Giant Wild Goose Pagoda (大雁塔·大慈恩寺)
Temple · Xi’an. Visit the Buddhist temple grounds around Xuanzang’s landmark pagoda.
Also called: Big Wild Goose Pagoda.
Source: https://chinafootnotes.com/places/giant-wild-goose-pagoda · Data checked 2026-10-06 · Rendered for 2026-10-08 (Asia/Shanghai). Facts carry their status; "not found yet" means we searched and found no reliable source.
Why go
The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda rises inside Da Ci’en Temple, a Tang-dynasty Buddhist complex associated with the monk Xuanzang and the translation of scriptures brought from India. A temple visit and climbing the pagoda can have separate ticket terms. This entry stops at the temple and pagoda; the neighbouring Grand Tang Dynasty Ever-bright City is another place.
What to do
- Enter Da Ci’en Temple. Walk the temple grounds to see the pagoda in its religious setting rather than only from the public square.
- Look up the tower. The pagoda is the architectural centrepiece; examine its tiers and the temple buildings around it.
- Decide whether to climb. Ask at the temple ticket point about the current separate tower admission and access conditions before buying.
- Best time: Morning temple visit
- Skip if: If you only want a photo of the pagoda, the surrounding public square may suffice.
Practical details
- Hours: Daytime temple visit · hours not published
- No operator page gives the temple hours. The 2019 municipal English page says 9:00–17:00; farm pages and a 2023 Bendibao page give various times between 08:00 and 18:00.
- Admission: Temple ¥10 · pagoda climb ¥20–25
- Da Ci’en Temple (adult): ¥10
- Pagoda climb (peak season): ¥25
- Pagoda climb (low season): ¥20
- Temple ¥10 is stated by 回家种小麦 (2026-06), 刘开心 (2026-02) and 堃一 (2025-10). The climb is ¥25 in 回家种小麦 and 堃一 (peak season) and ¥20 in 刘开心 and 柳柳柳柳柳柳 (January–February). kkkkkai (2025-08) and the 遇见大雁塔 account also say peak ¥25 and low season ¥20, so these are seasonal prices; the dates of the seasons are not published.
- The 2019 municipal English page (¥50 plus ¥30 for the pagoda) is older than these visits.
- Booking: Temple booking route not confirmed
- Temple and pagoda ticket windows (大慈恩寺售票处)
- Passport accepted: unknown — No witnessed end-to-end foreign-document checkout.
- Guide pages say the temple can be booked in advance through the scenic area’s account, Meituan or Ctrip; the operator’s own notice was not found, and whether a foreign passport works is unknown.
- A visitor in February 2026 bought paper tickets at the temple window without booking and queued only briefly; another in January 2026 bought the temple ticket at the gate. One poster recommends booking 1–3 days ahead on holidays.
- Last admission: Last temple entry not confirmed
- Time to allow: 1–2 hr in temple
- Getting there: Metro Lines 3 & 4 · Dayanta
- Metro Line 3/4 to Dayanta (大雁塔), Exit C, about 5 min walk
- Show a taxi driver: 大慈恩寺南门，西安市雁塔区慈恩路
- Foreign visitors: Foreign checkout details pending
Not found yet
- booking: Current authoritative booking rule was not located. (searched: Exa web search (Cloudflare), Linkup web search (Cloudflare), Operator or government page (curl), Xiaohongshu)
- lastAdmission: Current authoritative lastAdmission rule was not located. (searched: Exa web search (Cloudflare), Linkup web search (Cloudflare), Operator or government page (curl), Xiaohongshu)
- booking.passport.accepted: The accepted foreign document at the purchase and entry step is not established. (searched: Exa web search (Cloudflare), Linkup web search (Cloudflare), Operator or government page (curl), Xiaohongshu)
- hours: No operator page gives the temple or pagoda hours; 2026 posts conflict: 08:30–18:00 with ticket checks to 17:00 (Oh My God 2026-04), 08:30–17:00 (堃一 2025-10, winter entry to 16:40), climb tickets stop at 16:45 (柳柳柳柳柳柳 2026-01) and 08:30–16:45 with clearing at 17:00 (遇见大雁塔, account styled official, 2026-02). (searched: Exa web search (Cloudflare), Linkup web search (Cloudflare), Operator or government page (curl), Xiaohongshu)
- admission.prices[1]: The pagoda climb is ¥25 in peak season and ¥20 in low season according to visitors, but the dates of the seasons are not published. (searched: Exa web search (Cloudflare), Linkup web search (Cloudflare), Operator or government page (curl), Xiaohongshu)
Traveler tips
- Separate the tower from the street. The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda stands inside Da Ci’en Temple; the public squares and Grand Tang Dynasty Ever-bright City are separate spaces. Enter the temple only if you want the grounds or a possible climb. source
- Go to Dayanta station. Metro Lines 3 and 4 stop at Dayanta station. From the station, follow signs to 大慈恩寺 rather than to the night market street. Caveat: One 2023 Bendibao page says Exit B or C and one farm page says Exit C; two 2026 visitors confirm C (see the exit tip). source
- Check two admission steps. Older municipal information lists general temple admission and an additional pagoda-climb charge. Treat those numbers as historic and read the current ticket board for each step. Caveat: The cited city page dates from 2019; no current operator price was found. source
- Look for Xuanzang’s story. The temple is associated with Xuanzang and the translation of Buddhist scriptures. The pagoda is easier to appreciate when you connect the building with that history instead of using it only as a backdrop. source
- Do not confuse the two squares. The North Square, South Square and temple entrance are different points around the pagoda. Put 大慈恩寺 into the map when you need the paid entrance. source
- Follow current crowd signs. The Qujiang district has reorganised photo-service spaces around the pagoda and South Square. Keep public walking lines clear and follow temporary barriers at busy times. source
- Pair with Datang Everbright City for an evening. A commenter says the pagoda and Datang Everbright City go together for a flexible evening. source
- Temple ticket and pagoda-climb ticket are separate. Entering Da Ci’en Temple (大慈恩寺) and climbing the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda (大雁塔) are two tickets. Buy the temple ticket first, and expect the climb to stop earlier than the temple closes. Caveat: Recent visitor reports give ¥10 for the temple and ¥25 (¥20 in winter) for the climb (see the price tip); the numbers below are older or from non-operator pages. Numbers differ by page and none is from the operator. Municipal English page (2019): general ¥50, pagoda ¥30, 9:00–17:00. tang.org.cn (AI farm, contradictory): page 1 temple 08:00–17:30, climb 08:30–17:00, temple ¥40 peak and ¥30 off-season, climb ¥25, “closed Monday for tower maintenance”; page 2 March–November 08:30–18:00 and December–February 09:00–17:30, temple ¥30, climb ¥25 at the site, “closed Mondays” for the temple. Bendibao (2023): lead says 08:00–17:00, body 08:30–17:30 with ticket sales ending 16:50. 小小拾光日记 (2026-06) writes that the pagoda closes Mondays for maintenance and that the temple closes at 18:00 with entry stopping at 17:00 in peak season; this single post is not confirmed. source
- Temple ¥10 and pagoda climb ¥25 (peak) or ¥20 (low season). Visitors from October 2025 to June 2026 bought the Da Ci’en Temple ticket for ¥10 and paid a separate ¥25 in peak season, or ¥20 in January–February, to climb the pagoda. Buy the climb ticket inside, at the foot of the tower; the temple ticket does not include the climb. Caveat: 回家种小麦 (2026-06): ¥10 and ¥25; 刘开心 (visit 2026-02-15): ¥10 and ¥20, paper tickets at the window; 堃一 (2025-10): ¥10 and ¥25; 柳柳柳柳柳柳 (2026-01): climb ¥20, windows stop selling at 16:45. Posts from October 2025 on say ¥10 for the temple, while earlier 2025 posts (kkkkkai 2025-08, 草莓泡芙 2025-03) say ¥30. 回家种小麦 says students pay half (¥5). The 遇见大雁塔 account, styled official, gives ¥25 peak and ¥20 low season. An unnamed commenter was sold a ¥10 ticket for ¥18.90 by a resale listing; buy at the gate or on the official account. (4 travelers) source
- Buy at the window, or book ahead on holidays. A visitor in February 2026 bought paper tickets at the temple window around 10:00 and queued only briefly; another in January 2026 bought the temple ticket at the gate; a third bought in advance and scanned a code at the gate. One poster advises booking 1–3 days ahead on the official WeChat account or mini-program on holidays, when entry is limited. Caveat: 刘开心 (2026-02) and 柳柳柳柳柳柳 (2026-01) bought at the gate; 卫斯理1je (2026-04) bought online; 回家种小麦 (2026-06) recommends booking on holidays. The official operator notice for booking was not found, and unnamed commenters ask whether free-entry visitors can book without an answer. Foreign passports are not mentioned in any post. (4 travelers) source
- Free incense, a bookmark and a walking route. Inside the temple, each visitor can take three sticks of incense for free from the booth on the left in front of the main hall, light them on the candles on the right and place them in the burner; a free bookmark is handed out at the hall door. A visitor’s route: South Gate, hand-washing pool, Prajna Hall, the central path, the Buddha-light tower, the main hall, then the pagoda and the North Gate. Caveat: kkkkkai (2025-08), 刘开心 (2026-02) and Oh My God (2026-04) each mention the free incense; Oh My God gives the route. Entry into the temple is on a ticket; the incense is free inside. (3 travelers) source
- Climbing the pagoda: narrow wooden stairs, no air-conditioning. The pagoda has seven floors of narrow wooden stairs, one person up and one down at a time, and no air-conditioning, so it is stuffy in summer. Come down sideways and use the handrail; walk once around the base afterwards. Going up about 30 minutes before the tower closes is quieter. Caveat: 十年 (2026-07) and 刘开心 (2026-02) describe the stairs and heat; 小葵赵 (2026-08) says the climb is taller than expected; 小小拾光日记 (2026-06) suggests the last half hour; unnamed commenters (2026-06) warn people with weak knees away. Seen at the top: a view along the central axis, no big highlights according to 十年. (4 travelers) source
- Luggage storage near Dayanta station. The Xi’an Citizens’ Visitor Service Center, to the right when you come out of Dayanta Exit C past a car park, stores luggage free if you register your ID and collect it before 22:00; it also has hot water, toilets, sofas and a stamp. The pagoda foot also has free luggage storage. Caveat: 刘开心 (2026-02) describes this; the number tag means items cannot be taken out and put back during the day. Single account. source
- Dayanta station Exit C is the temple side. Two visitors left Dayanta station by Exit C for the temple and reached it in about 5 minutes. Exit B brings you out at the North Square fountain with a view of the pagoda; use C to return. Caveat: Oh My God (2026-04) and 刘开心 (2026-02) used C for the temple; 小粉 (2026-04) walked a loop from B back to C. A 2023 Bendibao page says B/C and a farm page says C. (3 travelers) source
- The North Square fountain plays several times a day. The music fountain on the North Square plays several times a day: posters mention noon, 16:00, 19:00 and a 21:00 closing show. A rainbow can show in the 19:00 spray in June. Caveat: 小粉 (2026-04) saw noon and says 19:00; kkkkkai (2025-08) 16:00; 团团妈妈爱旅行 (2025-04) a 21:00 finale. Timetables change by season and holiday and are not from the operator. (2 travelers) source
- Free spots for the pagoda and Xuanzang statue. You do not need a ticket for several pagoda views: the Xuanzang statue on the South Square, the Da Ci’en Ruins Park (its north-gate approach is closest) and the fourth-floor terrace at Joy City (大悦城), which also has a large “Xi’an” wall sign. Caveat: 小葵赵 (2026-08), 目光所及 (2025-11), 团团妈妈爱旅行 (2025-04) and Angie (2026-07). Unnamed commenters ask which are inside the temple; the listed ones are outside it. (3 travelers) source
Sources
- Xi’an Municipal Government (published 2019-01-31)
- Xi’an Qujiang New District (published 2025-08-25)
- Xi’an Municipal Government (published 2026-09-25)
- Xi'an Tourism Network (西安旅游网) (published 2025-05-14)
- Xi'an Tourism Network (西安旅游网) (published 2025-08-31)
- Xi'an Tourism Network (西安旅游网) (published 2026-01-20)
- Xi'an Bendibao (西安本地宝) (published 2023-12-19)
- ezgosim (published 2026-09-26)
- Wikipedia
- 回家种小麦 (published 2026-06-01)
- 刘开心 (published 2026-02-23)
- 堃一 (published 2025-10-28)
- 柳柳柳柳柳柳 (published 2026-01-21)
- 卫斯理1je (published 2026-04-14)
- kkkkkai (published 2025-08-02)
- Oh My God (published 2026-04-29)
- 十年 (published 2026-07-25)
- 小葵赵 (published 2026-08-22)
- 小小拾光日记 (published 2026-06-28)
- 小粉 (published 2026-04-02)
- 团团妈妈爱旅行 (published 2025-04-27)
- 目光所及 (published 2025-11-23)
- Angie (published 2026-07-05)
- 遇见大雁塔 (published 2026-02-06)
More places
- More in Xi’an: Bell and Drum Towers, Xi'an, Beilin Museum (Forest of Stone Steles)