Shapotou : Tengger Desert, Ningxia, Zhongwei, China

Shapotou is located at Zhongwei, Ningxia Province, China. It lies on the banks of Yellow River (Huang He), where it crosses the boarder of the Tengger Desert. Shapotou is one the top most beautiful desert in China with 5 start China national tourist attraction rating.

This Shapotou Tourist Zone, presenting a unique combination of sceneries composed of the desert, the Yellow River, Majestic mountain and oases. It is not only possessed of the magnificent scenery of the Northwest, but also the beautiful scenery of the South.

As I mentioned on my last blog about Zhongwei, it is hot and sunny during the day time and cool during the night. So, remember to apply sun lotion and wear a hat or cap when you visit Shapotou. There is very little shade complex in Shapotou. Our local friend dropped us at the entrance of the Shapotou, so there is no hassle for us viting this beautiful place.

 

The entrance ticket cost us RMB90 per person. Additional RMB10 for tram to sand hill bottom. But if you are not in the hurry, talk a slow walk along the Huang He (Yellow River) to reach the sand hill.
On the way to the Sand Hill, there is drifting on the Yellow River by the sheep skin rafts. That is a real sheep skin, where the locals will remove the skin and skillfully make a balloon out of it. It was amazing seen the worker blowing at the sheep skin (imagine you are blowing a balloon). A number of these sheep skin balloon are tight together to form a base for a floor of bamboos.

 

Beside that, they also have speed boat and ziplines over the river. Upon reaching the bottom of sand hill, you have a choice of going up the hill with escalator or cable car (either one will cost you RMB20). The scenery from the top of the sand hill is magnificent.

 

 

 

There is another tram ride which cost you RMB20 round trip to the camel ride. Camel ride will cost another RMB80.

 

 

After the camel ride, go back to the top of the sand hill, you can try the Sand Slide. This is the biggest natural sand slide field in China. Here you can experience the "sandy slope singing bell". What does this mean is when you slide down the sand hill (over 100 meters in height and a slope of 60 degrees), you can hear the sound of the sand underneath them, like the bell sound. This is adventurous and breathtaking.