From Almaty: 3-Day Charyn, Kolsai & Kaindy Tour with Medeu

Start at the Medeu ice rink, at 1691 meters one of the highest mountain rinks in the world. In winter the ice is smooth, in summer it is a cool amphitheater with a walk along the dam and views of the gorge. In the first half of the day, ride up to the Shymbulak mountain resort (2260 m) on a three-stage cable car that climbs to 3200 meters in 25 minutes and opens a wide panorama of the Ile Alatau. Winter brings skiing and snowboarding, summer brings walks and cafes with views. After lunch, return to the city and take the cable car up to Kok-Tobe (1070 m), the classic city viewpoint. Almaty lies at your feet with the Alatau behind it; at sunset the peaks turn pink and the lights of the city come on in the valley. Return to Almaty by evening.

An early start from Almaty, around 06:00–07:00. In the morning, descend into Charyn Canyon and walk through the “Valley of Castles”, the best-known section of a canyon that stretches for 154 km, where the midday sun turns the red rock copper. The trail winds between tall rock towers along the river. Then take in Moon Canyon, a valley near Charyn with gray and bluish rock formations. Closer to lunch, visit Black Canyon with its volcanic walls and narrow passages, a dark palette in sharp contrast to red Charyn. After lunch, walk around the first Kolsai Lake (1818 m), a turquoise expanse surrounded by centuries-old Tien Shan spruces, with only birdsong and trout splashing near the shore. In the afternoon, visit Kaindy Lake, formed after the 1911 earthquake. Spruce trunks rise from the water like the masts of a sunken fleet, and the turquoise surface between them is one of Kazakhstan’s most recognizable images. Return to Almaty late in the evening: it is a long day of about 15 hours, much of it on the road.

A walk through Panfilov Park, a leafy green space in the city center with the memorial to the 28 Panfilov heroes who fell near Moscow in 1941. Old oaks, quiet alleys and the nearby cathedral bells keep a piece of old Alma-Ata inside the modern city. Then visit Zenkov Cathedral, built in 1907 of wood without a single nail, one of the tallest wooden churches in the world, which survived the earthquake that wrecked much of the city. Inside is an iconostasis from the late 19th century; outside rise golden domes 56 meters high. Closer to lunch, visit the Green Bazaar, operating since 1875, a true Eastern market with piles of dried apricots and raisins, rows of kazy and shuzhuk (horse sausage), barrels of mountain honey from the jailyau, and friendly vendors who let you taste everything before buying.