Compare China’s Silk Road Cities - The Northern Route through Shaanxi, Gansu & Xinjiang by Martin Randall Travel
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| Trip |
China’s Silk Road Cities - The Northern Route through Shaanxi, Gansu & Xinjiang
by
Martin Randall Travel
4 | Great
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| Duration | 14 days |
| Price From | $ 7,540 |
| Price Per Day | $ 539 |
| Highlights |
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| Trip Style | Small group tour |
| Lodging Level | Premium |
| Physical Level |
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| Travel Themes |
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| Countries Visited | |
| Cities and Attractions |
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| Flights & Transport | Ground transport included |
| Activities |
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| Meals Included |
Breakfasts, 10 Lunches and 7 Dinners |
| Description |
In the second century BC, imperial envoy Zhang Qian was sent on a mission to the West, beyond the outer limits of ancient China, to obtain some of the legendary Ferghana horses for Han emperor Wudi’s cavalry. On the equine front the mission was a failure, but Zhang Qian returned to Chang’an (today’s Xi’an) with stories of the riches he saw and this soon led to the development of trade between China and the alien world beyond its western frontier. Myriad commodities – as well as religious beliefs and cultural attitudes – traversed the land from China, through Central Asia and Persia to the Mediterranean. The formidable Taklamakan Desert, an arid wasteland of shifting sand dunes, posed one of the biggest threats to travellers, who skirted its northern and southern edges, finding respite in the many thriving oasis towns. |
Day 1: London to Beijing
Fly at 4.30pm from London Heathrow to Beijing (British Airways, c. 10 hours).
Day 2: Beijing
Arrive at Beijing Airport at c. 9.30am and drive to the hotel for lunch. The imposing National Museum in Tianamen Square has superb collections of early Chinese artefacts, Zhou bronzes and the whole range of porcelain from Song to Qing. Overnight Beijing.
Day 3: Beijing to Xi’an
Fly at c. 10.30am from Beijing to Xi’an, arriving at 12.30pm. After a late lunch, there is a walk through the winding streets of the city’s Muslim Quarter. The Great Mosque, one of the largest in China, was originally built in AD 742 although the present fabric dates from the Qing Dynasty. First of three nights in Xi’an.
Day 4: Xi’an
The Shaanxi History Museum explains the history and culture of the province, the heartland of ancient Chinese civilisation. There is a special visit to the museum’s collection of Tang-dynasty tomb murals. After lunch, visit the Beilin Museum, which houses a collection of stone stelae, engraved with classic texts and masterpieces of calligraphy, as well as a fine collection of Buddhist statues.
Day 5: Xi’an
Full-day excursion east and north of the city. The tomb of the first emperor, Qin Shihuangdi, is yet to be excavated but his legacy was secured in 1974 when farmers digging a well discovered his terracotta army of infantry, cavalry and civil servants. There may be 20,000 of them, over 1.5 metres tall; only a relatively small part of the site has been uncovered, but it is nevertheless one of the most spectacular archaeological finds of all time. The pottery warriors at the later tomb of the fourth Han emperor, Liu Qi, display striking attention to detail; some eunuch figures have been found here, providing the earliest known evidence of this phenomenon in China.
Day 6: Xi’an to Dunhuang
Fly to Dunhuang at c. 1.30pm, arriving at c. 3.45pm and transfer to the hotel. Dunhuang is a small oasis town with low-rise buildings along wide avenues, flanked to one side by colossal sand dunes. First of two nights in Dunhuang.
Day 7: Dunhuang
The Mogao Caves are a highlight of the Silk Road in China and one of the most important sites of early Chinese Buddhist cave paintings. Once a strategic stop-off point for pilgrims travelling to India, it developed in to a major Buddhist centre of art and learning. Despite the controversial carting off of paintings, sculptures and manuscripts by foreign archaeologists in the 19th century, there is still very fine artwork to be seen. The Western Caves, set by an attractive river valley, are fewer in number but also contain exquisite paintings.
Day 8: Dunhuang to Turpan
The Dunhuang Museum houses important artefacts unearthed at the Mogao Caves, including rare Tibetan sutras. Travel by train at to Turpan (luggage is sent separately). First of two nights in Turpan.
Day 9: Turpan
At Gaochang see the extensive ruins of an ancient walled trading city. On the north-east rim of the Taklamakan Desert in a gorge in the Flaming Mountains, lies the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves. The caves once formed part of a Buddhist monastery between 6th and 14th centuries. After lunch drive out to Jiaohe. The most visually rewarding of all the sites around Turpan, this ancient city is located on a high platform above two rivers. Among the ruins, the layout of the city is still clear: the residential district, the palace, the monastery complex.
Day 10: Turpan to Kashgar
Transfer to Urumqi (a journey of approx. 3 hours) for a late afternoon flight to Kashgar, arriving at c. 6.15pm. First of three nights in Kashgar.
Day 11: Kashgar
The former British Consulate was the home for 26 years of the most famous of British India’s representatives in Kashgar; Sir George Macartney and his wife hosted some of the most prominent Silk Road travellers, including Sir Aurel Stein and Albert von Le Coq. Nikolai Petrovsky’s former Russian Consulate is nearby. The dilapidated buildings belie their historic significance as erstwhile outposts for two rival powers in the Great Game. After lunch, visit the Id-kah Mosque. This is the largest mosque in Xinjiang and was founded in c. 1738, though the current structure dates back only as far as 1838, and suffered much damage during the Cultural Revolution.
Day 12: Kashgar
Goods and livestock have been traded at Kashgar’s Sunday market for more than 2000 years. The scene today is still a riot of colour sounds and smells as animals, carts and vehicles traverse this vast site. Though the old city is gradually being razed by local authorities to make way for modern development, it retains much of its ancient charm.
Day 13: Kashgar to Beijing
Fly at 10.15am from Kashgar to Beijing, via Urumqi, arriving at c. 4.30pm. Spend the night in a hotel near Beijing airport.
Day 14: Beijing to London.
Fly at 11.15am from Beijing to London, arriving at c. 3.15pm (c. 11 hours).
