Day 5: Urumqi (Mt. Tianshan)
Visit the provincial museum featuring ethnic cultures. Drive 70 miles to the placid Tianchi (Heavenly Lake), properly named for its green pastures, virgin conifer forests and snowy mountains. Its elevation is 6,000 ft. Return to Urumqi in the evening to get a good feel for this vivid city where people of 13 ethnic groups live together. Stay overnight in Urumqi. (B/L)

Day 6: Urumqi - Dunhuang (Yanguan, Humming Sandy Mountain, Crescent Moon Springs)
Take a flight to Dunhuang, one of the most historic destinations along China’s Silk Road, and a huge center of Buddhist art. In 1900, the long-hidden carvings, documents, embroideries, and paintings left by ancient monks were discovered in the grottoes. Silk Road treasures, including documents on subjects ranging form history, politics, art, the military, and science to Buddhist sutras, now fill museums around the world. Other attractions include ruins of Yanguan, the Humming Sandy Mountain, and the Crescent Moon Springs. You can take an optional camel ride. Stay in Dunhuang. (B/L/D)

Day 7: Dunhuang (Mogao Grottoes)
Visit the world-famous Mogao Grottoes on the edge of the Gobi desert. Designated a world cultural heritage site by UNESCO for its cultural, architectural, and art treasures, dating from the 4th to the 14th centuries, Mogao Grottoes are China’s oldest Buddhist grottoes. The first grotto was cut in 366 A.D. Housed in the remaining 492 cave temples are over 2,400 sculptures and 45,000 square meters (over 10 acres) of frescoes. Stay in Dunhuang. (B/L/D)

Day 8: Dunhuang - Jiayuguan
Drive from Dunhuang to Jiayuguan Pass, the western end of the Great Wall. Visit this vital stronghold of military defense Stay overnight in Jiayuguan. (B/L/D)

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