independent travel to bingling in april?

Question

There are quite contradictory information on the internet about visiting Bingling Caves. I want to visit Bingling next April on my way from Xian to Dunhuang.Are the Bingling Caves open in April? While most of the sites tell that it is open only five moths a year (July-November), there are people who say that they had visited Bingling in April. Lonely Planet web site tell that they are not open from December to March. What is the current situation?What are the weekly opening days - Tuesday to Saturday?Is the independent travel to the site doable? I have understood that from Liujiaxia there are following alternatives to the caves: 1) ”slow boat”, 2) ”fast boat”, 3) taxi to the site. I guess that an independent traveller has to wait until the boat is full and after that they could start the trip. Is it really possible to go directly to the site by taxi?How much time per day is enough? I have planned to start by bus some time at 7AM and my train leaves 6.40PM.

Aaron · Answer

1. Do you refer to Bingling Thousand Buddha Caves? If yes, this scenic area only opens for the public from July to November (Tuesday to Saturday). 2. Yes, you can go there independently. 3. It won't be easy for you to find a taxi. Hiring a private car than cab is a more practical way. In order to save the money, you can take the boat. I remember that the ferry ticket fare is CNY 10 per person. And the duration is around 2 hours. 4. Yes, one day is enough to tour around the scenic spot and go back to the train station.

Juha · Answer

Aaron, thank you for your answers!Now I don’t really understand this. I just wonder where have been the people who told that they have been there in April and May.. So it is impossible to visit the area (with Buddhas and grottoes) by boat in April? Then the information on Lonely Planet (open April-November) is incorrect.Maybe I just skip the stop in Lanzhou because Bingling grottoes would have been the only reason to be there.

Elisabeth · Answer

Hi Juha,  how did your trip go?  Are the caves open?  I just arrived in Lanzhou today and would like to go on Tuesday.  But it is only April...  Any response and insight you might have would be much appreciated.  ET

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Independent travel to Bingling in April?