Highlights

The price is based on 2 persons in a private tour for 4star hotel

  • Meet Buddhist monks and nomads in the Qinghai of China's wild west

  • Explore the splendid Danxia Rainbow Mountain in Zhangye with VIP cart

  • Explore Mogao Grottoes with Extra 2 Caves and richest Buddhist art in the world—the first cave was carved here in 366 AD

  • Explore Dunhuang's markets and soak up a very different culture to that of western China

  • Visit the Local Uyghur Family in the ancient Tuyoq village in Turpan

  • Picturesque Heavenly Lake and Tianshan Mountain chains with VIP Land Cruiser Shuttle Bus

ITINERARY Close All

Day 1Xining Arrival

Today your flight will touch down in Xining, the capital city of Qinghai. When you arrive at Xining you can meet your driver at the Airport, and then your driver will take you to the hotel to relax. Finally, I would like to wish you have a pleasant journey and Bon voyage.

Traffic: Car
Hotel: Overnight in Xining
Altitude: 2261m

Day 2Visit Ta'er Monastery and Qinghai Lake

Situated on the edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and heavily populated by minority groups, Xining has earned a reputation as one of the more mysterious and diverse cities in China.

The Qinghai Lake trip generally includes a stop at Xining's other gem, after enjoy your nice buffet breakfast at the hotel,then we will take you to visit Ta'er monastery (Kumbum Monastery), which is the centre of Tibetan Buddhism in Northwest China, and enjoys a high reputation in China and Southeast Asia. Next, travel to the beautiful Qinghai Lake, This is the largest inland salt water lake in China. It is no exaggeration to say that Qinghai Lake is a miracle that is endowed by a deity. Outside, He encircled the lake with four continuous mountains and extends broad grassland at the foot of them. Inside, like a master baker, He decorated the water with many little islands. All these natural attractions come together perfectly to form a Xanadu on earth to win many tourists' favour. 

Traffic: Car
Hotel: Overnight in Xining
Meals: Breakfast
Altitude: 3196m
  • Ta'er Monastery

  • Qinhai Lake

Day 3Train to Zhangye

After breakfast at the hotel, our professional tour guide will bring you to visit the Grand Buddha Temple, which is one of the important travel destinations of the Silk Road, where you can visit the largest indoor clay statue of Buddha in China and the exquisite mural sculptures plus the ancient buildings. 

Then we will head to visit the Zhangye Danxia National Geological Park, which is 64.7 kilometres (One hour) , it is situated in the north of Qilian mountains. The area includes the colour hills in Linze country, ice hills, Danxia GanZhou District and PingShan lake. The scenic Danxia, is a distance of 40 km from east Zhangye city, north from Linze county town by 20 km, this is the most typical arid area of northern China. 

Traffic: Car+Train
Hotel: Overnight in Zhangye
Meals: Breakfast
Altitude: 1400m
  • Grand Buddha Temple

  • Zhangye Danxia

Day 4Drive to Jianyuguan (223 kms)

Today we will drive to Jiayuguan 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)

Traffic: Car
Hotel: Overnight in Jiayuguan
Meals: Breakfast
Altitude: 1462m
  • Jiayuguan Pass

  • Weijin Tomb

Day 5Drive to Dunhuang (350 kms)

Today we will drive to Dunhuang 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.


After an extraordinary day, freshen up and enjoy a good dinner, we continue to appreciate the bustling Shazhou Night Markets dotted with special commodities and souvenirs.

Traffic: Car
Hotel: Overnight in Dunhuang
Meals: Breakfast
Altitude: 1138m
  • Mogao Grottoes

  • Shazhou Night Market

Day 6Visit Yadan National Geological Park

Today is another day to explore Dunhuang.

Morning meet your guide and driver at the hotel, then head 2hours to vist the Yangguan Pass, a scenic spot built on the basis of the ancient Yangguan Site. There you can appreciate ancient buildings and exhibition halls displaying  cultural relics and historical sites on the ancient Silk Road.

Then we will be visiting the Yumenguan Pass, it got the name because the famous Khotan jade entered the Dunhuang from here. Yumenguan pass and Yangguan pass were the two critical defensive passes protecting Dunhuang from invasion from the West about thousands of year ago. From here you can not only learn more history and culture about the ancient Silk Road, but also learn many famous poems of Tang Dynasty. 


Thereafter, we will travel to the amazing Yardan National Geological Park, also called "Yadan Ghost City", which is the largest one of Yadan Landform found so far. The park stretches twenty-five kilometers from north to south and about two kilometers from east to west. It features the unique and wonderful scenes and landscapes of Gobi desert.

Traffic: Car
Hotel: Overnight in Dunhuang
Meals: Breakfast
Altitude: 1138m
  • Yangguan Pass

  • Yumenguan Pass

Day 7Visit Echoing Sand Moutain then Train to Turpan

Today we are going to appreciate the 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.


Afterwards, say farewell to Dunhuang as we will take high-speed train to Turpan, a pivotal city along the Silk Road. Enjoy the scenery 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.

Traffic: Car+Train
Hotel: Overnight in Turpan
Meals: Breakfast
Altitude: 36m
  • Echoing Sand Mountain

  • Jiaohe Ruins

Day 8Turpan City Tour then Drive to Urumqi (200 kms)

Continue tour to Tuyoq Valley, an ancient oasis-village. We will have lunch in the local Uighur family before exploring this traditional village surrounded by the impressive grape trellis and the stories of the adventurers all of the world. Following is the visiting to Sugong Minaret, a conduit for cultural exchange between different ethnic and religious groups.

Back to Urumqi and head to visit Grand International Bazaar where you can watch Uygur dance show and taste local delicacies.

Traffic: Car
Hotel: Overnight in Urumqi
Meals: Breakfast
Altitude: 918m
  • Sugong Minaret

  • Xinjiang International Bazaar

Day 9Visit Heavenly Lake (120 kms) and Xinjiang Regional Museum

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. 


Back to Urumqi 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. If time allowed, you will visit Grand International Bazaar and have dinner there.

Traffic: Car
Hotel: Overnight in Urumqi
Meals: Breakfast
Altitude: 918m
  • Heavenly Lake

  • Xinjiang Regional Museum

Day 10End of Trip

Today you will say goodbye to Urumqi, be transferred based on your flight or train schedule. Wish you a pleasant journey home!

Traffic: Car
Hotel: No accommodation
Meals: Breakfast

INCLUDES

  • Private transportation through out the itinerary. SRT will arrange for all travelers to be met on arrival and seen off on departure based on your flight info.

  • Shared accommodations in well located, tourist to superior class hotels include breakfast, service charge and government tax.

  • All entrance fees(shuttle bus) sightseeing; excursions and activities as per the itinerary

  • 2nd class express train from Xining to Zhangye, Dunhuang (Liuyuan Station) to Turpan listed in the itinerary

  • Private friendly and professional English-Speaking guides (French, Italy, Russian, German can be arranged per your request)

  • Visa support letter for you to apply Chinese visa easily.

  • Travel and health insurance when travel with us.

  • 8, A 24/7 helpline while you are traveling.

EXCLUDES

  • International flight arrive in Xining and leave from Urumqi not indicated.

  • Food, Lunch or dinner not specified

  • Tips or gratuities for guides and drivers

  • Personal expenses and the other tours or activities not mentioned

TRIP NOTES

  • We will upgrade trains to 1st class where available if book the tour 5 months in advance of departure.

  • There is no problem to travel Silk Road during Ramadan.

  • Complimentary 2 bottles of water each person on daily use.

Transportation

We will use business MPV to luxurious coaches and trains.

Accommodation

All the hotels we selected are 4-5star well-located in the city center with good and proper breakfast for our clients.

Guides

Our guides are very friendly, knowledgeable, helpful. And our group tours will be escorted from SRT.

Climate and Altitude

Generally speaking Mid March—End Oct are the best time to visit Silk Road. And we strongly suggest you come in May, June, October to avoid the heat and crowd. No need to worry about high altitude along the Silk Road. We will prepare Oxygen bags if the package includes Xiahe, Qinghai Lake and Taxkorgan County.

We offer beneficial Cancellation Policy to our customers.