3-Day Urumqi, Heavenly Lake & Turpan Tour: Ancient Ruins

Three days crossing Xinjiang's mountains, deserts and oasis towns with a guide who knows the stops

A 3-day guided tour from Urumqi through Xinjiang's Heavenly Lake, Turpan oasis and desert ruins, with private transportation and an English-speaking guide. The itinerary includes a trek or cable car at Heavenly Lake, the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves, a visit to Tuyoq Village, the Karez Well irrigation system, and the ancient Jiaohe Ruins. Hotel pickup is included. Accommodation in Urumqi and Turpan is available as an add-on choice at checkout.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1: Visit Heavenly Lake and Urumqi Bazaar

• Meet guide and driver at hotel
• Drive 1.5 hours to Heavenly Lake entrance
• Take 40-minute shuttle bus to lake edge
• Trek, boat, or cable car at Heavenly Lake
• Drive back to Urumqi
• Visit Xinjiang International Bazaar

Day 2: Explore Tuyoq Village and Bezeklik Grottoes

• Drive 3 hours to Turpan
• Visit Tuyoq Village and its sites
• Lunch at local restaurant
• Explore Bezeklik Grottoes and Flaming Mountain

Day 3: Turpan City Tour and Return to Urumqi

• Visit Karez Well irrigation system
• Visit Sugong Minaret
• Tour Jiaohe Ruins
• Drive back to Urumqi and hotel drop-off

The experience

The tour starts with a 1.5-hour drive from your hotel to Heavenly Lake, where a 40-minute shuttle bus climbs through the Tianshan mountains to the water's edge. You choose how to spend the afternoon: trek the shoreline, take a boating cruise, or ride the cable car up Maya Mountain to see Bogoda Peak. The return journey passes through the Xinjiang International Bazaar, Urumqi's largest market, where vendors sell fruit, textiles, crafts and carpets across sprawling stalls.

Day two is a three-hour drive to Turpan, crossing the continent's largest wind power station and passing the salt flats of Dabancheng. In Tuyoq Village (the oldest Uyghur settlement in the region). You walk through four distinct areas: canyon scenery, Thousand Buddha Caves carved into the rock, a historic tomb, and the village's ancient buildings. After lunch at a local restaurant, the Bezeklik Grottoes come next. These Buddhist cave temples, built between the 5th and 14th centuries, hold murals showing Buddha surrounded by Turks, Indians and Europeans. Some are considered masterpieces of religious art. The Flaming Mountain rises in the distance.

The final day covers Turpan's engineering and monuments. The Karez Well system demonstrates how locals tapped underground water through a network of wells and canals to irrigate the desert. The Sugong Minaret, built in 1778 and the largest Islamic minaret in China, stands as a tribute to regional history. The tour closes at Jiaohe Ruins, a 2,300-year-old settlement perched on a cliff over 30 meters high between two rivers, now a UNESCO World Heritage site. You return to Urumqi in the late afternoon.

What’s included

• Private transportation with air conditioning.
• professional English-speaking guide for all three days.
• bottled water and paper napkins.
• hotel pickup on day one.
• access to Heavenly Lake, Tuyoq Village, Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves, the Karez Well, Sugong Minaret, and Jiaohe Ruins.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDeparts at 08:30

AgesUp to age 80

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 11 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortWheelchair accessibleStroller-friendlyInfant seats available

Operated by China Silk Road Travel

Is this one for you?Choose this tour if you're covering multiple landscapes (mountains, desert oasis, and ancient villages), and want a private vehicle so your guide can linger at each site rather than keeping to a fixed schedule.

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Top questions

What is the Karez Well system and why does it matter in Turpan?

The Karez Well is an ancient irrigation method unique to Turpan's desert oasis. Locals engineered a network of underground canals and wells to draw water from beneath the surface and distribute it to farmland, turning the arid landscape into productive agricultural land without relying on surface water sources.

Can I choose what to do at Heavenly Lake, or is the itinerary fixed?

You have options at Heavenly Lake. You can trek around the shoreline, take a boating cruise, or ride the cable car up Maya Mountain for views of Bogoda Peak. The guide will accommodate your preference during the afternoon.

How far is Turpan from Urumqi, and how much time do I spend driving?

Turpan is a three-hour drive from Urumqi on day two. The route passes the wind power station and salt flats, so the drive includes scenery beyond the road itself. The return to Urumqi on day three is another three hours.

What are the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves, and what will I see there?

Bezeklik is a complex of Buddhist cave grottoes carved between the 5th and 14th centuries near the ancient ruins of Gaochang. The caves hold religious murals, some showing Buddha with figures from across Asia and Europe. Many are considered masterpieces of religious art. The Flaming Mountain is visible from the site.

Is accommodation included, or do I need to book a hotel separately?

Accommodation in Urumqi and Turpan is available as an optional add-on at checkout. Hotel pickup on day one is included in the tour price regardless of whether you add lodging.

What's included in the tour price, and what costs extra?

The tour includes private transportation, bottled water, paper napkins, and an English-speaking guide. Entrance fees to the sites, meals, and optional activities like boating or the cable car are separate. A cultural show with banquet is available for $45 per person if you want to add it.