Construction commences on Dunhuang Mogao Caves Tourist Center

Construction of a digital display and tourist reception facility has commenced at the Dunhuang Mogao Caves Tourist Center in the Gobi desert.

As the sub-project of the ongoing Dunhuang Mogao Caves Protective Utilization Program, the main project construction will be completed by the end of 2010 and it is planned to put into use in 2011.

The tourist center is located at the south of the Dunhuang 314 provincial trunk highway, 15 kilometers from the Mogao Caves and covering an area of 60 Mu. It will consist of tourist reception hall, a multimedia display area, a digital theater, a dome theater, offices, a post office,a bank, a restaurant, a shopping area, and other facilities.

The center is expected to bring three changes to Mogao Caves travel. First, it will enrich the contents by giving tourists an insight into the culture, art and value of Dunhuang via modern means such as digital theater. Second, it will improve the reception capability of Dunhuang, enabling more tourists to visit the caves at the same time. Third, it offers more options for tourists going to Mogao Caves from the tourist center — they can go by bus, on foot, or by riding a camel to enjoy the desert scenery along the way.