4 Days Relaxing Kanas Holiday Tour
In-depth Exploration of Kanas's Lake, Bays and Villages
In-depth Exploration of Kanas's Lake, Bays and Villages
Kanas is really something else in China. You will be surprised to find it is so unlike other parts of China that you are familiar with. It is simply stunning and picturesque in all seasons, as a superb resort destination for photography, hiking, rafting, bird-watching, rock climbing, horse riding, etc.
“Kanas” is a Mongolian word meaning “beautiful, rich, and mysterious”. In your adventure to Kanas, you will prove it definitely lives up to the title. In fact, Kanas is not just a lake, it’s a vast natural reserve resplendent with virtually untouched natural beauty, including three core areas – expansive Kanas Lake, the very essence of Kanas Natural Reserve - Three Bays and Hemu Village, the home to Tuvas people whose ancestry went back to the legendary troops of Genghis Khan. They are conveniently connected by sightseeing buses and walking trails.
Kanas is suitable for travelling all year around. The lake and river change colors with the surrounding alpine forests - dense greens in spring, thick multicolored blankets of flowers in summer, lush golds, reds, and yellows in autumn, white snow world in winter. The most beautiful time is from May to October. In May, the lake and rivers are turned to a greyish blue color, while in July, they are bright aquamarine; in August, the algae turns the water a deep green; and from September onwards it goes a rich turquoise.
Day 1 Kanas Airport Arrival - Hemu Village (L)
Kanas airport pick up & drive to Hemu Village
Welcome to Kanas, the most beautiful place in Xinjiang. Upon arriving at Burqin Kanas Airport, you will be welcomed by local tour guide and driver, then drive about 80 km (about 2 hours) to Hemu Village where you will stay over tonight.
Hemu Village is an important part of Kanas Scenic Area. It is one of the most beautiful villages in China, a magic place where you can get rid of the hustle and bustle and immerse yourself in the creation of photography. The villagers are Tuvans who is a branch of Mongolian. The ancestors of Tuvas are believed to be solders of Genghis Khan. Currently, there are about 2000 Tuvas people living in Hemu and other two nearby villages – Baihaba and Kanas. Their houses are made of wood entirely without any steels and cements, and they still keep the old traditions of nomad living, Tibetan Buddhism, festival, etc. Small population, old-fashioned wooden house, exotic ethnic culture and wild surrounding forests all make Hemu Village a peaceful and primitive place. You will visit a local Tuvas family to find out what’s their living like, and get treated with local snacks, fruits and drinks prepared by the hosts. Sometimes, you can even a race chance to see Tuvas playing music and dancing. The rest is free for you to relax and exploring surrounding. Sunset here is fabulous. You can walk up to a higher hill to appreciate the sunset in the golden sunlight. The vast golden birch forests and green grasslands surround the peaceful village, together appear charming colors like an oil painting.
Kanas Arrival Idea
Kanas can be arrived by flight and driving. Currently Urumqi has the most frequent daily flights to Burqin Kanas Airport. Turpan, Yili, Boyue and several other Xinjiang cities also operate some weekly flights to Kanas. Travel to Kanas by land driving from Urumqi takes about 9 hours.
Wooden house in Hemu Village
Day 2 Hemu - Kanas Lake (B, L)
Today's highlights: Hemu Village Sunrise, Kanas Lake, Walking
Get up early to catch the incredible sunrise which is also the MUST photo to be shot. When the sun rises and shines onto the mist curling up the villages, it is the moment to take one of the best pictures in your lifetime. To shoot the sunrise, you need to walk along the plank road to the high places on the mountains near to the village. After the sunrise, go back to your hotel to have breakfast. The rest time is free for you to experience anything you are interested in - hiking, horse riding, or just taking rest.
After lunch, you will be transferred to Kanas Scenic Area where you will spend about two days so that you won’t miss out all the highlights. Kanas Lake Scenic Area is a perfect place for family resort, leisure sightseeing and photography in all seasons. It includes Kanas Lake, Three Bays and Fish-watching Tower, three separate scenic areas. In Mongolian, Kanas means “beautiful, rich and mysterious”. It is definitely what it is like. Today we will explore Kanas Lake area. Take a park bus directly to the lakeside of Kanas where a leisure hiking awaits you. There is a 5-kilometer-long plank road following the eastern lake shore of Kanas to the deep wild forest. It is a scenic and relaxing experience as well as a good way to escape from the tourist crowds. You will walk through Siberian spruce forest, Wall of Root Carving, Taiga moors and reach at Tuluke Rock Painting at the end of the plank road, then return the same way.
Optional Kanas Lake Cruise – if you want to explore deeper area of Kanas, you can join the Cruise Program. The sightseeing ship sails to the heart area of the lake, then return to the lake shore, lasting about 45 minutes. Tell your guide if you get interested.
After the lake tour, take a park bus back to your hotel. The rest time is your own to relax.
Day 3 Kanas Three Bays & Fish-watching Tower (B, L)
Today's highlights: Recumbent Dragon Bay, Moon Bay and Celestial Bay, Fish-watching Tower, panoramic view of Kanas Lake
Today you are going to explore the famous Three Bays - the essence of Kanas Scenic Area. Kanas River wriggles in valleys, and creates three zigzag bays with beautiful names - Recumbent Dragon Bay, Moon Bay and Celestial Bay. The water here is crystalline, gentle and lovely. Along the two sides of the three bays are forests with alternate colors of green, yellow and golden, changing with the seasons. The trees, sky and clouds together project in the river, and appear a colorful reflection. Looking far into the distance, you can see the imposing Altai Mountains Range.
The visiting of the Three Bays can be interesting and relaxing. If you are lucky, you will see the illusory mist floating on the Kanas River in the early morning. You can walk on the well-paved plank road to the sightseeing platforms to enjoy the tranquil landscape, then walk from one bay to the next, or take park bus to save energy.
After the Three Bays exploration, keep traveling to Fish-watching Tower - the highest location of Kanas Scenic Area. En route take stops to visit Yazehu (Duck Moor Lake), a butterfly-lake lake, and Dianjiangtai where Genghis Khan once paraded his troops. The Fish-watching Tower is located at 2056 meters on a mountain at the outlet of Kanas Lake. One needs to walk about 1000 steps up to reach the tower, but the rewarding is handsome - a panoramic view of Kanas Lake, and stretching eyesight to the snow mountains of the Friendship Peak (4374m).
After the lake tour, take a park bus back to your hotel. The rest time is your own to relax.
Day 4 Kanas Departure (B)
Kanas Burqin Airport drop off
Wake up in the peaceful morning of Kanas to have breakfast. The rest time of today is free until your driver escorts you to catch your flight to Urumqi or other destinations.
1. This price is for one person, based on a group of 2 adults sharing one standard double-bed room in a local hotel
and traveling with our private tour in low seasons.
2. This price is subject to change according your
traveling season, group size, hotel class, change of activities in your itinerary and possible fluctuation of
currency exchange rate. If you want a lower price, you can get more people to join you, or use economy class hotels.
3. This price is only valid to March 31, 2025.
4. Reference exchange rate of USD 1=RMB 7.00. The final quote is based on current exchange rate. It may change
according to the currency fluctuation, while the RMB quotation will be remained the same.
Hi Wonder,
I apologize for the delayed response as I've been occupied with work.
In response to your query, here are my feedback:
1. Is your travel consultant of our company fast enough to answer your E-mail and patient enough to answer your questions?
Absolutely, you were incredibly prompt in responding to my numerous queries and helped ensure a smooth trip planning process.
2. How is tour arrangement, including the drivers,tour guides,hotels,etc?
The trip was fantastic. Our guide, Jerry, was exceptional and extremely knowledgeable, making our visit to Huangshan truly memorable.
3. Would you like to recommend our company?
Certainly. I will wholeheartedly recommend China Discovery to friends and family planning future trips to China
Regards,
Alvin
Hi Samantha,
yes we had a good time at the panda volunteer program. Thanks for helping us to arrange it.
Isaac
Hi Rita,
Thank you very much for organizing the tour. We enjoyed it a lot. We also had been quite lucky with the weather in Jiuzhaiguo. Colors of the lakes has been fantastic. I still owe you the feedback - it will take some time as I’m quite busy now. But we already filled the feedback forms with the guides. Thanks to Jason and Michael nd they has asking me about my tour. I hv recommend them to contact you.
Uwe
Hi Samantha,
we had such a great time in Guilin and had a great experience with our tour guide Lynn! Thank you. It has been wonderful so far! We are very pleased with the tour.
Qiuqiu
Hi Wonder,
Feedback as follows:
1. Yes, the travel consultant is very prompt in responding to queries etc
2. All the arrangements are excellent, no complaints at all, the tour guides are very knowledgeable and helpful and courteous.
3. Definitely, already recommended to some of my friends who are planning to go to China this year.
Winnie
We are one of the few China travel agencies who have kept active and received lots of feedbacks and reviews during pandemic years
"Highest Standards of Quality and Honesty" is the core value of each specialized team at China Discovery.
Eveyone in our company is working hard for only one goal, which is to ensure the highest level of service, luxury, and attention to detail from the minute you begin planning your trip, to the day you return home.
Our travel consultants are professional, experienced and responsible, helping you from the very beginning to the end of your China trip!
After sending us an inquiry, one of our travel consultants will get back to you within 0.5~23.5 hrs. In the next few days, he/she will be working closely with you to formulate a customized tour plan, as well as providing professional suggestions based on your travel interests, time, and budget.
Beside, he/she will keep in contact with you during your entire tour in China, continually checking if everything is going well as planned.
We're working at Chengdu Bamboo International Tours, local based in Chengdu.
Our local guide in every destination is not only very friendly, enthusiastic but also very informative and knowledgeable.
Once you arrive in the destination, the patient and punctual guides will pick you up and take you to get under skin of the city at your own pace. By in-depth discovery and explanation, they’ll show you more about the history, culture, customs and authentic local life. Throughout the journey, they're not only expert guides who take care of all the details but also fellow travelers who are dedicated to help you explore in comfort and style.
Our guides are passionate about what they do, and it shows all the way!
Using our private transfer service makes you comfortable, relaxed and worry free all the way!
Our private service includes licensed drivers with many years’ driving experience and air-conditioned, non-smoking, clean and well-maintained cars/vans. Drivers are local, polite, friendly and helpful, taking you to your tourist sites, hotels, airport/train stations in safety. All kinds of vehicle are offered, and yours depends on the size of your group. Usually, we offer sedan cars, SUVs, business vans (MPV) and different types of buses, all with extra space for your luggage.
Our private transfer service guarantees you the highest comfort!
In each destination, you’ll enjoy a comfortable stay in a great location!
The hotels we choose are based on star rating, great locations, well-equipped facilities, cozy bed, high quality service and guests’ feedbacks. Choices are a lot ranging from luxury 5 star, comfortable 4 star to budget 3 star. You could decide where to stay to best suit for your budget and likes. Generally, the hotels have both Western and Chinese breakfast with a wide choices.
If you have already got an ideal hotel, please feel free to tell our travel consultants and they'll book the hotel for you.
Have good sleep in our well-selected hotels in all the destinations of China.
We can satisfy all the dietary requirements no matter you want Chinese local food, western food, vegetarian food or muslin food.
The restaurants we will take you for lunch or dinner are all designated tourist restaurants approved by local tourist administration bureau. They have very good sanitary conditions and the food is prepared fresh and clean.
There will be some meals excluded in your itinerary as you like, and your private guide will be delighted to give you some suggestions and take you to the local restaurants to taste like Beijing Roast Duck, Xian Dumpling Dinner, Sichuan Hotpot, etc., if you are interested in local food tasting.
All the dining options will satisfy your stomach!
Wooden house in Hemu Village
Visit a local Tuvas family in Hemu Village
Morning mist in Hemu Village in Autumn
Beautiful scenery along Taiga Trail hiking
Peaceful Hemu Village in Winter
Stunning Kanas River in August
Moon Bay (autumn) - the iconic sight of Kanas
Panoramic view of Kanas Lake from Fish-watching Tower
Hemu Village - Beautiful Peak - Kanas Lake Scenic Area
Urumqi - Turpan - Kashgar - Tashkurgan
Urumqi - Wu'erhe - Kanas - Burqin - Urumqi
“Very good experience”
“WONDERFUL 25 DAYS IN CHINA - PRIVATE TOUR”
“Awesome China tour from northeast to southwest”
1,850+ Reviews
