Thirteen dynasties left Xi'an more than tombs — they left the Beilin stele forest, Tang tomb murals painted for princes, and a shadow-puppet tradition still cut by hand. Three days inside the walls, following the art rather than the armies.
China's oldest stele collection, founded 1087, holds 3,000+ inscribed stones across seven halls — including the 114-slab Kaicheng Stone Classics of 837 CE and the Nestorian Stele of 781. Open 08:00–18:15 (winter to 18:00). Ink-rubbing artisans work on site.
Founded 742 CE and rebuilt under the Ming, this is a mosque built entirely as a Chinese courtyard temple — timber pavilions, a stone paifang gate, and a minaret shaped like a pagoda. Arabic calligraphy is carved in Chinese stele form. Open 08:00–18:00.
The city's main contemporary space, in the Qujiang cultural district: three floors of rotating shows covering Shaanxi oil painting, ink experimentalists and photography, plus a permanent holding of modern Chang'an School works. Closed Mondays, 09:00–17:00.
The 13.7km Ming rampart from 1370 is the most complete city wall in China, 12m high and wide enough for four horses abreast. The southern stretch passes watchtowers, the Kuixing pavilion and the roofline of the old quarter at dusk.
The separately ticketed Tang mural gallery displays 18 murals lifted from princely tombs, including the Envoys Procession and the Polo Players from Prince Zhanghuai's tomb of 706 CE. Climate-controlled, low light, timed entry. Closed Mondays.
Founded 1936, the house that turned jiaozi into a banquet form: an 18-course dumpling feast where each parcel is folded to resemble its filling — walnut, duck, goldfish. The theatrical serving order is itself a preserved Shaanxi culinary craft.
A 400-year-old Ming官 residence off Beiyuanmen with a working huaxian shadow-puppet stage. Short performances run through the afternoon behind a backlit hide screen, and the carving studio sells donkey-leather puppets cut on site.
Xi'an's longest-running Tang programme, staged since 1988, reconstructs eighth-century court repertoire from Dunhuang scores — pipa, sheng, xun ocarina and the White Ramie Sleeve Dance, performed in silk costume copied from tomb figurines.
A Ming-style lane running from the South Gate to Beilin, lined with brush makers, seal carvers, inkstone dealers and scroll mounters. Shops open around 09:00; the Guanzhong Academy at the eastern end has taught here since 1609.
The belt-wide hand-slapped noodle whose character takes 58 strokes to write, eaten in the working-class lane where Xi'an locals queue rather than tourists. Slapped to order, dressed with chilli, then scalded oil poured over the top.
A Zhang Jinqiu-designed museum holding 130,000 objects from the city itself — Han jade, Tang tricolour ware, Buddhist statuary — set in the garden of a 707 CE pagoda that survived several earthquakes minus its top two tiers. Closed Tuesdays.
A reconstructed Tang-ward food and craft quarter east of the wall gathering dishes and workshops from all 11 Shaanxi prefectures — Guanzhong drum troupes, Ansai waist-drum sets and qinqiang opera snippets play on the open stages nightly.