Ancient cities, museums, and Silk Road heritage sites in Xinjiang.
Spending Spring Festival in Xinjiang means quiet roads, lanterns, and family dumplings, but also closed scenic areas. Here is what to expect and how to plan around the closures.
After days on the road, nothing beats a Xinjiang hammam. Here is what to expect inside a public bath, how much it costs, and the etiquette that keeps regulars from side-eyeing you.
Meshrep is the Uyghur communal gathering of music, food, and teaching that holds village life together. Learn what happens at one, and where travelers can respectfully see it.
Xinjiang grows some of the world’s finest cashmere. Know where to buy it, how to tell real pashmina from acrylic, and what a fair 2026 price looks like before you haggle.
From the twelve muqam suites to Kazakh dombra ballads, Xinjiang is a living archive of sound. Here is where to hear it, join in, and understand what the rhythms mean.
Corban, or Eid al-Adha, transforms Xinjiang for three days each year. Expect closed banks, full roads and generous feasts. Here is how to travel through it smoothly.
Hetian jade has been carved and traded for 4,000 years. Before you buy a mutton-fat pendant in Hotan, learn to tell real nephrite from glass and where the honest dealers are.
Haggling is not rudeness in Xinjiang. It is the expected choreography of every bazaar. Here is how to bargain respectfully and walk away with a fair price on carpets, knives and dried fruit.
Ancient rock art sprawls across Tianshan and Altay slopes, with carved deer, sun worship and hunting scenes. A self-drive trail to the most accessible petroglyph sites.
Summer grasslands come alive with Kazakh and Mongol horse games, horse racing, girl-chasing and Naadam-style festivals. A practical guide to dates, venues and joining in.
