Xinjiang

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Overview

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.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

Shipton’s Arch

Kashgar

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…

Sunday Livestock Market

Kashgar

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…

Hotan Sunday Market

Xinjiang

Hotan’s most popular attraction is its weekly Sunday market. The covered market bustles every day of the week, but on Sundays it swamps the northeast part…

Grand Sunday Bazaar

Kashgar

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…

Abakh Hoja Mausoleum

Kashgar

This 3-hectare mausoleum complex was built by the Khoja family, who ruled the region in the 17th and 18th centuries. Widely considered the holiest Muslim…

Kizil Thousand Buddha Caves

Xinjiang

This is the largest cave-art site in Xinjiang and the earliest major Buddhist cave complex in all of China. In its day, the site would have been…

Bulunkou Lake

Xinjiang

This absolute wonder of nature is the first of the big plate-glass lakes you meet as you head up to Tashkurgan on the Karakoram Hwy. Backed by sublime…

Kashgar Old Town

Kashgar

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…

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