National Highway 219 is a world-class landscape avenue, stretching from Kanas in Xinjiang in the north to Dongxing, Guangxi in the south, with a total length of 10,065 kilometers, which is currently the longest national highway in mainland China. Along the way, it passes through snow-capped mountains, glaciers, mountain valleys, rivers and lakes, grassland forests, and finally to the sea. The rich landscape and rich folk customs are amazing, covering the border areas of Xinjiang, Tibet, Yunnan and Guangxi, and are the main artery connecting the western border of the mainland, and are called the "Avenue of the Country" by self-driving tour enthusiasts.
The G219 line is divided into the old national highway 219 and the new national highway 219. The old National Highway 219, the New Tibet Highway, runs from Yecheng County in Kashgar Prefecture, Xinjiang in the north to the 2,140-kilometer stone monument in Latse County, Shigatse City, Tibet, where it intersects with the China-Nepal Highway section of National Highway 318, also known as Yela Highway. The main administrative regions passing through the prefecture level and above are Kashgar, Hotan, Ali and Shigatse, which is the main transportation route connecting Tibet and Xinjiang, and is also the highest highway in the world, with an average altitude of nearly 5,000 meters. Opened to traffic on October 6, 1957, it has been extended and renovated many times, with a total length of 2,140 kilometers, which is the third highway to enter Tibet after the Sichuan-Tibet Highway and the Qinghai-Tibet Highway. On March 5, 2018, the Ministry of Transport issued the Notice on Adjusting the Naming and Numbering of the National Highway Network, extending the northern end of the original G219 to Kanas in northern Xinjiang, and extending the southern end to Dongxing City, Guangxi, and the entire highway passes through four provinces and autonomous regions of Xinjiang, Tibet, Yunnan and Guangxi. The new G219 is 10,065 kilometers long, twice the length of National Highway 318 (5,476 km) and currently the longest national highway in China. This national highway not only has landscape elements such as snowy mountains, grasslands, no man's land, Yadan landforms, tropical rainforests, and the sea, but also becomes an important border defense line on the mainland.
G219, as the longest world-class landscape avenue in China, rich in landscape and rich folk customs, is the highest highway in the world, is the main artery connecting the western border of the continent, the land and sea Silk Road, walking through different cultural regions of China, along which you can enjoy 5 peaks above 8,000 meters above sea level, 16 icebergs and 44 glaciers... Spanning snow-capped mountains, grasslands, deserts, Gobi, lakes, canyons, plateaus, tropical rainforests and seashores, G219 National Highway has a continuous beautiful scenery, and the types of natural landscapes are all-encompassing and colorful, which are rare in the world, beautiful and magnificent coexist, and humanities and history coexist.
Self-driving tour G219, starting from Kanas, Xinjiang in the north, passing through Ili along the snowy mountains and meadows, passing through the Ali no-man's land in Tibet, and then going south along Bingchacha and Tengchong in Yunnan, reaching the border city of Pingxiang in Guangxi, and finally reaching Dongxing, encountering the endless sea. Follow this world-class landscape avenue, where almost all of the desirable landscapes are located.
On December 5, 2020, under the guidance of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the cultural and tourism administrative departments of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Tibet Autonomous Region, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and Yunnan Province jointly established the China G219 Tourism Promotion Alliance in Nanning. The establishment of the Alliance conforms to the general trend of China's tourism development, with tourism promoting development, promoting the rejuvenation of border areas and enriching the people, enhancing consensus, sharing experience, deepening cooperation, and promoting the sustainable and prosperous development of tourism along the G219 route. Since its establishment, the Alliance has organized themed promotion activities in Guangxi and Xinjiang. On March 16 this year, Yunnan Province, as a rotating province, will host a promotional activity in Nujiang, Yunnan, and organize a team of more than 100 people from all over the country to experience the beautiful highway of Yunnan Nujiang on National Highway 219 and feel the unique charm of National Avenue.
- Xinjiang section of National Highway 219
The Xinjiang section of National Highway 219 has a total length of 3,216 kilometers, passing through 8 prefectures and 7 divisions and cities on the western border of Xinjiang, and can involve radiation to 10 5A-level scenic spots and 25 4A-level scenic spots along the way. Along the way, it includes unique natural landscapes such as snow-capped mountains, alpine meadows, grasslands, wetlands, lakes, glaciers, Gobi, deserts, etc., and is also a large vertical from nomadic culture to oasis civilization, integrating the most typical border characteristics of Xinjiang, natural geography and landforms, ethnic customs, and has multiple attributes. In recent years, the strategy of rejuvenating Xinjiang through tourism has been deeply implemented, and the Xinjiang tourism market in Xinjiang has continued to be hot, and the Xinjiang section of National Highway 219 has become a "net red highway" for tourists across the country.
Photo by Zhang Youlin at Kanas Lake, Xinjiang
Recommended route 1 of Xinjiang section of National Highway 219: Border post red self-driving tour
Step into the northwest of the motherland and feel the beauty of the border; Follow the footprints of the reclamation and pay tribute to the motherland in the northwest north. Feel the simple patriotic feelings, visit the beautiful scenery of the port and Bayimuzha, recall the story of the Little Poplar Outpost, visit the Sun Longzhen Martyrs Memorial Hall, and feel the border defense spirit represented by the spirit of "taking root in border defense and flourishing" Little Poplar.
Border post red self-driving tour route: Urumqi - Wuerhe Devil City - Wucaitan Scenic Area - Burjin County - Baisha Lake Scenic Area of the 10th Division - 185th Regiment of the 1st Company in the Northwest - Burjin County - 186th Regiment of the 10th Division Jimunai Port - 165th Regiment of the 9th Division - Bayimuza Scenic Area - Little Poplar Outpost of the 161st Regiment of the 9th Division, Sun Longzhen Martyrs Memorial Hall - Urumqi
Recommended route 2 of Xinjiang section of National Highway 219: Southern Xinjiang Red Tour
There are natural dangers that run through the traffic of northern and southern Xinjiang, and the 359 Brigade Reclamation Memorial Hall with a glorious tradition... Drive along the Red Reclamation Route of the Silk Road, experience the frontier scenery, remember the history of the Corps, carry forward the spirit of the Corps, and praise the cause of reclamation and border reclamation.
Southern Xinjiang Red Tour Route: Urumqi - Korla - Maran Hongshan Military Expo Park - Tiemen Pass - Daxi Village - Luobu Village - Luntai Western Regions Dufu Cultural Town - Kuqa - Aksu People's Heroes Monument - Aksu Museum - First Division Aral 359th Brigade Reclamation Memorial Hall - Monument to the Chinese People's Liberation Army marching into Hotan
- Tibet section of National Highway 219
Driving on the Tibet section of National Highway 219 is like walking on the clouds, with an average altitude of about 5,000 meters, and familiar landscapes such as Pangong Lake, Guge Dynasty, Mount Everest, Mapunyongcuo, Kailash and Brahmaputra Grand Canyon are located here.
National Highway 219 is a "half-empty" road into Tibet, passing through several hundreds of kilometers of no-man's land, and the paving conditions are daunting. From "Ultimate Ali" to "Zangyuan Shannan", from "Peak Dream" Shigatse to "Snowy Jiangnan" Nyingchi, from stars to the sea, from mountains to rivers, snowy peaks, glaciers, meandering streams, and beautiful lakes.
Photo by Li Yulin, Tibet section of National Highway 219
Recommended route 1 of the Tibet section of National Highway 219: Bingchacha crosses the road of imagination
When G219 meets G214, Ranwu meets G318; When the Nu River flows parallel to the Lancang River, Dangchacha agreed with Shangri-La to create a new Yunnan-Tibet tourism loop of "three Gs traveling together and three rivers flowing together".
The whole journey is about 1465 kilometers: Bingzhongluo (Yunnan) - G219 National Highway - Songta Village (the first village in Tibet) - Tsavarong - Chayu County - G559 - Ranwu - Basu - G214 - Zuogong - Mangkang - Quzika - Deqin (Yunnan) - Shangri-La - Diqing Shangri-La Airport (fly)
Recommended route 2 of the Tibet section of National Highway 219: Feel the dream trip to the peak of the plateau
When G219 meets the world's highest peak, G318 holds hands with G219, and the motherland's ultimate border experience "8" and "9" do not leave "10". Meet in Lhasa, hand in hand into the hometown of Mount Everest, snowy peaks, glaciers, meandering streams, lakes, only Mount Everest, this is a "peak dream, Tibetan border township covenant" ultimate journey.
The whole journey is about 1850 kilometers: Lhasa - Langkazi County - Gyantse - G219 - Kangma County - Yadong County - Gangba County - Dingjie County - Dingri County - Mount Everest - Nyemula - Latse - Shigatse City - Lhasa - Gonggar Airport (fly)
Photo by Li Yulin, Tibet's Yangzhuo Yongcuo
Recommended route 3 of the Tibet section of National Highway 219: Tianhu Tour Tourist Loop
When G219 meets the snowy "holy lake", meets the snowy mountain, meets the "holy lake", looks at the human history, and "takes measures one after another". Encounter glaciers, snow-capped mountains, lakes, and historical monuments, this is a "Sky Lake Tour" tourist loop that "crosses three cities, crosses the sacred lake, and sees yourself".
The whole journey is about 2200 kilometers: Lhasa - Langkazi County - G219 - Luozha County - Kangma County - Gangba County - Dingjie County - Dingri County - Jilong County - Saga County - Zhongba County - Gar County - Ali Kunsha Airport (fly)
- Yunnan section of National Highway 219
From National Highway 219, along the Bingchacha Highway into Bingzhongluo, Yunnan, bid farewell to "clouds" Tibet and enter Yunnan, the "south of the clouds". Here there are the difficult and dangerous Bingchacha and the mysterious Bingzhongluo, and the southwest monsoon swings in the season of the Nu River Grand Canyon. Coming to the first bay of the Nu River and the village of Wuli not far away, the water vapor refracts the sunlight, making every corner seem to be full of "fairy air". The Yunnan section of National Highway 219 also connects Tengchong, which is known as the "first city on the extreme edge", Lincang, the place where China's Wa culture gathers, Puer, the "pearl of the green sea", Xishuangbanna, the "emerald in the crown of plants", as well as Honghe, Wenshan and other places, allowing tourists to enter Yunnan in all seasons from the scenery of ice and snow and the depth of canyons.
Photo by Wen Shanpu Hei Peng Xueping
Recommended route 1 of Yunnan section of National Highway 219: Gaoligong Mountain Secret Land Tour
Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture is inhabited by 21 ethnic minorities such as Lisu, Nu, Pumi and Dulong, and is also a place rich in biodiversity and cultural diversity in the mainland, known as "World Species Gene Bank", "Natural Geological Museum", "A Living History of Social Development" and "Ocean of National Songs and Dances". In the long historical development, all ethnic minorities have multiplied and flourished for generations, worked together, written a glorious cultural chapter with their own blood, sweat and wisdom, and created a rich and colorful national culture. Nujiang Prefecture is named because the Nu River runs from north to south. The best time to visit the Nu River is from October to April. National Highway 219 crosses Lushui, Fugong, Gongshan and Bingzhongluo in Nujiang Prefecture.
Recommended route 2 of Yunnan section of National Highway 219: Baoshan Hot Spring Volcano Experience Tour
National Highway 219 enters Baoshan Tengchong City, the "first city on the extreme side", from the secret Nujiang River. Tengchong City is located in the southwest of Baoshan City, Yunnan Province, adjacent to Myanmar in the west, 217 kilometers from Tengchong to Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State, and is one of the necessary places for Yunnan to reach Myanmar, India and Thailand. Tengchong was called Yunyue during the Western Han Dynasty, and Tengchong Prefecture was established in the middle of the Dali Kingdom. Due to the important geographical location, heavy troops were sent to garrison it in successive dynasties, and the Ming Dynasty also built a stone city, calling it "the first city on the extreme side". Hot springs, volcanoes, rainforests and unique Biandihan culture make for a unique experience on road trips. National Highway 219 passes through Tengchong Diantan, Mingguang, Gudong and Longling County in Baoshan City.
Scenery of Pu'er Tea Garden in Yunnan Photo by Zhang Xin
Recommended route 3 of Yunnan section of National Highway 219: Lincang Wa Township Primitive Tribal Tour
Lincang is an ancient, mysterious and beautiful land where 23 ethnic minorities have thrived for generations. It is a place where China's Wa culture gathers, and it is also the "capital of constant spring" with a pleasant climate all year round. The green mountains and babbling water sing beautifully, and the wild fruits and fungi after rain are nature's gifts. Humanities and art achieve each other, and man and nature live in harmony, creating the mysterious and unique beauty of Lincang. National Highway 219 will pass through three county towns here: Yongde, Zhenkang and Cangyuan.
- Guangxi section of National Highway 219
The 704.2-kilometer-long section of National Highway 219 in Guangxi belongs to the China-Vietnam border area, involving 3 border cities and 8 counties, with rich and unique tourism resources. The G219 Guangxi section starts from Dongxing City, Fangchenggang, and ends at Baise Napo, running through the beautiful scenery of Guangxi's secret land. Driving through the rivers and mountains, a landscape painting that stretches for more than 700 kilometers slowly stretches under the wheel. The road is built along the mountain and around the water, setting off the humanities, history and scenery on both sides of the road, and carrying the memories of the depths of time. It is like a ribbon floating from the Beibu Gulf to the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, floating on the hills and mountains. This road is full of the poetry and wonderland of Guangxi's landscapes, and it is also full of pictures rendered by time and style.
Guangxi Chongzuo Detian Waterfall Photo by Li Yulin
Recommended route 1 of the Guangxi section of National Highway 219: Passing through the Hena Expressway between the landscape galleries, the charming scenery is like a fairyland
The British "Mirror" once described it as "the most beautiful road in the world, and the stunning scenery means that it may be the road to paradise". This is the Hena Expressway in Guangxi, with a total length of 503 kilometers, consisting of the sections of Hepu-Qinzhou (142 km), Qinzhou to Chongzuo (129 km), Chongzuo to Jingxi (147 km), and Jingxi to Napo (85 km).
Hena Expressway self-driving route: Baise Napo Tunlitun Black Clothes Zhuangzhai ("living fossil" of Zhuang culture) - Jingxi Goose Spring (one of the three famous springs in the southwest) - Jiuzhou Ancient Town (the hometown of Chinese hydrangeas) - Tongling Grand Canyon (the largest waterfall in Asia) - Chongzuo Detian Transnational Waterfall (Asia's largest transnational waterfall) - Daxin Mingshi Pastoral Garden (the location of the TV series "Flower Thousand Bones") - Fangchenggang Shiwandashan Forest Park - Qinzhou Bazhaigou - Qinzhou Sanniang Bay (the hometown of Chinese white dolphins) - Hepu Han Dynasty Culture Museum- Haisi Shougang - Beihai Old Street - Beihai Silver Beach (the world's first beach)
Photo by Li Yulin, Guangxi Chongzuo Friendship Guan
Recommended route 2 of the Guangxi section of National Highway 219: Drive Chongzuo "Drunken Beauty Border Pass Style Road" to enjoy the mystery and beauty of the border
In Guangxi, there is a tourist landscape avenue that is not long, but almost covers all the beautiful scenery in nature, mountains, rivers, rainforests, villages, cultural customs, etc., imaginable beauty can be found on this line, this is Chongzuo first-class tourist landscape avenue, is one of the routes that self-driving enthusiasts have to go. With a total length of 84.17 kilometers, it connects the three counties of Chongzuo Daxin, Longzhou and Ningming, and a line connects the iconic scenic spots of Chongzuo such as Detian Transnational Waterfall Scenic Area, Mingshi Pastoral Scenic Area and Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art Cultural Landscape, and is known as "Drunken Beautiful Border Pass Style Road".
Chongzuo first-class tourist road self-driving route: Chongzuo Detian Transnational Waterfall (national 5A-level tourist scenic spot, Asia's largest transnational waterfall) - Mingshi Pastoral Scenic Area (the location of the TV series "Flower Thousand Bones") - Zuojiang Huashan Petroglyph Landscape (rock art world cultural heritage) - Nonggang National Nature Reserve (a resort for birdwatching lovers)
(Editor: Yang Shuo)