Changji Prefecture Administrative Divisions

Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture (昌吉回族自治州) lies along the northern foothills of the Tianshan Mountains and surrounds Urumqi on three sides. Established in 1954, it is one of China's two Hui autonomous prefectures. The prefectural government is based in Changji City. As of 2026, Changji Prefecture administers 2 county-level cities, 4 counties and 1 autonomous county, for a total of seven county-level administrative divisions: Changji City, Fukang City, Hutubi County, Manas County, Qitai County, Jimsar County and Mori Kazakh Autonomous County.

At township level, the current structure contains 82 formal administrative divisions: 10 subdistricts, 46 towns, 15 ordinary townships and 11 ethnic townships. This is an important correction to some older introductions: for example, Fukang currently has 1 ordinary township and 2 Kazakh ethnic townships, rather than three ethnic townships.

Tourism Geography of Changji Prefecture

Changji stretches from the high Tianshan Mountains southward across fertile piedmont plains and deep into the Junggar Basin. This creates an exceptionally varied tourism landscape combining alpine lakes, forests, grasslands, Danxia landforms, Silk Road archaeology, ancient cities, desert landscapes, poplar forests, wetlands, rural villages and Hui, Kazakh, Tatar and Uzbek cultural traditions.

The prefecture's tourism identity is anchored by two internationally important heritage landscapes. Tianshan Tianchi in Fukang forms part of the UNESCO World Heritage property Xinjiang Tianshan, while Beiting Ancient City in Jimsar is a component of the UNESCO-listed Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an–Tianshan Corridor. Beiting is also Xinjiang's only National Archaeological Site Park.

Two national 5A attractions form the core of Changji's nature-tourism brand: Tianshan Tianchi and Jiangbulake. In 2026 both remained among the prefecture's most heavily promoted destinations, alongside Beiting Ancient City, Xinjiang Grand Theatre, Kenswat, rural tourism, study tours and the eastern Tianshan self-drive corridors.

Changji City – Urban Culture, Rural Tourism and the Tianshan Foothills

Changji City (昌吉市) is the prefectural capital and the principal accommodation, dining and tourism-distribution center closest to Urumqi. It currently administers 6 subdistricts, 8 towns, 1 township and 1 ethnic township, totaling 16 township-level divisions.

The urban area is strongest for museums, family attractions and modern cultural tourism, including Changji Dinosaur Museum, Changji Museum, Xinjiang Grand Theatre, Tingzhou Ecological Green Valley and the city's food districts. The surrounding plains add rural tourism, agricultural experiences and industrial study tours, while the southern administrative areas of Liuhuanggou, Miao'ergou and Ashili climb into the Tianshan Mountains and offer grasslands, canyons and Kazakh pastoral culture.

Liugong is particularly associated with the Dushi Tourism Scenic Area and rural tourism, while Ashili Kazakh Ethnic Township provides access to mountain grasslands and pastoral landscapes. Changji City therefore works well as a bridge between Urumqi-style urban travel and the more rural and mountainous landscapes of the prefecture.

Fukang City – Tianshan Tianchi and Mountain Resort Tourism

Fukang City (阜康市) currently administers 4 subdistricts, 4 towns, 1 ordinary township and 2 Kazakh ethnic townships, totaling 11 township-level divisions.

Its tourism economy is dominated by Tianshan Tianchi, one of Xinjiang's best-known alpine destinations. The scenic area combines a high-mountain lake with spruce forests, snow peaks, valleys and Kazakh cultural landscapes and remains one of Changji Prefecture's principal tourism engines. During the 2026 May Day holiday alone, Tianchi received 88,000 visits.

Fukang has increasingly expanded beyond the lake itself through hot-spring resorts, skiing, camping and educational tourism. Tianchi International Ski Resort, Wujing Hot Spring City and newer visitor experiences such as Fly Over Xinjiang broaden the city's appeal beyond the traditional summer sightseeing season.

Sangonghe and Shanghugou Kazakh ethnic townships add pastoral and mountain culture, while Ganhezi represents Fukang's industrial heritage and the northern foothill economy.

Hutubi County – Rock Art, Danxia Landscapes and Rural Culture

Hutubi County (呼图壁县) has a relatively simple administrative structure of 6 towns and 1 Kazakh ethnic township, totaling seven township-level divisions.

Its best-known cultural resource is the Kangjia Shimenzi Rock Carvings, an important prehistoric rock-art site located in the southern mountain zone. Hutubi is also a major section of Changji's Hundred-Li Danxia Scenic Corridor, where red cliffs, mountain valleys and open grasslands provide strong self-drive scenery.

Ershilidian has developed rural and folk-cultural tourism, while local villages promote traditional food, agricultural experiences and handicrafts. Shitizi Kazakh Ethnic Township represents the county's southern grassland and pastoral landscape and is particularly attractive during the summer grazing season.

For travelers driving west from Changji toward Manas, Hutubi offers a combination of archaeology, mountain scenery, village tourism and local food rather than one single dominant scenic attraction.

Manas County – Wetlands, Jasper Culture and Tianshan Canyons

Manas County (玛纳斯县) currently administers 7 towns, 1 ordinary township and 3 Kazakh ethnic townships, giving it 11 formal township-level divisions.

The county's tourism resources range from Manas National Wetland Park and forest landscapes to jasper culture and the southern Tianshan mountain belt. The Chinese Jasper Garden introduces the county's connection with Manas jasper and stone carving, while wetland areas provide birdwatching and ecological tourism.

Farther south, Kenswat Reservoir and its canyon landscapes have become one of the prefecture's most popular outdoor and aerial-sightseeing destinations. During the 2026 May Day holiday the Kenswat area introduced activities including powered paragliding and hot-air balloons, reflecting its rapid development as an adventure and recreational tourism zone.

Qingshuihe, Taxihe and Hankazitan Kazakh ethnic townships extend into mountain valleys and summer pasture country and are especially valuable for grassland, self-drive and ethnic-cultural experiences.

Qitai County – Jiangbulake, Wheat Fields and Tatar Culture

Qitai County (奇台县) has one of the largest township-level systems in the prefecture, administering 10 towns, 3 ordinary townships and 3 ethnic townships, totaling 16 units.

Its tourism flagship is Jiangbulake, a national 5A scenic area famous for rolling wheat fields, mountain meadows, spruce forests and the striking agricultural landscapes of the eastern Tianshan foothills. In May 2026, Jiangbulake's immersive production Moon over Shule City · Ride toward the Tianshan resumed performances and helped drive a major rise in visitor numbers.

Qitai also has a deep agricultural and Silk Road heritage. Traditional villages, wheat culture, winery tourism and old settlement landscapes complement the mountain scenery. Yaozhanzi Village has become a well-known countryside accommodation and rural-tourism cluster.

A particularly distinctive administrative area is Daquan Tatar Ethnic Township, one of the few Tatar ethnic townships in China. Together with Wumachang and Qiaoren Kazakh ethnic townships, it gives Qitai an unusually diverse ethnic-cultural landscape.

Jimsar County – Beiting Ancient City and the Northern Silk Road

Jimsar County (吉木萨尔县) currently administers 7 towns and 3 townships, totaling ten township-level divisions.

Its defining attraction is Beiting Ancient City, historically one of the most important political and military centers on the northern Silk Road. The ruins and the associated Beiting West Temple were designated a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit in 1988, became part of the National Archaeological Site Park system in 2013 and entered the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2014 as part of the Chang'an–Tianshan Corridor.

Beiting has developed beyond traditional archaeological sightseeing. In 2026 the scenic area added VR experiences, intangible-heritage activities and other immersive programs, while the Silk Road Beiting Ancient City Museum reached single-day visitor peaks of around 6,000 during the May Day holiday.

The county also includes Beiting Town, Quanzijie, Qianfodong-related cultural heritage, mountain valleys and rural tourism villages, making Jimsar particularly strong for Silk Road history, archaeology and educational travel.

Mori Kazakh Autonomous County – Desert, Poplar Forests and Rural Art

Mori Kazakh Autonomous County (木垒哈萨克自治县) is Changji Prefecture's only county-level autonomous county. It currently administers 4 towns, 6 ordinary townships and 1 Uzbek ethnic township, totaling 11 township-level divisions.

Mori offers one of the prefecture's strongest combinations of grassland, desert, agriculture and cultural landscapes. Major tourism resources include the Mori Tianshan China Agricultural Park, Mingshashan–Populus Euphratica landscapes, desert parks, grassland karez systems and traditional villages.

Caizigou has become particularly well known for its rural cultural and artistic environment, associated with writers, artists, studios and village cultural spaces. Other villages have developed homestays, agricultural tourism and local-food experiences, creating a slower style of travel than the major scenic areas of Fukang or Qitai.

The county's ethnic geography is equally distinctive. Kazakh pastoral traditions are widespread, while Danan'gou Uzbek Ethnic Township preserves another layer of Central Asian cultural heritage within eastern Changji.

Three Major Tourism Corridors Across Changji Prefecture

For travel planning, the prefecture can be understood through three broad corridors. The **western corridor—Manas, Hutubi and Changji City—**combines wetlands, Danxia landscapes, rural tourism, urban museums and food culture. The **central Tianshan corridor—Changji City and Fukang—**focuses on mountain scenery, Tianchi, hot springs, skiing and proximity to Urumqi. The **eastern corridor—Jimsar, Qitai and Mori—**brings together Beiting Ancient City, Jiangbulake, wheat-field landscapes, desert scenery, poplar forests and village culture.

This east–west geography makes Changji Prefecture especially suitable for a self-drive journey: travelers can move from wetlands and canyons through major urban centers and alpine lakes before continuing east into Silk Road ruins, highland wheat fields and the desert landscapes of Mori.

Current Administrative Structure of Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture

As of 2026, the seven county-level divisions collectively administer 82 township-level units.

Complete Administrative Division Table of Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture

The following table lists the complete current county-, subdistrict-, town- and township-level administrative structure. Development zones and XPCC regiments are excluded because they are not statutory county or township divisions of Changji Prefecture.

Development Zones and XPCC Areas

Changji Prefecture also contains three major national-level development platforms: Xinjiang Zhundong Economic and Technological Development Zone, Changji National High-Tech Industrial Development Zone and Xinjiang Changji National Agricultural High-Tech Industry Demonstration Zone. The prefectural government's current website lists these separately from the seven county and city governments, confirming that they should be treated as functional development zones rather than additional county-level administrative divisions.

XPCC regiments and farms are also distributed across the wider Changji region. They are important to agriculture, settlement history, industrial development and regional tourism, but they belong to the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps administrative system and should not automatically be inserted into the formal 82-unit county–township administrative table above.