Current visitor details
Hours, admission, booking and passport guidance below come from the Place record shared by city, itinerary and booking pages. Unverified or stale high-risk claims are not shown as facts.
Booking
Easy to visit; on-site purchase is reliable and official WeChat booking is confirmed.
Plan ahead: Same-day is usually sufficient; it rarely sells out.
On site: Available at the ticket office.
Channels: WeChat official account: 西安半坡博物馆 · Ctrip / 同程 / Meituan (OTA) · On-site ticket office
Foreign passport
On-site ticket purchase with a passport is available at the ticket office. Foreign visitors can also reserve via the official '西安半坡博物馆' WeChat account (real-name). Bring the original passport for entry.
Opening and last entry
Normal season: 08:00-17:30 (last entry 17:00). Some sources cite 08:00-18:30 in the warmer months; off-season hours may differ. Reopened 2 February 2026 after renovation.
Admission
Adult: 55 yuan. Student: 27.5 yuan. Free: under 18 (or under 1.2m), seniors 65+, disabled, active military.
Visit planning
Allow: 1-1.5 hours
Physical load: light
Morning or afternoon; combine with other eastern Xi'an sites if time allows.
Getting there
Metro Line 1 to Banpo Station (半坡站), then ~10 minutes on foot; or buses to the Banpo Museum stop.
From the city center (Bell Tower): ~30-40 minutes by metro or bus, ~20-30 minutes by taxi.
Accessibility
- Wheelchair access: The museum halls are flat; the outdoor reconstructed village may have uneven paths.
Why this place matters
The Banpo site was discovered in 1953 during factory construction and excavated from 1954-1957. It represents a Neolithic Yangshao village inhabited about 6,000 years ago, covering roughly 50,000 square meters with residential, workshop and cemetery areas. Banpo was the first large-scale Neolithic site excavated in China, and the museum opened in 1958. It houses the famous human-faced fish basin (人面鱼纹盆), one of China's most iconic Neolithic artifacts. The museum reopened on 2 February 2026 after a renovation.
What to notice
- The great in-situ hall — you can walk around actual 6,000-year-old house foundations, kilns and burials under a protective roof.
- The human-faced fish basin (人面鱼纹盆) — iconic Yangshao painted pottery with geometric fish and human-face motifs.
- Round and square house foundations with postholes, hearths and storage pits showing the village layout.
- The pottery-kiln area — evidence of specialized Neolithic craft production.
- Children's burial urns — a distinctive Yangshao practice of burying children near dwellings.
- The reconstructed outdoor village — thatched-roof huts built on ancient foundations.