Xi'an successfully integrates its architectural heritage with the modern city, its imposing walls and ancient geometric street plan, centring on the Bell Tower, giving it a distinct identity missing in the sprawl of most Chinese cities. Downtown Xi'an, inside the walls, is just about compact enough to get around on foot, with enough sights to fill a busy day. And it is here that the city's new prosperity is most in evidence, in the variety and prices of goods in the shops on Dong Dajie , the main shopping street, where you'll also find the best hotels and restaurants, and in the number of cars that choke it during rush hours. Nan Dajie , to the south, is another shopping district at the end of which you will find the Provincial Museum , which holds a massive collection of steles, next to the city walls , more imposing remnants of imperial China. Contrast is provided by the Muslim quarter off Xi Dajie, which preserves a different side of old China in its labyrinth of alleys centring on the Great Mosque .

The suburban area south of town holds more ancient buildings than the centre, as the city in Han and Tang times was considerably more extensive than in the Ming dynasty, when the walls were built. The excellent Shaanxi History Museum and the small Daxingshan Si sit between the two Goose pagodas and their temples, which are some of the oldest and certainly the most distinctive buildings in the city.