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Xinjiang
China's largest province, Xīnjiāng (新疆) is the homeland of the Muslim Uyghurs and a fast-changing region where ancient and modern clash against each other in surprising ways. High-speed railways cross the Martian landscapes linking cities in hours rather than days, and the regional capital Ürümqi is a forest of high-rise apartments and glass skyscrapers; while in parts of the Silk Road oases of Kashgar, Hotan and Turpan, life goes as it has for centuries, based around the mosque, the tea house and the bazaar.
Despite the enormous military and police presence here due to several years of unrest, Xīnjiāng is increasingly attracting visitors for its extraordinary natural beauty and fascinating Central Asian history and culture. In short, a visit to Chinese Turkestan makes for an exploration of China's past and its unsettled multicultural present, or simply a journey into some of the most sublime landscapes on earth.
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Top attractions
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Xinjiang.
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Shipton’s Arch
This extraordinary natural rock arch (the rather prosaic Uyghur name means simply ‘mountain with a hole in it’) is one of the tallest on earth. The first westerner to describe it was Eric Shipton, the last British consul-general in Kashgar, during his visit to the region in 1947. Successive expeditions attempted to find it without success until a team from National Geographic rediscovered the arch in 2000. Located 80km northwest of Kashgar, it's a half-day excursion. The first part of the trip involves an hour’s drive towards the Irkeshtam Pass, followed by another 20km ride and then a 45-minute hike through a sublimely lunar landscape, hemmed in on all sides by sheer cliffs. At times you'll be scrambling through the narrowest part of the gorge over small ladders and staircases, until your final ascent to the arch itself, which takes you up a long wooden staircase. Kashgar-based tour operators can arrange a day trip with guide for ¥600 to ¥800, or you can simply take a taxi and walk from the car park yourself, as the route is well signposted. Bring sturdy shoes, a sun hat and water.
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Sunday Livestock Market
No visit to Kashgar is complete without a trip to the Livestock Market, which takes place once a week on Sunday. The day begins with Uyghur farmers and herders trekking into the city from nearby villages. By lunchtime, just about every saleable sheep, camel, horse, cow and donkey within 50km has been squeezed through the bazaar gates. It’s dusty, smelly and crowded, and most people find it wonderful, though some visitors may find the treatment of the animals upsetting. Trading at the market is swift and boisterous between the old traders; animals are carefully inspected and haggling is done with finger motions. Keep an ear out for the phrase ‘ Bosh-bosh! ’ (‘Coming through!’) or you risk being ploughed over by a cartload of fat-tailed sheep.
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Xinjiang Autonomous Region Museum
Xinjiang’s massive provincial museum is a must for Silk Road aficionados. The highlight is the locally famous ‘Loulan Beauty’, the first of half a dozen 3800-year-old desert-mummified bodies of Xinjiang's erstwhile Indo-European inhabitants. Other exhibits include some amazing silks, decorative arts, pottery and sculpture, a collection of white jade and an introduction to the traditions of each of the province’s minorities. From the Hóngshān Intersection, take bus 7 for four stops and ask to get off at the museum (bówùguǎn). An English-language audio guide is available; you'll need to leave a ¥200 deposit at the tourist centre by the entrance.
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Jiaohe Ruins
Also called Yarkhoto, Jiaohe was established by the ancient Jushi kingdom as a garrison town in the 2nd century BC. It’s one of the world’s largest (6500 residents once lived here), oldest (1600 years old) and best-preserved ancient cities, inspiring with its scale, setting and palpable historical atmosphere. Get an overview of the site at the central governor’s complex, then continue along the main road past a large monastery to a 'stupa grove' with a 10m-tall pagoda surrounded by 100 smaller pagoda bases. While far busier than the similar ruins at Gaochang, these are definitely the most impressive of the two, mainly due to the sheer number of surviving structures and the dramatic location, on a hillside with wide views in all directions. The ruins are 10km west of Turpan. There's no public transport; a taxi (¥30) takes 20 minutes, or you can cycle.
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Grand Sunday Bazaar
Kashgar’s main bazaar is open every day but really kicks it up a gear on Sunday. Step through the jam-packed entrance and allow your five senses to guide you through the market; spices and teas are an obvious highlight, as are silk, doppa (traditional Uyghur hats) and carpets, all of which can be seen in abundance. There's so much variety that locals joke that only chicken milk cannot be found amid this mercantile chaos. A section on the northern side of the market contains everything of interest to foreign visitors, including the spice market, musical instruments, fur caps, kitschy souvenirs and carpets.
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Bezeklik Cave Complex
This cave complex, which dates from the 6th to 14th centuries, is located in a mesmerising desert landscape. Bezeklik means ‘Place of Paintings’ in Uyghur and the murals painted in the 11th century represented a high point in Uyghur Buddhist art. Sadly, German, Japanese and British teams removed most of the site's distinctive cave art in the early 20th century, and only a few caves can be entered today. However, the location is gorgeous and well worth the trip. A return taxi should cost around ¥80.
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Kashgar Old Town
The Old Town is the soul of Kashgar, and as such the government has spent much of the past two decades knocking it down block by block and building a modern replacement. Yet it's still possible to see some of the remaining alleyways: check out the neighbourhood near Donghai Lake in the eastern part of the city. Around Jiefang Lu there are also alleys lined with Uyghur workshops and adobe houses that have withstood the passage of time. Where they exist, houses range in age from 50 to 500 years old and the lanes twist haphazardly through neighbourhoods where Kashgaris have lived and worked for centuries. It’s a great place for strolling, peeking through gates, chatting to the locals and admiring the craftspeople as they bang on tin and chase copper. Traditional houses in Kashgar, rarely more than two storeys high, are built with poplar timber and mud bricks. Walls are very thick but usually unadorned on the outside. The inner courtyards and balconies, however, are decorated with woodcarvings and hangings. At the eastern end of Seman Lu stands a 10m-high section of the Old Town walls, which are at least 500 years old. Much of the rest of the Old Town has now been enclosed by modern walls.
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Tian Chi Lake
Two thousand metres up in the Tian Shan range is Tian Chi, a small, long steely-blue lake nestled below the view-grabbing 5445m Peak of God (博格达峰, Bógédá Fēng). Scattered across the alpine pine and spruce-covered slopes are Kazakh yurts and lots of sheep. It was a paradise described in Vikram Seth’s wonderful travelogue From Heaven Lake; and still is for some. There are dirt roads, boardwalks and trails to various peaks at Tian Chi, or it's a seven-hour hike around the lake (if the whole path is open, which it may not be – check before you set out). For an easy walk, try the path up to Little Heavenly East Lake (东小天池, Dōng Xiǎo Tiānchí). There are also commercialised temples to explore on both the east and west shores.
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Emin Minaret
Built to honour Turpan general Emin Hoja, this splendid 44m-high mud-brick structure is the tallest minaret in China. Named Sūgōng Tǎ after Emin’s son Suleiman, who oversaw its construction (1777–78), its bowling-pin shape is decorated with an interesting mix of geometrical and floral patterns: the former reflect traditional Islamic design, the latter Chinese. You can't climb the interior steps of the minaret itself, but the rest of the grounds, including the adjacent mosque, are open. The minaret is 3km southeast of the centre of Turpan. Biking or strolling is a fun way to get here when the weather isn't too hot. The dusty, tree-lined Uyghur streets in this traditional neighbourhood give a fascinating glimpse into old Turpan.