Deserts are one of the geomorphologic types in arid areas, and also a special kind of tourist resources.
Desert tourism is
becoming novel and fashionable in the world. with the extensive area, large desert area and outstanding culture of the Silk Road, Xinjiang has its own unique desert tourist resources in China. In this paper, the development and utilization of the tourist resources in
Taklamakan Desert are researched. It has many potentials to exploit the desert tourist resources in Taklamakan Desert: the
desert tourism complies with the main trend of domestic tourist market; the desert is rich in tourist resources including the historical relics, magnificent natural scenes, modernized oil industrial facilities, etc. On the other hand, it has some difficulties to develop tourism in the desert, such as the poor infrastructure, atrocious climatic conditions, etc. Furthermore, the advantages and disadvantages of developing the tourist resources in Taklamakan Desert are also analyzed. According to the tourist purposes, the tourists are divided into three groups, i.e., the sightseeing tourists, explorative tourists and archaeological tourists. Thus, the various touring lines and activities as well as the various marketing means are put forward. The characteristics and the developing ways of the tourist resources in Taklamakan Desert are also discussed so as to promote the development strategy of tourism in the desert.