【​Apr.30-07】【​May.08-15】8 Days Classic Silk Road Tour

• Find the Tibetan Buddhism culture in Ta’er Monastery

• Relax in the breathtaking Qinghai Lake and the mirror-like Chaka Salt Lake

• Experience the artery part of the ancient Silk Route in Gansu Province

• Go hiking through Pingshan Lake Grand Canyon which is regarded as " Comparable to the Grand Canyon of Colorado " and " the new discovery of the Silk Road "

• Discover the unreal, ancient rainbow-coloured landscape of Zhangye, a UNESCO site that looks like countless pots of bright paint have been spilled across sandstone mountains.

• Climb up the grand Jiayuguan Pass to appreciate the wild and vast Gobi-scapes

• Discover Dunhuang culture in Crescent Spring and Echo Sand Mountain

• Appreciate the brilliant Buddhist art in Mogao Grottoes

Xining arrival by morning flight

Please make your own way to Xining Caojiabao Airport (please arrive at Xining airport between 10 am-11 am to avoid waiting too long for other passengers at the airport). 

Upon your arrival at Xining airport, the local English-speaking guide and driver will pick you up from the exit gate by holding a welcome board with your name. After short rest, you will explore the amazing Xining by visiting Ta’er Monastery. 

As one of the “Six Great Monasteries of Tibetan Buddhism Gelug Sect”, Ta’er Monastery is another site in Xining, Qinghai Province, sharing the same popularity with Qinghai Lake. Ta’er Monastery has profound historical origin that it’s the birthplace of Tsongkhapa, the founder of Tibetan Buddhism Gelug Sect. Not only bearing the divine position in religious followers, the monastery is a Tibetan Buddhist institution of higher education. The glorious decorations on surface fascinating your eyes, the rich accumulations in history, culture, religion and arts of Ta’er Monastery excite your souls deeply especially when meeting those devout followers trudging for pilgrimage here.

Hotel: 4 star hotel in Xining

Xining-Qinghai Lake-Chaka Salt Lake

  (450kms, 6-7hrs driving)

Start at your hotel at 08:30 and spend 2.5hours to reach Qinghai Lake via Sun-moon mountain. Qinghai Lake is the largest saltwater lake of China, and there you may feel that the air is so fresh and the sunshine is so warm which is like paradise. There are groups of sheep and yaks, blue sky and white clouds, etc. The main scenic area you will be visiting today will be the Erlangjian Scenic Area where is the most beautiful place in Qinghai Lake, you can enjoy the charming lake. There are boat cruise, horse riding, and bike riding available around the lake, and you can pay in cash on your own if you have interests ( optional).

After the relaxing sightseeing, you will head to Chaka Salt Lake which takes around 2.5 hours driving on road. You can have some rest in the van. 

Chaka Lake-Xining 

Xining-Zhangye by High-speed Train 

Today just relax in the amazing Chaka Salt Lake! 

Chaka Lake with title of “Mirror of the Sky in China” rose to fame nationwide rapidly in recent years, attracting increasing travelers. “Chaka” means “Salt Lake” in Tibetan. As the name, Chaka Lake is a famous natural crystal salt lake in Qaidam Basin, able to meet all Chinese’s need to salt for 75 years. The pure white congealing in the water makes the lake a huge mirror to reflect the shadows of white clouds, blue sky, hovering birds and beautiful girls in bright-colored dress. Yes, what you must do at Chaka Lake is taking beautiful pictures of sky and people. Do remember to wear cloth of bright color. 

In the afternoon, drive back to Xining to catch the evening high-speed train to Zhangye (reference train D2757/18:41-20:46). It takes around 2.5 hours, and you can have a nap on the train or just enjoy the scenery on the way. 

When you arrive at Zhangye train station, there will be a local driver picking you up to local hotel.

Hotel:4 star hotel in Zhangye

Zhangye tour  

In the morning, you will visit Matisi Grottoes. Joined with Mogao Caves and Yulin Grottoes in Dunhuang, Matisi Grottoes is famed as “Three Artistic Grottoes of Hexi Corridor”. You will be amazed at the incredible combination of Buddhist temples and mountain grottoes here: the large elegant temple stands against the hill where plenty of grottoes were engraved. Another luminous point of Mati Temple is that it embraces both Han Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism at meantime which you will discover in the visit here. 

In the afternoon, you will go to Pingshan Lake Grand Canyon. As one of the magnificent grand canyons along the silk road, it is the best place where you can not only enjoy the special landform but also visit some precious animals and plants. It is one of the most beautiful landscapes in the Grand View Garden of Zhangye Landscape, and it has been praised as " Comparable to the Grand Canyon of Colorado " and " the new discovery of the Silk Road " by China Geographic Journal and well-known geologists and tourists at home and abroad.

Special note: You will need hiking around 2-3 hours. Tourists with knee problems are NOT suggested to go. 

 Zhangye-Jiayuguan by 2.5-hour driving 

After breakfast, follow your guide to explore the exciting Zhangye Danxia National Geological Park to visit The Rainbow Mountain Scenic Area. Located in Linze County, the Rainbow Mountain features in its bright color and is a good place to enjoy the sunset, which is chosen by most travelers. Seen from the high platform, the rising layers of mountains in beautiful red with different saturation is bathed in rosy sunlight, depicting a gorgeous picture for the visitors who trudge a lot to here.

Later, move on to The Ice Valley Mountain Scenic Area, read Binggou Mountain in Chinese, and it earns its fame mainly with its graceful shapes. Usually, people come here for sunrise scenery. Although the color of hills here are not as bright as Rainbow Mountain, the unique form here easily excites people’s imagination to enjoy the natural masterpiece in another way. 

 Jiayuguan-Dunhuang by 5-hour driving 

After driving through the yellow sand of the desert, you will come to Jiayuguan Pass, also known as the “First and Greatest Pass Under Heaven”, “the Throat of Hexi Corridor”. As the western end of the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty, Jiayuguan Pass, being constructed for hundreds of years, not only occupied a vital position in military defense but also exerted an important influence in trade & culture exchange as a key waypoint of ancient Silk Road. 

Next, continue your visit to Jiayuguan Great Wall Museum. Inside the Jiayuguan Pass Scenic Area, there is the first Great Wall themed museum with 7 major exhibition halls to show you more detailed knowledge about this great constructional engineering in Chinese history. The oil painting of the Great Wall exhibited here on large scale, about 220.5 m2 is a highlight deserving a longer stop.

Last, drive around 5 hours to Dunhuang.

Arrive in Dunhuang, enjoy a walking tour at the Shazhou Night Market, the most bustling place of Dunhuang at night, taste the local cuisine and buy some souvenirs for your family and friends.

Dunhuang tour 

In the morning, you will head to the amazing Mogao Grottoes. As the existing anthology of Buddhist art with the biggest scale and the best preservation in the world, Mogao Caves wins a fame of “the pearls of oriental art”. It keeps 735verns, about45,000 square kilometers of frescoes, 2,415 painted sculpture, more than 4,000 flying Apsaras (the beautiful Bodhisattva in Buddhism who has the fair scent and does well in dancing and music), and 5 wooden constructions of Tang and Song Dynasty as well as thousands of Stone pillars and flagstones with a lotus carving on them.

In the late afternoon when it is not too hot, come to Crescent Spring and Echo Sand Mountain. Echo Sand Mountain and Crescent Spring are harmonious mates of miracle created by nature, glittering like a pearl along the Silk Road for thousands of years. The incredible co-existence between spring water and sand mountains always amazes visitors at their first sight here: the sand mountains meanders like a huge dragon and roars when wings blowing while the Crescent Spring, like a gentle maiden, is embraced in arms of mountains without being smudging. 

Dunhuang Departure 

Free and easy on your own in the morning time. In the afternoon, the driver will pick you up from the hotel lobby and transfer you to the airport for your departure flight. 

Small Group Tour

Group size: 4-12 pax 

Tour type: English-speaking

*Above prices are for 2 people sharing one room. If you require a private room or if there is no person in the group looking for sharing room, there will be single room supplemental fee occurs.

What's included:

• 7 nights’ accommodation in 4 star hotels one single room with daily breakfast;

• Xining-Zhangye high-speed train(second class seat);

• Private land transportation in air-conditioned ehicle with licensed drivers; 

• Excellent local English speaking tour guides services as mentioned in the itinerary; 

• Entrance tickets as mentioned in itinerary;

• 1 bottle of mineral waters per person per day;

• China Travel Insurance.

  
  

What's not included:

• Flights to Xining or from Dunhuang; 

• Any optional golf car/battery car/shuttle bus/camel ride/boat cruise etc. inside attractions; 

• Camel ride in Dunhuang; 

• Any meal (the tour guide will help to order at local restaurants for you to pay in cash/Wechat/Alipay);

• Single room supplement fee RMB1780; 

• Any item not mentioned in itinerary.

  
  

  Need Advice? 

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Contact：Joy Travel  

行程亮点：

• 在塔尔寺寻找藏传佛教文化

• 在令人叹为观止的青海湖和如镜的茶卡盐湖得到精神的放松

• 体验甘肃古丝绸之路的大动脉

• 在堪比科罗拉多大峡谷、被誉为“丝绸之路新发现”的平山湖大峡谷徒步旅行

• 探索张掖那魔幻、古老的彩虹色景观。这是一个联合国教科文组织认定的遗址，整个景区看起来就像无数鲜艳的颜料洒在砂岩山脉上。

• 登上伟大的嘉峪关，欣赏粗犷和震撼的戈壁景观

• 在月牙泉和鸣沙山发现敦煌文化

• 欣赏莫高窟灿烂的佛教艺术

第一天

当您到达西宁机场时，当地会讲英语的导游和司机会拿着写有您名字的迎宾牌在机场出口接您。您将参观塔尔寺，探索令人惊叹的西宁。作为“藏传佛教格鲁派六大寺院”之一，塔尔寺是西宁一处与青海湖同样受欢迎的地方。塔尔寺有着深厚的历史渊源，是藏传佛教格鲁派创始人宗喀巴的诞生地，不仅在宗教信徒中具有神圣的地位，而且是一所藏传佛教高等学府。不仅华丽的装饰让你眼前一亮，塔尔寺丰富的历史、文化、宗教和艺术积淀，和那些长途跋涉来此朝圣的虔诚信徒，会深深触动你的心灵。

第二天  

西宁-青海湖-茶卡盐湖 (450公里，6-7小时车程)

早晨8:30从您住的旅馆出，穿过日月潭山到达中国最大的咸水湖——青海湖。在那里你会觉得空气是如此新鲜,阳光如此温暖，成群的绵羊和牦牛、蓝天、白云，这一切会让你仿佛置身于天堂。今天你们要参观的主要景点是二郎剑风景区，这里是青海湖最美丽的地方。湖周围有游船、骑马、骑自行车等活动，有兴趣者可自行通过现金付费游完(可选)。观光后，您将前往茶卡盐湖

第三天

茶卡湖-西宁，西宁-张掖（通过高铁）

今天，在迷人的茶卡盐湖放松自己吧!

近年来，有“中国天空的镜子”之称的茶卡湖迅速在全国闻名，吸引了越来越多的游客。“茶卡”在藏语中的意思是“盐湖”。茶卡湖，顾名思义，是柴达木盆地著名的天然结晶盐湖，可满足全中国人75年的食盐需求。洁白的湖水凝结成一面巨大的镜子，映照着白云、蓝天、盘旋的鸟儿和穿着鲜艳衣服的美丽女孩的身影。是的，在茶卡湖一定要做的一件事就是为天空和人们拍摄照片。一定记得穿颜色鲜艳的衣服。

下午乘车返回西宁，乘坐开往张掖的晚高铁(参考D2757/18:41-20:46)。列车车程约2.5小时，你可以在车上小睡一会，也可以欣赏沿途的风景。

第四天

张掖之旅

上午，您将参观马蹄寺石窟。马蹄寺石窟与敦煌莫高窟、玉林石窟并列被誉为“河西走廊艺术三大石窟”。你会惊叹于佛教寺庙和山上石窟的不可思议的结合:巨大而优雅的寺庙矗立在山上，石窟雕刻伴随左右。马蹄寺的另一个亮点是它同时包含了汉传佛教和藏传佛教。

下午，继续前往平山湖大峡谷。作为丝绸之路沿途壮丽的大峡谷之一，你不仅可以欣赏特殊的地形，也可以见到一些珍贵的动物和植物。它是张掖景观中最美丽的风景之一,中国地理杂志、著名的地质学家们和国内外游客都认为它堪比科罗拉多大峡谷，同时它也是“丝绸之路”的新发现。

第五天

张掖-嘉峪关 2.5小时车程

早餐后，跟随导游游览令人兴奋的张掖丹霞国家地质公园，参观彩虹山风景区。位于临泽县的彩虹山以其明亮的颜色为特色，是欣赏日落的最佳选择，也是大多数游客的选择。站在高台上，一层层的山被玫瑰色的阳光沐浴着，呈现出深浅不一的红色，为长途跋涉来到这里的游客描绘出一幅绚丽的画面。

之后，我们将来到冰沟丹霞，其以其优美的外形而闻名。通常，人们来这里看日出。虽然这里的山的颜色没有彩虹山那么明亮，但这里独特之处在于它很容易激发人们的想象力，这也是欣赏自然杰作的另一种方式。

最后驱车约2.5小时到嘉峪关过夜。

第六天

嘉峪关-敦煌，5小时车程

驾车穿过沙漠，就来到了嘉峪关，其有“天底下第一大关”、“河西走廊的咽喉”之称。嘉峪关是明代长城的西端，作为古丝绸之路的重要路径，历经数百年的修筑，不仅在军事防御中占有重要地位，在贸易和文化交流中也有重要影响。

接下来，将参观嘉峪关长城博物馆。在嘉峪关风景区内，有第一个长城主题博物馆，有7个主要展厅，让您更详细地了解这个中国历史上伟大的建筑工程。大尺度展出的长城油画，面积约220.5平方米，是值得驻足的亮点。

抵达敦煌，到敦煌夜间最热闹的沙洲夜市步行游览，品尝当地美食，为家人朋友买些纪念品。

第七天

敦煌之旅

上午，您将前往令人惊叹的莫高窟。莫高窟是目前世界上现存规模最大、保存最好的佛教艺术选集，被誉为“东方艺术明珠”。它保存了735个佛龛，约45,000平方公里的壁画，2415个彩塑，4000多个飞天(佛教中的菩萨，擅长跳舞和音乐)和唐宋时期的5座木制建筑以及数千根刻有莲花的石柱和石板。

在午后不太热的时候，来到月牙泉和鸣沙山。鸣沙山和月牙泉是大自然创造的奇妙伴侣，像珍珠一样在丝绸之路上闪耀千年。在这里，泉水和沙山不可思议的共存总是让游客在第一眼看到时便感到惊奇:沙山像一条巨龙蜿蜒而行，而新月泉像一个温柔的少女，群山环抱。

友情提示:鸣沙山有骆驼游，如果您想体验，请自行付现金体验(约100元/匹)。当然，你的导游会帮你买票。

第八天

敦煌出发

上午时间自由活动。下午，司机将在酒店大堂接您，然后送您去机场。

注意:本日不设英文导游服务，亦无任何旅游活动。

# 团期&价格

*请注意，以上价格为两人一间房。如果您单独报名，我们可以尝试，但不能保证找到另一位参团者与您共享房间，如果您需要一个单独的房间，或此团队当中没有拼房，请准备额外增加单房差费用，谢谢您的理解！

费用包括：

• 四星级酒店住宿七晚,双人间，含早餐;

• 西宁-张掖高铁二等座;

• 带有空调的私家车以及有资质的驾驶员

• 旅游计划中所列的优质本地英语导游服务;

• 旅游计划中所需规定的入境签证;

• 政府税收及服务费;

• 每人每天1瓶矿泉水;

• 中国旅游保险。

费用不包括：

• 赴西宁、离开敦煌的航班;

• 景区内自行选择的高尔夫车、电动车、班车、骆驼、游船等;

• 敦煌骑骆驼;

• 除酒店早餐外的餐饮(导游会帮你在当地餐馆点单，用现金/微信/支付宝支付);

• 单人间补交费用;

• 旅游日程中未列事项。

预订方法:

第一步:预订旅游需支付1000元/人(微信支付、支付宝、银行转账、Paypal均可);

第二步:服务凭证会发送到您的邮箱，确认您的行程;

第三步:在旅行前5天支付余额。

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