Ordos, a city in the desert, mixes tradition and luxury

Xiangshawan, or Resounding Sand Bay is China's largest desert tourism resort. [Photos Provided To China Daily]

Genghis Khan's tomb lies in the Back Palace. No one knows exactly where he was buried. According to Mongol culture researchers, the burial sites of Mongolian rulers were kept secret.

Rebuilt on the original site of Khan's tomb, the mausoleum houses many historic relics that remind people of the ancient Mongol civilization.

The conqueror, born in 1162, was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire that became the largest contiguous empire in history. His grandson, Kublai Khan (1215-94), was the founder of the Yuan Dynasty that ruled China from 1271 to 1368.

Xiangshawan, or Resounding Sand Bay, is the other top attraction of the autonomous region. Located to the east of the Kubuqi desert, it is China's largest desert tourism resort. It attracts many travelers, both from the rest of the country and abroad, with its sand that can "sing", the imposing views of the desert and various kinds of recreational facilities.

When people climb down the 110-meter-high Xiangshawan or go down by cable car, they will hear sounds that range from as light as a frog croaking to as high as planes taking off.

There are many theories about how the sound is made. But so far, researchers have not reached an agreement.

Travelers can also experience nearly 100 kinds of recreational programs in the nearby resorts, including camel riding, desert motor and circus. The rituals and ceremony of the Wedding of Ordos is also an attraction to many travelers.

In the evening, after spending a day in the places of interests, travelers can sing and dance with new friends in a circle round a bonfire, or just sit and enjoy watching beautiful Inner Mongolian girls dance while sipping milk tea.