South Xinjiang Tour of “Turpan - Korla - Kuqa - Aral - Hotan - Kashgar - Urumqi”
Day 01 Arrival in Urumqi / Turpan
You can take flight to get to Urumqi, which is the capital city of Xinjiang, dozens of international flights to the bordering countries everyday. On Arrival , our tour guide will wait for you and transfer to your hotel.
we can also make adjustments to your Xinjiang tour itinerary based on your specified request. High speed train is another choice for travelers from Dunhuang to reach Turpan.
Day 02 Urumqi - Turpan or Turpan city tour
After breakfast, we drive to the Ancient City of Gaochang, which was called the sister city of Jiaohe, It was founded in the 1st century BC, but largely destroyed by war in the late 13th century. You can still find ruins of city walls, temples, forts and chambers there. Then drive to the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves which is just located on the cliffs of the Mutougou valley in the Flaming Mountains. the Flaming Mountains runs 100km in length from Turpan city location, A famous novel”Journey to the west” tells a story happened here about the Monkey king. the spectacular scenary of the landscape in the valley can also astonish you.
After that, we will drive to a village nearby the flaming mountains, to experience the real life and the traditional food there. Then we will drive back to Turpan to walk around the local Bazzar.
After dinner, you can walk around in the city to enjoy the local people’s life of the ‘fire prefecture’.
Day3 Turpan city tour
we will continue to visit the Ancient City of Jiaohe which was built of rammed earth entirely. Standing in the ruins, you can imagine the past glory of the city 2,300 years ago. Then to visit the Karez System, a unique irrigation system, and one of the three greatest ancient projects in China.
After that, we go to visit Turpan Museum which is the second largest museum in Xinjiang, then continues to Emin Minaret - a landmark of Turpan . The adjoining mosque is large enough to hold more than 1,000 people.
Day 4 Turpan - Kuqa
In the morning, we will drive to Kuqa; it is a journey of around seven hours. but you are given a rare chance to travel through the vast Gobi desert and drive across the heavenly mountain to southern Xinjiang, and to gain an appreciation of the hardship the ancient merchants and travelers faced on their journey along this segment of the historic Silk Road.
Day 05 Kuqa
After breakfast ,we first drive to the Kizil Thousand-Buddha Caves - Located 67 kilometers west of Kucha County, it is the oldest of its kind in China and the largest ruins of Buddhist culture in Xinjiang, There are now 236 numbered grottoes, which houses nearly 10,000 square meters of mural paintings.
There is also another choice to the Tianshan Grand Canyon which is located in the mountain area 72km north of Kuqa. The canyon is characterized by oddly-shaped rocks, craggy pinnacles, rugged cliffs and deep ravines. The width of the canyon changes due to the terrain.While the broadest area is 53 meter wide, the narrowest section is too narrow for one person to go through sideways.
Day 06 Kuqa - Alar
After checking out, we first drive to the Subash Ancient City to trace its former splendor of the buddhism centre in the western region by a leisurely stroll around the ruins.
Then we will drive about 260 km to Alar city which lies nearby the Taklamakan desert, Even Aral with limited accommodation, it’s convenient to cross the Taklamakan desert to Hotan next day.
Along the road to Alar, you can enjoy the scenery of the Diversiform-leaved PoplarForest nearby Tarim river which is the longest inland river in China,
Day 07 Alar - Hotan
After breakfast, drive 430km along the desert road acrossing Taklamakan Desert. The Taklamakan Desert, also known as death sea, where one can get inside but never come out in old times. Now the cross-desert highway connects the cities of Hotan (on the southern side) and Alar (on the northern side).
Day 08 Hotan city tour
Hotan was an important stop along the southern route of the silk road, it’s renowned for its three valuable products: Adras silk making and dying, handmade carpet, Hotan jade.
The programme in hotan is mainly to visit the traditional workshops, where you could get a better understanding about the making process of Hotan silk and the carpets. Besides, Hotan jade ware enjoys a high reputation in China, and our guide will lead you to walk aorund the Jade river and a prosperous jade bazaar.
Night market in Hotan is very popular, where you can see and enjoy fancy and delicious food,
Day 09 Hotan - Kashgar
After breakfast, we will drive 500 km to Kashgar. On the half way, we will make a stop to visit the Yarkand King‘s Tomb, a family graveyard of 12 generations of Yarkand royal members.
Day 10 Kashgar city tour
our guide will show you around Kashgar‘s Old Town where you can see and feel Uygur culture. Then we will walk to Id Kah Mosque, one of the largest mosques in China, presenting typical Islamic architectural features.
the Abakh Khoja Tomb which once served for the Khoja Family, the powerful ruler of Kashgar in the 17th century. It is also the resting place for Emperor Qianlong‘s favored concubine - the Fragrant Concubine.
At last, you can dive into the bustling Kashgar bazaar (Sunday Market) to have a bargaining shopping experience and try some yummy local snacks. If happened on a Sunday, there will be another animal trading market for locals to exchange livestock.
Day 10 Kashgar - Karakuri Lake - Kashgar
We will take a leisure adventure to the Pamir Plateau, On the way to Tashkorgan, we visit the Karakuri Lake, literally meaning the ‘black sea‘. This huge alpine lake with an altitude of 3,600 meters (11,800 feet) reflects the mysterious and lofty Muztagata nearby. With the Muztagata covered by white snow and reflecting in the lake, you will be astonished by this breathtaking beauty of picture. After we will drive the same way back to Kashgar.
Day 11 Departure from Kashgar or fly back to Urumqi continuing other programme
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