Five things worth your time
From cycling the loop to the gate-opening ceremony and the wall after dark.
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This is the main reason people come to the Xi'an wall — riding a bicycle around the entire city on top of its wall. The largest rental station is at the South Gate: a single bike is ¥45 for 3 hours, a tandem ¥90 for 3 hours, which is more than enough time since the full loop takes around 1.5–2 hours with stops for photos. The surface is old brick and a little uneven, so a relaxed pace is both more enjoyable and safer. There is no shade up top, so bring water and a hat in summer.
The South Gate, Yongningmen — "Gate of Eternal Peace" — is the largest and most complete of the wall's four cardinal gates, built as three nested defensive structures (an archery tower, the main gate tower and an outer barbican wall). It is where most visitors go up, because it sits closest to the city centre and the metro. In the morning it stages a re-enactment of the old city-opening ceremony, with performers in Ming-dynasty dress carrying out the formal welcome that once greeted arrivals at the gate.
You do not have to cycle the whole thing. If you would rather walk and take in the detail, the stretch from the South Gate towards the West Gate (Anding Gate) is a comfortable length. You pass the ramparts' projecting watchtowers (敌台) set at intervals along the wall, the arrow slits, and views down into an old town that is still a maze of narrow lanes. An easy 30–45 minutes brings you to the next gate, where you can come back down.
The Xi'an wall is at its best after dark. Once the sky goes down, warm amber light washes over the gate towers and the length of the rampart, reflecting in the moat below as a band of gold. The South Gate stays open until 10 pm, so you can go up for a cool evening stroll and the lights. Around the Spring Festival the wall is hung with elaborate lantern displays — the city's big annual event — so if your visit lines up with it, count yourself lucky.
What catches many people off guard is that, standing on the wall, you see two versions of Xi'an at once. Turn inward and there are the grey-tiled roofs of the old houses, the lanes, and the Bell Tower rising at the city's heart. Turn outward and there are modern high-rises and the ring road that traces the wall. The line between old China and new China could hardly be clearer than it is from up here — a single view that explains the city's history better than any plaque.