Northern Xinjiang Grand Loop Upgrade｜Duku Highway, the Legendary Road

6500 kilometers of wild driving, with an average cost of over 7000 yuan per person, the Northern Xinjiang Grand Loop has gone viral! Netizens rave, "Worth every penny": Everyone must go crazy once in their life and chase the northwest wind! Have you ever had such a moment? — Working overtime until dawn, looking up at the moonlight outside the window, suddenly wanting to throw away your work badge, and flooring the accelerator westward into the Gobi Desert, watching the snow mountains awaken in the morning light, listening to the grasslands whisper in the evening breeze. Recently, a 6500-kilometer self-driving route has completely exploded in popularity: "Northern Xinjiang Grand Loop Upgrade" 📍 Urumqi → Tianshan Tianchi → Koktokay → Burqin → Hemu → Kanas → Urho → Sailimu Lake → Yining → Nalati → Bayinbuluke → Northern section of Duku Highway → Return to Urumqi 💰 Average cost 7000-9500 yuan per person｜⏰ Best time: June to September｜🔥 Popularity nearly topping the "Must-Visit in a Lifetime" list This is not a trip; it’s a collective escape from mundane life. Why has this route suddenly become legendary? Because—it packages China’s most beautiful natural scenery into a road movie. Imagine your itinerary: 🌄 Day 3, opening the wooden door of a cabin in Hemu Village, morning mist like silk wrapping the white birch forest, smoke curling up, like a fairy tale world; 🌌 Night 5, camping by Kanas Lake, looking up to see the Milky Way pouring down, the Big Dipper so close it seems you can reach out and pick it; 🚗 Day 7, driving on the northern section of Duku Highway, with cliffs and snowy peaks on one side, and vast green fields on the other, the winding mountain road like a ladder to the sky; 🐎 Day 10, galloping on horseback across the Nalati grassland, sheepdogs chasing hooves, eagles circling overhead, the wind blowing past your ears like a shout of freedom. Is this tourism? This is writing poetry on the wilderness with your eyes. Even more impressive is the pace design— ✅ Full coverage of natural scenery: snow mountains/lakes/gorges/grasslands/deserts/forests all included ✅ Continuous cultural surprises: drinking milk tea in Kazakh yurts, Tuva people’s bonfire parties, Burqin night market eating grilled dogfish ✅ Accommodation experience maxed out: boutique homestays + unique wooden cabins + starry sky campsites, no more “sleeping in the car eating instant noodles” One netizen said: “The ‘sky like a dome covering the four fields’ from textbooks can really be experienced in person.” But what truly moves people are those moments “only understood on the road”: 👉 By Sailimu Lake, a couple hikes three hours just to see the sunrise, the guy carries the girl for the last 200 meters; 👉 At Bayinbuluke’s winding bends, a group of strangers squat by the shore, counting down together as the sunset sinks into Swan Lake; 👉 Lost late at night, accidentally entering a herder’s home, the uncle doesn’t speak Mandarin but smiles and hands over a bowl of hot milk tea, pointing at the map to help you plan your route. Adult healing often doesn’t happen in counseling rooms but in some wilderness where no one knows you. Don’t think this is just a “rich person’s game.” Actually, calculating it— 7000 yuan includes the whole trip with off-road vehicle, driver guide, tickets, accommodation, and some meals, which is less than 400 yuan a day to live inside the scenery. Compared to Sanya’s five-star hotels costing over 3000 yuan a night, this isn’t consumption; it’s a cost-performance counterattack! And— 🔸 June to September is Northern Xinjiang’s golden season: pleasant climate, green grass and blooming flowers, nights not cold 🔸 Small group travel (usually 6-8 people), friendly socializing, easy to form teams even if single 🔸 High safety, good signal coverage along the way, emergency support in place Young people have long realized: “Instead of spending money on bags and sneakers, better buy a ticket to the world.” So, if you are experiencing: Overtime numbness, feeling life is just KPIs Friend circles full of polished photos but your heart feels empty Wanting to set off but afraid of trouble, loneliness, or “leave requests being denied” I want to say: Don’t wait until you’re “ready” to set off, because you’ll never be ready. Just like the girl who got off halfway on Duku Highway to take photos said: “I took annual leave, deleted the work group, not to escape life, but to remember that I can still feel my heartbeat.” In this life, you must go crazy once. Chase the northwest wind, see a light that doesn’t belong to the city. When you stand on the snow mountain peak and shout your name, you will understand: Freedom is finally daring to say to yourself—I'm setting off.