You can visit Inner Mongolia Museum, Zhaojun Museum (Zhaojun Tomb), and Dazhao Temple today. [Note: The Inner Mongolia Museum is currently closed due to moving to new buildings (updated on 23rd April, 2025), it may reopen soon. So we will arrange the trip to the Inner Mongolia Natural Museum instead.]
You can visit Inner Mongolia Museum (Closed on Mondays) for Grassland Culture. Founded in 1957, it is a national first-class museum with more than 150,000 collections, characterized by its fossils of ancient organisms (dinosaur fossils) and cultural relics of ancient Silk Road & northern ethnic groups (Mongolian, Khitan, Xiongnu). Inner Mongolia Museum is an "encyclopedia" to unveil the ecological change, culture, and historical development of the alpine grassland, deserts, forests, etc. You can trace the historical process of Inner Mongolia from prehistoric times, the Bronze Age, the Warring States to the Wei and Jin, the Liao and Jin, the Mongolian-Yuan to the Ming and Qing Dynasties, as well as modern times.
Take your time to find the Treasures of Inner Mongolia Museum, such as Golden Crown of the Xiongnu King (1,934 grams eagle crown of Warring States Period; 475–221 BC; 战国鹰形金冠饰), Painted Wooden Coffin (Liao Dynasty; over 1,000-year-old; 彩绘棺具), Incense Burner from Jun Kiln (小宋自造均瑶香炉; Yuan Dynasty), Nurosaurus Fossile (the biggest dinosaur in the Cretaceous Period in Asia), Northern Wei: Deer Head Gold Step Shaking Crown (北魏鹿首金步摇冠), Liao Dynasty Golden Mask (辽代黄金面具)…
Then, you can visit Zhaojun Museum. It is about 14 km from Dazhao Temple, where you can visit Zhaojun Tomb, Museum of Hun Culture, Chanyu Big Tent (Dance Show about Zhanjun’s Wedding), Heqin Palace (Culture about Making Peace through Marriage), Zhaojun Room, and Painting & Calligraphy Room (Art Works about Zhaojun).
The Zhaojun Museum, where you can learn about the renowned historical figure Wang Zhaojun from the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC - 24 AD). Wang Zhaojun was among the four most beautiful women in ancient China. Legend has it that these four ladies were so stunning that they could "make fish sink, wild geese descend, shame the moon, and make flowers blush沉鱼/落雁/闭月/羞花". The phrase "wild geese descend落雁" comes from the tale of Zhaojun Chu Sai (昭君出塞). In 33 BC, during a meeting between the Xiongnu Emperor, Hu Han Ye Chanyu (呼韩邪单于), and the Western Han Emperor, Liushi (汉元帝刘奭), Chanyu expressed his willingness to marry a Han woman to establish peace. Wang Zhaojun, a concubine of Emperor Liushi, volunteered to marry Chanyu to promote harmony between their people. Saying goodbye to her rich homeland, she ventured beyond the Great Wall to the Chanyu's impoverished grassland dwelling.
During her travels, amidst the rolling yellow sands and the sounds of galloping horses and wild geese, Wang Zhaojun felt unsettled. To soothe her emotions, she played a sorrowful tune on her instrument. Her poignant music, combined with her beauty, mesmerized the migrating wild geese, causing them to stop mid-flight and fall to the ground. This captivating moment led to the poetic nickname "wild geese descend" for Wang Zhaojun. Her selfless act paved the way for over 60 years of peace between the Han and Xiongnu. This historical event is passed down from generation to generation and is widely known as Zhaojun Chu Sai. Wang Zhaojun is now revered for her grace, intelligence, and diplomacy, with her story immortalized in Chinese poetry, drama, and literature.
You will see the bronze statues of Wang Zhaojun and her husband near Zhaojun Tomb, depict a vivid picture of them riding horses and talking to each other intimately. It symbolizes not only their love, but also the friendship between the Han & the Xiongnu (a nomadic ethnic group living in North China). Standing at Zhaojun Tomb (Qingzhong青冢), the Resting Place of One of China’s Greatest Women in History, you may feel the breeze that blows here 2,000 years ago. You should not miss visiting the Museum of Hun Culture, the only museum about Xiongnu Culture (匈奴文化) with the Huns’ historical relics and art crafts about Zhaojun.
After that, time to head to explore Dazhao Temple (大召寺/大召无量寺). The Dazhao Temple, founded by Alatan Khan (阿拉坦汗/俺答汗; 1508-1582), the leader of the Mongolian Tumote tribe in the Ming Dynasty, was established in 1579. In the square in front of the Dazhao Temple, you will see the legendary builder of the temple, Alatan Khan (the reincarnations of Kublai Khan 忽必烈的转世). The temple is also known as the "Silver Buddha Temple" because it houses a statue of Sakyamuni made of 30,000 taels of pure silver (brought to light by the 3rd Dalai Lama, Sonam Gyatso, the reincarnations of Buton Rinchen Drub; 三世达赖喇嘛索南嘉措/八思巴的转世).
The Dazhao Temple is also known as the "Three Wonders" - the silver Buddha, dragon carvings, and mural, which are all historical relics from the Ming Dynasty. This temple is not only the earliest Tibetan Buddhist temple in Hohhot but also the largest Tibetan Buddhist holy site (Yellow Sect Gelug School) in Inner Mongolia. The temple is laid out in a north-south direction along the central axis, combining Han, Tibetan, and Mongolian architectural styles, attracting architecture enthusiasts and photographers for its Royal Architecture with Yellow glazed tiles (黄琉璃瓦), which can only be used in royal buildings.
In the Qing Dynasty, the Dazhao Temple was also the ancestral temple of Emperor Kangxi (康熙皇帝; 1654-1722). To this day, the tablets of Emperor Kangxi and his father, Shunzhi (顺治皇帝), are still enshrined in the temple. Inside the main hall, you can see the over 400-year-old silver-cast Buddha statue (made by Nepalese craftsmen), a golden coiled dragon about 10 meters high before the silver Buddha, as well as precious cultural relics such as the dragon and phoenix peacock umbrella, the pearl octagonal palace lantern, the wealth deity statue gifted by Kangxi Emperor to Dazhao, and precious Tangkas from the Ming and Qing dynasties.
Don't miss the Sakyamuni Eight Pagodas (释迦八塔) at the Dazhao Temple, representing the eight virtues of the Buddha. Additionally, on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month and the fifteenth day of the sixth lunar month each year (Buddha Thangka Unveiling Ceremony; 晒佛节/恰木舞蹈), the Dazhao Temple hangs giant Tangkas from the temple's precious collection on the scripture drying poles. Try your luck to meet local evens in Dazhao Temple.
Free Time Ideas:
1.Visit More Temples in Hohhot: You can hike to more landmarks of Hohhot, such as Xilitu Zhao Temple (席力图召/小召寺; across the street from Dazhao Temple; Self-pay) & Five Pagodas Temple (五塔寺博物馆; about 1 km from Dazhao Temple; Closed on Mondays).
2.Explore Hohhot Food: You can take a stroll from Altan Khan Square (阿拉坦汗广场/大召广场; Dazhao Square for Altan Khan Statue) to Saishang Old Street (塞上老街) and Tongshun Alley (通顺大巷). These are popular streets (near Dazhao Temple) with Ming and Qing-style buildings for enjoying local food and shopping for local souvenirs.
3.Uncover Dashengkui Museum Cluster (大盛魁博物馆集群; 1.1 km from Dazhao Temple): It comprises the Dashengkui Cultural Museum (Closed on Mondays), Yongsheng Ceramic Museum, Morin Khuur Museum (Horse-head Fiddle Museum)... Established by Jin/Shanxi merchants (晋商), Dashengkui was China's first privately owned joint-stock enterprise along the Tea Road between China and Russia. Dashengkui, nicknamed "Half Guihua City 半个归化城", brought prosperity to Guihua City (Hohhot).