Tourism in Xinjiang, China is in an upward swing

Lavenders Bloom in Xianjiang (Photo courtesy: TravelWireNews)

Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region hosted more than 105 million tourists in the first eight months of this year, which is 40.93 per cent more than that of last year.

The total tourist spent for the same period amounted to 171 billion yuan (around USD 25.1 billion), which is 43.18 per cent more than 2017.

Development of attractive tourist destinations and the state-of-the art transportation networks are the main factor that makes Xinjiang a favourite tourist destination for visitors.

Dancers perform for the tourists at Kashgar in Xinjiang

“Xinjiang has been in the list of favorite travel destination for both domestic and overseas tourists in recent years,” said Hou Hanmin, an official from Xinjiang’s regional tourism development commission to the media.

Statistics shows that the tourist visits in Xinjiang is in an upward trend for the past few years. In 2017, the region received total of 107 million.  Tourists spent over 182 billion yuan in the region, which is 30 per cent more than in 2016. If the trend continues, by the end of 2018 there will be remarkable increase in tourist inflow in the region.

Xinjiang, an autonomous territory in northwest China, is a vast region of deserts and mountains. It’s home to many ethnic minority groups, including the Turkic Uyghur people. The ancient Silk Road trade route linking China and the Middle East passed through Xinjiang, a legacy that can be seen in the traditional open-air bazaars of its oasis cities, Hotan and Kashgar.