, so we recommend sitting in the middle or back. 8. Don't ignore the Digital Exhibition Center: Don't think that the Digital Exhibition Center is just a place to wait in line. It cost CNY 400 million to build. The dome movie mentioned above is only 20 minutes long, but it took a team of nearly 100 people more than 4 years to make. Rendering one second of footage took 60 hours. You won't find an immersive movie experience like this anywhere else, so enjoy it while you can. 9. Visiting the Mogao Caves: You'll be led by a tour guide and divided into groups. You'll visit 8 caves, 4 public caves, and 4 different caves with different guides. I visited in low season, so I was able to follow one guide and then another, and see 4 more caves. This is difficult in peak season, as the wait time for each cave is long and the visit time is short. 10. Special caves with an additional fee: If you want to see more than the 8 caves, and you can afford it, you can book special caves at the tourist information window opposite the exit. The additional fee is CNY 150–200 per person per cave (prices vary by cave). 11. If you want to buy souvenirs, you can visit the Dunhuang Souvenir Store opposite the Nine-Story Tower.