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Voykit pocket guide · China
Longxi
陇西
Longxi is a half-day stop for the Li Family Dragon Palace and the county museum, best combined with Tianshui or Linxia on a Gansu loop. One night if you want to see Weiyuan Tower on a weekend.
Longxi is a small county in Gansu with a few focused sights: the Li Family Dragon Palace, a Tang-dynasty ancestral temple complex, the adjacent county museum, and the weekend-only Weiyuan Tower. It works as a short detour between Tianshui and Linxia, not a destination on its own.
- Country
- China
- Local name
- 陇西
- Best months
- Apr–Oct
- Avoid
- Dec–Feb (cold, some sights may have reduced hours)
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- CNY
- Money
- Alipay and WeChat Pay accept Visa, Mastercard, JCB and Amex cards; single payments over ¥200 carry a fee of about 3% on a foreign card (smaller ones are free), and per-payment and yearly caps apply — check the app. Keep a second way to pay.
- Daily spend
- Budget ¥200–350 excl. bed · Mid ¥350–600 excl. bed · High ¥600+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- A roaming eSIM from outside China routes traffic through its home network, so Google, WhatsApp and Instagram work without a VPN — the simplest setup.
- Emergency
- Police 110 · Fire 119 · Ambulance 120
- Plugs
- Types A, C, I · 220 V · 50 Hz · Many sockets take flat two-pin (A), round two-pin (C) and angled three-pin (I) plugs; UK plugs need an adapter.
- Tipping
- Restaurants: No tip; upmarket hotels add 10–15% service.; Taxis and DiDi: No tip.; Tour guides and drivers: Expected on organised tours: about ¥100–200 a day for a guide, ¥50–100 for a driver.; Hotel porters: Not expected; ¥10–20 in luxury hotels.
- Water
- Not for drinking from the tap; bottled water ¥2–5, and kettles and free bottles in hotel rooms. Restaurants serve hot water or tea.
- Toilets
- Public toilets are frequent and free; squat toilets outside hotels and malls. Carry tissues — many have no paper.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Bowl of noodles | ¥10–20 |
| Local bus ride | ¥2 |
| Taxi within town | ¥10–20 |
| Museum entry | Free |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- LHW · Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport
- About 2.5 h by bus or train to Longxi; the nearest major airport.
Typical fares
- Longxi Railway Station → town centre
- about ¥10–15 by taxi
- Longxi Bus Station → Li Family Dragon Palace
- about ¥5 by bus no. 62
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
Local buses (nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 62, etc.) cover the county seat. Taxis are cheap for short hops.
See and do
Known for
- Li Family Dragon Palace
- Longxi County Museum
- Weiyuan Tower
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Tianshui | Train from Longxi Railway Station, about 1 h | About 1.5 h |
| Linxia | Bus from Longxi Bus Station, about 2 h | About 2.5 h |
| Lanzhou | Train from Longxi Railway Station, about 2 h | About 2.5 h |
Sleep
- Gongchang Town centre
- Near the bus station and main sights; most hotels are here.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | 你好nǐ hǎo |
| Thank you | 谢谢xiè xiè |
| How much? | 多少钱？duō shǎo qián? |
| Where is the toilet? | 厕所在哪里？cè suǒ zài nǎ lǐ? |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and a nod; use surnames with a title; avoid: Hugs and cheek kisses
- Face: Disagree privately and indirectly; avoid: Correcting or embarrassing someone in front of others
- Gifts: Give with two hands; expect the gift to be refused once or twice and opened later; avoid: Clocks, umbrellas, white flowers, sets of four
- Business cards: Present and receive with both hands, read it, keep it on the table; avoid: Writing on it or pocketing it at once
- Queues and crowds: Hold your ground politely in scrums at buses and lifts; avoid: Taking pushing personally
- Temples: Walk clockwise around Tibetan stupas and prayer wheels; remove hats; avoid: Touching statues or photographing where signs forbid
- Politics: Listen; follow your host's lead; avoid: Raising Tibet, Taiwan, Xinjiang, 1989 or the party leadership
- Numbers and colour: Red and 8 are lucky; red envelopes carry money gifts; avoid: Writing names in red; the number 4
Scams and watch-outs
- Weiyuan Tower is only open on weekends (Saturday and Sunday); check the hours before you go.
- The museum is closed on Mondays.
- No entry to the Dragon Palace after 17:00; plan to arrive before then.
Longxi is a safe county town. Standard precautions: keep valuables secure, avoid walking alone late at night in unlit areas.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Longxi yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Li Family Dragon Palace
- Longxi County Museum
- Weiyuan Tower
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Wikivoyage: Longxi, revision 5201073 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5201073
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Printed from Voykit (/longxi). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.