Arrive in Almaty and transfer to your hotel, with the Tian Shan already defining the city's southern edge. Wide avenues and leafy streets sit beneath a line of peaks that seem unusually close for a major city, appearing between rooftops whenever the view opens.

Keep the rest of the day unhurried. Take a first walk, settle in for a Kazakh meal, or simply watch the evening light move across the mountains. Tomorrow, the skyline behind Almaty becomes the journey's landscape.

The Tian Shan takes over today, beginning around Big Almaty Lake before the road carries you through Ayusai and Alma-Arasan. Forested slopes, mountain streams and deep gorges replace Almaty’s avenues, revealing how quickly the city gives way to much wilder country.

Later, the focus turns skyward at Sunkar Falcon Farm, where Kazakhstan’s birds of prey bring another character to the day. Falcons and eagles, set against the mountain backdrop, feel entirely at home here, ending an afternoon spent in the valleys beneath them.

Return to the heights above Almaty through Medeu, surrounded by the steep slopes of the Tian Shan. From here, the cable car continues towards Shymbulak and the mountain scenery around Left Talgar Gorge, lifting steadily until the city below begins to disappear behind the ridges.

Back in Almaty, the experience shifts to the city’s cultural and urban character. Take in sweeping views from Kok Tobe Hill, then explore the lively Green Bazaar, where local produce, traditional delicacies and everyday city life come together. The tour also includes Zenkov Cathedral, an architectural landmark set within Panfilov Park, known for its colourful exterior and distinctive wooden construction. Together, these stops offer a well-rounded introduction to Almaty, from its mountain surroundings to its historic and everyday city life.​

An early start leads into a very different Kazakhstan. Charyn Canyon cuts through the landscape in sculpted walls and towers before Black Canyon introduces a darker, more rugged stretch of the same immense terrain.

From rock, the day turns towards the mountain lakes. Kaindy appears among forest and water before Kolsai opens into a calmer landscape of wooded slopes and clear lake views. Lunch naturally breaks the long day, with time around Kolsai before the road eventually turns back toward Almaty.

Check out of your Almaty hotel and start at the Issyk Historical and Cultural Reserve-Museum, where the Golden Man brings Kazakhstan’s ancient past to life. The route then returns to the outdoors through Turgen Gorge, continuing towards Bear Waterfall among forested mountain surroundings.

Lake Issyk adds another sweep of alpine water before the road carries you towards Besqaynar. Settle into your glamping cabin at Oi-Qaragai Mountain Resort, where the day ends away from the city, with the mountains now directly outside the window.

Wake in Besqaynar with no road journey waiting outside. After several days moving between lakes, gorges and mountain valleys, the resort gives you time to remain in one place and simply enjoy being surrounded by the Tian Shan.

Spend the day around Oi-Qaragai at your own pace, stepping outdoors when you feel like it and returning to the comfort of your cabin when you do not. As evening settles over the slopes, the quiet becomes one of the stay's simplest pleasures.

Check out of your mountain stay and return to Almaty, leaving Besqaynar’s forested slopes behind for the city's avenues and neighbourhoods. After several days deeper in the Tian Shan, the mountains on Almaty’s horizon now feel considerably more familiar.

Keep the evening for the city itself. Find a café, settle in for dinner, or wander without a fixed programme, enjoying a slower return to urban life before the journey's final cultural experience.

Spend the day at the Huns’ Ethno-Village, where yurts, horses and traditional skills bring Kazakhstan’s nomadic heritage into sharper focus. Horsemanship and archery sit alongside cultural performances and activities that recall ways of life shaped by mobility, open land and the seasons.

The yurt becomes particularly meaningful here, built to travel yet designed as a complete home. Look up inside, and the shanyraq forms its circular crown, opening to the sky above, a familiar shape in Kazakh culture now found where it belongs.