The gait planning and control are the main challenge for hexapod robots in unknown terrains, especially when the robot needs to turn. A gait planning and control method based on velocity vector is proposed in this paper for gait turning. Firstly, the overall kinematics model and typical gait sequence of the hexapod robot are introduced. Secondly, the relationship between velocity vector and rotation center is established, and the algorithm flow of diagonal gait and turn gait based on velocity vector is designed. Finally, the Co-simulation based on MATLAB and V-REP is carried out. The simulation results show that the robot body can keep turning with different radius in the process of diagonal gait, which verifies the effectiveness of the algorithm.