Hexi Corridor Area

The Hexi Corridor is a long, narrow valley in northwestern China that runs westward from near Lanzhou through Gansu province toward the edge of the Tarim Basin; it formed a vital section of the overland Silk Road. Its strategic position between the Tibetan Plateau and the Mongolian steppe made it the main east-west passage for trade and military movement.

The corridor is roughly several hundred to about a thousand kilometers in length and is punctuated by a chain of oasis towns and garrison settlements including Zhangye, Jiuquan, Jiayuguan and Dunhuang. Key features along the route include the Jiayuguan fortress at the traditional western terminus of the Ming Great Wall and the Mogao Caves at Dunhuang, which contain extensive Buddhist art and manuscripts.

Control of the Hexi Corridor was a major strategic objective for Chinese states from the Han dynasty onward; the Han established garrisons and fortified the route to secure trade and communication with Central Asia. The corridor continued to be important through later dynasties as a commercial and cultural conduit.

Geographically the corridor lies in Gansu province, northwest China, running from the area near Lanzhou west to the desert margins around Dunhuang and Jiayuguan; its oases and towns are the main population centres in an otherwise arid region.

• Silk Road role: The corridor served as the main overland link for the Chinese sections of the Silk Road and is dotted with forts, watchtowers and oasis towns spaced along its length.
• Travel notes: Best travel seasons are spring and autumn to avoid summer heat and winter cold in the arid interior; many important sites are reached from the cities of Zhangye, Jiuquan and Dunhuang.

What to See#

• Jiayuguan Fortress: Jiayuguan is the site of the western terminus of the Ming Great Wall and a fortress that guarded the western end of the Hexi Corridor during the Ming dynasty.
• Dunhuang and Mogao Caves: Dunhuang sits at the western edge of the corridor and is the location of the Mogao Caves, a major complex of Buddhist cave art and manuscripts dating from the 4th to the 14th centuries.
• Zhangye and Jiuquan: Zhangye and Jiuquan are major historic stops along the corridor that served as garrison towns, caravan stations and administrative centres on the Silk Road.

The Hexi Corridor runs across northern Gansu province along the historic Silk Road corridor connecting Lanzhou with Xinjiang; major stops in the corridor include Lanzhou, Zhangye and Jiayuguan. You can reach towns along the corridor by taking the Lanzhou-Xinjiang Railway (trains from Lanzhou serve Zhangye and Jiayuguan) or by driving along the G30 Lianyungang-Khorgas Expressway and parallel China National Highway 312 that run the length of the corridor.

• Plan visits to sections of the Hexi Corridor in spring or autumn to avoid summer heat and winter cold; base yourself in gateway towns such as Jiayuguan, Zhangye or Dunhuang and day-trip to nearby forts and stretches of the Great Wall.
• To avoid crowds, visit major sites (Jiayuguan Fortress, Zhangye scenic areas, Mogao Caves outside Dunhuang) first thing in the morning or on weekday mornings; the corridor is long, so prioritise a few sites rather than trying to cover everything in one trip.
• When travelling between sites allow extra time for long drives across the corridor and book overnight stays in advance at the larger towns-public transport links between smaller sites can be infrequent, so organised tours or private drivers are often more efficient.