Scenic area · Border city · Inner Mongolia
Hulunbuir
呼伦贝尔
Grassland, lakes and forest on the borders with Russia and Mongolia
Hulunbuir is the north-easternmost prefecture-level city of Inner Mongolia and, at about 253,000 km², one of the largest cities by area in the world — larger than the United Kingdom. It covers the Hulunbuir grassland, the northern Greater Khingan forests and the Argun River frontier with Russia, and is home to Mongol, Daur, Ewenki, Oroqen and Russian communities; its seat is Hailar.
Key facts
Overview
Hulunbuir takes its name from its two great lakes, Hulun and Buir. West of the Greater Khingan lies one of the largest and best-preserved grasslands in China, crossed by meandering rivers; the mountains themselves are covered in larch and birch forest, and east of them the land descends to the farmland of the Nen River plain.
The region borders Russia along the Argun River and Mongolia to the south-west. Manzhouli, on the railway to the Trans-Siberian line, is China's main land port for Russia. Hailar is the administrative centre, and the smaller cities of Yakeshi, Genhe, Ergun and Zhalantun lie in the forests and valleys.
Names and nicknames
海拉尔
The city seat on the Hailar River, often used for the whole city.
北国碧玉
“green jade of the north”
A common descriptive name for the grassland in summer.
History
The Greater Khingan forests are regarded as the homeland of several steppe peoples: the Gaxian Cave in Oroqen Banner bears an inscription of 443 identifying it as the ancestral shrine of the Tuoba Xianbei, founders of the Northern Wei, and the Mongols are thought to have emerged from the region of the Argun. Under the Qing, the Solon (Ewenki), Daur and Barga Mongols were organised as banner troops to guard the frontier. The Chinese Eastern Railway, built by Russia and opened in 1903, brought the towns of Manzhouli and Hailar. During the Japanese occupation the Hailar area was fortified against the Soviet Union, and in August 1945 Soviet forces crossed the border here.
443
Northern Wei inscription at Gaxian Cave
The Tuoba emperor sent officials to sacrifice at the ancestral cave; the inscription was found in 1980.
1689
Treaty of Nerchinsk
The Qing and Russia fixed the Argun River as part of their border.
1732
Hailar garrison founded
The Qing established a fortified town for banner troops of the Solon, Daur and Barga.
1903
Chinese Eastern Railway opens
The Russian-built line through Manzhouli and Hailar linked Siberia with Harbin and Vladivostok.
August 1945
Soviet offensive
Soviet forces entered Manchuria and took the Japanese fortifications at Hailar.
Landmarks
Nature
Hulun Lake
呼伦湖
The largest lake in north China, surrounded by grassland and wetlands.
Nature
Mergel River
莫日格勒河
A tightly meandering grassland river north of Hailar, a summer pasture of herders.
Museum
Hailar Fortress Museum
海拉尔要塞遗址博物馆
Tunnels and bunkers of the Japanese fortifications of the 1930s on the northern edge of Hailar.
Modern landmark
Manzhouli
满洲里
Border city with Russian-style buildings, a nesting-doll square and the national gate on the railway into Russia.
Historic site
Shiwei
室韦
Village on the Argun River in Ergun with log houses of Russian-descended residents.
Neighbourhoods
Hailar
海拉尔区
The seat of the city, on the edge of the grassland.
Zhalantun
扎兰屯
County-level city in a valley east of the Greater Khingan, with Russian railway-era buildings.
Food
Hand-held mutton
手把肉
Boiled Barga mutton, the staple of the grassland.
Russian bread
列巴
Large round loaves (from Russian khleb) baked in Hailar, Manzhouli and Ergun.
Milk tea
奶茶
Salted milk tea with fried dough and curds.
Culture
Hulunbuir is the most ethnically diverse part of Inner Mongolia. It has an Ewenki autonomous banner, an Oroqen autonomous banner and a Daur autonomous banner, as well as the Barga and Buryat Mongols of the grassland and Russian-descended communities along the Argun. The Ewenki of the Aoluguya are known as the last reindeer herders of China. Summer Naadam festivals and the winter festivals of the forest peoples are the main events of the year.
Getting around
- Hailar Dongshan International Airport and Manzhouli Xijiao Airport serve the grassland; the forest towns have smaller airports.
- The Binzhou railway (the former Chinese Eastern Railway) crosses the region from Harbin via Zhalantun and Hailar to Manzhouli.
- Distances are large and most sights are reached by road; winters are extremely cold.
Day trips
Ergun wetland
额尔古纳湿地
Wetland of the Genhe River outside Ergun, one of the largest in China.
Mordaoga forest
莫尔道嘎
National forest park of larch and birch in the northern Greater Khingan.
Gaxian Cave
嘎仙洞
The ancestral cave of the Tuoba Xianbei in Oroqen Autonomous Banner.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
- Hulunbuir Municipal People's Government — Hulunbuir Municipal People's Government (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Seventh National Population Census communiqués — National Bureau of Statistics of China (retrieved 27 September 2026)
- Hulun Buir — Encyclopaedia Britannica (retrieved 27 September 2026)
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