3 Day Almaty region Altyn emel Charyn canyon Kolsay lakes express

Had an excellent three day small group tour to Altyn Emel, Kaindy/Kolsai and Charyn Canyon with Tau. Tau was a terrific guide and I highly recommend him. He was friendly and a lot of fun. He has lots of knowledge of the area and was very generous with his time to allow us all the opportunity to enjoy the area. Also takes great photos! The places we visited on the tour are beautiful and very worth the effort to travel there. Kazakhstan surpassed all expectations and loved my time there.

I booked this tour in the end of season and there was not so many tourists. Tau was seriously fantastic - he did a coffee in the middle of desert! Altyn emel was amazing! I had the best time in Kazakchstan . Desert, steppe, canyons, mountains, local food and horse riding... so many things in 3 days! Be prepared to long driving, but it's worth it!

Our trip was more than half a year ago, and I remember it like it was just yesterday! We were super lucky to have had Tau - he brought us through Assy Plateau, Kaindy Lakes, Charyn Canyon, Ak-Tau Mountains, hot springs near the Tianshan Mountains in the Uyghur region, the Singing Sand Dunes and the snow-capped Big Almaty Peak over 5 days. He tailored our trip on the ground based on what we wanted, taking in account the weather and our fitness abilities. His driving is very safe and stable (we all fell asleep at some point) and his English is superb. He quickly became our friend (we played word games together and shared our favourite songs in Russian, Kazakh and Chinese) and took great candid photos and videos of us (he was experimenting with his own camera at the time). Unlike some other tour guides we've seen, Tau went with us on each excursion and brought us to little-known sites/trails as well as his favourite restaurants in Almaty. It was truly an unforgettable trip, and I've already given his contact to all my friends. I'm already planning my next trip back...