Silk Road Expedition: Beijing to Kashgar & Xinjiang

For centuries the Silk Road was the thread that linked east and west. From as early as 200BC the silk merchants of Xian, China’s ancient capital, set off with their camel caravans on the long trek to distant Constantinople. They skirted the Gobi and the ferocious Taklamakan deserts, and crossed ‘the Roof of the World’, over the Pamirs and the Karakorams. This tour allows you to follow in their footsteps, to trace the legendary route taken by Marco Polo from west to east, with the inclusion of exotic places. This outstanding and in-depth expedition along the northern path of the Silk Road features Central Asia’s most historic, dramatic and splendid scenery, and offers opportunities to experience local cultures in some of the oasis towns populated by minority peoples. Conditions of travel have improved since the Italian’s day, but in some of the more remote places, where accommodation is comfortable but simple, a spirit of adventure is required.