Altay Travel Guide

Altay Prefecture is located in northern Xinjiang, bordering Russia, Kazakhstan and Mongolia. It serves as an important node city for the northern corridor of the Silk Road Economic Belt and Xinjiang's participation in the construction of the China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor. Situated in the hinterland of the Asian continent, Altay has a temperate continental arid climate. Shielded by the Altay Mountains in the north and bordering the northern edge of the Junggar Basin in the south, it has formed unique climatic conditions with significant north-south climatic differences.

Best Time to Visit Altay

The best seasons to travel to Altay are summer (late June to August) and autumn (September to mid-October). Altay in summer has a pleasant climate and beautiful scenery, suitable for outdoor activities and enjoying the natural scenery of grasslands, lakes, etc. Altay in autumn presents a golden autumn leaf landscape, which is a paradise for photography enthusiasts.

What to See

Hemu Village

1. Hemu Village: With a total area of 1,590 square kilometers, it is the farthest and largest among the three remaining Tuvan villages of the Mongolian ethnic group (Hemu Village, Kanas Village, and Baihaba Village). Renowned for its primitive wooden architecture, autumn birch forests, and snow-capped mountain grassland scenery, Hemu Village is hailed as a "fairy-tale world".

2. Kanas Lake: Formed approximately 200,000 years ago, Kanas Lake is one of China's deepest glacial moraine dam lakes. Nestled in the dense forests of the Altai Mountains, this alpine inland freshwater lake is hailed as a "fairyland on earth" and a "divine garden". The turquoise water is ringed by snow-capped mountains and forests, making it perfect for hiking, photography, and boating.

Kanas Lake

3. Baihaba Village: Located at the northern foot of the Altai Mountains, it is one of the northernmost villages in China. It has pristine natural scenery and a long history of ethnic culture. The winter scenery of Baihaba Village is particularly beautiful and is known as the "paradise on earth".

4. Keketuohai: It has beautiful canyon rivers, rocky forests, mineral resources, polar lakes and strange earthquake fault zones as its natural scenery, integrating geological culture, regional characteristics, and ethnic customs. It is a holy place in the hearts of geologists. Keketuohai Geopark is the first geopark in China with typical mineral deposits and mine sites as its main landscape.

Recommended attractions:

How to Get There

Altay Xuedu Airport (AAT) has opened many routes, with direct flights to Urumqi, Yining, Kashgar and other cities within Xinjiang, and flights to major domestic cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen outside Xinjiang.

How far is Altay from Major Cities

How far is Altay from Other Xinjiang Cities

Gourmet Food Recommendations

Yuyu Chicken is a specialty food in the Altay region. "Yuyu" refers to potatoes, a local specialty, and chicken is a healthy chicken raised by local farmers. Coupled with the unique cooking method, this dish incorporates a strong northwest flavor.

Seabuckthorn is a plant treasure that can be used as both medicine and food. Seabuckthorn juice is extremely rich in vitamin C. It tastes sour. If you like sweet taste, you can add some honey to it, which has a unique flavor.

Dry Pot Braised Lamb Legs is one of the must-try delicacies in Altay. The ingredients are the front legs of lambs from the natural pasture of Sawur Mountain, supplemented with potatoes, carrots and other side dishes. It is super delicious.

Black Mushroom Soup Rice is a Xinjiang specialty, mainly popular in the Altay region. Its main ingredients are black mushrooms and rice, along with mutton, potatoes, carrots and other vegetables. It is delicious and nutritious.

Souvenir and Shopping

Camel Milk Product

Camel Milk Products: Altay is the source of milk for Bactrian camels in the Altay Mountains of Xinjiang. Camel Milk is known as "desert platinum". Its nutritional content is no less than that of milk, with high calcium, low saturated fatty acids, and medicinal value. Camel Milk Products are mellow and rich, worth tasting, and very suitable as souvenirs for relatives and friends.

Root Carving: There are various trees growing locally in the Altay region. The Root Carving works made from the roots of local trees have various shapes and high national art value. They are very distinctive tourist products.

Special Jewelry: Altay is rich in gold and gemstones. Gold is of good quality and high purity; gemstones are more famous for tourmaline and aquamarine. It is a tourist product with real estate characteristics and is suitable as a souvenir.

Tips

The altitude in Altay is high, which may cause altitude sickness. It is recommended that you bring medication to prevent altitude sickness. Transportation in Altay may not be as convenient as in big cities, especially for remote tourist attractions. Plan your route in advance and understand the public transportation schedule, or consider taxis or self-driving. In addition, you need to applyfor aborder pass in advance to go to border areas such as Baihaba Village. You can click "make my trip" to customize your trip to Altay.

• Xinjiang Travel Guide
• Xinjiang Tours
• Xinjiang Attractions
• Urumqi Travel Guide
• Top 10 Xinjiang Delicacies
• Turpan Travel Guide
• Hami Travel Guide
• Altay Travel Guide
• Kashgar Travel Guide
• Hotan Travel Guide
• Ili / Yili Travel Guide
• Bayingolin Travel Guide
• Xinjiang Weather
• Aksu Travel Guide