Luoyang 洛阳

About Luoyang

Longmen’s cliff carvings give Buddhist patronage a monumental form, while museums and palace-site displays explain the urban centres that once occupied the Luo River valley. The old town adds streets and food traditions to that archaeological picture. Plan around these separate zones: a grotto visit south of the city and a palace-site visit in the centre have different approaches and rhythms.

From the Western Zhou to the Tang dynasty, six neighbouring capital cities were built in succession in the Luoyang area, used by eleven dynasties over nearly two thousand years. The city took its name because it lies north of the Luo River, the northern bank of a river being termed its 'yang' side; other historical names included Chengzhou (成周), Wangcheng (王城) and, under Wu Zetian, Shendu (神都). Luoyang was also an important center of Chinese Buddhist history, and sites including the White Horse Temple (白马寺) survive from that period.

Luoyang sits on the central plain, encircled by eight mountain passes and crisscrossing mountains and rivers: the Xiao Mountains (崤山) lie to the west, leading through Hangu Pass (函谷关) toward the Guanlong region; Mount Song (嵩山) lies to the east; the Taihang Mountains (太行山) and Yellow River lie to the north; and the Funiu (伏牛山) and Xiong'er mountains lie to the south. This terrain and central position made Luoyang a favoured capital and transport hub.

UNESCO lists Luoyang, together with Chang'an, as the eastern starting point of the Silk Roads: the Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor network, extending about 5,000 kilometers west into Central Asia. In 1932, after Japan attacked Shanghai, the Nationalist government designated Luoyang a temporary capital; Henan's provincial government was twice based in the city, in 1923 and again from 1939.

What to look for

• Longmen’s Buddhist carvings along the Yi River cliffs.
• The palace-site area around Yingtian Gate and the collections that explain Luoyang’s successive capitals.

The surrounding area

A city base for Longmen, soup breakfasts, old-city food streets and contemporary hanfu visitor districts.

Location & getting there

Getting to Luoyang

Luoyang Station is at the northern end of Jinguyuan Road in the established city; Luoyang Longmen is the high-speed station to the south. Check the arrival station before arranging a transfer. The Longmen station name does not mean you have arrived at the grotto entrance.