Kashgar Old City

Kashgar sits where the routes around the northern and southern edges of the Taklamakan met before crossing the mountains toward Central Asia, and it has been an oasis market for two thousand years. The old city is a quarter of narrow lanes between earth-brick and timber houses with carved doors and painted balconies, workshops where copper, wood, musical instruments and hats are made by hand, teahouses on upper floors, and the Id Kah mosque at its edge. Much of the quarter was rebuilt in the 2000s and 2010s in reinforced form on the old plan, so the lanes remain but the fabric is largely new.

What you actually see

• The lanes - narrow streets of earth-brick and timber houses.
• The craft workshops - copper, wood, instrument and hat makers.
• The teahouses - upper-floor rooms overlooking the street.
• Id Kah mosque - the large mosque at the edge of the quarter.

When to go

April to June and September to October; summer is very hot and winter cold. Mornings are the busiest for the workshops. Ramadan and Eid change the rhythm of the quarter considerably.

Honest expectations

Most of the quarter is post-2009 reconstruction rather than original fabric, which surprises visitors expecting an unaltered old town. Some sections are ticketed. Photography of people should always be asked first.

Nearby

The Sunday bazaar lies east; Karakul Lake is south on the Karakoram Highway.