The city has a population of around 2. Urumqi is quite famous for its claim that it is the most inland major city in the world, that being the farthest from any ocean; 2, km or further. There are two major ethnic groups, a quarter million of the original Uyghur inhabitants of the area and 1.
Regardless of ethnicity, most people in Urumqi can speak some level of Mandarin Chinese , however in some parts of the city Uyghur , a Turkic language, is dominant. Few people speak English, even in some of the large hotels. When taking a taxi, it is a good idea to have a piece of paper with the name of your destination written in Chinese.
Despite what some of the guidebooks say, Urumqi has a lot to offer and can provide a great introduction to Xinjiang. Travel time is about 20 minutes without traffic. The airport closes after the arrival of the last flights, and you are not permitted to stay inside the building overnight. All long-distance trains use the Main Railway Station , 20 km northwest of the city.
This includes the fast trains to Lanzhou 12 hours , Xian plus 3 hours , Beijing plus 9 hours and Wuhan plus 8 hours , and international trains to Kazakhstan via Khorgos 24 hrs or Dostyk 30 hrs. To Khorgos itself is 14 hours; other destinations are Burqin 13 hr , Tacheng 12 hr , Yining or "Yili" 13 hr.
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Lanzhou is a weary 40 hours, take the train. Destinations include Turpan 3 hours , Korla 10 hours , Kuche 17 hours , Hotan 24 hours , and Kashgar 24 hours. China Highway is a motorway crossing Xinjiang from Gansu to the border with Kazakhstan. Most destinations within Xinjiang can be accessed via private car. Drivers tend to congregate near the bus stations and will often approach passengers shouting their destination. In almost every case, a car will save hours of travel time over a bus.
