Is the road, border or area open and accessible to foreigners? Is there danger?
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We crossed from Kazakhstan at Nur Zholy to Khorgas China on August 4th. We’ve been traveling by bicycle and due to other reports we thought it best to take our bicycles by bus across the border. It really appears there is no way you could walk or bike across the border with the security and infrastructure on the kazakh side headed into China. The good news is that large size mountain bikes with 29” tire fit upright in the undercarriage of the bus that departs Zharkent We were able to strap the bikes to supporting structures in the cargo area.
The tickets for the bus were 4000tenge/per person. We paid the driver another 3000tenge to make sure that there was space reserved for the bikes - we had to unload/reload the bikes during the crossing first at the Kazakh exit and then unload again at the Chinese entry. Everyone else on the bus also has a ton of luggage so coming early to get the spots for the bikes was important.
Chinese customs was relatively straight forward. We had to unload all the bags off the bikes 2x to go through x-Ray machines. They were confused by our lack of a Chinese phone number on entry forms and had us wait for awhile and then pull one of us aside for review of phone content and questioning on planned route and journey. We were honest about our plan to cycle to the Mongolian border and we didn’t need to show proof of departure from China. The tone of conversation and questioning was all very cordial and the use of their language translation devices made talking pretty seamless!
[Important Note]
Once across the border (yay!!) cash and credit cards are not widely accepted. We had downloaded Alipay in advance anticipating this, but found out that you need Wi-Fi to pay and this only works with a Chinese SIM. There is literally no way to access the internet without a Chinese SIM and in Xinjiang foreigner are unable to purchase these SIMs. I’m not sure where you can buy a Chinese SIM in advance, other regions of China do sell them to foreigners without issue if you are coming from somewhere else, but considering there doesn’t appear to be ATMs and things are pretty cashless it would be hard to get around without AliPay or WeChat Wallet.
We crossed from Kazakhstan at Nur Zholy to Khorgas China on August 4th. We’ve been traveling by bicycle and due to other reports we thought it best to take our bicycles by bus across the border. It really appears there is no way you could walk or bike across the border with the security and infrastructure on the kazakh side headed into China. The good news is that large size mountain bikes with 29” tire fit upright in the undercarriage of the bus that departs Zharkent We were able to strap the bikes to supporting structures in the cargo area.
The tickets for the bus were 4000tenge/per person. We paid the driver another 3000tenge to make sure that there was space reserved for the bikes - we had to unload/reload the bikes during the crossing first at the Kazakh exit and then unload again at the Chinese entry. Everyone else on the bus also has a ton of luggage so coming early to get the spots for the bikes was important.
Chinese customs was relatively straight forward. We had to unload all the bags off the bikes 2x to go through x-Ray machines. They were confused by our lack of a Chinese phone number on entry forms and had us wait for awhile and then pull one of us aside for review of phone content and questioning on planned route and journey. We were honest about our plan to cycle to the Mongolian border and we didn’t need to show proof of departure from China. The tone of conversation and questioning was all very cordial and the use of their language translation devices made talking pretty seamless!
[Important Note]
Once across the border (yay!!) cash and credit cards are not widely accepted. We had downloaded Alipay in advance anticipating this, but found out that you need Wi-Fi to pay and this only works with a Chinese SIM. There is literally no way to access the internet without a Chinese SIM and in Xinjiang foreigner are unable to purchase these SIMs. I’m not sure where you can buy a Chinese SIM in advance, other regions of China do sell them to foreigners without issue if you are coming from somewhere else, but considering there doesn’t appear to be ATMs and things are pretty cashless it would be hard to get around without AliPay or WeChat Wallet.
Thank you for your report as well. Regarding your important note, which is indeed very important: how did you manage in the end? Or how are you managing at all? I think we'll face the same problems. Do maybe eSIMs work?
I crossed yesterday from Almaty to China and can share my experiences. Thanks to the users above for their posts as was a big help when planning!
I had some trouble getting to Zharkent as tried to take a train to a stop nearby thinking there would be taxis to take me to the bus station but the train conductor said there were not be so I stayed on until the border and then backtracked to Zharkent bus station as everyone on train said there is no way to get on a bus at the border. They checked the bus ticket multiple times at the border so I think this must be true and you have to officially buy one in Zharkent rather than sneaking on a bus at the border as I hoped to do.
Got to Zharkent at 2pm and had to wait 2 hours before the minibus I was assigned left. Took 40 mins to the border and then went then I was surprised by how quick we went through. On the Kazakh side the army people were much more interested in talking about English football than looking at my passport so everyone was done in about 20 mins. Then back on the bus to the china side. Here they made me fill in a form with some details about my trip and asked a little about my plans. One guy spoke English and some other used Google translate but probably only ten mins of questioning and in a friendly manner. They also checked the health declaration form of everyone but not covid tests. Then joined the foreigner queue for the passport control. There were no further questions and was free to enter China! No need to get back on bus so I hopped in a taxi straight to Yining.
On sim cards/Ali pay. I downloaded an e sim before I arrived and had been working perfectly. I have tried three Ali pay transactions and two have worked fine but the other which was at a shop at the train station in Yining didn't work and said the user wasn't setup for international cards.
Overall have found everything pretty easy-going so far and no where near as intense scrutiny as I feared
I crossed yesterday from Almaty to China and can share my experiences. Thanks to the users above for their posts as was a big help when planning!
I had some trouble getting to Zharkent as tried to take a train to a stop nearby thinking there would be taxis to take me to the bus station but the train conductor said there were not be so I stayed on until the border and then backtracked to Zharkent bus station as everyone on train said there is no way to get on a bus at the border. They checked the bus ticket multiple times at the border so I think this must be true and you have to officially buy one in Zharkent rather than sneaking on a bus at the border as I hoped to do.
Got to Zharkent at 2pm and had to wait 2 hours before the minibus I was assigned left. Took 40 mins to the border and then went then I was surprised by how quick we went through. On the Kazakh side the army people were much more interested in talking about English football than looking at my passport so everyone was done in about 20 mins. Then back on the bus to the china side. Here they made me fill in a form with some details about my trip and asked a little about my plans. One guy spoke English and some other used Google translate but probably only ten mins of questioning and in a friendly manner. They also checked the health declaration form of everyone but not covid tests. Then joined the foreigner queue for the passport control. There were no further questions and was free to enter China! No need to get back on bus so I hopped in a taxi straight to Yining.
On sim cards/Ali pay. I downloaded an e sim before I arrived and had been working perfectly. I have tried three Ali pay transactions and two have worked fine but the other which was at a shop at the train station in Yining didn't work and said the user wasn't setup for international cards.
Overall have found everything pretty easy-going so far and no where near as intense scrutiny as I feared
We actually had almost the same experience a couple of days ago. With one exception: our eSIM purchased through hollafly only gives us EDGE the whole time, so that's not really worth it. Which eSIM did you get?
Secondly, it's worth nothing that if you want to catch an afternoon bullet train to Urumqi, it makes sense to go queuing for bus tickets in Zharkent quite early in the morning, as there are a lot of Chinese nationals wanting to cross the border (at least it was the case on a Sunday). we barely made our 16:10 train (plus factor in the two hours time difference because trains run on Beijing time)
I crossed from China to Kazakhstan at Khorgos today (September 12th 2023). Many thanks to jiyuanzh1994 and others for all their helpful info! Here are a couple of updates.
The international bus station is at GPS 44.160962,80.425163, on Nanjing road.
There no longer seems to be any special treatment for foreigners. At 9:30am I tried to go to the “line on the left” to register but I was told I should just go to the regular bus ticket line, where they happily sold me a ticket to Zharkent, The ticket shows the bus license plate number and your seat number. (This turns out to matter!) The bus left at about 10:15am.
Unfortunately a couple of other buses left just ahead of us, so there was a long backup at Chinese immigration.
Snafu #1: My Health Declaration QR code was rejected. I had used my laptop to get a QR code the night before, and I had left the “Vehicle No” field blank, as I had no idea what to put there. It turns out they want the bus license plate number and your seat number. Which you only find out when you buy your bus ticket! I had to scramble to get a new QR code. There were two very busy ladies helping me and many other passengers straighten things out. (Thank you both!) My advice: You can use your phone to get a QR code ahead of time and then use the Health Declaration “save” option to save all your information. Then at the bus station when you have your ticket, create a new QR code by first reloading your saved information and then adding the bus and seat info and then generating a new QR code.
Chinese immigration took about 10 minutes. They asked various questions, but it was all quite relaxed. I had been traveling in Tibet as well as Xinjiang, and they asked to see my Tibet photos. So I gave them my camera and they browsed for a bit. They didn’t ask to see my phone or my laptop.
Snafu #2. I finally exited Chinese immigration just in time to see my bus driving off! I guess they only wait for a certain amount of time. I was told to wait and I was then put on the next Zharkent bus about 30 minutes later. I got the impression that this is a fairly normal thing to happen.
Kazakh immigration was reasonably quick and straightforward.
Hello,
For all my bicycle companions!
I’ve just crossed the Khorgas border from Kazakhstan to China, on tuesday 12th september 2023 !
It took me 3 days by bicycle from the Charyn Canyon to the border i’ve slept near the border as it was getting late !
I’ve put my spots on iOverlander for wild camping but also for supermarkets to refill food/water, be careful there is only a small supermarket ( on the opposite side) at the end of the highway take some water with you !
I’ve rode all the way on the highway to the border, there is a small shoulder and the drivers are careful so no problems to get there by bicycle ! There is a toll at the end but you just have to circle around it.
At the border the Kazakh Soldier showed me the way to go by bicycle ! Very friendly and nice and at the chinese side there is a building on the left a bit up and you have to go there.
The borders are open to foreigners. ( if you got the visa ofc)
No problems to get the stamp at the kazakh side but at the Chinese side they asked me what was my plan and all the countries i’ve visited and if i’ve ever been to china (yes) ! They didnt went trough my phone and after that they let me go!
At Khorgas chinese side, i’ve got stop by the police and ask for Ids nothing serious and after that they helped me to get some food and change my Tenge for Yuans !
In Xinjiang there is a police station / control at every city but mostly empty not in function?
I want to cross from China to Kazakhstan via the Khorgos / Nur Zholy border crossing at the beginning of the golden week holiday.
Does anyone have some intel on wether the border will be open or closed?
My second question is at what time does the border close? On the website it states that the border opens at 10:30 so there must be a closing time as well?
Does anyone have some intel on wether the border will be open or closed?
29th september closed, 30th open, 1st 2nd and 3rd october closed, 4th october open.
Source: I'm not sure that's what I read on a chinese social media post, but it doesn't come from an official account. So likely but unverified info.
Edit: I'm going to give a phone call to the international bus station in Khorgos (霍尔果斯国际客运站), I'm pretty sure they can confirm the info. Then I'll head back to you.
Edit 2: my friend called them, they say they're not sure yet. They asked us to call again the 28th
- Zharkent Bus Station is at Ulitsa Zhibek Zholy 39, Zharkent, Kazakhstan. Just opposite the road from the purported Zharkent Bus Station on Google Maps
- The taxi cost ¬7000 tenge, bring extra from ATM in Almaty. I've unfortunately forgot the cost from Zharkent -> Horgos but I have a hunch it was more expensive than 3500 tenge
- The drive from Almaty -> Zharkent is 3.5-4 hours, book a taxi in advance through the "Intercity" option on InDrive if you want a chance at catching the earlier of the two buses, the latest advisable time arriving at Zharkent is 11:30am. Our bus was delayed by 2.5 hours after arriving 20 minutes before the scheduled departure at 12:10pm!
- Have Russian pre-downloaded on Google Translate, signal is dodgy in Zharkent and there are no English signs or speakers
- Crossers are mainly Kazakh-Chinese families, all speak Russian, some speak Chinese
- There are no seats or air-con in the shelter, but there is a stand selling snacks and ice-cream opposite to the shelter
- The Horgos ICBC free-trade zone is surprisingly well-known, but I don't believe there are minibuses from there to the border crossing a kilometer east. Don't mix them up
Horgos Border Crossing
- A "health declaration form" (健康卡) is required on entry to China. No need to do this before arriving at the border, there is a clerk and machine to fill out all details. No COVID vaccination, lack of symptoms, COVID test or recorded COVID history necessary.
- However, it asks for a contact inside China and a Chinese phone number for contact. The final destination can be fabricated.
- No cellphone check or spyware installation, fingerprint and camera scan and bag x-ray, they interrogated me about my washing powder but didn't notice the aerosol can. We had VPNs installed (Clash & Shadowsocks) before entry, and continued to use it throughout Urumqi and the rest of China
- Kazakh border guards were easy, Chinese border guards interrogated my English friend about his repeated visits to the UAE, speaking Chinese helped a lot in communication, we joked a bit and they wished us well. Download Chinese on Google Translate. I had to use Google Translate to assist my mediocre Chinese, the border guards didn't mind.
- The crossing was made with 2 people, both 18 years old, one of which is Han Chinese with some Chinese ability, they may have been easier on us.
- Border crossing was completed in 0.5-1 hours, you had to stick with your minibus group so this is provided no-one has issues.
Khorgos -> Yining (taxi)
- Taxi should cost 200 yuan, charged 400 yuan, taxi driver noticed we were cutting it close for the train, so went on an express highway and made us pay for the 30 yuan toll fee
- Taxi took 1.5-2 hours with minimal traffic
- Yining and Ili are synonymous, taxi driver seems less confused when saying Yining
Yining -> Urumqi (sleeper train via Kuitun)
- Needs to be booked in advance. 5.5 hour bullet trains operate through the day but these are booked up as soon as there was availability, we had to rely on 2 sleeper trains transferring in Kuitun town at 3am. We lucked out and snatched a soft sleeper instead of a hard sleeper due to 2 cancellations the day before! Don't forget the 2 hour time jump forward when booking!
- All train boarding is ticket-free. Present your passport to an assistant near the gate after queuing and they'll manually input your details, no need to claim a ticket
- Sleeper trains are standard, our soft sleeper cabin partner was a deafeningly loud snorer. The hard sleepers are very crowded and also very noisy, the hard seats are full of sleepers. The leg from Kuitun -> Urumqi was a hard seat, none of the seat numbers are checked, we found ours occupied by someone who'd made himself at home by taking up 4 seats, we relocated
- Aerosols confiscated on entry at Yining station, and elsewhere in China
Urumqi
- Nothing to do in this city, just cameras. We tried to rest despite missing our hotel reservation. No hotel staff speak English and there's 3 Grand Mercures in Urumqi, be careful which one you direct the taxi to. If you have a contact inside China, it is recommendable to ask them to ship SIM cards to a hotel in Urumqi for you to pickup, although cash managed to suffice for our first day there. Make sure you're carrying change, taxis rarely have much to give back.
- Security checks are strict throughout Xinjiang, allocate an extra 15 minutes for searches and don't carry aerosols on hand, they will be confiscated.
Last edited by HalloM8 on Mon Oct 02, 2023 7:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
Does anyone have some intel on wether the border will be open or closed?
29th september closed, 30th open, 1st 2nd and 3rd october closed, 4th october open.
Source: I'm not sure that's what I read on a chinese social media post, but it doesn't come from an official account. So likely but unverified info.
Edit: I'm going to give a phone call to the international bus station in Khorgos (霍尔果斯国际客运站), I'm pretty sure they can confirm the info. Then I'll head back to you.
Edit 2: my friend called them, they say they're not sure yet. They asked us to call again the 28th
Hi! Could you let me know the result? I too want to pass the border from Khorgos during the holidays, possibly on 3rd, if it is open. Much appreciated!
We were able to strap the bikes to supporting structures in the cargo area. 
that's what I read on a chinese social media post, but it doesn't come from an official account. So likely but unverified info.