Sanmenxia

Sanmenxia (三门峡; Sānménxiá) is a city in western Henan with 2.2 million inhabitants.

Sanmenxia is on the southern bank of the Yellow River. Sanmenxia city is one of the cradles of Chinese civilization. During the Warring States period, this city guarded the strategic pass between the Qin forces in the Wei Valley to the west and the kingdoms of the North China Plain to the east. It is here that Laozi wrote the Dao De Jing, the founding charter and source of Taoism.

In 1921, the first of late Stone Age paintings were found in MianChiXian Yangshao village. These paintings showed a Chinese matriarchal society. The patterned painted pottery is one of the important features of what came to be known at Yanghao culture.

According to legend, when Dayu was controlling floods, he swung his magic axe to split the mountains into three canyons, namely "Human Gate", "God Gate" and "Ghost Gate", and led the water of the Yellow River to flow eastward, hence the name Sanmenxia. Sanmenxia City is known as "Five Mountains, Four Ridges and One River". At the same time, Yangshao Culture, Taoist Culture and Guo State Culture all originated here.

Today, the city is mostly known for the dam of the same name, built in revolutionary fervor with the semi-mythical goal of clearing the Yellow River. Tourists come during the rainy season to witness massive discharges of the river's water.

Sanmenxia is a city with convenient transportation. It is connected to Guanzhong in the west, Shanxi in the north, and guards the Central Plains in the east. The Longhai Railway, Lianhuo Expressway, National Highway 310, and Zhengxi High-speed Railway run across the east and west, and National Highway 209, San (Menxia) Xi (Chuan) Expressway and Haoji Railway connect the north and the south. It is a regional transportation hub city connecting the three provinces of Henan, Shanxi and Shaanxi, and going north and south, west and east.

Sanmenxia Dam

• 🌍 Sanmenxia Museum (三门峡博物馆), Shanzhou Park, Taiyang Road, Hubin District (湖滨区太阳路陕州公园内) (In the center of Shanzhou Park. Take bus no. 1, 2 or 17 and get off at the bus stop named Scenic Area (风景区) on the eastern side of the park. You can catch bus nos. 1 and 2 from the Sanmenxia Railway Station), ☏ +86 398 2890577. 09:00-17:00, no entry after 16:30, closed on Mondays. Free. (updated Apr 2020)
• 🌍 Guo State Museum (虢国博物馆), Liufeng North Road, Hubin District (湖滨区六峰北路) (Either take bus no. 208 to Yellow River Park (黄河公园) or take bus no. 6 to the Guo State Museum bus stop), ☏ +86 398 2955760, guo-state@371.net. 09:00-16:00, no entry after 16:30. The state of Guo was a vassal state of the Zhou Dynasty. This is the largest comprehensive museum dedicated to the state of Guo and has an extensive collection of artefacts. Highlights includes items unearthed from the royal tombs and an actual burial pit containing the remains of dozens of horses and chariots. ¥40. (updated Apr 2020)
• 🌍 Hangu Pass (函谷关), Wangduo Village, Hanguguan Town, Lingbao (灵宝市函谷关镇王垛村) (Catch a train to Lingbao (not Lingbao West), then transfer to bus no. 8 and get off at the final stop), ☏ +86 398 6922012, +86 398 6923333. 08:00-18:30 (summer), 08:00-17:30. Historic pass guarding the Qin state in the Wei valley to the west against the state to the east. The pass is so important that during the Warring States period, the North China Plain was known as "East of the Gate" (关东). Today's gate structure was built after 1992 and is of questionable authenticity. ¥80. (updated Apr 2020)
• 🌍 Sanmenxia Dam (三门峡大坝, Sanmenxia Dam Scenic Area 三门峡大坝风景区), Wangda Road, Hubin District (湖滨区王大路) (The dam is about 14 km northeast of the city. Buses to the dam reportedly depart from the notheast corner of the intersection of Liufeng North Road (六峰北路) and Jianshe Road (建设路)), ☏ +86 398 2992070. 08:00-17:00. ¥30. (updated May 2020)
• 🌍 Shanxi Rift System (Pinglu rift valley). An around 10km long (straight) rift valley. However the whole are is covered with such faults. (updated Jan 2024)
• 🌍 Swan Lake Wetland Park (天鹅湖湿地公园), West side of Canglongjian River Bridge on Shanzhou Avenue, Shanzhou District, Sanmenxia City (taxi , Bus route: Bus No. 23/Yingbin No. 1 - Development Zone - Transfer to Bus No. 101 - Swan Lake Tourist Resort), ☏ +86 398-2821788. All year round: Monday to Sunday 00:00-24:00. Swan Lake (Qinglong Lake) is located west of National Highway 209 and east of Qinglong Dam, with a water area of ​​2,070 mu. Every October, tens of thousands of white swans migrate from distant Siberia to live and overwinter here. On the sparkling lake surface of the scenic area, thousands of white swans fly freely, play together peacefully and gracefully, caress each other tenderly, comb feathers leisurely with their beaks, or dive into the water and dance "ballet". These holy birds fly, swim, walk, or lie down in various postures, forming a series of moving pictures. free. (updated Sep 2024)
• 🌍 SHANZHOU SILO-CAVE (陕州地坑院), Beiying Village, Zhangbian Township, Shanzhou District, Sanmenxia City, Henan Province (You can take the Dikanyuan tourist bus from Sanmenxia Railway Station and South Station.), ☏ 0398-3266666NOCC, sxdkykf@126.com. 8:30—18:30. Shanzhou troglodyte houses have a long history. The Book of Rites states: "In winter, they live in caves, and in summer, they live in cypress nests." "Caves" are a type of underground house. The earliest way of living for humans was cave dwellings, which is also the earliest form of cave dwellings. Shanzhou troglodyte houses have witnessed the development and evolution of cave dwellings. Cave dwellings are the main form of residence on the Loess Plateau, which is mainly limited by climate and geographical conditions. 人民币60CNY. (updated Sep 2024)
• 🌍 Yangshaoxianmen Mountain Scenic Area (仰韶仙门山), Mianchi County (Lianhuo Expressway - Shaozhou Road - G241 National Highway - Yuanmian Expressway - (Yangshao Station - Xianmenshan Station) - G241 National Highway - Yangshao Xianmenshan Tourist Area), ☏ +86 398-2750888, ysjzxms@126.com. 08:00-17:30 (No admission after 17:30). Yangshao Xianmen Mountain Scenic Area is a characteristic "wine culture and tourism" scenic area developed by Henan Yangshao Tourism Development Co., Ltd. The scenic area is centered on Yangshao culture and Yangshao wine brewing as the main line. It is a large-scale comprehensive tourist attraction integrating tourism, cultural display, catering and accommodation, leisure and vacation, science and research, health and wellness, and conference exchanges. The construction area of ​​the scenic area is 10 square kilometers, with rich landscape resources, overlapping mountains, dense jungles, strange geology, and pleasant ecology. It has more than 200 tourist resource points. The Cuiping Valley Scenic Group and Taoming Valley Scenic Group in the park are both national scenic groups. 人民币40. (updated Sep 2024)

One-of-a-kind restaurants

• Xiao Chen's Special Big Plate Chicken (小陈特色大盘鸡), 20 meters west of the entrance of Yanbao Garden, west section of Huanghe Road(黄河路), ☏ +86 15890296618. 11:00-22:00. A store specializing in “big plate chicken” is a long-established store with good taste, but the service may be a little weak. (updated Oct 2024)
• Old Luo Luo Yang Noodle House (Banshan Road Branch) (老雒阳面馆(崤山路店)), Northwest corner of the intersection of Banshan East Road(崤山东路) and Maojin North Road(

茅津北路), ☏ (0398)2939183NOCC. 11:00-14:00,17:00-21:30. Authentic Luoyang cuisine, which is part of the provincial intangible cultural heritage, has a variety of cuisines. Such as “even soup sliced meat”(连汤肉片) meat is particularly slippery, tender meat, slightly sour appetizing “paste noodles”(糊涂面) noodles sticky but warm stomach, noodles with soup eat up full of satiety. “Iron pot cold noodles”(铁锅凉粉) with a special cold noodles, slightly spicy, but eat very fragrant, not greasy. (updated Oct 2024)

Western chains

• McDonald's, First Floor, Wanda Plaza, Da Ling Road, ☏ (0398)2167968NOCC. 08:00-22:00. The burger giant has only one location in the city. (updated Oct 2024)
• KFC.China's most successful Western fast-food chain has three stores spread across the city, one in the Dream City shopping center(梦之城), one in the Mengle City shopping center(梦乐城), and one in the Wanda Plaza shopping center(万达广场).
• Starbucks, Hubin Street Dream City Shopping Center, ☏ 4008206998NOCC. 07:00-22:00. The only Starbucks in Sanmenxia. (updated Oct 2024)

• Royal Hotel International Sanmenxia (Located in Sanmenxia Scenic Area near the highway and railway to Zhengzhou and Xi’an), ☏ +86 398 2966000. It features dining and conferencing facilities. The guestrooms range from presidential suites to standard rooms which are equipped with satellite TV and a mini bar. Internet available against surcharge. Discounted rates from ¥158 without breakfast. 
• Sanmenxia Mingzhu Hotel, 57 Xiaoshan Road, ☏ +86 398 2821508. Three star hotel from 1995. The hotel houses four restaurants, serving a combination of Cantonese, Sichuan and Western cuisines. Other facilities include KTV, a sauna center, a hair and beauty salon, and a bar featuring live entertainment. Free internet. Discounted double rooms from ¥220 including breakfast.