达瓦昆沙漠旅游风景区, slightly more than 2.5 hours from Kashgar city, is really just the fringe of the great Taklamakan Desert. You get to see a bit of the desert, true, but it's just disappointing that it's obviously a tourist trap. A tell-tale sign is the man-made lake at the start of the "desert". Plus you have to pay 45 yuan entrance fee, 10 yuan for a scenic horse cart ride by an Uighur grandpa (the only highlight), and another 90 yuan to sit on a sand buggy or camel to bring you into the desert. We chose to walk instead, and we climbed sand dunes, took some pictures, and had a picnic. Basically tried to make the most of the trip. But the disappointment extended to lunch: somehow we let our driver persuade us to try the "best" roasted lamb at their restaurant. Although we ordered the smallest rack, they served us the medium one and charged us 150 yuan for it. The lamb was good, but the whole experience left a pretty bad aftertaste. Kashgar has great natural attractions, so I do not recommend spending time and money at this place.