Issyk Lake
Lakes
A turquoise lake held between spruce slopes an hour east of the city, with the ancient Issyk burial mounds on the way.
- Duration
- 8 hours
- Region
- Yenbekshikazakh
- Group size
- Min. 1 traveller
- Guide languages
- Arabic, English, Russian
Overview
The water is an improbable green-blue, sitting at 1,760 metres between steep forested slopes. A mudflow emptied the lake in 1963 and it has filled again since; the path along the shore takes about an hour and there is a photograph at every turn. On the way we stop at the Issyk burial mounds, where the Golden Man was found in 1969 — the figure you see on banknotes and on the monument in the middle of Almaty.
Highlights
- Turquoise water at 1,760 m
- The shore walk through the spruce forest
- Issyk burial mounds and the Golden Man
Itinerary
- 1
Pick-up from your hotel
15 min
We leave early enough that the lake is quiet when we arrive.
- 2
The drive east
1 h 30
Through the apple orchards and villages of the Yenbekshikazakh valley.
- 3
The lake
2-3 h
The viewpoint above the water first, then the walk along the shore.
- 4
Issyk burial mounds
1 h
The kurgans and the museum where the Golden Man was found.
What is included
- Guide, driver and translator in one person for the whole day
- Private minivan with fuel, parking and tolls
- Pick-up and drop-off at your hotel or apartment
- Assistance and accompaniment all day
Not included
- Hotel or apartment — booked and paid separately
- Issyk national park entrance — paid on the spot
- Meals and personal expenses
- Gratuities
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