Kolsai lake and Charyn canyon tour that helps to visit 2 sites within one day

Do you want to visit 2 famous sites around Almaty within 1 day? Let us go!

Start/finish: Almaty city
Distance: 600+ km to and from
Duration: 10-14 hours
Start time: 07-00
Doability: year round
Languages: English and more
Activities: Sightseeing | Walking | Hiking

It is an express tour. Plus in autumn and winter sun sets early. So you need to start at 06-00 or earlier. Otherwise, you cannot cover all sites as planned.

Itinerary

1 DAY
06-50	Meet and greet
07-00	Driving to lake
11-00	Arrival to Saty village
11-30	Kolsai lake tour
13-30	Lunch
15-00	Driving to canyon
17-00	Charyn canyon tour
18-00	Driving to city
21-00	Drop-off

Included:

vehicle
guide
tickets
water

Excluded:

lunch and dinner
personal expenses

Notes:

tour is subject to change
weather must be taken into account

Kolsai (Lower) lake is 285+ km away from Almaty city center
Kolsai lake is 14+ km away from Saty village
on-and-off shuttle service operates between the parking lot and the lake
depending on weather and season, horse riding and boating are possible
as time is limited in this tour, horse riding and boating are usually skipped

Charyn canyon (roughly 154 km in length) lies partly along the route between Almaty and the lake(s)

Black canyon is 210+ km away from Almaty city center
there will be a stopover to explore the site

Moon canyon is 208+ km away from Almaty city center
there will be a stopover to explore the site
as time is limited in this tour, Moon canyon is usually skipped

Charyn canyon's Valley of Castles is 200+ km away from Almaty city center
on-and-off shuttle service (often crowded) operates within the site
as time is limited in this tour, the river at the bottom of the valley is usually skipped
instead, you will follow the upper route for panoramic view of the canyon

there is no guarantee that the vehicle will not break down
provincial infrastructure is less developed compared to the city
do not expect mobile internet, Wi-Fi, F&B in the province to be as good as in city
exploring natural sites carries a risk of insect bites
halal, vegetarian food is available