Traveling to Xinjiang, southern Xinjiang is a destination worth exploring. It combines natural scenery, ethnic customs, and historical relics, providing tourists with a colorful experience. The main highlights of southern Xinjiang tourism include Populus euphratica in the desert, ethnic settlements, Silk Road relics, and magnificent natural scenery.?
Firstly, the deserts and Populus euphratica forests of southern Xinjiang are a must-see natural scenery. The Taklamakan Desert, known as the ‘Sea of Death’, is crossed by two desert highways, allowing tourists to feel the ruggedness and heroism of traversing the desert’s uninhabited areas. If you happen to visit during the golden autumn season, the accompanying golden Populus euphratica forests, such as those in Luntai County and Zepu, add a unique vitality to the desert.?
Secondly, southern Xinjiang is a region inhabited by multiple ethnic groups, and the arts and customs of the Han, Uyghur, Tajik, Kyrgyz, and other ethnic groups constitute a rich human landscape. In Kashgar Old City, tourists can stroll through the best-preserved labyrinthine old streets in the Western Regions style and experience local life and culture.?
Additionally, the unique customs of ethnic groups such as Lop Nor people, Dolan people, Uyghurs, and Tajiks are also an important part of tourism in southern Xinjiang.?
Furthermore, southern Xinjiang boasts abundant Silk Road relics. Ancient cities, tombs, and Thousand Buddha Caves left along the southern and middle routes of the ancient Silk Road, such as Kizil Thousand Buddha Caves, demonstrate the long and vicissitudinous history, providing tourists with opportunities to explore historical culture.?
Lastly, the natural landscapes of southern Xinjiang are equally awe-inspiring. Places such as Wensu Grand Canyon, Tahman Wetland, Baisha Lake, Shache Ancient City, Panlong Ancient Road, and Bandier Blue Lake attract tourists with their unique natural scenery. Whether it’s the red cliffs, reed wetlands, blue lakes, or online celebrity highways, they all leave people lingering with nostalgia.?
In summary, traveling to southern Xinjiang not only allows tourists to appreciate the magnificent natural scenery, but also provides an in-depth experience of the cultural blending of multiple ethnic groups and the profoundness of historical relics, making it an unforgettable travel experience.?