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History of  Datong

Datong is situated in northern Shanxi Province. It is bordered by Inner Mongolia to the North and Hebei Province to the east. Covering an area of 14,176 square kilometers (5473 square miles), Datong has four districts and seven counties under its prefecture. It is the second largest city in Shanxi Province with a population of 2.99 million.

Known as the 'City of the Coal', Datong has developed into the second largest industrial city in Shanxi due to its advantage in energy. Its large reserves of coal make it a very important energy base for China. Since it is a key resource city, transportation connections with Datong are quite convenient, especially by road and by train. Series of railways and roads work as a huge net to connect Datong with many other cities.

Datong is one of the 24 famous historical and cultural cities in China due to its ever prosperous history. With a history of over 2400 years, Datong was the capital of Northern Wei (386~534) for 96 years, and the 'support capital' of Liao (916~1125) and Jin (1115~1234). It was the political, economic and military center of ancient North China, which attracted many people from various nations for trade or business. These prosperous days left Datong with a series of splendid historic and cultural relics like the Yungang Grottoes and Hanging Monastery. Most of them are the integration of minorities' cultural and Han culture.

The scenery of Datong differs markedly from the delicate and pretty cities south of Yangtze River. Here, green hills and small clean streams are rarely seen. What you can find is continuous peaks rising one upon another; majestic old temples standing for thousands of years and the vast sky and light cloud over your head. All of this reveals a grand and infinite air.

Tourist Places in Datong

Datong is located at 1,200 meters high in the north, in the northern part of Shanxi Province. Mountains surround Datong, with Yu River running across from south to north. Plains occupy its central and south part. Datong has a dry and windy weather with big temperature difference between day and night, and annual rainfall ranging from 400-500 millimeters. A number of cheap Datong hotels make your stay comfortable, and provide you an opportunity to visit the nearby tourist attractions in Datong.

HUAYAN MONASTERY
Situated in the southwest of Datong, Shanxi Province is the Huayan Monastery, named after the Huayan sect of Buddhism. The Upper Huayan Monastery (Da Xiong Bao Dian) is considered to be one of the two biggest Buddhist halls existent in China. And it was built under the Liao Dynasty in 1062. The Monastery suffered from a severe damage in the last years of the Liao and yet Jin restored it in 1140.

MOUNT HENGSHAN & HANGING MONASTRY
About 80 kilometers from Datong and 5 kilometers from Hunyuan County, the gravity defying Hanging Monastery is built on extremely sheer cliffs of Mount Hengshan above Jinlong Canyon. Mount Hengshan, one of the most famous "Five Sacred Mountains (Wu Yue)" in China, is located about 62 kilometers south to Datong City of Shanxi Province. It attracts people by its natural sceneries and man-made landscaping.

WOODEN PAGODA
Located in Yingxian County, and about 70 kilometers south of Datong, the Wooden Pagoda is the oldest and highest wooden structure in China. It is regarded as the "First Pagoda in the World" and a gem in the architectural field. The Wooden Pagoda is a perfect combination of science, art and religion. It is also the

 wonder of the wooden architecture field.

How To Reach Datong

By Air :
Datong Airport（DAT）is situated 17 kilometers (10.6 miles) to the east of the urban area and covers an area of 2159 mu (355.7 acres). As it is newly opened, there are only flights connecting Datong with Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. Flights heading for Beijing are available on Monday, Wednesday and Friday; for Shanghai on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and for Guangzhou on Monday and Friday only.

Transport between Datong Airport and the urban area is convenient by the shuttle bus or taxi since the distance is not very far. The shuttle bus heading for the airport starts in front of the Continental Hotel at No.88 Binxi Street of Yingbin Road (West) in Datong City. Every bus leaves 2 hours ahead of the flight time and takes 25~30 minutes without stop.

In addition to the Datong Airport, Taiyuan Wusu Airport is the nearest airport available to Datong acting as a transfer station for the trip to Datong. There is no bus directly heading for Datong at the Wusu Airport but you have to take the Bus No. 201 in front of Wusu Airport and alight at the Taiyuan Railway Station or the Taiyuan Long-distance Bus Station at No.72 Yingze Dajie in Taiyuan City. In the square at the Taiyuan Railway Station or in Taiyuan Long-distance Bus Station, there are buses heading for Datong available. You can refer to Taiyuan Transportation for the detailed information concerning the buses.

By Rail :
Established in 1914, Datong Railway Station lies at No.1 Zhanqian Street in Datong City. Datong is the main coal producing city in China and the coal is mainly transported by train. This has proved to be convenient and the trains radiate in all directions within China. From here, trains connect with 25 cities in China including Beijing, Guangzhou, Xian, Hangzhou and Taiyuan. 10 passenger trains start in Datong Railway Station and the other stops over it and head for Beijing, Hangzhou, Taiyuan and Shuozhou (in Shanxi).

It would take about 6 hours to travel from Datong to Beijing, 9 hours to Hangzhou and 10 hours to Guangzhou. Trains heading for the neighboring Shuozhou City only take 1 hour and cost CNY 10 for a hard seat. It would take 5~7 hours for trains heading for Taiyuan from Datong and cost CNY 26~46 for the hard seat.

Datong Railway Station can be reached by Bus Nos. 2, 3-2, 4, 8, 15, 30, 35, and 42.

By Road :
There are 36 bus routes in Datong City which form a large network making all the parts of the city easy to reach. City-buses in Datong have two types of charging standards. One is self-service with a fare of CNY 1. The other charges according to the distance you propose to take. The minimum fare is CNY 1 for the first 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) and CNY 0.5 for each additional 5 kilometers (3.1 miles). Buses in Datong has different schedule in summer from in winter. During winter days, most of the routes start at 05:20 ~07:30 in the morning and end at 17: 30 ~20:30 in the evening every day. But during summer days, the starting time may not change while the ending time of most routes will be delayed for 10 minutes.

Tips :
1. In a self-service bus, there is a box inside the entry door. The fare is placed into the box as you enter the bus. The driver will not give change so that it is necessary to have the correct change.
2. On the bus charging according to distance, a conductor will charge the fare according to the distance you will take and change is available here.
3. The ticket will not be valid if you change buses.

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