China Travel Forum

[Sarah]

Travel from Gilgit over Khunjerab pass to Kashgar either by bus, jeep, whatever. is there public transport at all?
Any idea how long approx. this trip is going to take?
And is it possible to travel from Kashgar into the Taklamakan desert? Can you rent a horse in the desert?
How far is it to Urumqui and is it true there is a train from Urumqui to Alma ata (Kazakstan)?
how often does this train operate and how long does it take?

[Terence]

There is no direct transport from Gilgit to Kashgar. First you have to go to Sost, catch a jeep to Tashqurgan and than change vehicle there, that goes to Kashgar. The trip to Sost was 60 or 70 rupees, don't remember. Public transportation from Sost leave around 9 AM into China. It costs 1210 rupees (aprox 21 $). These vehicles are ran by NATCO, so you'll have to buy the ticket at their office in Sost. In Tashqurgan you can catch shared taxis for 100 yuans (12$) per person. Remember, you'll have to pay 4$ when you enter Khunjerab National Park. You can't avoid it.

The whole trip will take a bit more than one day.
If you get to Kashgar go to Seman Hotel. It has a good location, and it's also cheap.
From Kashgar a nice place to visit is Khotan. Best Sunday market in Central Asia, and from there you can get yourself driven out into the sand dunes of the desert. Don't know about renting a horse... But I'm sure you could find someone willing to help you with that.

You can take a sleeper bus from Khotan to Urumqi on the cross desert highway. This should take 34 hours, but it took 42 when I did it...

Yes, there is a train from Urumqi to Almaty.