Get to know Gulou District
Photo adjustments
Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.
- Administrative area
- District · 市辖区
- Part of
- Kaifeng
- Chinese name
- 鼓楼区
- Local areas
- District guide
Area & population
- Area in the source
- 58.00 km²
- Population · 2019
- 157,000
Source: cited geographic source, as of the dates shown.
What to see
Daxiangguo Temple (大相国寺) is counted among the ten great temples of Chinese Buddhism. A monk named Huiyun (惠云) founded it in 706 on a site that had held a Northern Qi temple and later a Tang residence. Under the Northern Song it covered 540 mu and was both the Buddhist centre of the country and a hub where merchants from across the country traded goods. A Yellow River flood destroyed every building in 1642, so most of what stands today was built under the Qing. The temple has been a national protected site since 2013.
The Bao Gong Shrine (包公祠) on the west shore of Bao Gong Lake (包公湖) honours Bao Zheng (包拯), the Northern Song official remembered for his integrity. First built under the Jin and Yuan and repeatedly lost to floods, it was rebuilt on its old site in 1984, with exhibits on his life. The Kaifeng Prefecture office (开封府), Yanqing Taoist Temple (延庆观) and Bookstore Street (书店街) are also in the district.
Food
The Gulou (鼓楼夜市) and Xisi (西司夜市) night markets are in the district, as are several old-name restaurants: Diyilou (第一楼) for soup-filled buns, Daoxiangju (稻香居) for potstickers, Mayuxing (马豫兴) for barrel-cooked chicken, and Youyixin (又一新).
History
The district began as Kaifeng's Second District in October 1948 and took the name Gulou in March 1956. Parts of the former Nanguan District (南关区), the suburban district and Kaifeng County were added in 2005.
Highlights
- Daxiangguo Temple 大相国寺: Founded in 706; rebuilt mostly under the Qing after the 1642 flood; national protected site since 2013.
- Kaifeng Prefecture office 开封府: One of the main sights listed in the district.
- Bao Gong Shrine 包公祠: Memorial to Bao Zheng, rebuilt on its old site by Bao Gong Lake in 1984.
Sources for this guide
鼓楼区 (开封市) - 维基百科，自由的百科全书 · Wikipedia (Chinese) · CC BY-SA 4.0
大相国寺 - 维基百科，自由的百科全书 · Wikipedia (Chinese) · CC BY-SA 4.0
包公祠 (开封) - 维基百科，自由的百科全书 · Wikipedia (Chinese) · CC BY-SA 4.0
Original English written from the listed sources and checked sentence by sentence against quoted extracts by a separate reviewer. Updated 2026-09-25.
Explore Gulou District
Core places to explore, with English and Chinese names.
Places to explore around Gulou District
Main hall and pagoda towers of Daxiangguo Temple, Kaifeng · 大相国寺大殿与经幢，开封市 Source-recorded photograph date: 2025-06-22 15:23:44.Daxiangguo Temple大相国寺
Daxiangguo Temple’s present buildings largely reflect rebuilding after the floods that devastated Kaifeng. The sequence of halls is distinguished by sculpture, especially the four-sided, many-armed Guanyin in the octagonal…
Read the place guide →
The ornate 'Dayi Cantian' archway inside the Shan-Shaan-Gan Guild Hall, Kaifeng · 开封市山陕甘会馆内"大义参天"牌坊 Source-recorded photograph date: 2013-01-04.Shanxi-Shaanxi-Gansu Guild Hall山陕甘会馆
Kaifeng guild hall of Shanxi, Shaanxi and Gansu merchants from 1776, with carved screen wall, north-facing opera stage, archway and Guan Yu hall.
Read the place guide →
Kaifeng Prefectural Government Office · 开封府Kaifeng Prefectural Government Office开封府
Kaifeng Fu (开封府) is a reconstruction of the prefectural government seat of the Northern Song capital, standing on the north shore of the eastern Baogong Lake in Gulou District, Kaifeng, Henan.
Read the place guide →Plan your visit
Getting there
Gulou District covers the centre of Kaifeng. Search for 鼓楼区 in a map app to find stations and your accommodation.
Where to stay →Build your route
Daxiangguo Temple and Shanxi-Shaanxi-Gansu Guild Hall are both listed here. The linked place guides have entrance and visit details.
Continue with Kaifeng →More in Kaifeng
Sources & geographic information
Administrative names and parent areas: Official geographic directory · Reference date 2026-09-06.
Some facts checked against 鼓楼区 (开封市) — Wikipedia contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Some facts checked against 大相国寺 — Wikipedia contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Some facts checked against 包公祠 (开封) — Wikipedia contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photo: Daxiangguo Temple · Windmemories · CC BY-SA 4.0. Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.
Photo: Shanxi-Shaanxi-Gansu Guild Hall · 偶然好看 · CC BY-SA 3.0. Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.
Photo: Kaifeng Prefectural Government Office · David290 · CC BY-SA 4.0. EXIF orientation normalized; resized without changing aspect ratio; converted to WebP. No subject edits.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Pins mark approximate centres, not entrances or boundaries.