Even with Rain and Crowds - No Regrets! - Our guide, Fey, and driver made sure everything went smoothly for our trip. We arrived by train from Xi'an, and Fey initially relayed that the Grottoes had closed for the day because of heavy rain - but she had a backup plan all ready to go and was reaching out to discuss options. Luckily, by the time we arrived in Luoyang, one entrance of the Grottoes had re-opened, so we looked at the weather and went for it. Fey met us at the train station, the driver and vehicle made the transit very comfortable, and off we went. We were a group of three adults and one 7-year-old. Because only one entrance had opened and because the rain had cooled the weather and it was still during China's summer holiday (we visited in August 2024), Fey mentioned that she had never seen crowds like the morning we went. She helped us navigate through, explaining the Grottoes as we went, and helping to manage break time for little legs. There are a fair number of stairs which are unavoidable, but we took the electric trolley/battery car for the longer walk so it was generally an easy day, physically. (Boats were not running because of the earlier heavy rains so we took the trolley both ways.) This was a wonderful way to see the Grottoes and very happy to have the half-day option as that allowed a fairly easy day trip from Xi'an (breakfast, 45-min taxi to Xi'an North Railway, 30-45 min wait at the station -- we already had paper tickets -- and 1.5 hour HSR ride each way plus the 4-hour visit, and we were back in Xi'an in time for an easy rest and dinner). Other than controlling the weather and crowds (ha!), the only thing that might have possibly improved it might have been to have a headset to hear Fey better with the crowds. As the crowds were unusually high when we visited, this might not normally be an improvement.

Great place to visit with an outstanding guide. - The Longmen Grottoes are situated to the south of Luoyang and should absolutely be visited by every tourist making the train journey from Beijing to Xi'an. The detailed craftsmanship, the result of hundred of years of work, is truly a sight to behold and this tour is one of the best ways to do so since it allows plenty of time to appreciate the individual carvings and ask questions about the history of the site. Our guide Joe was very considerate, well informed and enthusiastic about the subject. He took great care of my elderly grandmother and was able to provide a lot of detailed information on the grottoes that you are unlikely to find anywhere else. I couldn't recommend this tour highly enough.

Athenticity Abounds at Luoyang Longmen Grottoes - This is one of those special tours you will want to take again. There is much to see, explore, and stand in awe of the workmanship and engineering required. The history of Longmen Grottoes will keep your imagination churning months later...

Excellent day out. - We broke our train journey from Beijing to Xi'An at Luoyang to visit the Longmen Caves. It is a UNESCO world heritage site and well worth seeing. Our guide Joe was excellent and took us at our own pace.

Amazing walkthrough - It was an amazing walk through. Time zone travelling. I watched movie with the background of Grottoes. At last i managed to see it myself.