Xinjiang Best Classic Silk Road Tour with Locals

Xinjiang Best Classic Silk Road Tour with Locals

This tour begins in Kashgar and ends in Urumqi that you can experience the all the must see places in xinjiang by visiting top silk road destinations along the south and north Silk Road by driving across the Taklimakan desert Taklimakan second largest shifting desert in the world, as well as you can also experience the one of the world's most adventurous Karakoram highway which goes into Pakistan at the end through beautiful snow capped landscape Xinjiang which has more dry and continental landscape in the south with snow capped high mountains peaks as well as there is planty of Historical ruins and archiological sites . This could be your lifetime experience to follow the track of Marco Polo

Itinerary

Day 1: Kashgar City Cultural Walking Tour

Stop At: Kaxgar, Kashgar, Xinjiang, China
Kashgar has been claimed "the best-preserved example of a traditional Silk Road city to be found anywhere in Central Asia", although the city is becoming more developed.
Being the cultural center of China, Kashgar is one of the top silk road destinations in China
So far today we will do full day excursion in this city, and visit Kashgar Sunday livestock Market, south and central Asia Market, Apak Hoja tomb, Idkah Mosque and Kashgar old town, and enjoy the Uyghur local cuisines like kebab, hand pulled noodle in best Uyghur food restaurant in kashgar.

Kashgar Live stock Market: Open field agricultural market only held every Sunday, Uyghur farmers type, very local atmosphere, business is all about the animals like sheep, yaks, goats, donkey, cows, camels and horses,
South and Central Asia Market: it is regular commodity market that has all sort of goods, Market attracts more than hundred thousand people every Sunday from nearby towns around the kashgar and from central Asian countries as well.

Apak Hoja tomb: Mausoleum is finest examples of Uyghur Islamic architecture in China, large dome of 17m is at the center surrounded by four corner minarets with strips and arabesque floral patterns initially built in 1640, powerful religious and political leader Apak hoja’s five generations of relatives buried inside the tomb,

Idkah Mosque: Being largest mosque in China and 12th largest in the World, Idkah mosque is unique best-preserved Uyghur architectural mosque and can hold more than thousands of worshipers on pray time

Kashgar old town: well preserved more than 1000s years old Uyghur residential area, people began to settle down there 11 hundred years ago ，and it was cultural and important transportation hub in Central Asia’s silk road, it is treasure of silk road.
Because of its unique natural old fashion medieval style, old town attracted the attention of Hollywood to shot the film “Kite Runner”, most parts of the film were shot in this old town,

Duration: 8 hours

Stop At: Kashgar Live Stock Market, Kashgar 844000 China
our guide will take you to livestock market and you will see the real life of uyghur farmers and their way of business
Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Kashgar Bazaar, Kashgar 844000 China
kashgar sunday market is one of the authentic and largest markets in xinjiang and central asia , you will explore the market for few hrs, our guide will accompany you for walking tour in the market
Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Abakh Hoja Tomb, 421 County Rd, Kashgar 844504 China
it is one of the best preserves shrines in kashgar and it has unique architecture style from 17th century , you will have live show of Uyghur wedding and dancing performance
Duration: 2 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast: this Tour cost includes breakfast in the hotel , lunch and supper would be on your own expenses
Accommodation included: Chinibagh hotel (former British consulate hotel ) which has best location in the city of kashgar

Day 2: Kashgar-Tashkorgan via Karakoram highway/5hr driving

Stop At: Karakul Lake, Karakoram Highway ,foot of Mushitage Peak The new road to Karakul lake is compeleted and is now all paved., Kashgar 844000 China
Karakul Lake: it is rare highland lake in the world at the elevation of 3600m, located on the side of Karakoram highway ,200km south west of Kashgar, it is surrounded by many snowcapped high mountains like Mt Muztagh Ata(7546m) and Konggur (7649m). You will have chance to hike around the lake if our time allows
Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Tashiku'erganzhen, Tashkurgan, Kashgar, Xinjiang, China
Tashkorgan is only western most Entry and Exit gate of western China, mountain Tajik people live in surrounding area and it is important town in the Karakoram, located south west of Kashgar, borders with Badakhshan province of Tajikistan, Wakhan corridor of Afghanistan and Pakistani Kashmir where Karakoram, Pamir and Hindikush mountain ranges are connected. therefore, it has outstanding scenery of mountains,
After breakfast in hotel , spend about an hour there to visit the Ethnic Tajik Museum, best preserved ruin Stone forte which dates back to 7th century, and visit the Pamir Grass land(goldden grassland),
Duration: 3 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast: Dinner and lunch will be on your own expenses
Accommodation included: Overnight in best 3*-4* hotel in Tashkorgan

Day 3: Tashkorgan -Back to Kashgar via Karakoram Highway /5hr driving

Stop At: Kashgar, Kashgar, Xinjiang Uygur
Today early in the morning after we have visited the places stone forte , pamir grassland , taheman grassland ,karakul lake ,sand mountain lake on the karakoram highway , we will drive back to kashgar
Duration: 7 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Chinibagh hotel (former British consulate hotel ) which has best location in the city of kashgar

Day 4: Kashgar-Hotan(Khotan/和田）/6hr driving

Stop At: Hotan, Hotan, Xinjiang Uygur
Today we will drive to Hotan from kashgar ,we will drive towards southern silk road city hotan by crossing the oasis , villages and towns ,arrive Hotan in the evening and check in hotel , then we will go to visit Hotan night market which is one of the largest food market in Xinjiang where you can see hundreds of varies of xinjiang foods , drive back to hotel and rest ,
Duration: 2 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: overnight in hotel in Hotan 3*-4* hotel

Day 5: Hotan tours/2hr drive

Stop At: Hotan, Hotan, Xinjiang Uygur
hotan was very important city in the southern silk road, and also was one of the earliest Buddhist states in the world and a cultural bridge across which Buddhist culture and learning were transmitted from India to china, khotan was establishes as city in 300bc and completely Islamitized in 1006 ad, so you can visit some ancient Buddha ruins, as well as it's thousand years old of historical major products such as its famous nephrite jade,Hand made silk factories carpet and pottery factories. today we will visit Hotan grand market ,hotan Jade market , hotan Silk factory ,handcraft carpet factory where regular hotan people work ,and also we will visti Malik Awat accient buddha city , after the visiting the sites , we will go to hotan night food market again for dinner and enjoy the best of xinjiang foods ,
Duration: 8 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: overnight in hotel in Hotan 3*-4* hotel

Day 6: Hotan-Kuqa(Kucha,库车）via crossing Taklamakan desert from south to north/9hr drive

Stop At: Taklamakan Desert, Talimu Basin Centre, 848000 China
Today is going to be very exciting and adventurous part of our trip, we drive across the vast Taklamakan desert from south to north via Desert highway , Taklamakan is second largest shifting sand dune desert in the world, full day driving on the new desert highway to reach Kuqa northern oasis city in the middle silk road , located north of Taklamakan , we will get our lunch prepared in the morning and drive on the highway cross the desert stop for photos and walk on the sand dunes ,arrive kuqa in the evening
Duration: 8 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight in hotel 4* in kuqa

Day 7: Kucha Tours

Stop At: Kuqa County, Kuqa County, Xinjiang Uygur
Kucha is Another ancient Buddha cultural city on the middle silk road located north part of Taklimakan desert ,Kucha was called Kusan (Qiuci in Chinese) in ancient times , today we will first visit Kizil Buddha caves for 3-4hr and visit Tianshan grand canyon 2hr ,after the excursion we will drive back to kuqa to visit the subash ancient city and kucha grand mosque , then we will have dinner and back to hotel for rest , we can take you to night market in kuqa if you would like to walk around the foods markets again ,
Duration: 9 hours

Stop At: Kizil Thousand Buddha Caves (Kezi'er Qian Fo Dong), Kizil Town, Baicheng County 842300 China
it is one of the best preserved buddha ancient art in china ,our professional guide will take you all the caves and explain each buddha paintings ,
Duration: 4 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight in hotel 4* in kuqa

Day 8: Kuqa-Turpan/by 7 hr train

Stop At: Turpan, Turpan, Xinjiang Uygur
after breakfast in hotel , we will drive to train station to take sleeper train to Turpan, it will be 7-8hr train ride, as soon as we arrive Turpan go to hotel ,


Duration: 8 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight in hotel in Turpan

Day 9: Turpan Tours

Stop At: Turpan, Turpan, Xinjiang Uygur
Turpan is located in the Turpan Basin which is deepest basin in China, northeastern part of Taklimakan desert. it is the Key city on the Middle Silk Road and unique Uyghur Buddha cultural City throughout the Buddha cultural period in the history of Uyghur’s until the 14th century ,then Islam became completely dominant religion in this area after middle of 14th century , that’s why Turpan has considerably best preserves Buddhist historical sites and some of them very well preserved ancient ruins that protected by UNESCO

Today spend the whole day to visit historical sites in Turpan, visit Emin Minaret, Karez well Museum, Bezaklik buddha caves ,jiaohe ancient city , Gaochang ancient city ,Tuyuq village, and have traditional lunch in local Uyghur family in Tuyuq village ,

Emin Minaret (sugong Ta in Chinese): only mosque with tallest minaret in China (44m, 144ft), built in 1777, an elegant and circular Uyghur traditional architecture

Karez Wells: More than 5000km long Karez was one of the greatest constructions of China ,Turpan's Karez water system is made up of a horizontal series of vertically dug wells that are then linked by underground water canals to collect water from the watershed surface run off from the base of the Tian Shan Mountains and the nearby Flaming Mountains. The canals channel the water to the surface, taking advantage of the current provided by the gravity of the downward slope of the Turpan Depression. The canals are mostly underground to reduce water evaporation.

Jiaohe (Yarghul in Uyghur )ancient city: it is called Yarghul ancient city Uyghurs and well preserved, excavated mud ancient city ruin in the world . earliest settlers of this city was no later than 1800 years BC, it is abandoned in 14th century AD when the Islam became dominant in the area ,All the houses, even few floor high, were built by excavating the clay ground .that’s the distinctive part than any other ancient cities throughout the silk road .The city was built on a large islet (1650 m in length, 300 m wide at its widest point) in the middle of a river which formed natural defenses, which would explain why the city lacked any sort of walls. it is recently protected by UNESCO

Tuyuk valley: lovely old valley in which the small typical Uyghur village located, when we walk around the village we can absorb the Uyghur old residential lifestyle in Turpan

Bezaklik Thousand Buddha caves: complex of Buddhist cave grottos dating from the 5th to the 9th centuries. There are 77 rock-cut caves at the site. Most have rectangular spaces with rounded arch ceilings often divided into four sections, each with a moral of Buddha. The effect is of entire ceiling covers with hundreds of Buddha murals. Some ceilings are painted with a large Buddha surrounded by other figures, including Indians, Persians and Europeans. The quality of the murals varies with some being artistically naive while others are masterpieces of religious art.
Night in hotel in Turpan

Duration: 8 hours

Stop At: Ancient City of Jiaohe (Yarkhoto), Jianggelemaisi Village, Ya'er Country, Turpan 838000 China
our guide will take you all parts of this ancient city and explain you the history of this ancient city
Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Karez System, Xincheng Ximen Village, Ya'er Country, Turpan 838000 China
Karez Wells: More than 5000km long Karez was one of the greatest constructions of China ,Turpan's Karez water system is made up of a horizontal series of vertically dug wells that are then linked by underground water canals to collect water from the watershed surface run off from the base of the Tian Shan Mountains and the nearby Flaming Mountains. The canals channel the water to the surface, taking advantage of the current provided by the gravity of the downward slope of the Turpan Depression. The canals are mostly underground to reduce water evaporation.
Duration: 1 hour

Stop At: Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves, Gaochang, Turpan, Xinjiang, China
Bezaklik Thousand Buddha caves: complex of Buddhist cave grottos dating from the 5th to the 9th centuries. There are 77 rock-cut caves at the site. Most have rectangular spaces with rounded arch ceilings often divided into four sections, each with a moral of Buddha. The effect is of entire ceiling covers with hundreds of Buddha murals. Some ceilings are painted with a large Buddha surrounded by other figures, including Indians, Persians and Europeans. The quality of the murals varies with some being artistically naive while others are masterpieces of religious art.
Duration: 1 minute

Stop At: Emin Minaret (Su Gong Ta), Munage Village, Putao Country, Turpan 838000 China
Emin Minaret (sugong Ta in Chinese): mosque with tallest minaret in China (44m, 144ft), built in 1777, an elegant and circular Uyghur traditional architecture
Duration: 1 hour

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight in hotel in Turpan

Day 10: Turpan-Urumqi /3hr drive

Stop At: Urumqi, Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur
Today we drive from turpan to Urumqi ,Xinjiang's capital city for few hrs and we will enjoy the fascinating scenery of tianshan mountain range and thousands of wind power plants , after we arrive in urumqi , check in hotel , and do walking tour in international grand bazaar ,
Duration: 5 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight in hotel with good location in Urumqi

Day 11: Urumqi -Heavenly lake Day tour /2hr driving

Stop At: Tianchi Forest Park, Sangong Forrest Farm, Fukang 831500 China
aftern breakfast in hotel , we will visit xinjiang autonomous regional museum for 2hr , and drive to heavenly lake (Tianchi) in eastern tianshan range near boghda peak , we will spend whole rest of the time there , and drive back to urumqi in the evening ,
Duration: 8 hours

Stop At: Tianshan Tianchi Lake, Within Tianshan Scenic Resort, Urumqi 830002 China
one of the most beautiful lakes in xinjiang , guide accompany you for hiking for few hrs around the lake ,
Duration: 4 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight in hotel in Urumqi

Day 12: end the Tour in Xinjiang

Stop At: Urumqi, Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur
today we will take you to airport or train station to see you off ,and xinjiang silk road tour end today ,
Duration: 1 hour

Meals included:
• Breakfast
No accommodation included on this day.