Hotan Tuancheng Old Quarter 和田团城

About Hotan Tuancheng Old Quarter

The quarter lies in the central part of Hotan City and takes its present name from its layout: lanes radiate from a centre and wrap around it, so local people call it Tuancheng, a name that also carries the sense of a city of unity. Its older name was Pigeon Lane, which stood beside the grand bazaar and was where traders selling pigeons and other poultry gathered; the houses were mostly of rammed earth and brick-and-timber construction, and basic services such as water, electricity and gas lagged behind. In 2016 Beijing put 153 million yuan of aid-Xinjiang funds into starting a rebuilding project that covered about 420,000 square metres and 3,500 households, working on a one-street-one-plan, one-household-one-design basis while keeping the Aiyiwang (阿依旺) house style. Patterned brick walls, carved wooden doors and windows, earth-brown tiles and arched skylights are among the elements it kept. In 2020 the quarter was created a national 4A-level tourist attraction, and the prefecture's own reference list of A-grade attractions records Tuancheng as a 4A attraction in Hotan City.

The quarter draws on intangible cultural heritage including Atlas silk, Hotan hand-made woollen carpets and Hotan traditional woodcarving. It has more than 600 businesses, which directly employ nearly 2,000 people across more than ten kinds of business including food and snacks, hotels and homestays, cultural-creative products, travel photography and heritage-craft experiences. From 2025 Hotan City has run a night economy under the Huoyan Tuancheng (烟火团城) brand, and the Tuancheng scenic area was selected as an autonomous-region-level night-time culture and tourism consumption cluster.

What to look for

• The Aiyiwang-style houses the 2016 rebuilding kept: patterned brick walls, carved wooden doors and windows, earth-brown tiles and arched skylights.
• The lane that was Pigeon Lane — the address the prefecture's register prints for 和田团城景区 is 和田市鸽子巷, and the city's feature records that it stood beside the grand bazaar.
• Craft businesses built on the intangible heritage the quarter draws on, including Atlas silk, Hotan hand-made woollen carpets and Hotan traditional woodcarving.
• The night-time programme the city has run under the Huoyan Tuancheng brand from 2025, which the feature lists as night performances, night-time sightseeing and night cycling, among a series of activities.

Location & getting there

Getting to Hotan Tuancheng Old Quarter

Identify the main visitor approach and any separately managed houses, museums or performances. Ask before entering residential spaces or photographing residents.

• Search for 和田团城 with 和田地区 and 和田市.