Home / Tours / Silk Road

Xinjiang Scenery with Ethnic Flavor Appreciation

S-609: 12 Days Urumqi - Buerjin - Kanas Lake - Hemu - Altay - Kuitun - Huocheng - Yining - Nalati Grassland - Bayanbulak - Yanqi - Urumqi

Tour Type: Private Tour, any part of the itinerary can be customized
Guide & Driver: English-speaking guide, experienced driver with an air-conditioned vehicle
Meals: 11 breakfasts, 10 lunches

Tour Highlights:

Travel in depth to the Silk Road of 2,000 years ago & learn about the culture and history
Enjoy the beautiful and mysterious Kanas Lake, a heavenly oasis in Xinjiang desert
Explore Bayanbulak, the most fecund pasture in south Tianshan Mountains
Visit Xinjiang International Grand Bazaar, the largest Islamic style bazaar in China

Free Inquiry

Day 1 Arrival in Urumqi

Your guide and driver will meet you at Urumqi Airport today and then transfer you to the hotel. The rest of the day is free for you to relax and get prepared for the following Xinjiang tour.

Accommodation: Excemon Xinjiang Yilite Hotel

Day 2 Urumqi - Buerjin

It is a long drive today for about 8 to 9 hours from Urumqi to Buerjin. On the way, you will enjoy the fabulous scenery of the desert. Upon arrival at Buerjin, your will be escorted to check in at the hotel. Then you will witness the charming sunset at the colorful Rainbow Beach.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Buerjin Tourist Hotel

or similar

Day 3 Buerjin - Jiadengyu - Kanas

Kanas Lake

Drive about 2 hours to Jiadengyu. The whole day will be devoted to the charming Kanas Nature Reserve. The Kanas Lake is an alpine lake encircled by dense forest. Shaped like a crescent, the lake has the features of both northern vigor and southern grace of Xinjiang. You will take a boat trip on the beautiful lake. Afterwards, go for a short hike to the Watching Fish Pavilion, located about 60 meters above the lake, which is the best place to overview the whole Kanas Lake. Ascending it, you could also appreciate the marvelous mountain splendor around. In the evening, enjoy the Mogolian Tuwa Tribe music live show in the village.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Friendship Peak Resort Hotel

Day 4 Jiadengyu - Hemu - Altay

We will take you to Altay today. It is about 4 hours' driving. On the way, visit Hemu, a small village close to Mongolia and Russia. The villagers here are living by nomadic hunting. The rivers, wooden houses, wisps of smoke and birch forest make this place a fairy world in real life, just like a colorful oil painting. Stay one night in a local hotel in Altay.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Altay Di Qu Hotel

Day 5 Altay - Kuitun

A 6-hour's private transfer will take you to Kuitun. En route, visit the Urbo Ghost City with the typical Yadan landform, which is the masterpiece of nature. The rock grounds are sculptured to various forms by the wind and rain for thousands of years. Here, you could find the rocks in shape of castles, palaces and even monsters. Upon arrival in Kuitun, check in at the hotel for an overnight stay.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Haofeng International Grand Hotel

Day 6 Kuitun - Huocheng

Sayram Lake

Drive to Huocheng for about 6 hours, where 29 minority groups live. After checking in at the hotel, proceed to the Sayram Lake, which is also praised as "the last drop of the Atlantic tears". It is the highest and largest cold water lake in Xinjiang covering an area of 458 square kms (177 square miles) and with an altitude of 2073 meters (6801 feet). With the perpetual snow mountains on its west bank and the vast area of grassland on its east bank, the Sayram Lake is absolutely a gorgeous place to visit. The best time is to visit it is from June to August, when the water is extremely clear and blue and the many unknown flowers are in the full blossom.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Sayram Lake Hotel

Day 7 Huocheng - Yining

In the morning, visit the Khorgos Port between China and Kazakhstan. Standing at the door of the port, you could see afar to Kazakhstan. Have a brief visit to the border cooperation area. Then visit the lavender flora park. It is the third largest lavender park in the world, only after Provence and Furano. The whole park is divided into different areas. The No. 65 has the largest area and the best lavenders. Here you could get many fascinating pictures with your camera. At last, drive to Yining and check in at the hotel.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Meijing Hotel

Day 8 Yining - Nalati Grassland

Horse riding on Nalati Grassland

Today's highlight is the Nalati Grassland in the Nalati National Forest Park, a famous pasture since ancient time. This is also a famous tourism and holiday resort in Xinjiang which boasts beautiful grassland scenery and the Kazak ethnic flavor. You could join in the horse riding on the boundless grassland and get close to the local Kazak culture. It is a little bit cold here than in the city especially in the morning and evening, so please take some warm clothes with you.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Liancheng Ecology Resort Xinyuan

Day 9 Nalati - Bayanbulak

Bayanbulak Grassland

After breakfast this morning, you will be driven to the Bayanbulak Grassland. Today's private tour will cover the Bayanbulak Grassland and the Swan Lake Natural Reserve. The Bayanbulak Grassland is the second largest grassland in China boasting luxuriant verdant grass, numerous flocks of sheep and varied plants. Being a far-flung and level prairie, it also abounds in varieties of grass, and is studded with numerous lakes and encircled by snow mountains. The Swan Lake is located in this grassland. Actually, it is made of a group of small lakes. You could go up to the Bird Watch Platform built there to appreciate the splendid spectacle of the swans, lakes, mountains, clouds and blue sky.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: White Swan Guest House

Day 10 Bayanbulak - Yanqi

After breakfast, we will head to Yanqi County. On the way, enjoy the wonderful scenery along the Tianshan Road. Also you could see the unique black headed sheep wandering on the grassland on both sides of the road. Visit the Bosteng Lake, which is a group of small lakes covering an area of 240 square kilometers (93 square miles).

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Best local hotel

Day 11 Yanqi - Urumqi

Drive for about 6 hours to get back to Urumqi. You will check in at the hotel. After a short rest, your guide will accompany you to visit the Xinjiang International Grand Bazar, where the Uighur culture is best preserved. You will be dazzled by the strong Islamic style buildings with the unique Xinjiang flavored foods and handicrafts. You may choose some favorite souvenirs for your family or friends.

Meals: Western buffet breakfast, Lunch
Accommodation: Excemon Xinjiang Yilite Hotel

Day 12 Departure from Urumqi

Your guide and driver will transfer you to the airport for your homeward flight. We wish you a pleasant journey!

Meals: Western buffet breakfast

Why Travel With Us

Itineraries you may also like:

11 Days Urumqi - Sayram Lake - Yining - Nalati Grassland - Bayanbulak - Kuqa - Korla - Turpan - Urumqi

12 Days Dunhuang - Turpan - Urumqi - Kashgar - Tash Rabat - Naryn - Bishkek

13 Days Urumqi - Turpan - Korla - Kuqa - Aral - Hotan - Kashgar from $3349

Questions & Answers

Asked by Laurence from SINGAPORE | Oct. 29, 2012 21:32

How far from Urumqi to Kansas Lake and how long by bus

Answers (1)

Answered by Sharon | Oct. 29, 2012 09:42

There is no direct bus from Urumqi to Kanas Lake, you will need to take a bus at Nianzigou long-distance bus station to Buerjin first and then transfer a bus to Kanas. The bus journey will be difficult and takes a very long time(more than a day). Taking flight will be much more convenient and the journey only takes about one hour.

Asked by Ms.Ruby | Apr. 20, 2011 20:46

kashgar's climate..i need to know more about that! :[

Answers (1)

Answered by Mr.Blair | Apr. 21, 2011 02:03

The weather varies greatly in this region due to its complicated landform. Generally, Kashgar has four distinct seasons and the daytime of summer is longer. The hottest time is every Aug and Sep, but its the harvest time of juice and sweet fruit.

Asked by Mr.safdar | Mar. 07, 2011 19:33

dear sir how would i fly urmaqi to islamabad pakistan

Answers (1)

Answered by Mr.Alan | Mar. 08, 2011 00:07

There is a direct flight from Urumqi Diwopu (Diwobao) International Airport to Islamabad Pakistan every two days.

Asked by Mr.Prime Lemur from AUSTRALIA | Dec. 09, 2010 04:13

We are preparing to visit your country. We are seeking a tourist visa (single entry). Our itinerary includes Harbin, Beijing, Xi'an, Kashgar and Shanghai. I completed the visa application form and fronted up to the Chinese Consulate in Brisbane, Qld. On presenting the form to the clerk, he looked it over twice. He was starting to fill out the payment slip (which is taken to a different counter to pay for the visa application) when he noticed our application included Xinjiang (Kashgar city). He said, "Why do you go to Xinjiang?". I said "For tourism". He said "No". He went on to say that, if we wanted to journey to Xinjiang, we needed "an authority" from Beijing.

Can anyone give me any information about this? Is it a fact that some letter or document is necessary to visit Xinjiang? I can't find any reference to such a thing on any website. If push comes to shove, we can drop Xinjiang from our itinerary, but we *would* like to go there. Any help would be gratefully received.

Secondly, when we returned to our agents (speaking to a different consultant), they told us we must have hotel bookings, and proof of payment for these hotel bookings with our visa application. There are posts here that confirm and deny this requirement. In the consulate, I (very carefully) watched several people in front of me in the line just hand over visa application and flight itinerary, and their apps were accepted for processing.

So could anyone please help me out? I suspect that hotel bookings are technically necessary, but are they actually mandatory to present with a visa application? Like I say, I watched people lodge apps without them, but I'm hoping someone can actually confirm they are not necessary.

I would be very appreciative for any help at all. I'm getting the run-around with the consulates and agents. No-one seems to know for sure.

Answers (1)

Answered by Ms.Megan | Dec. 10, 2010 02:56

Hi Mr.Prime Lemur, first, neither letter nor document is needed to visit Xinjiang area when you apply for the Chinese visa. I never heard of it. As for the hotel booking confirmation, some of the embassies require it but some of them not, so you'd better confirm this with your local embassy.