Why visit Datong
Townapedia lists 48 museums and landmarks, 18 parks and trails, 25 places to eat, 24 places to stay and 4 attractions in and around town.
Highlights include Yungang Grottoes, Yungang Grottoes and Yungang Grottoes.
Weather in Datong
Forecast from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0). Full forecast
About Datong
Datong is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi Province in the People's Republic of China. It is located in the Datong Basin at an elevation of 1,040 metres (3,410 ft) and borders Inner Mongolia to the north and west and Hebei to the east. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 3,105,591 of whom 1,790,452 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of the 2 out 4 urban districts of Pingcheng and Yungang as Yunzhou and Xinrong are not conurbated yet.
From the Wikipedia article Datong (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Travel tips from other travellers: Datong on Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Things to do4
Yungang Grottoes
Monument and historic site · 14.5 km
Ancient Chinese Buddhist temple grottoes in Shanxi
Museums and landmarks48
Site of Shanxi Third Middle School
Monument and historic site · 6.3 km
36 more on the map.
Parks, trails and playgrounds18
6 more on the map.
Restaurants and cafes25
Deyu Noodle Restaurant (Gucheng Branch)
Restaurant · Chinese, Noodle
Mo-Su 07:00-14:00, 17:00-21:30
Zini 369 Culiangji (Sipai Tower Branch)
Restaurant · Local
Mo-Su 10:30-14:30, 17:00-22:00
13 more on the map.
History
The area of present-day Datong was close to the state of Dai, which was conquered by the Zhao clan of Jin in 457 BC. It was a frontier land between the agricultural Chinese and the nomads of the Great Steppe. The area was well known for its trade in horses.
The area of present-day Datong eventually came under the control of the Qin dynasty, during which it was known as Pingcheng County (平城县) and formed part of the Qin commandery of Yanmen. Pingcheng County continued under the Han dynasty, which founded a site within present-day Datong in 200 BC following its victory against the Xiongnu nomads at the Battle of Baideng. Located near a pass to Inner Mongolia along the Great Wall, Pingcheng blossomed under Han rule and became a stop-off point for camel caravans moving from China into Mongolia and beyond. It was sacked at the end of the Eastern Han.
Pingcheng became the capital of the Xianbei-founded Northern Wei dynasty from AD 398–494. The Yungang Grottoes were constructed during the later part of this period (460–494). During the mid to late 520s, Pingcheng was the seat of Northern Wei's Dai Commandery.
During the Tang dynasty, Datong became the seat of the Tang prefecture of Yunzhou, and the original Guandi temple was built.
From the History section of Datong on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where to stay24
Churches and places of worship27
Shopping8
Gas and EV charging16
Schools, colleges and libraries114
Healthcare13
Map of Datong
250 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Getting there and nearby towns
Datong Yungang International Airport (DAT) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 17 km away.
- Beichengqu 40 km north, about 40 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Local news
Headlines from INDB.
Reviews, tips and questions
Loading what members have shared...
Sources and licences
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, coordinates, regions and time zone
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- The skyline of Datong（Southgate）2019, Charlie fong, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-24-19, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-14-10, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-13-50, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong, Shanxi, China - panoramio, liurambler, CC BY 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-15-05, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-17-51, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-18-18, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-18-08, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-18-29, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-08-45, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-18-46, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-06-37, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-20-07, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-05-29, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-20-29, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-21-56, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-22-37, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-24-41, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-23-20, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-23-59, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-03-20, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-03-18, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-04-12, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-03-09, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-02-59, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-11-46, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-10-35, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-12-20, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-02-51, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong- Mosque, Gary Todd, Public domain
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-02-35, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-58-28, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 08-57-35, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 10-01-03, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Huayan Si 2013.08.29 09-58-58, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Datong 2011-07, 猫猫的日记本, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Yungang11 2010, Marcin Białek, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Shanhua Temple 1, Zeus1234, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Museum 2011-07, 猫猫的日记本, CC BY-SA 3.0
- 操场1（大同三中旧校区）, 亖方大發財天和, Public domain
- Datong Guanyin Tang 2013.08.29 16-57-47, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Datong Drum Tower, 2020-09-08 01, Siyuwj, CC BY-SA 4.0
- The Shanxi Third Middle School, Gate, 如沐西风, CC BY-SA 3.0
- 大同清真大寺 (54579120624), xiquinhosilva, CC BY 2.0
- Datong Jiulongbi 2013.08.29 13-37-51, Zhangzhugang, CC BY-SA 3.0
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