Turpan (吐鲁番), Xinjiang *****

Major city for tourism in Xinjiang (although it doesn’t feel like it), it deserves its fame. 90% Uyghur populated, the city owns its fame to its peaceful way of life (a bit overrated, I found Dunhuang better for that), and great scenic spots around the city. The story said that the city has known its tourism boom a few years ago thanks to the smart locals, without much provincial or government support.

It’s also the warmest city in China, with temperature reaching an easy 40C to 45C during the day in July –August. Looking for shadow is imperative and makes the heat bearable.

There are locals offering tours and I heard from a tourist later than there are inexpensive buses going to major scenic spots. We paid 350 RMB for a 6hr tour in taxi, bringing us to Tuyoq Valley, the Emin minaret (not worth the trip, but it’s close to town), and Jiahe ruins.

We had a great walk (2hrs) in the small village of Tuyoq Valley, picking “candy grape” (so sweet I can’t find another name for it) and admiring the dry plains, green vineyards, and the infamous Flaming Mountain (火山). You can stay 3 hrs if you can bear the heat.

We were lucky enough to experience a sand storm (once a month at most, according to the locals) as we were entering Jiohe Ruins at night, making the visit impossible, but the locals were nice enough to let us come back the morning after on the same ticket.

There are other scenic spots in the area, but we chose to not see them because of time/money limit, and previous reading of mild reviews. The Grape Valley is not worth seeing if you go to any place where they have vineyards (Tuyoq is a great one), unless you want to have dinner in there and, maybe, try different kinds of grape.

Hotel 东方宾馆: 120 RMB ***

Tuyoq Valley: 30 RMB, 100kms from Turpan. *****

Jiohe Ruins: 40 RMB, 10 kms. *****

Emin Minaret: free from outside (not much interest from inside) **

Bus Turpan-Urumqi: 160 RMB  ~4hrs

 

Tuyoq Valley                                                            Tuyoq Valley and the Flaming Mountains

  

Jiohe Ruins                                                               Emin Minaret 

 

Candy grape (incredibly sweet)              Xinjiang fruits, the best in China !