Gaolan County is subordinate to Lanzhou City, located in the middle of Gansu Province, located in the upper reaches of the Yellow River. It is adjacent to Baiyin District and Yuzhong County of Baiyin City in the east, Chengguan District and Anning District of Lanzhou City in the south, Yongdeng County and Xigu District in the west, and Jingtai County of Baiyin City in the north.

Gaolan, home to Taiping drum, has been named "Chinese Folk Art County" by the Ministry of Culture. In 2014, Shichuan Town in Gaolan County won the title of "World's First Ancient Pear Garden" and "World Famous Town of Chinese Cultural Tourism".

Gaolan County has jurisdiction over 4 towns. It covers an area of 2,476 square kilometers and has a total population of 180,841, of which 30,081 are non-agricultural (2010, the sixth national Census).

Gaolan County has winter fruit pear, soft pear, melon, red sand potato, black melon seeds and other specialty. [9] The tourist attractions include ancient Liyuan in Shichuan Town, Shidong Temple, Lingfeng Temple, etc.