My 15 day trip was fully customised across Qinghai and Gansu in late October/early November, because of the specific ‘less travelled’ areas I wished to research for a novel, like the Reshui tombs of the Tuyuhun-Tubo tombs. Lesley (Consultant), Gazhang (Qinghai Guide), Meiling (Guide and driver), Tianli (Guide), William (Guide and driver) and I think Mr Pei (if I remembered his name right) were an awesome team. To all of them: a big thanks! Hiccups occurred along the way because of the low peak season and the coming frosty season. The upside is that less people meant minimal and sometimes no crowds in the more touristy areas. Some hotels do shut down suddenly in certain areas because of heating issues but the travel team solved it by booking in hotels of similar or better quality. Bear in mind, not all Chinese hotels can take in foreigners. Also, the areas I went to in Qinghai required special permissions. Some attractions do close earlier than expected during low season. So it’s best to get a reliable agency like theirs to navigate through such issues. The guides are very knowledgeable of their regions. Gazhang, being Tibetan, gave me a very warm introduction to traditional Tibetan culture in the area, and Yak Yogurt (I miss yak yogurt). Mr Pei was useful in solving any issues in Qinghai plus letting me try the local specialities of boiled mutton and yak meat. Both of them kept checking if I had any altitude sickness or issues because some parts of Qinghai are more or around 3000 meters above sea level. I made it to snap a pic at Mount Xiangpi at 3817 meters above sea level. Woohoo! Both are very good at spotting the wildlife, like Tibetan partridge and the plateau pika. William gave a very interesting in-depth look into the history of the Hexi corridor in Gansu and the people. I enjoyed discussing historical details with William. Every location along the car trip had ruins to sightsee along the way. The price paid was fully worth it and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. If I could give a six stars I would. This is one of the best private Chinese tours experienced! I have recommended friends to them for the Silk Road tour and will use them again since William pointed out more unusual historical sites to explore in the future (which I hadn’t seen). Big thanks again!

I have always wanted to visit the Silk Road but found the transportation across numerous cities along the route rathe cumbersome. I chance upon Lesley and she did an amazing job in arranging a private tour for my family for 8 days from Zhangye to Urumqi. All the tour guides and drivers they we met are very professional, nice and helpful. Some of the 5 stars hotels chosen could have been better but once we feedback, Lesley and team immediately act to resolve issues as much as they can. I have been with many agencies in different countries doing private tours and I must say Lesley and her team’s services are top notched. My family had a great time and will recommend Lesley if you are looking at for a fuss free travel.

Thank you Xinjiang China International Travel Co. Ltd for organising this Silk Road travel from 13-23 October 2023: On the whole we have enjoyed our trip very much although occasionally and for a short time some of us, including me, did feel unwell mainly due to the weather. I think because we have not been travelling for the past 3-4 years we were still not accustomed to the cold and dry weather overseas. Anyway, you and your staffs have helped us very much and made our stay as comfortable as possible. The itinerary was well arranged and executed. We were shown so many historical, cultural and scenic sites in the Silk Road which is amazing for a 11-day tour. Of special mention are the Crescent Lake, Mogao Grottoes, Zhangye Danxia National Geological Park, Qinghai Lake and Binglingsi Thousand Buddha Caves. All your staffs were very courteous and helpful. Mr William met and greeted as at the Lanzhou International Airport on our arrival although our flight was delayed. Ms Amanda, Mr Wan Ma and Eric are knowledgeable and eloquent in English. Your drivers are also careful and patient. All have discharged their duties professionally. The hotels are reasonably good and clean. Regarding food, there was a good varieties of spicy and non-spicy cuisines. The portions were rather too big for our small group of 10 persons. We speak for ourselves because we are all seniors!

Heavenly Lake ofTianshan is a popular place with beatuifiul scenery and drawback is the huge crowds of tourist. We were lucky as we had Hassan as our guide and took us to trek around the lake and we were away from the crowd. Nice walk of approx 15 km and we could enjoy the solitude, the lovely scenery. We stopped midway to have our simple and yet delicious lunch and just enjoyed the sun and the cool breeze. A wonderful day with good weather, good company ..... what more can one ask for. Thanks to our guide, Hassan for always keeping a watchful eye on all of us.

This was a comprehensive tour of the varied landscapes of Xinjiang and its main tourist highlights as it ventured from the Kun Lun mountains in the south to the Taklamakan desert and Tien Shan mountains in the centre and through the dune fields of the Jungaar basin to the forested, snow-capped mountains and grassland valleys of the Altay Shan mountains in the north. It then continued eastward through the Hexi corridor of Gansu, Qinghai and Shaanxi provinces to end in Xian. On the journey I was exposed to the cultures of some of the many ethnic minorities as well as the Han Chinese by our excellent guides and visits to Buddhist, Tibetan, Kirghiz, Uighur, Chinese and Mongolian historical sites. Everything, except one flight, ran smoothly and our accommodation was in well-appointed 4 star hotels.

Joined 2 hometown school friends along with 5 new friends for what I thought was a back to nature trip, tuned out to be a group of seasoned hikers with the highlights of hiking through the Altai mountains in Xinjiang and rest of days though sightseeing, was about nature trail walks and climbs. As a newbie, I survived the hike (phew), ... 3 days 2 nites that i decided on 1.5 day hike and 1.5 day on horseback, it was either leg pain or butt pain but all worth it! 1 nite in a wooden lodge and I nite in yurt, with sleeping bags, no electricity, no shower, no wi fi, all slept together, “nature calls best done in nature” … sceneries of hike were awesome, walking on land and riding on horseback gave me a whole different view of the breathtaking scenic landscape; more than 30 km uphill downhill thro terrains of mud, horses dung, rocks and rivers/streams/creeks, plains with early autumn colors… rain, hail stones, snow and sunshine… slipped and fell multiple times, cold, sweaty, wet etc, that was part of my “learning to hike” … slight scratches but that's fine. The horsemen showed me how to be comfortable with my horse and was always on a lookout that she kept in line. It’s nice to see how teamwork and common interest, goals work amongst team of hikers though strangers come to life; and the Kazakhs horsemen and yurt people extends their warmth in their own ways despite limited communications. I probably had some endurance, but I think experience and training would probably made a difference .. nevertheless, my maiden hike through Xinjiang, going with no expectations, was an experience filled with a lifetime memory all worth it!

Lesley is amazing and very friendly. She was available to support literally 24x7 and she has a great team. The guides were also very good and knowledgeable of all the local nuances. I felt like home and very safe. Thanks to the Silk Road travel team and hope I can travel again sometime soon !!

In terms of photography, I am dissapointed that autumn did not arrive in mid September. I am unable to capture the colourful foliage expected from this trip. However, I am happy that I managed to catch some nice birds while hiking in the mountains. I am very happy with the services provided by the guide for the sightseeing trip. The services provided by Mr Ahmed is exemplary. However, I am very dissapointed with the hiking trip up the mountains. The horsemen were not responsible and did not provide us with the guidance to hike up the mountain. We were told to walk on our own up the mountain without any detailed direction or map. They would take their time attending to their horses and catch up with us only after a few hours later. When they have caught up with us, they would just leave us behind dissapearing far in the horizon. They sleep till late in the morning and did not brief us on the activities for the day. I almost lost my way at a trail junction in the mountain as there is no guide or direction sign to follow . The trip to Nanshan is also very dissapointing. I am expecting to see a big beautiful grassland pasture but instead we were brought to see a cattle ranch. Nothing exciting really. There are however some positives from the trip. I like the food at the restaurants which are really delicious, the sight seeing guides are decent and nice people, the mountain scenery is really nice although lack the colourful foliage. My primary concern is Safety climbing up the mountain. Apparently, the horsemen did not do their job to guide us to trek safely up the mountain. I think this is something they have to work on to improve.

Lesle and team impressively provided full services for all pf us. Hotel reservations were made at the nice places. Tour route and arrangement were well prepared. I would suggest this agency for anyone who would like to explore pristine Xinjiang or other places along Silk road

I have gone on a trip to South Xinjiang during Labor Day in May and Nort Xinjiang during Dragon boat festival in June. It took a long time to go and come, but I think I made a memorable experience. In the South Xinjiang, I felt a lot of exotic things unlike China, and in the North Xinjiang, the greatness of nature was amazing me. There were a few variables during the trip, but thank you for always being flexible. If I have another trip to Xinjiang later, I will take the same travel agency.

I brought a group of 17 persons from Malaysia for a 16 days holiday in the North and South West parts of Xinjiang. Without hesitation, I contacted Ms Lesley Lee who heads this Company. I had travelled with them once before in Sept 2013 and had a great time. So, I was comfortable to book with her again. when we decided to do this trip in 2019. But the Covid-19 pandemic interrupted our plans after we paid our 20% deposits. So, we had to postpone our trip till June 2023. I was never troubled that we had left a deposit of 95,000 RMB with Lesley over several years without knowing when we would really be making the trip. I trusted her and she lived up to the trust! Then in January 2023, I contacted Lesley again when news of China was opening up to foreign tourists soon. So, we finalised a new itinerary after chatting on WeChat over the next 2 months. Getting tourist Visas to China this year was more complicated than before. With prompt paperwork provided by Lesley, we managed to get everybody their visas in time. And we were into Xinjiang! Lesley was always responsive, and flexible and ready to accommodate our requests. She follows our tour daily to make sure everything is moving according to plan and to sort out minor hiccups. This trip was a much better experience than the one 10 years earlier. This time, we had much superior hotels, clean, spacious and some very new and comfortable. Our meals were well selected and most satisfying. The transportation was in comfortable buses with lavish seats, driven by expert drivers with good safety attitudes. Our guide Aysha was good, and gave wonderful clear narratives in English and Mandarin, not only about the tourist sights, but also about life in Xinjiang, social issues, Covid stories, and Western media biases. It was a very enriching experience for us to see Xinjiang for real, and to interact with the wonderful, smiling ethnic people here. This was a very rewarding and memorable tour!

We actually found Lesley's touring services by accident. My husband and I were planning for an anniversary trip after the pandemic, so we hope to do a comprehensive tour in Xinjiang for three weeks. However, the touring service we hired earlier had little experience working with foreign travellers, so they made a lot of last minute changes which is frustrating. So we decided to see if we can find someone who specializes in foreign travellers. Thankfully we found Lesley. She picked up my phone call and within minutes she gave me a much more reasonable travel plan. And just within 24 hours, all the hotels, drivers, and tour guide are sorted. I was so amazed by their efficiency and experience. Because of their help, we can start our trip with the original planned date. I can not speak more highly of our tour guide AJ. AJ is from Turpan and never went aboard. But he speaks fluent English and learned all by himself(So smart!). I highly recommend first-time traveller to Xinjiang to work with Lesley and her team(Silk Road and Xinjiang Impression). Their professionalism will make your trip planning so much smoother and painless.

Thanks team, for the wonderful experience and the accompanying personnel. Special thanks to Nur, he was an excellent guide, filled with knowledge, very smart and understands foreign standards well, paid attention to the details, we did not have a single problem despite countless check points and many stops. Will and I are extremely satisfied with his service and care throughout the trip.

It was supposed to be a small tour and we were 21, with only ONE guide.even this was a surprise, the wechat group had only 7 people. But on arrival to KASHGAr they transfer us to another bigger group with people from another agency/city ! Even they made us follow another 20-people bus, as the company had the 8day tour paired !! Being 21 and with such a price, we should at least have two guides to make processes faster. Or arrange two groups directly. We organized this tour because of friends reccomendation, when we told them these conditions they were so ashamed by how we were conned ! Beware !!! The tour guide was so nice, I felt bad for all the work he had to do on his own. We could see how burnout he was. Managment offered MONEY for positive review !!

The places I could visit were amazing and allowed me to have a very relaxing and pleasant experience. Unfortunately, I had an accident in the middle of the trip but Lesley and her team were really helpful. They supported me all the way back to Beijing. I definitively recommend them, they organized this trip very well and are ready for inconveniences like the one I experienced.