Introduction This is a rock located at the mouth of Bozakrak Gully, about 150 kilometers northeast of Baicheng County in Aksu, Xinjiang. It protrudes just over a foot from the ground and bears an intaglio script in clerical style, with 101 Chinese characters still visible. The inscription mainly records how Liu Pingguo, the Left General of Kucha, led six people—Qin people (Han people) including Meng Baishan, Di Hupin, and Zhao Dangbei—to chisel the rock here and build a…
Introduction The Mazabaha Grottoes are located on a sandy plain about 30 kilometers northeast of Kuqa City in Aksu. In Uyghur, “Mazha” means “tomb” and “Boha” means “garden,” together meaning a graveyard. Originally, there was indeed a large graveyard in this village. The name of the Mazabaha Grottoes comes from this village, as...
The Dolang River Homestead The Dolang River Homestead is located in Yiganqi Township, Aksu City, about 4 kilometers from downtown Aksu. Covering an area of 65 acres, the scenic area features a picturesque blend of colorful brick paths, ceramic tile roads, uniquely Kashgar-style blue brick walkways, grapevine pergola paths, and trapezoidal pathways that connect pavilions—creating a stunning visual attraction. The site highlights ethnic customs and traditions, and includes a personalized 500-square-meter elegant seating area. Unique pavilions have been built on the rooftops for sightseeing. A water pavilion, integrating ethnic characteristics with European architectural styles, has been constructed over the Dolang River, covering an area of approximately 700 square meters. The high-end ceremonial hall has interior walls made of special timber in a traditional style, making it suitable for various large-scale performances and ceremonial events. Leisure pavilions infused with distinctive ethnic charm add rich cultural flavor to the entire scenic area. There are four European-style suite villas, with a total area of 800 square meters. A 500-meter-long overhead grapevine corridor is adorned with carvings of uniquely ethnic-patterned artwork. The garden also features two standard swimming pools, each 1,200 square meters in size, and a 15,000-square-meter tourist lake. The lake is surrounded by poplar trees, and an artificial island has been built in the center, offering recreational facilities such as boats. Additionally, there are two 4,000-square-meter entertainment fishing ponds, 600 ornamental trees, and a variety of flowers, making it an ideal destination for travel and vacation. In recent years, the scenic area has developed a diverse range of tourism offerings, focusing on modern wellness and recreational activities, holiday leisure, water conservancy project sightseeing, and three-dimensional ecological agriculture tours. It has become one of the renowned tourist attractions in Aksu City and is a famous destination that blends ethnic characteristics with European architectural styles.
Qimanza Leisure ParkQimanza Leisure Park is located in the suburbs of Aksu City, covering an area of 43 acres. With a tranquil environment and a forest of apricot trees, it is an agro-tourism ecological scenic area that combines sightseeing, entertainment, and dining. The park features over 30 varieties of apricots with distinct flavors, including red apricots, small white apricots, pepper apricots, and blushed apricots. From the time the apricot blossoms first bloom to when the branches are heavy with fruit...
Gumo Farmhouse Paradise
Tarim Populus Euphratica Island is a small island covering over 5,000 acres in the upper reaches of the Tarim River. Surrounded by water on all sides and rich in water resources, it is located more than 20 kilometers from Aksu City. The island is home to thousands of acres of pristine wild Populus euphratica forests, where various wild animals such as hares, pheasants, and hedgehogs live. Known for the ancient and resilient trees that "live for a thousand years without dying, stand for a thousand years after death, and remain unrotted for a thousand years even when fallen"…
Tiandi Ren Art Garden is located at the 989-kilometer mark of National Highway 314, adjacent to the Zongheng Sugar Factory and Zongheng Cotton Mill on either side, and just a few steps away from the terminus of Bus Route 1. It boasts an exceptionally prime location, covering an area of over 200 acres. The garden is home to dozens of varieties of arbor plants and more than a hundred types of flowers and plants, including fragrant pears, apples, papayas, walnuts...
Aksu Museum, also known as Aksu Regional Museum, officially opened to the public on December 26, 2017, with the inauguration of its new building. The new museum is situated along the picturesque Duolang River. Its architectural design, both inside and out, showcases the elegance of the Han and Tang dynasties, exuding a majestic and solemn aura that blends traditional Chinese elements, local characteristics, and the spirit of the times...
Aksu Duolang River National Wetland Park is the largest national wetland park in southern Xinjiang. Currently, the park boasts abundant water resources, good water quality, and ample light and heat, forming a typical freshwater wetland in the arid region of northwest China. Within the ecological protection zone of the wetland park, over 10 species of Class II nationally protected plants such as tamarisk, licorice, and saxaul thrive...
Kekeya Ecological Tourism Scenic AreaKekeya Ecological Tourism Scenic Area is located on the wasteland at the junction of the eastern suburbs of Aksu City and Wensu County, about 10 kilometers from downtown Aksu. The entire scenic area is connected by asphalt roads, making transportation convenient. Since 1986, citizens of all ethnic groups, government officials, workers, students, as well as military personnel, have engaged in large-scale voluntary tree planting...
Guide Zhakuli Temple, also known as Subashi Temple, is a key cultural relic protection unit of the autonomous region. It is located on the southern foothills of the Querdag Mountain, 23 kilometers northeast of Kuqa County, and is the ruins of a Buddhist temple from the Wei and Jin dynasties. Introduction The temple is divided into eastern and western sections, distributed on both banks of the river leading to the east and west. The Eastern Temple is built against the mountain, with remnants of houses within...
The Senmusaimu Thousand Buddha Caves are located about 40 kilometers northeast of Kuqa County, distributed on the cliffs on both the east and west banks of the gully at the Kuruktag Pass. Most of the caves have been damaged, but 52 relatively well-preserved ones remain. Most of the cave types are chaitya halls, with very few vihara caves. They were initially created around the 3rd century, and most of the murals date back to the Northern and Southern Dynasties period, with the latest belonging to the early Gaochang Uyghur period.
Introduction The Splendid Scenery of Kezierya is located in the mountainous area north of Kuqa County, historically known as the “Northern Mountains” and referred to in ancient texts as the “Red Sand Mountains.” Heading north out of Kuqa County, along the 120-kilometer road to the “Big Dragon Pool,” the area is surrounded by mountains and scattered with bizarre rocks. The peaks come in a myriad of shapes and colors, including red, yellow, green, and white. The famous “…”
Big Dragon Lake stretches 2,500 meters from east to west and 1,000 meters from north to south, forming an irregular oval shape. It covers an area of approximately 2.5 square kilometers, with a maximum depth of 92 meters and an average depth of 30 meters. Its water volume is about 75 million cubic meters, and it was formed around 18,000 to 29,000 years ago. The lake features vast, crystal-clear waters, and...
The Kumtura Thousand Buddha Caves are located about 30 kilometers southwest of Kuqa County in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and are a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit. "Kumtura" is a transliteration from the Uyghur language, meaning "beacon tower in the desert." The cave complex is distributed on the foothills or cliffs along the eastern bank of the Weigan River and is divided into northern and southern sections, about 3 kilometers apart. The northern section...
The Kizilgaha Grottoes are located on the southern slopes of the Queletage Mountain Range, near the Yanhuagou Valley, 14 kilometers northwest of Kuqa County in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, adjacent to the Kizilgaha Beacon Tower. They were first built in the 5th century AD. The grottoes were carved into the cliffs within an area approximately 170 meters wide from east to west and 300 meters long from north to south. They are divided into two main groups, eastern and western, and currently...
Qinxial Ancient City is located in the Donghu Gobi Desert, 60 kilometers southeast of Kuqa County. Also known as the Great Ancient City, its Uyghur name means "Great City." It is an ancient city dating back to the Han and Tang dynasties. Research suggests that this ancient city bears some architectural similarities to Zhuolitiqu Ancient City in Luntai County, and may have been a military garrison town built by stationed soldiers during Han Dynasty land reclamation efforts. The ancient city is roughly circular in shape…
The Kizilgaha Beacon Tower is located on an alluvial terrace at the mouth of Yanhuagou Valley at the southern foot of Queletage Mountain in Yixihala Township, Kuqa County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Majestic and towering, the beacon tower was built during the Han Dynasty. A beacon tower, also known as a fire beacon, was an ancient method of military signaling. Historical records indicate that fires were lit at night and called “feng,” while smoke signals were sent during the day and called…
The allure of Tianshan Grand Canyon lies in its grandeur, ruggedness, depth, serenity, and mystery. The Mysterious Tianshan Grand Canyon is located beside the Duku Highway, about 70 kilometers from Kuqa County, and is a canyon within the Keziliya Mountain range, a branch of the Tianshan Mountains. In the Uyghur language, "Keziliya" means "red cliffs." Those reddish-brown rocks…
Introduction: The Molla Esad Tomb, also known as the Tomb of Molla Esad or the Mausoleum of Imam Asim, is located between the old and new cities of Kuqa. "Molla" means descendant of a saint, while "Esad" is said to be an early Islamic sage who came to Kuqa during the reign of Emperor Lizong of the Song Dynasty to spread Islam and was later buried here. The site includes a shrine complex consisting of four sections: the shrine gate, main hall, tomb gate, and tomb chamber...