Short answer
The Terracotta Army is about 40 km east of central Xi'an, in Lintong district. Your ticket covers two separate sites — the museum with the excavation pits, and the Lishan Garden part of the mausoleum where the emperor's tomb mound stands — with a free shuttle bus running between them. Budget most of a day for the whole thing, including travel.
There is no ticket window. All entry is real-name and timed, booked in advance, and foreign passports are accepted on exactly the same terms as Chinese ID cards. The only official channels are the museum's own ticketing website and its two WeChat official accounts. The museum has stated publicly that it does not authorise third-party platforms to sell its tickets.
Getting there is simpler than it used to be: Metro Line 9 east to Huaqing Pool station, Exit C, a short walk to the bus stop, then a local Lintong bus for the final few kilometres. Around 1.5 hours door to door each way. Do not go hunting for a bus at Xi'an railway station — that is where the unofficial operators work.
What you are actually visiting
The site is the burial complex of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of a unified China, who died in 210 BCE. The pits were found by farmers digging a well in 1974. The tomb chamber itself has never been opened, and the army you see is the outer guard.
| Site | What is there | Time to allow |
|---|---|---|
| Pit 1 | The main army — ranks of life-size infantry and horses under a hangar-sized hall. The image everyone comes for, and the one that delivers | 1–1.5 hours |
| Pit 3 | The command post: small, and the only pit found intact. Worth 15 minutes because it is on the way | 15–20 minutes |
| Pit 2 | Archers, cavalry and chariots, largely left unexcavated. The most interesting pit archaeologically | 30–45 minutes |
| Bronze chariot hall | Two restored bronze chariots with teams of horses — the finest surviving bronze work from the Qin, and the least crowded hall | 30 minutes |
| Lishan Garden | The mausoleum park: the emperor's tomb mound and the surrounding burial pits, reached by a free shuttle from the museum | 1–1.5 hours |
Booking: the only channels that count
- Use the museum's own channelsThe official ticketing website at
bmy.com.cn, or the WeChat official accounts 秦始皇帝陵博物院 and 兵马俑票务在线. The museum has said it does not authorise third-party platforms to sell its tickets, so anything else is either a reseller or a fake. - Book with the passport you will carryReal-name means one ticket to one document. The name and number must match the passport exactly, check the confirmation screen against the photo page before you pay.
- Book as soon as the window opensTickets are released on a rolling window measured in days, not months; it has run around eight days including the day of visit, and longer over Spring Festival. Holiday dates go within hours of release.
- Pick a time slot, not just a dateEntry is staggered through the day. The morning slots are the ones worth having, and they are also the ones that go first.
- Expect the daily cap to biteThe museum sets a maximum daily visitor number, historically in the region of 65,000, raised for the summer peak. When the day is full it is full: no queue, no exceptions at the gate.
- Have a fallback readyIf your date is gone, check back for cancellations in the days before, or book through a licensed operator that holds allocation; the ticket is still issued in your passport name, so bring the passport. See how attraction booking works.
Getting there: the routes compared
| Route | Cost | Time | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metro Line 9 + Lintong bus 602 or 613 | Metro fare plus a few yuan | About 1.5 hours each way | Almost everyone | Take Exit C at Huaqing Pool, walk a couple of hundred metres to the stop; buses fill up on weekends |
| Tourist bus 306 (游5) | Cheap, often cash | 1.5–2 hours | People staying east of the centre | The departure point has moved between the railway station area and elsewhere over the years — confirm it locally rather than trusting an old guidebook |
| Taxi or DiDi | A few hundred yuan round trip | 45–60 minutes each way | Groups of three or four | Highway traffic; ask to be dropped at the museum entrance, not a car park |
| Hotel or agency day tour | Varies widely | Full day | People who would rather not plan the transport | Check whether entry is included or you buy it separately — and that the ticket is in your name |
The metro option is the default for a reason: it is fast, cheap, predictable, and it drops you at a bus stop where the connection is obvious rather than a station forecourt full of people selling things.
Timing your visit
The museum opens at 08:30 year-round. Closing has moved between roughly 18:00 and 18:30, with last admission in the mid-to-late afternoon, and in the summer peak the museum has added both opening hours and capacity. Read the current notice on the official channel for your date rather than working from a fixed table.
| When | What it is like |
|---|---|
| First slot of the morning | Pit 1 with room to stand at the rail. Coach groups start arriving around 10 |
| Late morning to early afternoon | The crush. Pit 1's viewing platform becomes a slow-moving queue with elbows |
| Last hour or two before closing | Thins out again, and the light through the hangar windows is better for photographs |
| Weekends and Chinese public holidays | Capacity is reached and slots are gone days ahead. If your dates are fixed, book the moment the window opens |
How long to allow, honestly
Two to two and a half hours across the pits and the bronze chariot hall, an hour or more at Lishan Garden, and three hours of travel in total. That is a full day, and it is why this is not something to bolt onto a city afternoon. If you want to see Huaqing Palace as well, it is on the same Line 9 corridor and works as a stop on the way back, with its own separate ticket and booking.
Practical notes on site
- Your passport is your ticket. Scan it at the gate; nothing to print or collect.
- Photography is allowed without flash. Do not touch anything, and do not cross the barriers for a better angle.
- There is a lot of walking and very little shade between the halls. Water and a hat are not optional in summer.
- Food inside the complex is expensive and ordinary. Lintong town does considerably better for a fraction of the price.
- Guides are available at the entrance, official and otherwise. Agree the price and the duration before you start.
- Allow for the shuttle queue between the museum and Lishan Garden, especially mid-morning.
Frequently asked questions
Can I buy Terracotta Army tickets at the gate?
No. Entry is real-name and timed, booked in advance through the museum's own channels, and the site has no walk-up ticket window for same-day visitors. If you arrive without a booking you will be turned away.
Can I book with a foreign passport?
Yes. Foreign passports are accepted in the real-name system on the same basis as Chinese ID cards, you enter your name and passport number exactly as printed, and carry that passport to the gate. All visitors, including those entitled to free entry, must still reserve.
Which channel should I use?
The museum's own ticketing website and its two WeChat official accounts. The museum has stated that it does not authorise third-party platforms, so a reseller may charge a fee for a ticket you could have booked yourself, and imitation pages are a real risk.
How far in advance do tickets go on sale?
On a rolling window measured in days rather than months; it has run around eight days including the day of visit, and longer around Spring Festival. Because the window shifts, check the museum's own announcement for your date instead of relying on a fixed number.
How do I get there from central Xi'an?
Metro Line 9 east to Huaqing Pool station, Exit C, then Lintong bus 602 or 613 for the last few kilometres. About 1.5 hours each way. A taxi or DiDi takes 45–60 minutes and is the sensible option for a group.
Is Lishan Garden included in the ticket?
Yes. The ticket covers both the museum and the mausoleum archaeological park, and a free shuttle bus connects them. Both halves need roughly an hour and a half each, so plan the day around both.
How long should I spend at the site?
Two and a half to three hours for the pits and the bronze chariots, plus an hour or more for Lishan Garden. With travel, treat it as a full day rather than a half-day.
What time of day is best?
The first slot of the morning. Pit 1 is the first thing every group goes to, and the difference between being there before 10 and after 10 is the difference between standing at the rail and shuffling along it.
Related reading
Ticket channels, real-name rules, daily capacity and opening hours follow the Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum's own ticketing announcements and published visit notices, as reported by Shaanxi provincial government and state media summaries of the site's reservation system, cross-checked against independent 2026 visitor guides. The metro-plus-bus route follows Xi'an Metro line information and Lintong district bus services. Prices, capacity, opening hours and booking windows are set by the museum and change with the season, confirm the current notice for your date. Current as of September 2026.