7 Days Xinjiang Discovery Tour

Summary

Itinerary Highlight
Day 1 Arrive in Urumqi
Day 2 Urumqi-Kashgar: Urumqi to Kashgar by flight, Livestock Market, Sunnday Market, Grand Id Kah mosque, Old Town walking tours, Local Uighur family Dinner
Day 3 Kashgar: Karakul lake and local Kyrgyz family visit
Day 4 Kashgar-Urumqi: Kashgar fly to Urumqi, Heavenly Lake
Day 5 Urumqi-Trupan: Urmqi to Turpan by private vehicle, Karez Well, Emin Minaret
Day 6 Turpan-Urumqi: Turpan to Urumqi by private vehicle, Tuyugou Valley, Gaochang Ancient City, Bezeklik Caves, Flaming Mountains
Day 7 Urumqi Departure

?Day 1 Arrive in Urumqi

Upon on your arrival, our local guide will meet you at the exit of airport with a welocme sign "Chine Private Tour".

Transfer to your hotel in Urumqi, the rest day is free on your own to explore the city or have rest in the hotel to recover the jetlag.

Day 2 Urumqi-Kashgar

After breakfast, our guide will pick you up from your hotel and drive you to Urumiqi for your flight to Kashgar, it takes around 2 hours. Kashgar, which is an oasis city in Xinjiang and one of the westernmost cities of China, located near the borders of Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan and Tajikistan. It has a history of over 2,000 years and served as a trading post and strategically important city on the Silk Road between China, the Middle East and Europe.

When your arrive in Kashgar, first enjoy the famous Livestock market which happens only on every Sunday and people bring their horses, sheep, goats, camels,cows, bulls and other livestocks to the market from all the directions for sale. It provides a great opportunity to take photos of the faces of local people, enjoy the traditional local market culture, test-drive a donkey or a horse or even make its shoes. Like opening a window, today is a real glimpse into a time lost in the annals of the Silk Road’s past and an opportunity not to be missed.

Later move on to Sunday market main Bazaar which is considered one of the largest market in Central Asia. From fluffy sheepskin hats to rugged camel-hide boots, not to mention beads, buttons and buckets of locals. Everything – including plenty of kitchen sinks – is for sale at this fairytale bazaar. It is the best to chance to practice your bargaining skills.

After lunch, visit the Grand Id Kah mosque, the largest mosque in China and marvel at the intricate architecture of Kashgar's historic Apak Hoja Tomb, which is also known as Fragrant concubine tomb.

You will enjoy the Old Town of Kashgar by walk. walking is the best way to see and understand the ancient historical parts, streets, handicraft workshops and many more; Enjoy a century-old Kashgar tea house’s atmoshpere for a short break. sitting by the locals and try various medicinal teas such as those containing rose, saffron, honey and many other ingredients.

Finally wrap up our city day tour with a dinner at a local family which offers a great opportunity to deeply understand real local life, culture and traditions of Uighurs. After the dinner, you will be taken back to your hotel.

Day 3 Kashgar

After breakfast, pick up from your hotel. Today, you will enjoy the journey to Karakul Lake from Kashgar.

We set out along the Sino – Pakistan Karakorum Highway, on the Pamir plateau (the roof of the world)visit Karakul Lake (3600m above sea level). The lake sits at the foot of the notorious, Muztagh Ata (7546m) and Gongur (7719m) mountains. ‘Muztagh Ata’ means Father of the Ice Mountains and is one of the most beautiful and mysterious mountains in the world. You also have a chance to pay a visit for local Kyrgyz family, to know the local lifestyle.

Free on your own for a while and return to Kashgar at a suitable time

After dinner, you will be taken back to your hotel.

Day 4 Kashgar-Urumqi

After breakfast our guide and driver will take you to Kashgar airport for your flight back to Urumqi and another local guide and driver will meet you at the exit of Urumqi airport with a sign "China Priavte Tour", then drive to Heavenly lake directly which takes about two hours.

Heavenly lake offers some great hiking routes through the valleys on wooden pathways or up to the mountains as you like.

Your stay at the heavenly lake is your time to go boating, take photos or simply trek around the lake if you like. You can lunch together with a local Kazak family or just pay them a visit! This is certainly the easiest way to understand the life of the Kazak people in such a short time.

After the tour, drive you back to Urumqi and back to hotel, dinner is arranged in your hotel.

Day 5 Urumqi-Trupan

After breakfast, our guide and drive will pick you up from your hotel, drive around 200 km to Turpan city. It takes around 2 hours. The first place you will visit is Karez Well. In Xinjiang, the greatest number of karez wells are in the Turpan Depression , where today there remain over 1100 karez wells and channels having a total length of over 5,000 kilometres (3,100 mi). The local geography makes karez wells practical for agricultural irrigation and other uses.You will know the underground water supply and irrigation system.

After that, enjoy family visit of local Uygur and have lunch with them. You will learn how to make Xinjiang food and visit the vineyard. 

In the afternoon, our guide will take you to visit Emin Minaret (Sugong Pagoda) which is the biggest ancient pagoda existing in Xinjiang and the only Islamic ancient pagoda in the country. Appreciate sunset at Jiaohe Ancient City and have leisure walk at the valley about 40 minutes. 

After dinner, you will be taken back to your hotel in Turpan. Free on your own to explore the nightlife.

Day 6 Turpan-Urumqi

In the morning, our guide and driver will pick you up from your hotel. Drive you to Tuyugou Valley, which is a valley village cutting into the flaming mountains located in the Taklimakan Desert.Tuyugou is an ancient village with roughly 1700 years of history, till this day they still preserve and use ancient Uyghur customs and culture. This valley village is also a pilgrimage area for many Muslims, with the main destination being The Mazar, or the tomb of the first Uyghur Muslim. It’s said that seven trips to Tuyoq is equal to one trip to Mecca.

Next, you will visit Gaochang Ancient City. It served as an important commercial and cultural center on the northern edge of the Silk Road for long time. It was once the thriving capital of an important kingdom that controlled over twenty other towns. Gaochang was also an important religious center. Buddhism was firmly established there under the Tang. The monk-traveler, Xuanzang, taught in Gaochang around 630 on his pilgrimage to India in search of Buddhist sutras. The city had numerous monasteries and temples, and at one time there were perhaps 3,000 monks and priests within its environs.

You will have simple lunch at a local restaurant.

In the afernoon, pay a visit for Bezeklik Caves, also known as the Bizaklik Thousand-Buddha Caves.There are 77 rock-cut caves at the Bezeklik Caves. Most have rectangular spaces with rounded arch ceilings often divided into four sections, each with a mural of Buddha. The effect is of entire ceiling covers with hundreds of Buddha murals. Some ceilings in Bezeklik Caves are painted with a large Buddha surrounded by other figures, including Indians, Persians and Europeans.

On the way back to Urumqi, you have a chance to visit Flaming Mountains, which appear at midday like multicoloured tongues of fire. The Flaming Mountains were immortalised in the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West, in which Sun Wukong (the Monkey King) used his magic fan to extinguish the blaze. 

You will be taken back to your hotel in Urumqi after the tour, the rest day is free on your own to explore the city. Have dinner at your hotel.

Day 7 Urumqi Departure

Free on your own until our driver pick you up from your hotel and drive you to airport for your next dstination or fly back home. Your 7 Days Xinjiang Discovery Tour comes to end. Have a pleasent trip!

Price Per Person in US Dollars