4 Days / Discover Lakes and Mountains

Discover Almaty with us 4 days between lakes and mountains, this tour is for people that love mountains and nature but that they also want to see the city life and Almaty, famous for be the most beautiful city in Central Asia.

Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive in Almaty

Pass By: Big Almaty Lake, Ili-Alatau National Park, Almaty 050065 Kazakhstan
We will arrive in Almaty in late morning and after pick up you at airport we will drive until the wonderful Almaty Lake 30 Km out from the city.
The big Almaty Lake is at an altitude of 2500 meters above sea level, before you arrive there, you can admire the natural beauty of the Trans-Ili Alatau Mountains.
From the main road all start to change compare with the city, road climbs higher and higher, the landscape is changing, more and more huge mossy stones appear on the slopes. According to scientists, more than 2,000 years ago there was a strong earthquake in these places, literally moving mountains. As a result of this natural cataclysm a natural dam was formed and a giant bowl deep of 38 meters was formed creating the lake. Even in hot summer days water temperature in the lake is not more than 12 Celsius degrees. The color of the water changes depending on the season, the weather and the temperature of the water.

Meals included:
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Hotel 3 stars

Day 2: Kolsai lake

Pass By: Kolsai Lake, Saty Kazakhstan
The magnificent cascade of Kolsai lakes are located 290 kilometers south-east of Almaty.
That area is surrounded by three amazing alpine lakes, which are called Kolsai-1, Kolsai-2 and Kolsai-3, located respectively at an altitude of 1700, 2252 and 2650 meters above sea level. A lot of people consider them the pearl of the Northern Tien Shan mountains.
Kaindy lake is one of the most beautiful lakes in Kazakhstan, and still not really touristic place.
The lake is located at an altitude of 2000m, 26 kilometers far from the Kaindy river with the same name, near the Kolsai lake.
Translated from the Kazakh “Kaindy” means “abundant in birch”, the meaning of the name is because is full of large birch groves, located near the area and inside the lake in a spectacular way.
The first day we will hike around Kolsai lake and we can arrive to the second lake ( is possible do the road by horses also)

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Homestay in Yurt in local guesthouse

Day 3: Kaindy lake and Charyn Canyon

Pass By: Charyn Canyon, Charyn National Park, Charyn River Kazakhstan
Kaindy lake is one of the most beautiful lakes in Kazakhstan, and still not really touristic place. The lake is located at an altitude of 2000m, 26 kilometers far from the Kaindy river with the same name, near the Kolsai lake.
Translated from the Kazakh "Kaindy" means "abundant in birch", the meaning of the name is because is full of large birch groves, located near the area and inside the lake in a spectacular way.
Some people thinking that this lake was formed a hundred years ago in 1911, other that is more recent due an earthquake.

Charyn Canyon is located in the Charyn National Park established in 2004 by the Kazakh government.
The Valley of Canyon is 3 km long, a dried-up canyon adjacent to the main river with the same name. The river itself now flows along a different path, and millions of years ago this place was just under the sea, stretching from modern Lake Alakol to the Caspian Sea.

This explains the rocks formations around the area - these are stones, strongly pressed with clay, but they can easily changing shape under the influence of wind and water. This material is great for creating sculptures and nature creates fantastic shapes with that particular kind of sand/rocks.
We will explore the area walking inside the Canyon.

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Homestay in Yurt in local guesthouse

Day 4: Almaty city tour

Pass By: Almaty, Almaty
Almaty is the biggest city in Kazakhstan, located in the south est part of the country. The population is around 1,8 million habitant.
The city was very famous for be the old capital and the city remain the economic, financial and the cultural center of all Kazakhstan and Central Asia. It’s very ethical city, full of older buildings, oriental bazaars, church, mosques and a lot of other interesting things to see.

Tour program:
09.30 – Visit of the Ascension Cathedral, the famous beautiful Russian Orthodox cathedral
10.00 – Visit the Green Bazaar and the Central Mosque
12.00 – Transfer to Koktobe, and lunch in amazing restaurant where you can see all the city from the top
14.00 – Visit of Shimbulak mountain resort ( by cable railway ) and time for small excursion around the area
16.30 – Go back to the hotel, free time in evening

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
Accommodation included: Hotel 3 stars