The Mogao Caves, a UNESCO World Heritage site located near Dunhuang, northwest China's Gansu province, will be officially opened to the public for night tours this year in a bid to attract more tourists, China News Services reported Tuesday.

The grottoes are an essential component of the economic tourism circle across Dunhuang, and so a series of night tours will be launched from mid-April to early May, providing customized cultural services for tourists, said Wang Xudong, head of Dunhuang Academy.

Aside from the night tour of the Mogao Caves – a complex cave structure made up of hundreds of Buddhist and Taoist grottoes that are over 1,000 years old – tourists will also be offered options for trips to Yangguan Pass and Yumenguan Pass, two major passes of ancient China along the historic Silk Road.

Similar night tours were provided for research, study and tour groups by Dunhuang Academy last year, and were widely welcomed by sightseers.

(Cover: Mogao Caves, Dunhuang, Gansu Province. /VCG Photo)