URUMQI - A cross-border group tourist route was officially opened in Xinjiang's Alataw Pass City Wednesday, offering a new channel for Chinese citizens to visit Kazakhstan.

Alataw Pass is less than 100 km away from some of the major tourist destinations in the country.

Tourism increased after a memorandum on Chinese group tours to Kazakhstan was signed last December.

The first eight Chinese tourists will spend six days on touring the country, tasting local specialties and watching opera and ballet performances.