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Voykit pocket guide · China
Xilamuren
Half a day to one night: ride an ATV or horse on the grassland, sleep in a yurt camp, then head back to Hohhot. Not a base.
Xilamuren is a grassland town north of Hohhot, built around yurt encampments for Chinese tourists. The landscape is open and flat, the experience is commercial but fun: ATVs, horses, evening shows and milk tea. Most visitors come for a half-day ride or one night in a yurt, then return to Hohhot.
- Country
- China
- Best months
- Jun–Sep
- Avoid
- Nov–Mar (cold, grassland brown)
- 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 ¥100–200 excl. bed · Mid ¥200–400 excl. bed · High ¥400+ 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 |
|---|---|
| Bus Hohhot–Xilamuren | ¥25 (check) |
| ATV rental, half hour | ¥60 (2017, check) |
| Yurt per night | ¥60–200 (2017, check) |
| Dinner for 3 with beer at camp | ¥120 (2017, check) |
| Return bus to Hohhot | ¥20 (check) |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- HET · Hohhot Baita International Airport
- About 2 h by bus or taxi via Hohhot city centre
Typical fares
- Bus Hohhot–Xilamuren
- about ¥25, about 2 h (check)
- Return bus to Hohhot
- about ¥20 (check)
- ATV rental, half hour
- about ¥60 (2017, check)
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
Walk or rent an ATV (about ¥60 for half an hour, 2017 price, check) or a horse. The grassland is flat and open.
See and do
Known for
- Grassland yurt camps
- ATV and horse riding
- Evening shows
- Milk tea in yurts
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Hohhot | Bus from the main road, about 2 h | About 2.5 h |
| Baotou | Bus via Hohhot or direct taxi, about 3 h | About 3.5 h |
Sleep
- Yurt camps at the entrance
- Basic yurts with a table and blankets; rates vary from ¥60 to ¥200 (2017 prices, check). Touts meet you at the entrance.
- Town centre
- Small hotels with basic amenities; less atmosphere than the yurt camps.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | 你好nǐ hǎo |
| Thank you | 谢谢xiè xiè |
| How much is it? | 多少钱？duō shǎo qián? |
| I want to rent an ATV | 我想租一辆沙滩车wǒ xiǎng zū yī liàng shā tān chē |
| Where is the bus stop? | 公交车站在哪里？gōng jiāo chē zhàn 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
- Yurt camps are commercial and not a traditional nomadic experience.
- Food at camps can be expensive; bring snacks.
- Touts at the entrance will try to sell you yurt stays and rides; negotiate the price before agreeing.
- Last bus back to Hohhot leaves from the main road; check the schedule at the bus station.
Safe for tourists; watch out for touts and negotiate prices upfront. The grassland is open and easy to navigate.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Xilamuren yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Grassland yurt camps
- ATV and horse riding
- Evening shows
- Milk tea in yurts
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: Xilamuren, revision 4692734 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=4692734
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Printed from Voykit (/xilamuren). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.