The Coal Museum of China
The Coal Museum of China
4
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.0
12 reviews
Excellent
3
Very good
6
Average
2
Poor
1
Terrible
0
howardxp1
New York City, NY449 contributions
Apr 2015 • Family
The museum does indeed teach us about the various uses of coal and it's energy potential. But, its exhibits admittedly seems a bit dated and getting old. Also, it's almost all in Chinese Mandarin.
What i did not like was that they charge an additional 100 RMB for a mandatory "guide" to take you through the museum!! If you're Chinese, then the price of the guide is 50 RMB. No one at the ticket window spoke English at all. That and the mandatory guide will discourage most people to go. Do they not realize this basic fact? They claim that you have to walk through a simulated coal mine so it can be dangerous.
The mine and short train ride is cute indeed, but an 8 year old can hold their own in there. It's not dangerous, though perhaps they have insurance issues?
The ticket price was 60 RMB NOT including the guide. So, it becomes expensive if you have to pay the 100 additional RMB. At that point, I don't know if it's worth it.
Also, from the exhibits, one would get the idea that Coal energy is the solution to most energy but I didn't see anywhere that it's almost the single worst problem afflicting China today regarding pollution!
Overall, if $ is not an issue, then it's certainly a different type of museum to see.
Howard S.
What i did not like was that they charge an additional 100 RMB for a mandatory "guide" to take you through the museum!! If you're Chinese, then the price of the guide is 50 RMB. No one at the ticket window spoke English at all. That and the mandatory guide will discourage most people to go. Do they not realize this basic fact? They claim that you have to walk through a simulated coal mine so it can be dangerous.
The mine and short train ride is cute indeed, but an 8 year old can hold their own in there. It's not dangerous, though perhaps they have insurance issues?
The ticket price was 60 RMB NOT including the guide. So, it becomes expensive if you have to pay the 100 additional RMB. At that point, I don't know if it's worth it.
Also, from the exhibits, one would get the idea that Coal energy is the solution to most energy but I didn't see anywhere that it's almost the single worst problem afflicting China today regarding pollution!
Overall, if $ is not an issue, then it's certainly a different type of museum to see.
Howard S.
Written April 18, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jeffrey H
Taipei, Taiwan28 contributions
Apr 2019
This museum is in an aging building, with little English translation, but it is a unique museum in that there are very few coal museums in the world. The upper floors are devoted, mainly in Chinese, to showing you how coal is formed, used and how it's use has benefited society and evolved. There's a 4D movie on the creation of coal, though in Chinese, is satisfyingly graphically visual. Of particular interest was a tour of the coal mine under ground. You get the feel of coal mines, get to ride in a train bringing workers to mines, and the tour shows you the evolution of coal mining over the centuries. Well worth the short visit in a city where there are not too many other grand sites to see.
Written May 7, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
J B
20 contributions
Nov 2019
This place is great if you want to know more about the Shanxi Coal industry, and the coal industry in general. The place is well conceived, the staff is great, and there is even a floor reserved to old scriptures. This is really interesting!
Written December 19, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Andrew Y
Singapore, Singapore5,126 contributions
Oct 2017 • Friends
This museum is so dated that you can probably learn more about coal from wikipedia. It was built I think like in 1989. China can do a much better job if it were to redo this museum. The guide cannot do a good job because the passage is so narrow that only 3-4 person can hear and see what she is talking about. The ride is a waste of time. The market outside is probably more interesting.
Written October 29, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Roger M
Knoxville, TN80 contributions
Oct 2014 • Solo
I wanted a break from Temples and Monasteries, so this seemed a good option. It's only a short taxi ride from most of the downtown area. When I was there, it was hard to find the entrance because there was a large market area set up in front of the building. I finally located the ticket office off to the right of the tent area. As a retired engineer, I found it very interesting and well worth my time (about 2 hrs). The tour is escorted, but with a recorded narration for each individual. A child should find the 4D movie fun, but would be bored stiff with the "above ground" portion of the program, which shows first how coal is formed, followed by displays about the history of coal mining in China. The third section has a model of a modern mine and shows the many ways coal is used today. A ride down in an elevator takes you "underground" into a "mine" to see the development of mining techniques through a series of life-size dioramas and examples of actual equipment from ancient picks and shovels to the automated machines of the present day. Very dark! Note: this is a museum, not an actual mine. For that you'll need to go to Datong.
After the coal exhibit, there was a display of (reproduction) Chinese murals. This was included in the entrance fee, but didn't do anything for me.
After the coal exhibit, there was a display of (reproduction) Chinese murals. This was included in the entrance fee, but didn't do anything for me.
Written October 24, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jeffrey L
Taipei, Taiwan131 contributions
Oct 2012 • Family
Since we were on an early afternoon flight, we had only one attraction to visit in Taiyuan, the Coal Museum of China [中國煤炭博物館]. We had thought that a museum dedicated to coal would be boring but it wasn't at all. The highlights of the visit were the 4D theater about the geological formation of coal and the visit to a coal mine replica, complete with miner's hat for all of us. An exhibition hall of ancient Chinese mural paintings adjoins the museum in the same building. My mom and I thoroughly enjoyed this museum.
Written June 9, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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