Kazakhstan: 20 routes

Mountains, canyons, deserts, holy places and lakes in the steppe. Honest notes on how to get there, what to expect and what to watch out for, collected over several years of travelling around the country.

Practical tips first Ready-made itineraries

Big Almaty Lake and the Cosmostation road

Almaty regionhalf a day – 1 dayEasy

A turquoise lake in a bowl of three-thousand-metre peaks, forty minutes from the city's last apartment blocks.

Medeu, Shymbulak and the Talgar Pass by cable car

Almaty region1 dayEasy

From an ice rink to a glacier view at over 3,000 metres, all on one ticket and without breaking a sweat.

Assy Plateau and the Turgen waterfalls

Almaty region1–2 daysModerate

An endless high pasture where herders still move their yurts up for the summer and the stars feel close enough to touch.

Charyn Canyon and the Valley of Castles

Almaty region1–2 daysEasy

Red sandstone towers carved by wind and water, often compared to the Grand Canyon, without the crowds.

Kolsai Lakes and the sunken forest of Kaindy

Almaty region2–3 daysModerate

Three mountain lakes stepping up a spruce valley, and a lake with dead trees standing upright in the water.

Altyn-Emel: the Singing Dune and the striped Aktau mountains

Almaty region2–3 daysModerate

A dune that hums under your feet, mountains striped like a layer cake and herds of wild kulan on the plain.

The petroglyphs of Tamgaly

Almaty region1 dayEasy

Thousands of Bronze Age carvings of sun-headed gods, hunters and animals on dark rocks in a quiet gorge.

Alakol: Kazakhstan's salty seaside

East4–7 daysEasy

A huge, windy, mineral-rich lake where half the country goes for a beach holiday in summer.

Lake Balkhash: half fresh, half salt

North & Centre2–3 daysEasy

One of the largest lakes in Asia, with fresh water in the west and salty water in the east, and long empty beaches.

Turkestan, Otrar and Sauran: the Silk Road heartland

South2–3 daysEasy

A turquoise-domed mausoleum built by Timur, the ruins of a city that once refused Genghis Khan, and a walled town in the desert.

Aksu-Zhabagly reserve and the Aksu canyon

South2–3 daysModerate

The oldest nature reserve in Central Asia, where wild tulips bloom in spring and the Aksu river cuts a deep canyon.

Taraz, Aisha Bibi and the mystery of Akyrtas

South1–2 daysEasy

An ancient Silk Road city, a mausoleum covered in carved terracotta, and a giant unfinished palace of red stone.

Mangystau: Bozzhyra, Torysh and Sherkala

West3–4 daysChallenging

White chalk cliffs rising from an ancient seabed, a valley full of stone spheres and a mountain shaped like a yurt.

Beket-Ata and the underground mosques of Mangystau

West2 daysModerate

A pilgrimage across the desert to a mosque carved into a chalk cliff, where travellers share bread and sleep side by side.

The Aral Sea and the ship cemetery

West2–3 daysModerate

A former port town where the sea left, the rusting ships that stayed behind, and a small story of recovery.

Burabay: lakes and granite in the northern forests

North & Centre2–3 daysEasy

Pine forests, clear lakes and granite boulders in the middle of the steppe: the north's favourite weekend escape.

Bayanaul: rocks with faces and lakes in the steppe

North & Centre2–3 daysEasy

Kazakhstan's first national park: wind-carved granite, three warm lakes and a village full of storytellers.

Karkaraly: pine forest and the Devil's Lake

North & Centre2 daysModerate

Forested granite mountains rising out of the steppe, with a small dark lake at the top and a historic merchant town below.

Katon-Karagay, Rakhmanov Springs and the view of Belukha

East4–6 daysChallenging

The Kazakh Altai: larch forests, alpine lakes, hot springs and the white double summit of Belukha.

Kiin-Kerish, the Flaming Cliffs, and Lake Zaysan

East3 daysModerate

Red, orange and white clay cliffs that look like a fire frozen in place, near a huge, quiet lake.

Ready-made itineraries

Almaty and the mountains in 5 days

A first trip: the city, the lakes and one canyon.

The Silk Road south in 7 days

Ancient cities, mausoleums and spring tulips.

Mangystau and the Caspian in 5 days

Desert, chalk cliffs and pilgrim roads.

A two-week grand loop

Mountains, steppe, desert and the capital.

Conditions, prices and permit rules change. Treat these notes as a starting point and check current information before you travel.