Northern Xinjiang Travel Guide:
Northern Xinjiang is famous for its magnificent natural scenery, rich folk culture, and unique cuisine. Here is a detailed travel guide to Northern Xinjiang to help you better plan your itinerary.
I. Itinerary Planning
1. 6-Day, 5-Night Pure Play Winter Tour in Altay
Day 1: Arrive in Altay, pick up and check in.
Day 2: Altay → Lonely Tree → Baha Village.
Day 3: Baha Village → Kanas.
Day 4: Kanas → Hemu Village.
Day 5: Hemu → Altay City.
Day 6: Altay return trip, send off at the station
2. 7-Day, 6-Night Pure Play Small Group Tour in Yili
D1: Tour of Urumqi downtown.
D2: Urumqi → Tianshan Heavenly Lake → Kuitun City.
D3: Kuitun → Sayram Lake → Yining.
D4: Yining → Zhaosu Jade Lake → Tekes.
D5: Tekes Eight Trigrams City → Swan Pond Wetland → Yining City Walk.
D6: Jinghe → Anjihai Grand Canyon → Urumqi.
D7: Send off at the station, end of the trip
3. 7-Day, 6-Night Tour from Urumqi
Day 1: Urumqi → S21 Desert Highway → Colorful Beach → Burqin.
Day 2: Burqin → Kanas.
Day 3: Kanas → Hike the Three Bays → Hemu.
Subsequent itinerary: You can continue to visit other attractions in Northern Xinjiang based on your interests, such as Burqin World Devil’s City and Sayram Lake.
II. Must-Visit Attractions
Kanas: Known as the ‘Pure Land on Earth’, its blue ice scenery in winter is particularly stunning.
Hemu Village: The original village of the Tuwa people, with morning chimney smoke and snowy scenery forming a fairyland on earth.
Baha Village: Known as the ‘First Village in the Northwest’, it has picturesque snowy scenery, like a dreamy border town.
Tianshan Heavenly Lake: Appreciate the snowy scenery of Heavenly Lake in winter and feel the grandeur of nature.
III. Food Recommendations
Mutton Kebabs: A specialty of Xinjiang, they are fragrant and tender.
Hand-Grabbed Rice: Made mainly from mutton, carrots, onions, etc., it has a unique taste.
Hemu Hot Pot: Enjoying hot pot around the stove in Hemu Village offers a unique warmth experience.
IV. Precautions
Weather and clothing: The temperature difference between day and night in Northern Xinjiang is large, so you need to prepare enough warm clothing.
Personal documents: such as ID cards, driver’s licenses (needed for self-driving), etc.
Commonly used items: such as water bottles, umbrellas, mobile phones, chargers, etc.
The scenery of Northern Xinjiang is breathtaking, with every spot deserving admiration. I hope this guide can help you better plan your trip to Northern Xinjiang and enjoy a wonderful travel experience!
