Taklamakan Desert camels

Taklamakan Desert

A memorable and fun desert crossing high adventure!

Overview
For centuries people from all around the known world travelled on this road, seeking fortune and high adventure. The silk road is a mysterious bridge that linked the East to the West. The Taklamakan desert remains one of its most hostile and infamous regions. You will cross this region in a 4x4 vehicle and travel to some of the most famous yet least visited sites of the silk road.
We will be flying to Korla in Xinjiang, located smack in the northeastern edge of the Tarim Basin. The area has thousands of years of history and was an important staging post in the middle of the silk road. Straddling two of the main geographical features of Xinjiang, the area faces Tianshan in the North and Taklamakan desert in the south.

Accommodation

A night stay at the beautiful Garden hotel in Korla, and camping in the desert for 2 nights.

Activities

Desert crossing in 4x4 vehicles

Desert BBQ

Two day trip to Lop Nur, the famous silk road heritage of the Loulan ancient city. (If this option were to be chosen, overnight stay will be in tents, where a feast will be served in the desert environment. You will also have the chance to view sunset and sunrise in some of the most remote and beautiful locations on this planet.

A day trip to the Bayanbulak Grassland, located on the foothills of the Tianshan range, the area is a beautiful prairie boasting luxurious verdant grass, numerous flocks of sheep and a variety of flora and fauna.

We will provide guides to explain the history and landscape of this amazing location and local culture immersion. We will also see songs and dances by the ethnic people who traditionally inhabit this area.

Temperature
Korla has a cold desert climate, with extreme variation in temperature during night and day. July is typically hot and arid, with day time temperatures reaching 40 degrees Celsius and night time temperatures reaching as low as 10 degrees Celsius.