From the Terracotta Warriors to Huaqing Palace for The Song of Everlasting Sorrow: Transfers and Timing

Terracotta Warriors in the morning and The Song of Everlasting Sorrow at night is the smoothest route in Xi’an — both sit in Lintong, so you never re-enter the city. But I still came off worse the first time I scheduled it that way: it was nearly two in the afternoon by the time I left the Terracotta Warriors, and between waiting for the metro, finding lunch and queueing through security, I almost missed the first show. The route itself is not wrong; what was wrong was not working out the transport and the timing first. Below I set out the routes, the travel times and the trip back in one go.

1. How Far Is It from the Terracotta Warriors to Huaqing Palace

The two sit in the same Lintong district. On the map the distance does not look far, but there is no direct scenic shuttle between them — you have to change via the metro or take a taxi. There are three common ways:

• Metro Line 9: board at Terracotta Warriors Station and get off at Huaqingchi Station; a few minutes’ walk from the exit brings you to Huaqing Palace. The whole trip takes about 30–40 minutes, with no traffic and nothing to worry about — my most effortless option.
• Taxi or ride-hailing: about 20–30 minutes from the Terracotta Warriors to Huaqing Palace; the fare depends on the time of day, and on public holidays the queue can take a long while.
• Bus: connecting routes exist, but neither frequency nor travel time is as reliable as the metro, so it is not recommended when you are short on time.

2. How to Schedule the Day Most Smoothly

The Song of Everlasting Sorrow is a night-time outdoor real-scene performance, with the first show around 18:30 and the last around 22:45; the exact start times and how many shows run that day are subject to the live showtimes on the booking page. To fit both into one day, I schedule by this table:

Time	Plan
8:30–9:00	Leave the city centre for the Terracotta Warriors
9:30–13:00	Tour the Terracotta Warriors (allow about 3 hours)
13:00–14:30	Lunch, then transfer to Huaqing Palace on Metro Line 9
14:30–17:30	Tour Huaqing Palace scenic area by day (the ticket is valid for two days; about ¥108 for adults, about ¥60 for students and children)
After 17:30	Eat nearby and wait for the evening show

After this circuit there is no need to go back into the city — if you are tired, simply stay a night in Lintong. One thing to settle in advance: the Huaqing Palace scenic-area ticket and the performance ticket are two separate tickets. The scenic ticket in the table above is the daytime park price; if you are only seeing the evening show, your performance ticket gets you into the Nine-Dragon Lake performance area and you do not need to pay for the scenic ticket as well. Do not buy them mixed up, and do not assume a scenic ticket lets you watch the show.

3. Check the Last Train for the Ride Back

The performance runs about 70 minutes and the last show finishes close to 23:00; the real difficulty is the trip back after that:

• The last Metro Line 9 train leaves early and will most likely be gone by the time the show lets out, so do not stake the whole return on the metro;
• The crowd leaves at once and taxi queues are long, so it is best to call a car during the second half of the show;
• Staying in Lintong is the safest bet — wake up the next morning and head back to Xi’an at leisure.

4. Worried about the Cold or Rain? Consider the Indoor Backup

The weakness of an outdoor real-scene show is the weather: in rain it may be adjusted or postponed, subject to the official announcement, and autumn and winter nights are chilly. If this trip is tight on time and you still want to be sure of seeing a grand historical show, keep an eye on the indoor production Jiu Jiu Da Qin — it is another big show in Xi’an, it is not at the mercy of the weather, and it works well as a backup or an addition.

5. Leave the Transfers and Seats to Us

This route is not complicated in itself; the nuisance is what time to arrive on the day, which zone to sit in, and how to leave after the show. Give your travel dates, headcount and the showtime you want to this site’s booking service, and a dedicated person checks the showtime for you, suggests seats to fit your budget and factors the ride back into the plan — all you have to do is enjoy the show.