Silk Road Tour / 13 days

Arrive at Urumqi, the capital city of Xingjian Weiwuer Autonomous Region. To be met at the airport then transferred to your hotel. Free at leisure in the evening.
Accommodations: 3* City Hotel or similar

Day 02 Urumqi (Meals: B/L/-)

Sightseeing: Full day private tour to Southern Pasture / Khazak Yurts

Depart from your hotel after breakfast to visit the Southern Pasture. Located in the valley of Tian Mountain, the pasture is a very beautiful nice place for graze with mountains, valleys, fountains, waterfalls, cypress and pine trees.
Then visit the Khazak Yurts. Of the three main types of yurt in use today, Khazak yurts, with a bent-wood roof and crown, are mainly used by Uygur people.
Be transferred to back to your hotel.

Day 03 Urumqi - Turpan via bus (Meals: B/L/-)

Sightseeing: Urumqi / Heavenly Lake

In the morning, visit the Heavenly Lake. The lake is 1900 meters above the sea level. It is particularly refreshing for travelers arriving in Urumqi from the barren deserts in Xinjiang.
After lunch, to be transferred to the bus station for a public bus to Turpan. Arrive at Turpan. Be met & transferred to the hotel. Free at leisure in the eveing.
Accommodations: 3*hotel

Day 04 Turpan (Meals: B/L/-)

Sightseeing: Full day private tour to Gaochang Ancient City / Astana Tombs / Flaming Mountain / cultural show of Uygur songs and dances

In the morning, visit the Gaochang Ancient City. The city's name means "the King City". It is laid in the first century B.C. and abandoned roughly in the 15th century.
Then visit Astana Tombs. In the cemetery buried ancient people of the Gaochang city. It is famous for its terra cotta figurines and tomb paintings.
After lunch, visit the Flaming Mountain. Crustal movements and years of efflorescence fashion its unique geological feature. When the sun's rays beat down in mid-afternoon, the red rocks on the crisscross gullies and ravines reflect and the heat is intense as if the hillsides were engulfed by tongues of fire, hence the name.
Enjoy the cultural show of Uygur songs and dances in the evening.

Day 05 Turpan Dunhuang via train (Meals: B/L/-)

Sightseeing: Turpan / Karez Well / Emin Minaret / Grape Valley

Depart from your hotel in the morning. Visit the Karez Well. It is an irrigation system of wells connected by underground channels and is considered as one of the three great ancient projects in China.
Then visit the Emin Minaret. It was built in 1777 to commemorate and praise ruler of Turpan, Emin Khoja who achieved brilliant military success in suppressing the armed rebellion.
After having lunch at local restaurant, visit the Grape Valley. Grape Gorge, with its shady vineyards and fruit-laden trees, provides you with a welcome place of relaxation amidst hundreds of square miles of sand.
Take evening train N950(22:01/08:41 next morning) to Dunhuang.
Accommodations: Overnight on the train (soft sleepers)

Day 06 Dunhuang (Meals: B/L/-)

Sightseeing: Dunhuang / Mogao Grottoes / Crescent Moon Lake / Dunes of the Singing Sands

After breakfast, visit the Mogao Grottoes. Located at 25km southeast of Dunhuang, at the edge of the Gobi desert in north-west China, are filled with one of the most extensive and exquisite collections of Buddhist paintings and sculptures in the world. Every surface of the walls and ceilings is covered with painted clay stucco, some 45,000 square metres in all: graceful acrobats of the sky scatter flowers and garlands, while dancers and musicians celebrate the beauties of the Buddhist Pure Lands; row upon row of miniature images of the Buddha, subtly varied in coloring or dress, adorn virtually every cave, and give the site its popular name of the Caves of the Thousand Buddha. The Dunhuang caves remain one of the most perfectly preserved of the world's great religious sanctuaries.
After having lunch at local restaurant, visit the Crescent Moon Lake. It is 6 kilometers (3.73 miles) south of the center of Dunhuang, near the Dunes of Singing Sands, and is said to be the point where the oasis meets the desert. Crescent Moon Lake is a natural spring fed pond measuring about 240 meters from east to west, and 50 meters from north to south. Today it has an average depth of about 2.4 meters, although in past times all of the dimensions of the lake were larger. In all of the years the desert has never filled up the lake. This was maybe due to the pattern of the winds, or maybe magic or the gods.
Then visit the Dunes of the Singing Sands. Located 6 kilometers south of Dunhuang city, Dunes of the Singing Sands (Mingshashan) offers best picture-book desert scenery. The dune, surrounded by rolling ridges and precipitous cliffs, reaches a relative height of 250 meters. You can get to the top by riding camels, bicycles or hire a taxi. A wonderful view across the rolling desert sands towards the oasis comes to your sight after reach the top. When sliding down along the sands, it will make sound of "rumbling sands" or the sound of thunder or a drum-roll as the wind sweeps across the sands.

Day 07 Dunhuang (Meals: B/L/-)

Sightseeing: Full day private tours to Yumenguan Pass / Great Wall of the Han Dynasty / Hecang Fortress / Yangguan Pass.

Arrive at Dunhuang in the morning. Be met then visit Yumenguan Pass, Once as one of the west gates out of the country of the Han Dynasty (206 B. C. -220 A. D.), it is quite ruined by the shifting sands but still shows the ever splendor.
Then visit the Great Wall of the Han Dynasty. Though made in clay and bulrushes, the wall still remains very well.
After having lunch at local restaurant, visit the Hecang Fortress. Supplies like food and wine were transported here from nearby towns to be stored for the armies that guarded the Yumen Guan Pass.
Then be transferred back to your hotel.
Accommodations: at Dunhuang

Day 08 Dunhuang–Jiayuguan via train (Meals: B/L/-)

Take morning train 1081(soft seat 08:24/12:43) to Jiayuguan. Arrive at Jiayuguan, be met then have city tours there.
Accommodation: In Jiayuguan

Day 09 Jiayuguan–Lanzhou via train (Meals: B/L/-)

Take afternoon train N908(soft sleeper 16:53/06:43 next day) to Lanzhou.
Accommodations: Overnight on the train (soft sleepers)

Day 10 Lanzhou -Xi'an via train (Meals: B/L/-)

Arrive at Lanzhou. Be met in Lanzhou then sightseeing. Take evening train K120 (20:40/06:10 next day ) to Xi'an
Accommodations: Overnight on the train (soft sleepers)

Day 11 Arrive at Xi'an (Meals: -/L/-)

Sightseeing: Xi'an / Shanxi Provincial Museum / Old City Wall / Hangyang Tomb

Arrive at Xi'an in the morning. Be met then have city tours to visit the Shanxi Provincial Museum, which is the largest comprehensive museum in the province. It is also the fist national level grand museum equipped with modern facilities. It exhibits primarily historical relics of past dynasties and displays precious art treasures and stone carvings of the Han and Tang dynasties. Walking through the exhibits in the museum is like walking through the 3000 years of China history.
Then visit the Old City Wall. It is the most complete city wall survived in China as well as one of the largest ancient military defensive systems in the world. The wall was built in the Tang dynasty (618 -907) and enlarged in the Ming dynasty (1368-1644).
Free at leisure in the evening.

Day 12 Xi'an (Meals: B/L/-)

Sightseeing: Full day private tours to Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses / Bell Tower /Big Wild Goose Pagoda

Today will be your highlights in Xi'an. Depart from your hotel after breakfast. To be transferred outside city to visit the Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses. The Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses are the most significant archeological excavations of the20th century. It has been regarded as THE 8TH WONDER OF THE WORLD! Over 2,200 years ago, the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang in search of immortality, ordered the construction of a vast army of 8,000 life-sized Terra Cotta warriors and buried with him to protect his empire after his early death. They were discovered accidentally in 1974 by farmers digging a well. For history lovers, the sight is truly breathtaking.
After lunch at a local restaurant, visit the Bell Tower,which is the most well-preserved and best-known one among many ancient cities of China. The Bell Tower was originally built in the Yingxiang Temple in 1384, at the intersection of West Street and Guangji Street. Then in 1582, it was moved to its present pivotal position, in the very heart of the city at the junction of four main streets extending to the east, south, west and north, for rebuilding and later restorations. With magnificent carved beams and painted rafters, this classical building is truly elegant.
After coming back to the city, have another tour to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. Situated at south of the Xi'an city,as one of the main constructions in the famous Buddhist temple-Da-Ci-En Temple, the pagoda is one of the most distinctive and outstanding landmarks for Xi'an City.

Day 13 Depart from Xi'an for next city (Meals: B/-/-)

Free at leisure until to be transferred to the airport for next city.

End of Service!