SILK ROAD 2010- Exotic, middle-eastern in parts, the silk road is steeped in history. Great hotels and wonderful food and people make this journey a trip to remember always.

After a very successful trip in 2009, I have decided to offer the Silk Road again for 2010. China Birds is also offering a pre-tour to Northern Xinjing Province - from Urumqi north to Kanas Lake and the border with Russia.

Day One: Thursday 23/09/2010 Melb/Beijing via Singapore

Meet at the airport at 21:30. Leave Melbourne at 00:05 by SQ218. Arrive Singapore at 06:00, transit by SQ802, arrive in Beijing at 14:55. Picked up by tour guide and transferred to hotel to rest after your trip. At 17:30, collected by guide and taken to dinner. After dinner, enjoy the lights of Beijing and see Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City as you drive by. Just a taste of the capital city as you return to your hotel to rest after your long day.(D)

Day 02: Friday 24/09/2010 Beijing/Urumqi

Fly to Urumqi by CA1901 at 09:55, arrive at 14:05. Met by tour guide and transferred to hotel. After rest, enjoy dinner and a minority dance for your evening's entertainment. (B,L,D)

Urumqi- Capital of Xinjiang Autonomous Region, it is 900 metres above sea level. 2.8 million live in the city (80% Han Chinese). There are many mosques and bazaars.

Day 03: Saturday 25/09/2010 Urumqi/Kashgar

Spend some more time in Urumqi. Visit a Minority Peoples' kindergarten. Red Mountain Park gives you a wonderful view of the city, and is an easy climb. Fly to Kashgar by CZ6805 at 15:20 and arrive at 17;05. Transfer to hotel and dinner. (B,L,D)

Day 04: Sunday 26/09/2010 Kashgar

Sightseeing in Kashgar. The Da Ba Za Sunday market includes the animal market. The Mosque, the old city and the Mausoleum are all highlights. (B,L,D)

Day 05: Monday 27/09/2010 Kashgar

Day tour to Karakul Lake, a beautiful lake in the Kunlun Mountains. The scenery is wonderful and we will have many chances to stop the coast to take photographs. Along the way, you can see parts of the old Silk Road, and in one part the caravanserai which was used as a stopping place- protected by stone walls as wolves and other predators would have attacked the horses, camels and - people. You will see Tajik, Urdu and Kazakh people. (B,L,D)

Day 06: Tuesday 28/09/2010 Kashgar/Urumqi/Turpan

Fly to Urumqi by CZ6804 at 11:00 and arrive at 12:45. In the afternoon, city tour and visit the Provincial Museum. This is one of the tour highlights, as the Museum contains relics from local past civilizations . There are mummies which were discovered in the desert not far from Urumqi. These remains are of non-Chinese people, and their DNA, woven garments and appearance lead experts to believe that these people were Celtic. There are also textiles and other treasures. Coach to Turpan before dinner. (B,L,D)

Day 07: Wednesday 29/09/2010 Turpan

Visit Grape Valley, and see the vines and "shadow houses" used for drying the grapes. See the Karez system of bringing mountain water in underground channels to Turpan. Observe Uighur life and if we are lucky, visit a Uighur family. Go to Jiaohe old city, a garrison town established in the Han Dynasty, made of rammed earth and bricks. A minority dance this evening for your entertainment. ( B,L,D)

Day 08: Thursday 30/09/2010 Turpan/ Dunhuang

Visit the ruins of Gaochang, 25 kms SE of Turpan. This was once a large city. A donkey cart will transport you part of the way ( included in cost ). Next, Astan or Astana ancient tombs, which were the burial grounds for Gaochang. There are over 500 tombs and 3 tombs are open to the public. There are mummies here as well, Chinese officials. Flaming Mountains are a range of bare sandstone mountains, they featured in the famous story, A Journey to the West (remember Monkey Magic ?). Leave for Dunhuang by train (soft sleeper), dinner and breakfast will be arranged by ourselves on the train. We can buy some supplies in Turpan. (maybe some soup or supplies from home?) (B,L,D)

Day 09: Friday 01/10/2010 Dunhuang

Arrive in the morning and visit Mogao Grottoes also known as the Caves of a Thousand Buddhas, this is a highlight of the tour, and we will spend the whole day there. There are 492 caves, 30 are open to the public. First cave is said to be built by an early Buddhist monk in AD 366. The last ones were carved out at the time of the Mongolian Conquest in 1277. Enjoy show in the evening. (L,D)

Day 10: Saturday 02/10/2010 Dunguang/Jiayuguan

Visit Singing Sand Mountain, a mountain range of pure sand, and Crescent Moon Pool which is close by and the White Horse Pagoda. You can take a camel to enjoy all these features. The cost is around AUD20. There are around 1,200 camels waiting to take you up to the top of the high dunes! Bactrian camels- two humps. Leave for Jiayuguan by coach in the afternoon. (B,L,D)

Day 11: Sunday 03/10/2010 Jiayuguan

Visit the western end of the Great Wall, which is 1,800 metres above sea level, completed 4 years after the rise of the Ming Dynasty. On top of the Wall are 17 metre high towers. (B,L,D)

Day 12: Monday 04/10/2010 Jiayuguan/Lanzhou

Visit Jiayuguan city. After lunch transfer to airport and leave for Lanzhou by FM9147 at 15:40, arrive at 16:55. Met by tour guide and transferred to hotel after dinner. (B,L,D)

Day 13: Tuesday 05/10/2010 Lanzhou

Lanzhou is where our Silk Road journey ends. Visit Bing Ling Temple- Buddhist grottoes, carvings and niches formed into porous cliffs - cliffs are 20 metres high. Five Spring Mountain, then Gansu Museum has wooden tablets which were used to relay messages along the Silk Road in the Han Dynasty, 10,000 pieces of painted pottery, A complete fossil of a mammoth, and the famous Flying Horse of Wuwei - and heaps more. White Cloud Temple is a renovated Qing Dynasty temple (Taoist) which overlooks the famous Yellow River. (B,L,D)

Day 14: Wednesday Lanzhou/Beijing

Visit Liu Jia Xia Dam in morning. Transfer to airport and depart for Beijing by CA1272 at 15:20, arrive at 17:25. Have dinner at Beijing airport, and back to Melbourne via Singapore (SQ801 at 00:15, arrive Singapore at 06:30).

Day 15: Thursday Singapore /Melbourne

Transit in Singapore by SQ217 and leave at 09:55. Arrive Melbourne at 19:15.

Cost of tour : $4,687.00 p.p. twin share. Single supplement: $798.00 p.p.

Including: Return international air ticket flying by Singapore Airlines, domestic flights, accommodation in China, 4-star ( 3 star in Turpan), meals and sightseeing as per itinerary, English- speaking guide, visa fee, domestic transportation in China, coach and train.

Not including: Tax and related airlines and airport surcharge ( around $500.00 at the moment , this may change), tipping of guides, drivers and porters: $150.00p.p., travel insurance.

Notes

China Birds is offering a pre-tour of Northern Xinjian Province. Please see below.
Tour based on 10 pasengers, cost may increase if less.
Tour will be finalised by June 2010, and will be cancelled or posponed at that stage if inadequate numbers.
Deposit of $500.00 can be paid to Premier Towns Travel, via China Birds, P.O. Box 210, Port Fairy, 3284. Contact China Birds for transfer details.

PRE-SILK ROAD TOUR- NORTHERN XINJIANG PROVINCE

You will travel North from Urumqi to the borders of Russian and Kazakhstan. I doubt if you will see another westerner the whole time you are there. But you will see Kazakh and Tuma people and learn about their cultures. Also, you will marvel at the beautiful scenery, mountains and lakes. This is a new and very special tour.

Day One Saturday 18/09/2010 Melbourne /Beijing

Fly by SQ218 at 00:05, arrive at Singapore at 06;00, transit by SQ802 at 08;40, arrive at 14;55. Picked up by tour guide and taken to hotel to rest. (D)

Day Two Sunday 19/09/2010 Beijing/Urumqi

Fly to Urumqi by CA1901 at 09:55, arrive at 14;05. Met by tour guide and transferred to hotel. After a check in, short rest and transferred to dinner ( B,D, Lunch on plane)

Day Three Monday 20/09/2010 Urumqi/Tianshan/Urumqi

Visit Tianshan ( Heavenly mountain) - this mountain is regarded by the locals as a holy residence of an ancient goddess. It is a beautiful and you will see quaint yurts dotted around the woode slopes ( spruce). This area is 110 kms east of Urumqi: the Heavenly Lake is 2,000 metres up into the mountains, a blue ribbon of water set in front of the snow-capped peak of Bogeda Feng. ( B,L,D)

Day Four Tuesday 21/09/200 Urumqi/Buerjin

After breakfast visit Urumqi city. Da Ba Za- the bazaar or market in the centre of the city is a treasure trove of lovely things. Fly by CZ6841 at 16:25, arrive at 17:40. Met by tour guide and transferred to Buerjin. Visit a night food market - maybe taste the different kinds of fish and also dried fruits and nuts. ( B,L,D).

Day Five : 22/09/2010 Buerjin/Kanas Lake

After breakfast at the hotel, drive to Kanas Lake, 2ks wide and 22 ks long, one of the highlights of the trip. Kanas Lake is around 180 kms from Buerjin, and a very interesting drive. You will drive to the deep mountain area, cross the birch forest and follow the Kanas River. When you get to the lake, you can climb to the top of the mountain, have a bird's eye view of the lake . Pristine and beautiful. Stay in hotel at Kanas Lake. We specially chose Autumn for this trip - the colours of the trees are sensational. (B,L,D)

Day Six: 23/09/2010 Kanas Lake/Karamay

Continue to enjoy the mountain view of the Kanas area. Hopefully there will be time to meet a Kazakh family and learn about their lives. Visit Five Coloured Hills - a photographer's delight. We will also visit the Ghost City, an area which has eroded over time to resemble an ancient ruined city. I suggest that you discover the Ghost City on the back of a camel (may be extra cost here). After lunch, drive to Karamay, the oil city. Hundreds, maybe thousands of oil wells pumping away. Visit the brand new city (well, it was started in 1950s, so...) in the middle of nowhere, a little like Las Vegas, without the gambling. (B,L,D)

Day Seven: 24/09/2010 Karamay/Urumqi

Drive back to Urumqi, on the way you will visit the Ghost City, which has been created by the wind. It looks like an anciant ruined city, and you will explore it by camel. Arrive Urumqi before dinner. Get together with the Silk Road members.Have some free time and enjoy a minority dance for your evening entertainment. (B,L,D)

Cost of tour: $1,583.00 p.p. twin share, Single supplement $398.00 p.p.

Including: Accommodation in Northern Xinjiang, domestic flight, meals and sightseeing as per itinerary, English speaking tour guide, all other domestic transportation as per itinerary.

Not including : Tipping of guides: $70.00, travel insurance.

Photographs Courtesy of Bob Teng, Premier Towns Travel and Di Clanchy, China Birds.