The Tianshan Special was tailor-made and brand newly created by Urumqi Railway Bureau in 2023 with a huge investment for the ‘Tianshan Special’ tourist train, including a bar car, entertainment car, and dining car. The special train is equipped with hard sleeper carriages and soft sleeper carriages, providing comprehensive service experiences for your journey!
The newly operated ‘Tianshan Special’ inclusive tourist train covers over 80% of 5A scenic spots north and south of Tianshan Mountain, providing rich new entertainment services such as on-board bars and leisure facilities, and allowing tourists to enjoy the experience and services of high-quality tourist trains at preferential prices.
The booking guide for the 2025 Xinjiang Tianshan Special Tourist Train is as follows:
In 2025, Urumqi Railway Bureau plans to operate 12 high-quality special tourist trains named ‘Travel Xinjiang by Train – Tianshan Special’ covering different tourist seasons to fully meet travelers’ needs and provide a higher-quality new tourism experience. In 2023, Urumqi Railway Bureau invested 3 million yuan to tailor-make and brand newly create a bar car, entertainment car, and dining car for the ‘Tianshan Special’ tourist train. The special train is equipped with hard sleeper carriages and soft sleeper carriages. The train carriages are decorated with one scene per carriage, using high-quality fabrics for linen, carpets laid in the corridors, and meticulous consideration given to the display of items. It provides comprehensive service experiences for your journey; the special train uses 25G air-conditioned carriages with a combination of hard sleeper, soft sleeper, one bar car, one multi-functional leisure car, and one dining car.
[Product Features]
Scenery: Northern Xinjiang boasts glaciers, snowy mountains, forests, lakes, deserts, gobi, oases, grasslands, ancient villages…
Culture: Southern Xinjiang is home to numerous ethnic minorities who live, thrive, and multiply here; there are also eagles soaring in the sky above the Pamir Plateau.
Fulfill a dream of traveling across Tianshan Mountain and throughout northern and southern Xinjiang, making travel simple and happy.
Product description of the Tianshan Special Train for Xinjiang Tourism:
The "Tianshan" tourist train is a tourism product that combines a special train for railway travel with tourism products. It does not sell train tickets separately and requires booking and registration in combination with a Xinjiang travel itinerary.
[Scenic Spot Upgrade]
Apart from traditional popular attractions (Kanas, Hemu, Nalati Grassland, Sayram Lake, Kashgar, Urumqi, Turpan), a special arrangement has been made to visit the middle and southern sections of the Duku Highway starting in mid-June, to encounter the beautiful Xinjiang and check in at Bayanbulak Grassland, one of the world’s four major grasslands. Visit the First Division of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps in Alar, listen to the stories of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, pass through the He-Ruo Railway, and travel around cities surrounding the Taklamakan Desert. The comprehensive route is all on the Tianshan train!
Departure time of the "Tianshan" Xinjiang tourist train:
From May to October, with the first departure on May 7 or May 1, and a departure every 15 days (specific dates may be adjusted. It is recommended to consult Wang Fei, the official customer service of Xinjiang Pathfinder International Travel Agency Special Train Center, at 180 9596 9599 for confirmation).
Luntai — Tarim Populus euphratica
Bachu — Red Sea Populus euphratica Sea Scenic Area
Korla — Robor Village Primitive Populus euphratica Forest, Tarim River, Bosten Lake Ahongkou, Swan River
Bachu-Ruoqiang, Bayingolin Prefecture — Loulan Museum, Loulan Cultural Park, Milan Ancient City Site, Red Date Orchard
Hotan — 47th Regiment Sand Sea Veterans Memorial Hall, 28 Ancient Water Mills, Rawak Buddhist Temple, Fig King, Walnut King Park, Round City, Thousand-Mile Grape Corridor, Hotan Museum, Desert Highway
Kashgar — Pamir Plateau, White Sand Mountain, White Sand Lake, Karakul Lake, Kashgar Old City
Urumqi — Red Hill, International Grand Bazaar, Nang Culture Industrial Park, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region Museum
Turpan — Bezike里克 Thousand Buddha Caves, Kanerjing Irrigation System, Grape Paradise, Uyghur Homestay, Flaming Mountain
Shihezi — Zhou Enlai Memorial Hall, Junken Museum, Gobi Impression Cultural Tourism Park
Operating route of the "Tianshan" Xinjiang tourist train:
Urumqi-Beitun-Yining-Turpan-Kuqa-Aksu-Kashgar-Urumqi, a train loop tour covering the panoramic views of both northern and southern Xinjiang.
With a loud whistle, the first high-quality special tourist train of "Travel Xinjiang by Train·Tianshan" departed from Urumqi Station. More than 200 tourists from across the country embarked on a 14-day journey to explore the beautiful Xinjiang.
Scenic spots along the "Tianshan" Xinjiang tourist train route:
"Travel Xinjiang by Train·Tianshan" is Xinjiang’s first tourist train covering important tourist attractions in the northern, southern, and eastern regions of Xinjiang. With a single trip lasting 14 days, the train moves with passengers, stopping wherever they want to play. The route connects major tourist cities in Xinjiang, such as Urumqi, Beitun, Yining, Turpan, Alar, Kashgar, and Hami, encompassing most of the popular scenic spots featuring Xinjiang’s "three mountains and two basins" geography. It connects multiple scenic spots such as Flaming Mountain, Kanas, Sayram Lake, Kashgar Old City, and Hami Temple Second Gorge, allowing tourists to enjoy snow-capped mountains, plateaus, lakes, deserts, gobies, oasis, grasslands, villages, and other geographical and cultural landscapes throughout the journey.
In order to provide tourists with a better travel experience, the Xinjiang Railway Department has adopted full soft sleeper and hard sleeper configurations for the "Travel Xinjiang by Train·Tianshan Train" high-quality special tourist train based on its "night travel, day sightseeing" itinerary characteristics. The train body has been further improved in functionality, with bar cars and multi-functional leisure cars equipped for the first time.
Tianshan Train ticketing process and booking precautions
1: Since the Tianshan Train is a customized tourist special train, it is recommended to book tickets through designated formal travel agency channels such as Xinjiang Pathfinder International Travel Agency, which cooperates with the Railway Bureau. It is recommended to call the official ticket reservation center of the Tianshan Train and New Oriental Express of Xinjiang Pathfinder International Travel Agency for consultation and booking: 180 95969599
2: The Tianshan Train does not sell train tickets separately. It needs to be booked together with tourism products. When booking, ID card information is required, and a unified electronic contract of the national tourism supervision platform needs to be signed.
3: Determine the specific price according to the travel date and the selected route. Prices may vary due to the peak and off-peak seasons of tourism in Xinjiang and different travel dates; select the appropriate travel time and tourism product.
4: Provide your personal name and ID card number to customer service to confirm the tour date and tourism product. Prepay the train ticket deposit, sign the unified electronic contract of national tourism service supervision, and complete the registration.
Since the Tianshan Train is a customized tourist special train with regular schedules, there are only 2 trains per month and 12 trains per year. It is recommended to book in advance to avoid affecting your travel plans. As New Oriental Express tickets are basically hard to get, based on sales and booking situations in the past two years, it is recommended to consult customer service in advance to understand detailed itinerary arrangements and costs for better travel planning.
The interior decoration of the soft sleeper carriages of the "Travel Xinjiang by Train·Tianshan Train" high-quality special tourist train mainly adopts a wooden texture as the overall tone. The carriage decoration highlights the concept of "one carriage, one scenery", selecting scenic content from six major regions: Altay, Aksu, Ili, Turpan, Hami, and Kashgar. Each carriage has a unique theme, making each carriage culturally distinctive.
This year, the Xinjiang Railway Department plans to operate 10 high-quality special tourist trains of the "Travel Xinjiang by Train·Tianshan Train" throughout the year, covering different tourist seasons in Xinjiang, fully meeting the travel needs of different tourists, and providing a higher-quality new travel experience.
More tourism consultation (Panda Special Train, New Oriental Express, Silk Road Dream Train, Forest City Train, Yichun Train, Gobi Cruise Train, New Western Train, New National Train, Tianyuan Train, Tianshan Train) special train ticket reservation center: 180-9596-9599 (copy and add as a friend for free consultation and detailed route information)