2-Star Hotels in Turpan

After we encountered a bad experience with a desert glamping resort in Dunhuang, we were a bit cautious with Dune when we booked it. However, after I communicated with the manager in Dune via WeChat, I was more confident as he was very polite and helpful. He helped us to booked a transfer from Turpan Airport to Dune resort. As our flight arrived Turpan in the evening, it was late when we arrived at Dune. The manager and another staff came to the entrance of the driveway to welcome us and helped us with our luggage. They took us straight to our tent, and they upgraded us to a bigger tent, too. We woke up to this beautiful Kumtag Desert Sand dunes, right in front of our tent! It was so beautiful. As the off peak season started, we were the only guests there but the staff were serving us with delicious breakfast and dinner. The food was delicious and plentiful! The manager and staff were very attentive to our requests. One of the staff has helped us to arrange a local guide/driver to take us to the Kumtag desert for an exciting ATV ride and sand sliding. We had a great time. We ended up hiring the same guide, a pleasant and calm Uygur young guy to take us for some sightseeing and dropped us back to Turpan. I would say to anyone who is looking for a real desert glamping, please come to Dune in Shahshan near Turpan instead of Dunhuang.

The reception staff are all very lovely and helpful. We especially liked the 24/7 convenient store built right into the hotel, it had great options for midnight snacks and ice cold drinks. The rooms are nice and the bed is especially comfortable, it could be a little cleaner (stains not the doors and frosted glass of the shower) but it’s nothing that really impacted our enjoyment of the hotel! We would definitely come back and recommend others to do the same if they ever come to visit Shanshan. Side note on attractions - Kumtag desert is very close and it only cost us a 6 Yuan taxi to get there (we even walked back). If you are specifically coming for the Flaming Mountains or Jiaohe Ancient Town then just be prepared that most group outings are from Turpan North Railway Station (50minutes on the Train) or you can go by car but we didn’t try so it may be expensive as it’s further away than if you stay in central Turpan.

The hostel's common areas are really spacious, making it easy to strike up conversations with fellow travelers and share some watermelon. And yes, we *literally* mean eating watermelon – a huge Turpan watermelon only costs ten yuan! The room amenities are also excellent, and there are plenty of delicious food options nearby. All in all, a fantastic hostel.

Good location near lots of really good food stops but honestly sometimes we heard trickling water and the room smelled like urine or something a few timds. The decor was really cool, but the corridor carpet was stained with tobacco, ash trays in the hall ways. The smells were a real downer on an otherwise really good spot.

Hostel is a 10 minute walk from the train station. I booked a one day tour with them to visit the Karez wells, Flaming mountain, 1000 Buddha caves (not worth the ticket price), old Uyughur village and grape valley. Staff doesn't speak English, but we used the translation app. The bathroom could have been cleaner, shampoo and shower gel were empty and toilet paper was often empty too. AC worked well enough to stay cool at night.

First and foremost, this hotel accepts foreigners. The hotel is quite ok but not great. I booked a no-window non-smoking room (don’t do it, go for room with window) because I thought there is more chance people still smoke in non-smoking rooms with windows. The first room they gave me, put the key card on and electricity didn’t work. Waited for them to check with no result so I was relocated to another room. It’s non-smoking but I can clearly smell the smoke. Took 2 days for the smoke smell to go away which is a pity. The room is small but enough for a solo like me. Each floor they built 4 lines of rooms, the 2 middle lines stay wall-to-wall to each other and are the ‘no-window’ rooms. I would definitely recommend you to choose the room with window, because it means you don’t share a lot of ‘walls’ to other room and have a window to open at least for circulation if room is smelly or if room is too hot. In my case, my room smells smoke, and the room heater system only allows 34-37 degree celsius which is crazy! Very hot if turned on so I had to turn it off the whole time I stay at the hotel. Even though it is winter time, the whole hotel is already on heater. Unable to adjust room temperature is annoying because it means no air circulation. There is a blowing machine (similar to a fan) in the room but it is not efficient quickly enough. The room feels extremely suffocating. I did really wish for a window. Also because the no-window rooms share 3 walls with other rooms (not counting the upper floor), it’s more bad-luck chances for weird noise. In my case, I had to endure one whole freaking night with 2 loud Uyghur couples who cannot hold themselves back from banging the freak out and making all kinds of terrible terrible noise. Seems like no soundproof for these walls.

Couldn’t be happier with the stay. Arrived early morning at Turpan rail station and the owner granted early checkin without a fuss. Super convenient given the tiring overnight train journey. Owner was also kind enough to arrange for tour driver for one day sightseeing. The area is awesome! Next door is a local vegetable and fruit shop where things can be purchased super cheaply. Bought a large watermelon (in season) and the owner lent a knife to cut it open. Delicious! The room is great; well appointed, clean, breezy. Only slight issue with the bathroom where the water didn’t drain fast enough so need to shower carefully to prevent overflow into the room. Overall, it was a stay well beyond expectation. The owner was super nice and helpful.

The location is excellent with the famous Night Food Court directed in front of the hotel. You can get fresh draught beer there from their local brewery. Room size, toilet and layout is good. The reception are helpful. Good hotel to stay for tourists.

Around 1 AM, I was getting ready for bed and felt a dark spot crawling on my pillow. I turned on the light and saw a huge bug! Scared, I grabbed a tissue and caught it. A quick search identified it as a louse. I was completely grossed out... I spent the next few hours searching, and couldn't sleep until 2 or 3 AM. Then, around 3 or 4 AM, as I was trying to sleep again, I found another small bug. That was it – I didn't sleep at all that night. I checked out first thing the next morning and moved to another hotel. The hotel's location was good, with places to explore right outside, but the hygiene was terrible. All those bugs on the pillow! I even used my flashlight to check under the bed, and there was all sorts of messy stuff that hadn't been cleaned properly... 😱😱😱 Hygiene: Poor

Very satisfied Environment: Excellent Service: Very strict Cleanliness: Average Facilities: Excellent We often stay at this hotel and it's great to stay with friends. The only downside is the soundproofing isn't very good; the noise from next door is quite loud. But otherwise, it's pretty good.