The Great Kazakhstan Journey: Mountains, Canyons & the Silk Road

Start with a walk through Panfilov Park, a shaded green space in the city center with the memorial to the 28 Panfilov guardsmen who fell near Moscow in 1941. Old oaks, quiet alleys, and the chime of bells recall Alma-Ata before the high-rises. Next, visit the Zenkov Cathedral, built in 1907, one of the tallest wooden churches in the world. It stands without a single nail and came through the earthquake that leveled much of the city. Inside you will find an iconostasis from the late 19th century; the golden domes outside reach 56 meters. Near lunchtime, drive past the campus of the Kazakhstan-British Technical University, with modern architecture and an atrium, one of the symbols of new Almaty. After lunch, stop for photos at the Kazakhstan Hotel, a 25-story building from the late 1970s with a huge smalt mosaic on the facade, a classic of Almaty Soviet modernism, and walk through the Main Botanical Garden, founded in 1932, 108 hectares with a collection of more than 3000 plant species, a carp pond, and a corner of coniferous forest right in the city. Toward evening, take the cable car up Kok-Tobe (1070 m), the city’s signature viewpoint. Almaty lies at your feet with the Alatau mountains behind it; around sunset the peaks turn pink and the city lights come on in the valley. Return to Almaty in the evening.

Start at the Medeu ice rink, at 1691 meters the highest-altitude rink in the world. Winter brings smooth ice; in summer it is a cool mountain amphitheater, with a walk along the dam and views down the gorge. In the morning, ride the three-stage cable car to the Shymbulak mountain resort (2260 m); in about 25 minutes it takes you to the top station at 3200 meters, with a full panorama of the Zailiyskiy Alatau. Winter is for skiing and snowboarding, summer for hiking and cafés with views. Near lunchtime, visit the Kasteyev Museum of Arts, the country’s largest art collection, with halls dedicated to Kasteyev, Khludov, and the Soviet avant-garde. In the afternoon, stroll along pedestrian Zhibek Zholy, Almaty’s “Arbat”, with street artists, guitarists at dusk, stalls of local handmade goods, and coffee shops where you can catch your breath after an active day. Return to Almaty in the evening.

Leave Almaty around 07:00 and drive about three hours east to Charyn Canyon. Walk down through the “Valley of Castles”, a 2–3 km trail to the river between jagged red sandstone towers. Then see Moon Canyon, a valley of gray and bluish rock, and Black Canyon on the Temirlik river, with dark volcanic walls. In the evening, continue to Saty village in Kolsai Lakes National Park, about two hours more. Dinner and overnight in a family guesthouse.

Breakfast at 07:00 and a short drive to the first Kolsai Lake (1818 m), a turquoise lake framed by Tien Shan spruces. From the shore, hike about 8 km through spruce forest to the second Kolsai Lake (2252 m), around three hours each way; there are no buildings on its shore, only water, mountains and quiet. Horses can be hired if you’d rather ride. Back in Saty by late afternoon for a second night in the guesthouse.

An early visit to Kaindy Lake, formed by the 1911 earthquake; the last stretch of track is rough and is usually done by 4×4. Spruce trunks rise from the turquoise water like the masts of a sunken fleet, one of Kazakhstan’s most recognizable views. Then a long drive north to Basshi village, the gateway to Altyn-Emel, five to six hours with stops. Dinner and overnight in a guesthouse in Basshi.

Explore Altyn-Emel National Park, a vast desert park with herds of kulans and goitered gazelles, where the scale of the space is felt physically. In the morning, visit the Aktau chalk mountains, pink, green, and blue bands of rock from the Paleocene, 66 to 56 million years old, a colorful trace of an ancient sea. Near lunchtime, stop at the colored Katutau mountains, volcanic formations sculpted by wind and water into shapes that look hand-carved. After lunch, climb Singing Dune, a 150-meter dune stretching for 1.5 kilometers. As you come down, the dry sand hums with a deep, low note, and you can feel the sound under your feet. On the way out, make a short stop at the 700-year-old willow near Basshi village, a living tree whose trunk dates back to the Golden Horde era. Back in Almaty in the evening, about four hours’ drive.

A morning flight from Almaty to Aktau, about three hours; your driver-guide meets you at the airport. Check in at the hotel and spend the afternoon on the Caspian shore: an empty beach, a flat horizon and the sun setting straight into the water. Overnight at a hotel in Aktau.

Out of Aktau by 4×4 into the Ustyurt country. In the morning, descend into Ybykty Canyon, a narrow split in the plateau with vertical walls. Around midday, visit the underground mosque of Karaman-Ata, a medieval pilgrimage site carved into the rock. In the afternoon, drive south to Bozzhyra: the lower viewpoint for a walk closer to the base of the chalk cliffs, then the “Bozzhyra Fangs”, white spires up to 200 meters high, and the upper viewpoint for sunset. Dinner and overnight in a camp on the plateau (tents or yurts, bedding provided). A long day of desert driving.

Bozzhyra at first light, when the chalk turns pink and the plateau is empty. After breakfast at camp, drive to the Mars Panorama viewpoint over red eroded ground and the jagged Dragon Ridge, then on to Tiramisu Canyon, where layered beige and brown rock looks like the dessert, and Mount Bokty, an isolated peak with three-colored strata; the walk up takes about an hour. Back in Aktau in the evening. Overnight at a hotel by the Caspian.

A morning flight from Aktau to Shymkent. From the airport, drive northwest into the old Silk Road country. Stop at the ruins of Otrar, a medieval trading city destroyed by Genghis Khan’s army in 1220, where the walls still stand in the steppe, and at the Arystan-Bab Mausoleum, the burial place of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi’s teacher, traditionally visited by pilgrims before Turkestan. Continue to Turkestan, about three hours of driving in total. Overnight at a hotel in Turkestan.

A day in Turkestan. Begin at the 14th-century Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, a UNESCO site with a 39-meter blue-tiled dome, the main pilgrimage destination of the region. Next to it is the Hilvet Mosque, an underground cell for solitary prayer, and the Kultobe settlement, the oldest part of the town. After lunch, walk the reconstructed citadel walls and finish at the caravanserai, with workshops, spices and a teahouse. Evening flight back to Almaty and transfer to the hotel.

In the morning, drive up to Big Almaty Lake (2511 m), a turquoise reservoir in the mountains above the city; the water is clearest early in the day, and the best views are from the shore and the high viewpoint. In the afternoon, watch the bird show at the Sunkar falconry center: a berkut takes off from the falconer’s glove and returns to it, the old nomadic art of hunting with birds. Back in Almaty for a farewell dinner.