The town's good-looking Drum Tower – any historic Chinese city with any self-worth should have one – presides over the confluence of Jiefang Lu and Gulou Jie. It cannot be entered, so today only serves a decorative function. It is often confused with the Jade Emperor Pavilion, another attractive tower, a few hundred metres to the east.
Yinchuan Drum Tower
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
15.32 MILES
Like giant beehives scattered on the arid eastern slope of the Helan mountains, the Xixia imperial tombs are Ningxia’s most celebrated sight. The earliest…
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Yinchuan Museum of Contemporary Art
8.04 MILES
Located in a white, fashionably fluid-lined building between the Yellow River and paddy fields is Yinchuan MOCA, the premier museum for contemporary art…
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23.23 MILES
The most significant sight in Helan Shan is these ancient rock carvings dating from 1000 to 10,000 years ago. Over 2000 pictographs depict animals, faces,…
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0.44 MILES
This cavernous museum contains an extensive collection of rock art and Silk Road artefacts. The highlights are relics from the imperial tombs of the Xixia…
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15.22 MILES
This wacky film studio is where famed Chinese movies like Red Sorghum and many Hong Kong classics by Stephen Chow, Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Tsui Hark…
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29.86 MILES
Once one of the most magnificent monasteries in Inner Mongolia, Guǎngzōng Sì has a stunning setting in the Helanshan mountain foothills 38km south of…
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24.06 MILES
This park is a good place to start exploring Helan Shan. The 5km northbound trail is quite challenging in parts and takes you to the highest point in the…
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1.93 MILES
This fantastically well-preserved pagoda in the north of town is a beauty. Its cross-shaped (from above), straight-edged and tapering form was exquisitely…
Nearby attractions
0.16 MILES
This imposing structure was created as a bell and drum tower in the Ming dynasty; after it suffered damage in an earthquake during the Qing dynasty, it…
0.39 MILES
At this busy market with lanes flanked by mounds of local produce, the assortment of chilli peppers is astounding – all shapes, sizes and hotness levels:…
0.44 MILES
This cavernous museum contains an extensive collection of rock art and Silk Road artefacts. The highlights are relics from the imperial tombs of the Xixia…
0.56 MILES
The sole surviving gate of the old town wall, Nánxūn Mén looks south out onto Nanmen Sq (南门广场, Nánmén Guǎngchǎng) from its position east of Nanxun Dongjie…
0.58 MILES
Climb the 11 storeys of steep, narrow stairs of this brick pagoda topped with a green spire for 360-degree views of Yinchuan. The octagonal pagoda is also…
1.93 MILES
This fantastically well-preserved pagoda in the north of town is a beauty. Its cross-shaped (from above), straight-edged and tapering form was exquisitely…
7. Yinchuan Museum of Contemporary Art
8.04 MILES
Located in a white, fashionably fluid-lined building between the Yellow River and paddy fields is Yinchuan MOCA, the premier museum for contemporary art…
15.22 MILES
This wacky film studio is where famed Chinese movies like Red Sorghum and many Hong Kong classics by Stephen Chow, Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Tsui Hark…