Location
The Erdaoqiao Bazaar is in the center of Urumqi, capital of west China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

History
The Erdaoqiao Bazaar has been a trading hub for goods from all over Central Asia since it was set up 130 years ago in the late Qing Dynasty. In 2002, the Urumqi city government renovated Erdaoqiao and opened a 1.2-kilometer shopping street to house Erdaoqiao Market, a Xinjiang International Bazaar, and a Xinjiang Ethnic Products Street.

Erdaoqiao has become a "golden shopping district" with ethnic minority goods and handicrafts from China, Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan and other neighboring countries, attracting thousands of sightseers and shoppers every day.

Attractions
Erdaoqiao is the largest market of ethnic minority goods in Xinjiang. The covered market was first opened in 1982 and the new market was completed in 2002. Merchants at the bazaar sell all kinds of items, from local products to imported products, and from arts and crafts to animals. The most famous product to buy here is the Kashgar knives. If you grow tired of shopping, the bazaar also has places to eat to replenish your energy. The best market day is the Sunday market, and on every Sunday there are more stalls and more goods to buy than on any other day The famous "three treasures of Hotan", jade, carpets and silk, are on offer, as are copperware, exquisite Yengisar daggers, traditional clothing, Uygur embroidered hats, musical instruments, handmade carpets, and cashmere scarves, not to mention all kinds of dried fruit and herbs. Bargaining is necessary, as all prices are negotiable.

Next to the Erdaqiao market is the Erdaqiao mosque, another popular tourist location.