We spent four nights in Xining, capital of Qinghai Province, from 26 to 30 August 2026. Between our late‑afternoon arrival, early‑morning departure, two full‑day trips outside the city, and persistent rain, we barely got to see much of Xining itself. Still, I’d love to share our time there with you.

City Views: Like many Chinese cities, it is green, tidy and vibrant.

We also caught sight of the Huangshui River, Qinghai’s socalled “mother river”. This important tributary of the Yellow River flows straight through central Xining. Its fertile valley sustains most of Qinghai’s population and carries thousands of years of local Hehuangculture history.

Qinghai Provincial Museum

Its collections trace thousands of years of local history, from prehistoric painted pottery of the Hehuang Valley, through the Tubo Kingdom era and the ancient TangTibet Road, to the rich multicultural heritage of today’s ethnic groups including Tibetan, Tu, Hui and Mongolian peoples.

Qinghai Tibetan Culture Museum

Situated in northern Xining, Qinghai Tibetan Culture Museum is China’s major thematic museum dedicated to Tibetan civilisation.

Its undisputed highlight is the Grand Tibetan Cultural Thangka, a GuinnessWorldRecordcertified giant thangka stretching 618 metres long. Created by more than 400 artists using mineralbased pigments of gold, silver and semiprecious stones, this enormous work serves as an encyclopaedia of Tibetan history, cosmology, religion, medicine and folk traditions.

Xining Caojiapu International Airport

Situated 28 km from downtown Xining at an altitude of 2184 m, this airport serves as Qinghai’s main air gateway and key transport hub for QinghaiLake tours. The brandnew Terminal 3 came into service in August 2025, with a large integrated groundtransport centre for coaches, taxis and airport shuttles.

We tried local specialties in Xining: the hearty-flavoured Tu Huoguo(hot-pot) and Kang Yangpai(grilled lamb ribs).

That concludes our short stay in Xining. All in all, Xining gave us a pleasant taste of Qinghai’s culture and cuisine.

Yours Truly

Angie Guo - Charmission Travel