Things To Do in Urumqi - A Local’s Guide
What comes to your mind in mentioning of Urumqi? Perhaps the exotic ethnic culture, the magnificent Tianshan Mountain, the vast obsolete land? The Urumqi travel guide will offer you all that and more. Located at the foot of Tianshan Mountain, Urumqi is the farthest city from the ocean. It's a human paradise rich in food, fruits, architecture, beautiful women, ethnic commodities, and best of all, fantastic landscapes. Let's have a virtual travel to Urumqi.
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| Urumqi City |
Things to see in Urumqi
- Xinjiang International Grand Bazaar
Grand Bazaar
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| Grand Bazaar |
Located in the Erdaoqiao business area, the Xinjiang International Grand Bazaar is the largest bazaar on earth. It has an area of nearly 40,000 square meters. Strolling in this splendid bazaar, you are surrounded by exotic buildings, stores, restaurants, food and fruit stalls, cafes, and hospitable Uyghur people. It’s a perfect place to experience the Uyghur culture.
- Red Hill Park
Red Hill is the symbol of Urumqi city. It’s composed of purple-red glutenite,
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| Red Hill Night View |
- Heavenly Lake
The Heavenly Lake is seated in the center of the Tianshan, surrounded by the thick forests, grasslands, waterfalls,
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| Heavenly Lake |
- Xinjiang Provincial Museum
Xinjiang Provincial Museum is where the historical relics and ethnic treasures of Xinjiang are collected. It’s a three-storey building with distinctive Islamic architectural attributes. There are over 50,000 pieces of treasures, including exhibitions of Xinjiang ethnic customs, frescoes, carpets, musical instruments, daily necessities of ethnic groups, ancient corpses, and more. The mummy of the Loulan Lady is one of the best collections of the museum. She is the
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| Nanshan Prairie |
- Nanshan Prairie
Nanshan Prairie is the collective term for the landscapes formed between South and North Tianshan Mountain areas. It’s a place of towering snow-capped peaks, crystal glaciers, deep valleys, open grasslands, and dense forests, perfect for a retreat. There are six major sights in Nanshan Prairie, and the most famous one is Poplar (Baiyang) Valley. Populated with pines and poplars, the Poplar Valley has the best views. You will see yurts scattered everywhere, a cliff-side waterfall rushing down, horses running freely around, and sheep grazing leisurely. If you visit during a holiday, local Kazak people will perform all kinds of shows for you, like horse racing, sheep catching, and girls chasing.
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| Baiyun Skiing Resort |
- Baiyun International Skiing Resort
Near the Nanshan Prairie is the world-famous Baiyun International Skiing Resort. It’s one of the four 4S level skiing resorts in Xinjiang. There are 13 skiing routes and three large-scale towed cableways. Anyone, from the beginners to the senior enthusiasts, can find what they are looking for.
Things to Eat in Urumqi
Urumqi is definitely a hot spot for food. It has collected almost all the Xinjiang food. Here are seven local food you must try.
Dapanji (Saute Spicy Chicken)
Dapanji is a traditional Uyghur food made of chicken nuggets, potato quarters, and thick belt noodles. You will have the spicy chicken nuggets, soft and waxy potato, and chewy noodles.
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| Dapanji |
Barbecued Mutton
Barbecued Mutton is a traditional snack in Xinjiang. It’s also famous all around China these days. The mutton is sliced, threaded on iron sticks, roasted on the fire, and flavored with all kinds of seasonings. Such a delicacy!
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| Barbecued Mutton |
Kvass
It’s a yellow drink favored by Xinjiang people. It’s said that Russian people invented the drink. They pound grains into pieces, add water to make a flour dough, and heat the dough to saccharify the grain starch. Then they add water to dilute starch and make it ferment.
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| Kvass |
Baked Samosa
Baked Samosa is like a steamed dumpling with fillings, but baked. Most of the fillings are mutton and onions.
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| Baked Samosa |
Nang
Nang is a kind of cake made of flour. Most Nangs are shaped like a circle with a thick fringe. It’s chewy, flavored, and easy to store.
Besides the food, Urumqi is also a place of fruits. Late summer and early fall are the best times to enjoy local fruits like grapes, apples, pears, Hami melons, figs, walnuts, almonds, plums, and Chinese dates.
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| Nang |
Where to eat in Urumqi?
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| Local Restaurant |
- Lingguan Alley: a narrow alley crammed with old restaurants, and it gets livelier in the evening.
- Food Circle Around the People’s Cinema: a center of several food streets like Minzhu Road, Wenyi Road, Hongqi Road, and Jianshe Road. You can find any food here.
- Erdaoqiao: is part of the Grand Bazaar, and the three biggest food plazas (Grand Bazaar Banquet and Performance Hall, Folk Food House, and Erdaoqiao Food Theater) are located here.
Things to Buy in Urumqi
Dried Fruits
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| Dried Fruits |
As mentioned before, Urumqi is the hometown of many sweet fruits. Although it’s hard to take fresh fruits, dried fruits are just as delicious. There are figs, walnuts, dried plums, raisins, dried Chinese dates, almonds, dried apricots, etc..
Handicrafts
Urumqi has a long history in handicrafts making. There are so many ethnic
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| Xinjiang Carpet |
Ethnic Instruments
Xinjiang is the hometown of Uyghur dance and singing. There are various instruments like Dutar, Tambur, dulcimer, Rewapu, Suona Horn, flute, Sapayi, etc.
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| Musical Instrument |
Basic Facts of Visiting Urumqi
Best time to visit
August, September, and October are the best months to visit Urumqi. As an inland city, Urumqi has short spring and autumn and long summer and winter. During August, September, and October, Urumqi is pleasant but not hot, and the fruits are ripening.
How long should you stay in Urumqi?
Urumqi often serves as a transition point for Xinjiang travel, and the city itself doesn’t have many sights. We recommend 1-2 days for you to stay here and experience the ethnic charisma.
Consumption Level
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| Urumqi City |
Being an inland city, Urumqi is not as poor as you imagine. Instead, it’s quite wealthy thanks to the Great Western Development Strategy promoted in the last century and the special privilege the Chinese government granted. A meal in Urumqi costs as much as that in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. Even a simple meal would cost you about 20 - 30 RMB.
About accommodation, Urumqi is facilitated with all kinds of hotels, Airbnb houses, and guesthouses. You can find any hotel you want. The expenditure of the accommodation is similar to that of Xian, Chongqing, and Chengdu.
How to Get to Urumqi?
- Airport
Located 16km from the city, Urumqi Diwobao International Airport is one of China's five gateway airports. It has
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| Urumqi Airport |
Please note that the security check in Urumqi airport is quite strict and careful. You will be asked to take off your shoes and unbutton your belt. Please arrive at the airport at least 2 hours before your flight.
- Urumqi Railway Stations
Although there are several railway stations in Urumqi, only two are useful for you, the Urumqi Railway Station and
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| Urumqi Railway Station |
Tips for Your Urumqi Travel
- 1. Urumqi time is two later than that in Beijing. Therefore, according to Beijing time, Urumqi stores and malls start for business only around 10:30. Urumqi people have breakfast at ten and have dinner around 8:30 p.m.
Urumqi - 2. The temperature of daytime and night can change a lot; please bring some warm clothes. If you visit in May, June, September, and October, you need to get sweaters, jackets, and coats. In other times, down jackets are necessary.
- 3. No matter how enthusiastic locals may seem, it's never too sorry to carry your bag in front.
- 4. Urumqi fruits are very tasty but don't have hot tea right after you have fruits.
- 5. Please note that metric units like kilograms are used to measure goods.
- 6. Most parts of the Urumqi city, especially the high-end hotels, are wired for the internet. However, in some remote scenic spots or small towns, you may not be able to connect data.
- 7. Please follow your guide's instructions closely when you visit mosques and temples. Most of such places don't allow any photographing. You have to pay before taking any photos in some areas, especially if you want to shoot women or monks.
- 8. Please have your passport and Chinese visa at hand. You will need them in many places, like shopping malls, sights, parks, etc.
Recommended Itineraries:
8-day Xinjiang Tour to Urumqi, Turpan and Kashgar
15-day Silk Road and Xinjiang Tour
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