Customized 8-Day Kazakhstan Almaty Tour, Private Guide

Welcome to Kazakhstan! Upon arrival in Almaty, the largest city in the country, your driver guide will welcome you warmly and escort you to the hotel downtown. You will have the rest of the day to recover from jet lag. Look forward to tomorrow’s journey!

Today, your driver guide will pick you up from the hotel and drive you to the Almaty Museum, where you can learn about the history of Almaty.

Then, head to the Park of 28 Panfilov Guardsmen in the northeast to pay your respect to the statue of 28 warriors.

second-tallest existing wooden structure.

Leaving the park, let’s dive into the bustling Green Bazaar (Zeleny Bazar), the largest market in Almaty.

We’ll ride a cable car to the Shymbulak Ski Resort, the world’s highest ice skating rink at an altitude of 3,000 meters (9,840 feet).

372-meter (1,220-foot) TV tower at the edge of the city, for a sunset view. Finally, the driver guide will transfer you back to the hotel.

This morning, we will drive for about 3.5 hours to Basshi Village.

After hotel check-in and lunch, follow your driver guide to explore Altyn Emel National Park, which will not disappoint you if you are up for desolate places with unusual natural landscapes. We will drive directly to the Singing Dune. Strong winds all year round bring sand here to form a settled dune. In appearance, it is no different from other dunes, but as the name suggests, it can make an organ-like sound on dry days — only 30 dunes in the world can do this. The driver guide will escort you back to the hotel in Basshi Village before dark.

In the morning, we will continue exploring the park’s farthest point, the Aktau Mountains, once the bottom of an ancient dried-up ocean. Over time, large amounts of sediments have accumulated, and natural erosion has formed a unique geological structure, forming incredible canyons and gullies composed of banded sedimentary rocks of various colors.

Around noon, we’ll return to Basshi Village for lunch, and then the driver will whisk you away to our well-selected resort, where you can thoroughly relax in the hot springs. Chunja Hot Spring System consists of 140 hot spring water sources deep underground, heated by volcanic magma.

★ Touch Central Asia’s Scar: Exploring Charyn Canyon’s Rugged Beauty After a 1.5-hour drive, we will reach today’s destination, Charyn Canyon National Park. Charyn Canyon has five main branches: Temirlik Canyon, Bestamak Canyon, Moon Canyon, Charyn Canyon, and Valley of Castles, each with jaw-dropping landforms. Today, the driver guide will lead you to appreciate the first four canyons’ stunning scenery. Farewell to Charyn Canyon National Park. We will drive 1.5 hours to Saty Village. After check-in, you will enjoy a decadent dinner with Kazakh dishes.

Starting early this morning from Saty Village, the driver guide will drive you to the Kolsai Lakes, which consists of three lakes at different altitudes. Driving along the winding mountain road into Heavenly Mountains, the long and narrow Lower Kolsai Lake gradually comes into view. Enjoy a relaxed light hike around the lake and take in the stunning scenery.

Leaving Kolsai Lakes, let’s continue to another treasure trove hidden in Heaven Mountains, Kaindy Lake, like a vast “emerald” in the valley. The earthquake in 1911 caused a landslide, and rainwater accumulated here and submerged the original spruce forest. Only the bare trunks stood above the water, forming a shocking scene. At the end of the day, return to the guest house at Saty Village for dinner and saunas.

After breakfast, we will drive to Charyn Canyon National Park again to explore the most popular Valley of Castles, named after its boulders that resemble ancient castles. Arriving at the entrance viewing platform, you can choose one of two routes for a round-trip hike in the Valley of Castles of about 2 hours: walking along the top or bottom of the canyon. It is recommended to choose the latter, which takes 40 to 50 minutes to walk along the nearly 3-kilometer (2-mile) flat trail to the end. Since the returning journey is by the original route, many tourists will take the shuttle minibus, but there may be a long queue due to a few vehicles. You can decide to take it or not according to your physical strength.

Take a short break at the Tourists Center, and your driver guide will drive you to the hotel in Almaty for 3.5 hours.

Your driver guide will pick you up at the appointed time and send you to Almaty International Airport.