The Silk Road by train: Xi’an to Dunhuang, Turpan and Ürümqi

The Silk Road leaves Xi’an through the Hexi Corridor, a thousand kilometres of desert between mountains, and the high-speed railway follows it. Zhangye has the rainbow Danxia hills; Jiayuguan the fort that marked the end of Ming China; Dunhuang the Mogao Caves, a thousand years of Buddhist painting in the cliff, and the Crescent Lake in the dunes. Across the desert, Turpan is an oasis below sea level with the ruined city of Jiaohe, and Ürümqi has the Heavenly Lake in the Tianshan. Trains cover each stage except the long desert crossing from Dunhuang, where the planner compares the flight through Ürümqi with the train.

Day by day

Laid out by the atlas's trip planner from the stops below, with the trains and flights in its tables; open it on the map to change the days, the order or the stops.

1. Day 1 · Xi'an

   • Muslim Quarter
   • Terracotta Army

2. Day 2 · Xi'an

   • Terracotta Army continued
   • Free

3. Day 3 · Zhangye

   • High-speed train Xi'an North → Zhangye West, 6 h 10 min (D2717, 15 a day); about 6½ hours door to door, ¥335.

4. Day 4 · Zhangye

   • Zhangye Danxia (Rainbow Mountains)

5. Day 5 · Jiayuguan

   • High-speed train Zhangye West → Jiayuguan South, 1 h 11 min (D2717, 31 a day); about 1½ hours door to door, ¥66.
   • Jiayuguan Pass

6. Day 6 · Dunhuang

   • Jiayuguan Pass continued
   • High-speed train Jiayuguan South → Dunhuang, 2 h 29 min (D2749, 5 a day); about 3 hours door to door, ¥109.

7. Day 7 · Dunhuang

   • Crescent Lake & Singing Sand Dunes
   • Mogao Caves

8. Day 8 · Turpan

   • Flight Dunhuang Mogao (DNH) → Ürümqi Tianshan (URC), 1 h 25 min in the air, then high-speed train Ürümqi South → Turpan North, 51 min (D8814, 29 a day); about 5½ hours door to door, about ¥500.

9. Day 9 · Turpan

   • Turpan & Jiaohe Ruins

10. Day 10 · Ürümqi

    • Turpan & Jiaohe Ruins continued
    • High-speed train Turpan North → Ürümqi South, 53 min (D8803, 33 a day); about 1 hour door to door, ¥49. Compare ways

11. Day 11 · Ürümqi

    • Heavenly Lake of Tianshan

Why this order

West is the direction the caravans went and the line was built, so each stop is a step further into the desert; Ürümqi at the end flies to every big city.

When to go

May to June and September to October. July and August pass 40 °C in Turpan; winter is bitter and the Danxia colours fade without sun.

Good to know

• Mogao Cave tickets are for a timed, guided visit in your language and are limited; book weeks ahead in summer.
• The Danxia park opens at dawn and the colours are strongest in low sun; stay in Zhangye the night before.
• Xinjiang keeps Beijing time on timetables, though life runs two hours later; check whether a train is listed in Beijing time.

Before you go

• Visas and visa-free entry Can I visit China without a visa?
• Paying for things How do I pay for things in China without a Chinese bank account?
• Internet and apps Will Google and my other apps work in China?
• Trains and 12306 How do I book train tickets in China with a foreign passport?
• Book popular sights early Which sights in China need booking in advance, and how?
• When to go When is the best time to visit China?

On the map

The map opens with these 8 stops in a trip; "Plan my days" lays out the same days and lets you move stops, change the days each gets, or choose where you arrive and leave.

Other trips

• North China’s heritage line: Beijing, Datong, Pingyao and Xi’an 9 days · Beijing, Datong, Pingyao and Xi'an
• Xinjiang: Ürümqi, Turpan, Kashgar, Karakul Lake and Kanas 11 days · Ürümqi, Turpan, Kashgar and Burqin