The train station lies in the southwest of the city, with direct services to and from Beijing, Shanghai, Lanzhou, Xi'an, Chengdu and Almaty (in Kazakhstan). There's also a local rail line running south to Korla. To or from Turpan, however, you're best off taking the bus.

The main long-distance bus station is a few blocks north of the train station, on Heilongjiang Lu. If you're arriving by bus, however, you will not necessarily end up here - Urumqi has special bus stops for every city in Xinjiang, all located outside their respective regional offices. Kashgar buses, for example, stop near the train station while Turpan minibuses stop at the Erdaoqiao market.

Urumqi has an international airport , 15km from the city; access is either by taxi or by the airport bus, which stops at the CAAC office on Youhao Lu, northwest of the post office. There are flights within the province and to all major Chinese cities, and (through various airlines) to Almaty, Istanbul, Islamabad, Moscow, Sharjah, Tashkent and Hong Kong. The flight to Islamabad, which at the moment is once-weekly and costs ¥2270, could be a useful fall-back if the Karakoram Highway is closed.

Distances within the city are fairly large, so you will need to use buses and taxis . Most taxi rides within the city cost around ¥10.