Getting from Kashgar Laining International Airport to the city

A short transfer

• Kashgar Laining is about 9 km from the old city, a 20 minute drive.
• A taxi is about 30 yuan, from the rank between gates 2 and 3.
• That is cheap enough that the buses are a preference rather than a saving, especially with luggage.

The buses

• The bus station is at gate 3.
• City routes call there at about 2 yuan.
• Sightseeing bus 1 runs from the airport into the old city directly, which is where nearly every visitor is going.
• Four shuttle buses run to hotels near the centre, among them the Tianyuan International Hotel, the Tianyuan Business Hotel, the Shenzhen Airline Hotel and the Senye Lijing Hotel. Fares are reported between 10 and 15 yuan.

The clock

• China keeps a single time zone, and Kashgar is at its far western edge.
• Official time here is about two hours ahead of the sun. Sunrise in summer can be after 07:00 by the clock and sunset near 22:00.
• Locals commonly use an unofficial Xinjiang time two hours behind Beijing time. Shops, buses and appointments may be quoted in either. Always ask which one is meant.
• Flights, trains and everything on this page are Beijing time.

Practicalities

• Xinjiang applies identity and security checks that the rest of China does not, at the airport, at hotels and at road checkpoints.
• Carry your passport at all times and allow more margin than the distances suggest.
• Getting to the airport from the old city takes 20 minutes on the road and considerably longer once the checks are counted.