Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, Xi’an

Giant Wild Goose Pagoda tickets: temple and climb

You need two tickets to go up. The first gets you into Da Ci'en Temple, where the pagoda stands; the second, bought inside at the foot of the pagoda, lets you climb it — and is only sold to people who already hold a temple ticket. Tickets are issued in your name, so bring your passport. Buy at the gate ticket office or in the “大慈恩寺” WeChat mini program.

Prices are the shakiest fact here. TravelChinaGuide (July 2026) and China For Travelers (August 2026) list ¥10 for the temple and ¥25 for the climb, and the latter says entry was cut from ¥40 to ¥10 in September 2025; a Ctrip-group booking site also sells it for about ¥10. Other current guides and China Daily still quote ¥50 and ¥30. We found no official price list, so treat both as unofficial.

Children under 6 or under 1.2 m and visitors over 65 go free, according to TravelChinaGuide and China For Travelers, and students get a discount. Bring the original ID.

Opening hours

The temple is open every day. Exact times depend on season and source: TravelChinaGuide gives 8:30–18:00 from 1 March to 14 October and 8:30–17:40 from 15 October to the end of February, with ticket sales stopping an hour before closing. Ctrip shows 8:30–17:30 with last entry at 16:30, and some guides give an 8:00 start.

In practice, arrive by 16:00 if you want to climb — the climb ticket desk reportedly closes before the temple does. Mornings before 10:00 are quietest; during Chinese holidays and Golden Weeks tickets can sell out days ahead.

The squares around the pagoda are open around the clock, and the tower is floodlit at night, so you can see it from outside long after the temple shuts.

Fountain show times

The musical fountain on the North Square is free and needs no temple ticket. Travel of China, China For Travelers and NetEase list shows at 12:00, 16:00, 19:00 and 21:00. Two of those guides say the midday and afternoon shows are dropped on Tuesdays, leaving only 19:00 and 21:00.

Run times are given as anything from 10 to 30 minutes. Wander in China adds extra weekend shows and a winter break from December to February; no other source we read confirms either, so check locally. Rain or strong wind can cancel a show.

Our pick is the 21:00 show: the pagoda is lit up behind the jets. Get to the edge of the pool 15 minutes early, then walk past the pagoda to the lights of Datang Everbright City.

Is it worth visiting?

Yes. The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda is the best-known Tang building still standing in Xi’an, and the area around it — the temple, the Xuanzang statue, the fountain and Datang Everbright City just south — makes for the city's best evening out. It's an easy metro ride from the centre.

The temple itself is compact and largely rebuilt, so don't expect a vast complex. Allow about an hour for the halls and courtyards, and 30 minutes more for the climb. The climb is optional: narrow stairs and small windows give a decent but not sweeping view. If you're short of time, see the pagoda from the squares for free and give the time to the Shaanxi History Museum instead.

What the pagoda is

The pagoda, known in Chinese as Dayanta (大雁塔), is a square brick tower about 64 m tall. It went up in 652, when Xi’an, then called Chang'an, was the Tang capital, to store the sutras and relics that the monk Xuanzang carried back from India — the journey later fictionalised in *Journey to the West*.

It belongs to Da Ci'en Temple (大慈恩寺, the Temple of Great Maternal Grace), founded in 648 by Crown Prince Li Zhi in memory of his mother. Xuanzang became its first abbot and spent years translating here. The temple is still active, with monks, services and incense in the courtyards.

What to see at Da Ci'en Temple

• Xuanzang statue on the South Square — the monk with his staff in front of the main gate, and the classic photo spot for the pagoda.
• Gate, Bell Tower and Drum Tower — the traditional start of the temple's axis.
• Mahavira Hall (大雄宝殿) — the Buddhas of the three ages, with incense burners and worshippers outside.
• The climb — narrow internal stairs and arched windows on each side: Datang Everbright City to the south, the North Square and the city to the north. One guide says the top floors are sometimes shut for repairs.
• Xuanzang Hall — at the back of the temple, on his journey to India and his translations.
• Stone steles by the pagoda's entrance — Tang-era inscriptions honouring the sutra translations.
• North Square — the fountain, Tang-themed sculpture and a full view of the pagoda.

A short history

In 648 Crown Prince Li Zhi founded Da Ci'en Temple for his late mother, Empress Zhangsun, and invited Xuanzang, just back from his long journey to India. Under him the temple became one of the three great sutra-translation centres of the Tang.

The first pagoda, built in 652 under Xuanzang's supervision, had five storeys of brick over an earth core. Empress Wu Zetian had it rebuilt taller; later the damaged upper storeys were removed, leaving the seven we see today. In 1604 Ming builders wrapped it in a new brick skin, and the temple was rebuilt on a smaller scale than the Tang original.

By 1996 the top had tilted about a metre. Measures to control groundwater stopped the lean, and the tower has been edging back ever since. In 2014 it joined the UNESCO World Heritage List as part of the Silk Roads.

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How to do it right

• Bring your original passport — temple tickets are issued in your name.
• The climb ticket is sold inside, at the foot of the pagoda; don't hunt for it online.
• The metro brings you out on the North Square, but the temple gate is on the South Square — allow 10–13 minutes' walk.
• No daytime fountain on Tuesdays — come at 19:00 or 21:00.
• The classic photo is from the South Square, with the Xuanzang statue in front.
• After the temple, walk south onto Datang Everbright City, which starts right behind the square.
• Keep 大雁塔 on your phone — few taxi drivers speak English.

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