Laos to Kyrgyzstan 2023

Day             Route                    Distance | Altitude I Hours

D1   Kyrgyzstan-Kashgar. 200km  |  3000m   |  5 hours 

Enter in China, our tour guide will meet you at China Gate and help you with the border crossing. PS: Your vehicle will have to stay in the Customs Storage for 1 night at Wuqia(100km from Kashgar), you can only get your vehicle back next day. Our supporting car will send you to Kashgar from Wuqia on the first day, and send you back to Wuqia to pick up your vehicle on Day 2.

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D2   Kashgar - Kashgar.   200km  |  3000m |  5 hours

Go back to the border with our tour guide, finish the remaining procedures and pick up your vehicle, then drive your vehicle to Kashgar, if it is still during the working hours of the local traffic bureau, we can go on applying for temporary Chinese driver license and number plates this afternoon, but, normally, it will be too late to do this step on Day 2(according to our experience).

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D3 Kashgar - Akesu.                                 460km  |  1100m  |  6 hours

If the driving license procedures cannot be done on Day 2, you are supposed to drive to the traffic Bureau to get Chinese temporary driving license and vehicle number plates in the morning.(the traffic bureau is 40km away from Kashgar downtown)

Drive to Akesu by expressway(G3012) in the afternoon.

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D4 Akesu -Kuqa - Luntai                         490   980

Take a detour for 70km to the south to the northern edge of Taklamakan desert and visit Tarim populus national park.

Taklamakan desert: The second biggest desert of the world.

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D5  Luntai- Korla -Turpan                         570   -154

Drive to Turpan oasis by expressway, with Tianshan snow-capped mountain range on the left and vast Gobi desert on the right..

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D6 Turpan                                                        -154

Turpan is called the Death Valley of China, it’s also called “the flaming land” as it is the second lowest basin of the world and the hottest spot of China. But just as the heat seems to make life unbearable, the underground irrigation channels and fertile soil of Turpan basin make this a veritable oasis in the desert.
Options:

Jiaohe Ancient Ruins, which is also called Uarkhoto. It is one of the world's largest and best-preserved ancient city ruins.
Karez- a type of underground irrigation system leads underground water to irrigate the basin. 

Aiding lake- The lowest point of Turpan Oasis, -154.3 meters below the sea level.

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D7 Turpan - Hami                                       400    760

After arrival, you can pay a visit to the Hami Kings Mausoleum, a complex that contains the tombs of nine generations of Hami kings. Apart for sightseeing, you can also visit local markets and taste some local food and fruit.

Other options: Ghost city--A geological park with Yardan landform.
 

D8  Hami - Dunhuang                                405   1145

Dunhuang used to be one of the most important stop of the Silk Road, which is really worthy of a full day visiting.
 

D9 Dunhuang                                                 1145

Options in Dunhuang:
Mogao Grottoes- the Caves are one of the greatest repositories of Buddhist are in the world. They fell into disuse after the collapse of the Yuan dynasty and were largely forgotten until the early 20 the centurry, when they were "rediscovered" by a string of foreign exploreres.
Mingsha Shan sand dunes & Crescent lake - Also called Singing Sands Mountain, From here it's easy to see how Dunhuang gained its moniker "Town of Sand". The climb to the top of the dunes is sweaty work, but the view across the undulating desert sands and green poplar trees below is awesome.

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D10  Dunhuang-Golmud                             530   2800

Drive to Golmud, enter in Qinghai province, altitude ascends to 2800 meters.

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D11  Golmud - Tuotuohe                              415   4620

You will pass the first check point for Tibetan region.

Drive over the Tanggula mountain Pass(5231m).

Overnight stay at Tuotuohe town, it is also a railway station of the highest railway of the world--Qingzang railway.

Tuotuohe river is the source of the Yangtze river.

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D12  Tuotuohe - Namqu                              415   4500

Enter in Tibet Autonomous Region.

Most roads are well paved asphalt road, while have different speed limitation for different section, varies from 40km - 70km/h.

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D13 Namqu - Lhasa                                      340    3650

Yamgbajing hot spring.

D14  Lhasa                                                        3650

Day tour in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet.

Options: Potala palace, Jokhang Manastery, Barkhor street etc.

D15  Lhasa - Gyangtse - Shigatse        355     3800

Parcho monastery, Yamdrok lake.

 

D16 Shigatse - Tingri                                 240  4300

Reach Tignri, need to register at local foreign affair bureau with passport before going to Mt. Everest Base Camp.
 

D17 Tingri - EBC- Ganggan zhen         260   4300

Rongbuk Monastery, the highest monastery of the world(altitude).

EBC, The north face of Mt Everest.

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D18  Gangga zhen - Gyirong zhen    256  2700

Reach Gyirong zhen, prepare for Customs procedures.

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D19Gyirong - Gyirong border - Rasuwa, Nepal   70    2500

Border crossing, enter in Nepal.

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