5-Day Xinjiang Winter Tour: Urumqi and Turpan

Attractions: No

Meal: Not Included

Hotel: Overnight in Urumqi

When you arrive at Urumqi airport/train station, you will be met at the exit by a local driver holding a welcome sign with your name and transferred to your hotel in the city centre for check-in. Free to organise the rest of your day at your leisure.

Attractions: Xinjiang Regional Museum, Heavenly Lake, Grand International Bazaar

Meal: Not included

Hotel: Overnight in Urumqi

This morning after breakfast, you are going to explore the Heavenly Lake. The lake reflects the Bogda Peak, surrounded by spruce. The scenery is like a fairyland. The scenic area encompasses alpine lakes, wetland meadows, forest canyons and other natural landscapes, and in 2013, the scenic area was named a National Geopark by the state.

Scenic spots in the area between the various attractions, are connected by trestles, can be reached on foot.

Leaving the museum, you will be taken to have an educational visit to the Xinjiang Regional Museum. The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Museum is a provincial-level comprehensive geography museum in China, and also an institution for the collection and protection of cultural relics and specimens, scientific research and publicity and education in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

If time allowed, we will visit the Grand International Bazaar and have dinner here.

After the landscape trip, take a park bus to exit the park, and drive back to Urumqi.

Attractions: Toyuq village, Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves, Flaming Mountain

Meal: Not included

Hotel: Overnight in Turpan

After breakfast, drive to Turpan. On the way, visit Toyuq village, located in the centre of the Flaming Mountain Canyon. The village consists of four parts: canyon scenery, mazar tombs, and ancient buildings of the ancient village. After finishing there, we will visit the Jiaohe Ruins, one of the best-preserved ancient sites in China, which was inscribed on 22 June 2014 on the World Heritage List.

Continue to visit Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves, Berziklik Thousand Buddha Cave is the cave group with the largest number of caves and the richest mural content among the existing caves in Turpan, and is one of the larger Buddhist cave temple sites in Xinjiang. It is also the one with the highest specifications, which used to be the royal monastery of the Gaochang Huifeng Kingdom.

After that, drive to Flaming Mountain, locals call it "Kyzyltag", meaning "Red Mountain". On 13 April 2018, the Flaming Mountain Scenic Spot was shortlisted as one of the "100 Scenic Spots in the Magical Northwest" 

Then we make our way to Astana Tombs, covering an area of about 10 square kilometers, are the public cemeteries of Gaochang City from the 3rd to the 8th century. In 1988, the Astana tomb Complex was announced by The State Council of the People's Republic of China as the third batch of national key cultural relics protection units.

 After that, drive toTurpan for overninght stay.

Attractions: Karez Well, Sugong Minaret, Jiaohe Ruins, Salt Lake, Wind power station.

Meal: Not included

Hotel: Overnight in Urumqi

Today you will have a full day to explore this fertile oasis. Pay a visit to Karez Well irrigation system that produce the best melons and grapes in China. Following is the visiting to Sugong Minaret, a conduit for cultural exchange between different ethnic and religious groups.

Afterwards explore Jiaohe Ruins. Walking to the centre of the main road of the old city, from the observation deck, in addition to the old city and the old village, ethnic characteristics of the building.Immersed in the long river of history of the Jiaoxie, only mottled and pale still hides a huge unsolved mystery

Back to Urumqi and have a good rest,  passing by Salt Lake and the wind power station which is the largest one in Asia spreading at the foot of Tianshan Mountain.

Attractions: No

Meal: Not included

Hotel: Not included

Today is free for you to relax until you are escorted to catch your flight/train to the next destination. Tour ends.