A bit off the beaten track, but I visited Urumqi during December. For one of the nights I stated at the Tianyuan Hotel which is walkable from the current main terminals. It hard to book on line, but like lots of China hotels the best place to book is on trip.com. I stayed in room A609 - which is in block A and is on the top (6th floor). The view was more than adequate. The 5th floor would have been okay too. About a third of the Runway is visible and all movements can either be caught in that gap or as they descend below or climb out over the terminals. Electronics needed to identify stuff, but apart from a brief period of freezing fog nothing was missed in around 18 hours there. Next year a new gigantic new China style terminal and two extra runways are due to open to the north of the existing complex. I think if it's clear views will still be okay, but it will definitely become a little harder.
