Location: Yushu is located in the southwest of Qinghai Province, about 800 km (497 miles) from Xining City.Yushu Tibet Autonomous Prefecture is located in southern Qinghai province on the northern Tibetan Plateau. About 800 kilometers (497 miles) southwest of Xining, the capital of Qinghai Province, you will find it. Covering an area of 191,178 square kilometers (73,814 square miles), Yushu is comprised of six counties. It is famous across Tibet for containing the headwaters of three of Asia's greatest rivers, the Lancang River, Yellow River and Yangtze River. It is a multi-ethnic area. Yushu has a total population of about 297,000 (2005), of which 97 percent are Tibetan. Other groups include the Han, Hui, Tu and Mongolian.
History
Being a constituent of the former Nangchen kingdom, Yushu was, for most of the time, not under domination by the Dalai Lama's Gelugpa order in Lhasa. The different balance of power in this part of Kham enabled the older Tibetan Buddhist orders to prevail in Yushu. The area was a center of commercial importance in Tang Dynasty (618 - 907) and was filled with commodity transaction, especially between the people of Han and the Hui nationality.
Climate
Sitting at an altitude of 5,300 meters (17,388 feet) above sea level, Yushu is an ideal place to see wild animals and beautiful scenery at the 'the rooftop of the world'. Living conditions are harsh as cold weather is the prefecture's basic climate character. Snow can fall in summer. The area averages over 270 freezing days per year without distinct seasons. Yushu has an annual average rainfall of 464 millimeters (18.3 inches) and a yearly average temperature of -0.8 degree Celsius (30.6 degree Fahrenheit). The best time to visit Yushu is in July or August. It's the perfect time to feast your eyes on beautiful scenery and colorful Tibetan culture.
Tourist Sites
Yushu is called 'the sea of dances and songs' and 'the hometown of dances and songs'. Famous scenic spots include: Temple of Princess Wen Cheng, Jiegu Monastery, and the largest Mani Stone stack in the world. This magic plateau preserves the original features of the ecological environment and the thick primeval forest covers the hills and valleys in the southeast part of Yushu area. The magnificent costume, the colorfulness of the tent city and the splendor scene of the horse racing here all can be renowned as the unique local national cultural flavor and it also shows the enchanting demeanor and the special charm of Yushu.
Transportation
Yushu Batang Airport was just put into use on Aug. 1st, 2009. There are regular airlines from Beijing, Xian and Xining to Yushu. Visitors can also take a sleeper bus from Xining or a local bus from Ganzi Tibet Autonomous Prefecture in far northwest Sichuan province. Now, there are no railway stations in Yushu.
