Exploring Xinjiang Province, in China’s remote north west region, is the snow destination that will excite international skiers and snowboarders looking for adventure along the famous Silk Road, writes Phil Osborn.
Photos by Phil Osborn – Kanas Lake & Jikepulin Hemu Resort
The Eureka Moment!
The minute I arrived at Jikepulin Hemu Ski Resort in Xinjiang Province, was the moment that changed my perception of what skiing in China could become, with its big mountain range, quality snowpack for November and high elevation, it was announcing to me that China is on track to develop an international level resort.
Jikepulin Hemu Resort, pronounced Jee-Keh-Poo-Lin, Huh-Moo Resort, and often referred to as Hemu Resort, is only five years old and developing rapidly. At the base of the resort, I counted over 40 cranes building up to 51 hotels and new resort facilities. But the game changer for me, was riding the mountain and experiencing great snow conditions and enjoying the flow of the terrain. And what I was seeing was only stage one of a three stage plan for one of China’s best ski resorts.
At the top elevation of Hemu East Area you are standing at 2,800m and get stunning views across China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and Russia!
Key Hemu resort statistics include; a Vertical Drop of 1,466m – the largest vertical drop in China. Hemu has the longest gondola in China. 103 trails fan out across the resort, with the longest run going for 11 kms. Hemu is China’s freeride mecca, and hosts the Freeride World Tour (FWT) competition.
So where is Jikepulin Hemu Ski Resort and what is special about Xinjiang Province?
Xinjiang Province:
Xinjiang Province is one-sixth of China’s massive landmass and covers 1.6 million square kilometres. Xinjiang is an autonomous region, located at the cross-roads of Central and East Asia, creating a culturally diverse history of the people who live in the province. There are more than 40 ethnic groups including Uyghur, Kazaks, Hui and Han living in Xinjiang Province, with 44 languages being spoken across the province. Xinjiang reflects the look and feel of central Asia, creating a vibrant destination to visit. The diversity of food we experienced was a highlight, with local delicacies reflecting the various ethnic groups. The lamb kebabs and rice pilaf dishes and the smooth, fresh yoghurts in the north of Xinjiang, were favourites of mine. Xinjiang Province is a Halal-friendly ski destination. To learn how to correctly pronouce Xinjiang, check out this youtube clip.
Is it safe? Xinjiang has a welcoming and safe feel for international visitors.
Check out my Xinjiang Province video, edited by Dash Osborn and filmed by Phil Osborn showcasing the snow and cultural highlights from our trip.
Birth Place of Skiing!
Xinjiang Province can claim to be the birth place of skiing, with rock paintings dating over 10,000 years, illustrating man strapping skis to their feet to move across the snow. The depth of history in this region is fascinating and worth exploring.
Where is Xinjiang Province?
How to get there?
The fastest option for flying to Jikepulin Hemu Resort from Australia is to fly into Shanghai a nine-hour flight. You then can fly to Chengdu, home of the pandas and catch a flight to Kanas Airport. It is an hour shuttle from the Kanas airport to the resort.
How did we get there?
On our trip, we flew on Cathay Pacific to Hong Kong, then flew to Urumqi, the capital city of Xinjiang Province. Our goal was to experience first-hand the local culture and discover a few of the key resorts in the province.
Urumqi & Silk Road Ski Resort:
Our first stop on our journey was Urumqi. Urumqi is a cosmopolitan city of four million people. It was exciting to be in a city that was a melting pot of various central Asian cultures. It didn’t feel like any other city I had previously experienced in China’s north east or southern cities that are predominately Han Chinese. A highlight for me was witnessing a Uyghur wedding and seeing the warmth of the community coming together.
Key Urumqi experiences to experience:
Visit the Urumqi Grand Bazaar. At the Bazaar, you will see get to witness all the exotic sights and smells of fabulous outdoor market. Entry is free to the Grand Bazaar. If you are shopping, you will need to use WeChat or AliPay to make purchases. If you love dancing, you can join in with the locals who enjoy dancing in the bazaar. It’s a social hive of activity for all ages of people.
Coffee Shops: Urumqi is loaded with speciality and chain coffee shops. The easiest way to find a great coffee shop is to use the search function in Rednote, or it’s official name – xiaohongshu – the Chinese social media app.
Urumqi – Silk Road Ski Resort.
The Silk Road Resort is located 40 kilometres or 1 hour drive from the Urumqi city centre. The mountain top elevation is 2,450m and has a 600m vertical drop. The resort has 9 lifts and 10 runs. We lapped the longest run off the main gondola. The runs off the gondola are the steepest and the runs lower down off the chair lifts are longer and flatter, so better suited to new skiers finding their feet. The snow conditions were good. They do make a lot of snow here and given the cold temperatures it keeps the snow pack in great shape. A quirky thing we spotted at the top of the Silk Road Resort was statues of Pigsy, Monkey, Sandy and Tripdaka, characters from the famous TV show Monkey Magic – the hit 1980s TV series. Urumqi is an excellent city to visit and is the heart of Xinjiang Province. Experiencing the Silk Road Resort and Urumqi is a great combination if you are going to visit Xinjiang Province.
Altay – ski city
We flew from Urumqi to Altay, a 1.30 hour flight. Altay is a cool city, with a ski town vibe. Getting off the plane were loads of skiers and snowboarders. Altay even has cave paintings dating back 12,000 years of what is claimed to be the world’s first skiers – shuffling along in the snow! Altay General Mountain Ski Resort sits above the city, and at night with its night skiing lights on, looks impressive and illustrates how connected the city and ski resort are linked. General Mountain resort has 17 runs, 7 lifts, 1305m top elevation, 390m vertical drop and base area at 915m. This is a lively ski resort, with regular dance performers, fireworks and DJs.
Flying to Altay from Australia:
Flying to Altay has many excellent options from Australia with one stop. You can fly:
Sydney – Beijing – Altay.
Sydney – Guangzhou – Altay
Sydney – Shenzhen – Altay
Sydney – Chengdu – Altay
Where to stay? A few good options to consider; The new UR Cove by Hyatt, is centrally located in the city and provides easy access to cafes and shops. Another option to consider is Altay Jinjiang International Hotel, a modern hotel complex situated slightly further out from the city centre, but is a cheap and short taxi ride, approximately AUD $3 and five-minute taxi ride, into the city centre. Check out the Jiaoluo Xiaolvxing Café – a unique bookshop / café for your morning coffee fix.
Where is Altay?
Driving in China?
Given the excellent public transport and cost-effective rates for hiring a car with a driver, we would recommend this arrangement. Hiring a car in China is not straightforward, requiring you to obtain a Chinese driver licence and have a medical test. Catching a taxi or Didi car (Chinese Uber cars) is simple by using Alipay. Simply click on your desired location in within minutes you will have a driver ready to cost effectively take you to your next location.
Driving from Altay to Jikepulin Hemu Ski Resort:
Our car hire was a GWM Tank, a Chinese 4 x 4 brand that is a perfectly designed for rugged winter driving. Our journey was a 4.5 hour drive from Altay to Hemu. The roads are icy for the total duration of the trip. We spotted a few cars that had run off the road, so it’s not a particularly easy trip. A new highway is planned to be opening in 2027 or 2028 to help improve access.
Where to stay in Hemu?
Hemu has currently two areas. The first are hotels at the base of Jikepulin Hemu Ski Resort. The Holiday Inn Platinum is a premium ski in, ski out hotel at the base of the main gondola. With a total of 51 hotels planned, the list of properties will grow rapidly over the next 2 years, so watch this space for more hotel openings.
Hemu Village is around 5 minutes away from the ski resort base area, but is the original location of most of the accommodation in the area. We stayed in excellent accommodation at Hemu Village Taoyuan Cottage. Check out the local cocktail bar translated as Hemu Mood Corner Bar for après drinks.
Kanas Lake
If you want to take a break from skiing or snowboarding, you might want to consider a day trip the scenic Kanas Lake area. It’s an all-day adventure to capture some great photos.
Kashgar
A fabulous before or after ski experience in Xinjiang is to visit Kashgar. This city is culturally unique, with 80% of the population Uyghur. I loved visiting the Kashgar Gaotai Ancient Residences. Make sure you watch the daily gate-opening ceremony ritual of this ancient city, a cultural performance blending traditional Uyghur music, armor-clad reenactments, and festive dances that welcome tourists and celebrate local heritage.
Kashgar was an important city on the silk road and key trading city with central Asia. Kashgar is located next to the vast Taklamakan Desert and isn’t a snow city. We can recommend staying at UR Cove by Hyatt. Kashgar is a 2 hour flight from Altay.
Visa Free Travel
Australians can obtain a 30 day visa free travel into China. It’s now very easy to enter China for Australians.
As for all countries, you can go onto the Australian Smarttraveller website for the latest information on China travel.
Key Apps for travelling in China.
Make sure you download Alipay and WeChat apps and link your credit card to both apps. I personally have found Alipay app to be more helpful for hiring DiDi cars. For payments, either of the apps are easy to use and accepted everywhere.
The translate app on the Apple Iphone is fabulous and will help you communicate on the ground with locals in China.
A Map – this is the Chinese version of goggle maps and works well in China.
Verdict:
Exploring China’s Silk Road ski resorts in Xinjiang Province is an exotic experience that will not disappoint. The key here is to allow enough time for your trip, so you can immerse yourself in the local culture and be able to relax and enjoy each ski destination you visit. International visitors currently don’t make up a lot of the skiers at any of the ski resorts we visited, so you will be a ski pioneer that will make for great après ski banter with your family and friends for many years to come!
Meet the team from China in May for the Snow Travel Expo 2026 in Melbourne 17 May and Sydney 24 May.