Silk Road Tour in Spring of March and April

Welcome to Kashgar, the ancient city with special local cultural and ethnic characteristics along the Silk Road. Be transferred to the hotel. Relax and prepare for your Natural Wonder and Culture Adventure.

In the morning, enjoy your nice buffet breakfast. At 09:00 your guide and driver will meet you at hotel lobby to start the adventure. Driving on the China and Pakistan highway about 4hrs to enjoy the landscape of Pamirs Plateau.40mins driving. we stop in the Opal village to visit the traditional bustling bazaar. 

On the way, you can experience beautiful Karakul Lake where the herds of livestock around the lakeside are reflected in lake Kirghiz herdsmen usually settle down and graze their herds before shuttling you onward to Taxkorgan.

Stay one night and explore its peculiar folk customs of Tajik nationality. Taste snack and milk tea provided by local herdsman and spend your rest of day at leisure.

This morning you will visit the Stone Fortress. The city is oval in shape and the city walls were built with sun-dried bricks on stone foundation. It is 1285 meters in circumference outside.

Afterwards, walk around the local pasture to experience the lifestyle of Tajik and enjoy the interesting activities of Spring Ploughing such as horse racing, Buzkashi and etc.

Then driving back to Kashgar in the late afternoon.

Today you will enjoy a full day excursion of Kashgar. Pay a visit to Id Kah Mosque, the largest Mosque in China and the most sacred mosque for the locals to practise their Islamic activities at 09:00. Continue the visiting to Old Town at 10:30 with the open ceremony of Maxilap show. Come and join the exciting movement in this well-preserved Uighur residential area. Our speciality: Relaxing in the Hundred-years Tea house, taste the local rose tea and nang-bread!

After an exploration in Kashgar Old Town, we will head to visit the Sunday Bazaar, farmers come with their donkey cart happily. It is quite interesting to witness their typical methods of bargin. It is the only livestock market in China right now, where you can experience the trading of the livestocks that is much like the traditional ones in the ancient silk road. 

Continue to visit the Handicraft street, it gathered hundreds of handicraft workshops, which has become a boutique exhibition for handicraft in Kashgar and Central Asia.

Take the morning flight to Urumqi, the capital city of Xinjiang. Upon arrival, pick up and head to Xinjiang Regional Museum, where are many archaeological treasures of the Silk Road and Xinjiang's minority cultures. You will learn about the history of Xinjiang and its peculiar ethnic customs.  

Proceed the journey to Grand International Bazaar where you can watch Uygur dance show and taste local delicacies.

We will drive 1.5 hours to entrance of the Heavenly Lake about 08:30, following is the 40-minutes shuttle bus twisting through the picturesque Tianshan mountains to the edge of the Lake. Either Trek around the lake, enjoy the boating cruise, or even take the cable car to the explore the Maya Mountain for the incredible view of Bogoda Peak. Lunch will be arranged in the Yurt of the local Kazakhs.

In the afternoon, back to the hotel in Urumqi and have a rest.

Morning drive to Turpan, the good day begins. It is the Apricot flower season that you will enjoy a different and amazing Turpan.

First we drive to Tuyoq Village which is an ancient oasis-village in the Taklamakan desert, 70 km east of Turpan in a lush valley cutting into the Flaming Mountains and famous for its seedless grapes and a number of ancient Buddhist meditation caves nearby containing frescos. 

Following is the visiting to Sugong Minaret, a conduit for cultural exchange between different ethnic and religious groups. then head up to the Karez Well irrigation system that produce the best melons and grapes in China.  

Today's tour end up with the 2hrs's exploration of Jiaohe Ruins, resembles Pompei, but 300 years older，a Chinese archaeological site found in the Yarnaz Valley, 10 km west of the city of Turpan and a natural fortress located atop a steep cliff on a leaf-shaped plateau between two deep river valleys where you can experience the way of life of the Uygur ancestors.

Today say farewell to Turpan and we will take high-speed train to Dunhuang. You can walk around and taste Gansu delicacies at the Shazhou Night Market, the most bustling place of Dunhuang at night. It's easy to lose our sense of time wonder the market while enjoying your leisure time and taste some local cuisine.

Today we are going to appreciate the Holy Center of Buddhism Culture and Art-UNESCO of Mogao Grottoes, enjoying the 40mins 4D movie to learn the development of the grottoes and then we will be escorted by the professional guides from Mogao to enjoy the the 8 caves mainly.

Then continue driving to visit Echoing Sand Mountain, where you can ride the camels for 40mins to experience the beautiful desert scenery in the sunset. It is also fun to climb up to the top of the sand dune by the ladders to have the bird-view of the park and slide down to the bottom.

Today we will drive 3-4hrs to Jiayuguan, a city with a profound history and culture relics, and begin our journey to the Jiayuguan Fortress. Standing among vast desert and surrounded by rolling mountains,it looks like a dignified general guarding the grand land. It was constructed with the most integrated defensive system: an inner city, an outer city, and a moat. Besides functioning as a frontier military fortress, it was also an important traffic hub along the Silk Road, the oldest worldwide trading route.

After that, you will explore the Great Wall Museum, which was opened to the public in October 1989 and it is the first one to exhibit the Great Wall culture in a comprehensive and systematic way.

Continue the sightseeing to renowned underground gallery Weijin Tombs. There we can enjoy lifelike and succinct wall paintings covering a wide range of subjects including politics, economics, culture, military affairs, folk customs, and science and technology during the Wei and Jin periods (4AD)

We will drive 3hrs to the masterpiece of nature Zhangye Danxia National Geological Park, which is situated in the north of Qilian mountains with a distance of 40 km from east Zhangye city. You will be marveled by the colorful layers of mountain ridges in the 4hr's adventure to the different platforms.

Afterwards, travel to the 900-years old Giant Buddha Temple, experiencing the impressive Buddha culture and architectural treasures.

With a early start today, we will take the morning train to Lanzhou. Be met and head to Binlingsi Thousand Buddha Caves after 1.5hrs' driving. 

Taking the 40mins fast boat to the inside of the park , enjoy the variety of artworks in different styles and observe the social situations and customs in ancient times when seeing the stone sculptures and appreciate the miracle of Buddha caves. 

After breakfast, say farewell to Lanzhou, then we will take the high speed train to Luoyang.

A wonderful day begins with Longmen Grottoes,  one of the finest examples of Chinese Buddhist art, which are as many as 100,000 statues within the 2,345 caves, ranging from an 1 inch (25 mm) to 57 feet (17 m) in height and nearly 2,500 stelaes and inscriptions. This is a visual feast for those who 'd like to visit Buddhist statues. 

Today you will take an express train to Xi'an to explore the history and culture of this ancient city.

We will visit Shanxi Museum, one of the major museums in China. It is home to numerous unearthed cultural artifacts and represents the imposing image of a 13-dynasties capital.

Afterwards, drive to the Ancient City Wall, the most well-preserved city wall and the largest ancient military defensive systems in the world. You will have a bird's-eye view of panorama of Xi'an city when wandering along the city wall. Afterwards, wandering through the tight and interesting Muslim Quarter Streets to experience the local lifestyle. Street vendors selling all sorts of goods from souvenirs, hand crafted products and local snacks. You need to bargain with the vendors if you are buying goods.

In the evening, enjoy a delicious dinner and have a good rest in the hotel.

Tour starts at 08:00 and then drive 1 hour to get close to the incredible Terracotta Warriors in China’s first Emperor's Tomb built 2300 years ago,the most significant archaeological excavations of the 20th century.

After lunch in the local restaurant, head to ancient architecture and a holy place for Buddhists.- Big Goose Pagoda,The restored Buddha and building are beautiful with spectacular timber work and gilded features are recently built by donors, they make a fine job of explaining the role of Buddhism in China’s history.

Today our journey comes to an end after a good breakfast. You will be transferred to the airport or train station based on your schedule.