Two Lakes, One Sky
Bishkek · Burana Tower · Issyk-Kul · Karakol · Jeti Oguz · Kochkor · Song-Köl · 33 Parrots Pass
8 DAYS TWO MOUNTAIN LAKES · EAGLE HUNTING · FELT-MAKING · YURT STAY · FROM $870 · GUARANTEED 2 PAX
You wake up in a yurt at 3,000 metres above sea level. Through the toono — the circular skylight — you can see stars. Outside, horses are grazing by a lake so still it mirrors the entire sky. This is Song-Köl. And it is the reason people say Kyrgyzstan changes how they see the world.
This 8-day journey is designed around one goal: the fullest possible picture of Kyrgyzstan in the shortest possible time. You travel from Bishkek's Silk Road history to Issyk-Kul's turquoise shoreline, from a private eagle hunting demonstration on open steppe to the world of Kyrgyz felt-making in Kochkor, from the red rock theatre of Jeti Oguz to two full days and a night at Song-Köl - the alpine lake at 3,016m that most travellers never reach.
🗓 8 days Jun - mid-Sep
💧 2 lakes Issyk-Kul + Song-Köl
🏔 3,400m Highest point · pass
👥 2–8 Guaranteed 2 pax
Eight days that cover Kyrgyzstan's soul
Every stop earns its place. Nothing is included to fill time — each experience is ownable, specific and impossible to get anywhere else.
🦅 Private eagle hunting encounter
You meet a Kyrgyz berkutchi and watch his golden eagle demonstrate a hunting tradition practised for 2,000 years. Not a performance — a living practice that is dying out everywhere else.
💧 Song-Köl — the sky lake at 3016m
Two days and one night at Central Asia's most beautiful alpine lake, surrounded by nomadic yurt camps and horses. The lake is accessible only June–September. Most tours skip it.
🎨 Felt-making at a Kochkor women's collective
Watch the entire shyrdak carpet-making process at a women's cooperative — from raw wool to finished felt. Their small museum and shop holds handicrafts from surrounding villages.
🪨 Jeti Oguz — the Seven Bulls canyon
The red-rock gorge where Kyrgyz nomads spend every summer with their herds. Climb the observation deck, hear the legend of the Broken Heart, and walk into a valley unchanged for centuries.
🏛 Burana Tower — the Silk Road in stone
An 11th-century minaret from the ancient city of Balasagun — a major Silk Road stop between China and the Mediterranean. The surrounding open-air museum has warrior balbals from across the steppe.
🏊 Issyk-Kul — the warm lake that never freezes
The world's second-largest alpine lake: 182km long, 1,600m above sea level, 22°C in summer and never frozen in winter. Petroglyphs from 2,000 years ago sit on its northern shore.
What you will do and feel
The experiences built into this tour — not add-ons, not optionals. This is what Kyrgyzstan is made of.
Horse riding - Along Song-Köl lake with a Kyrgyz horseman guide — included
Yurt overnight - Two nights in a nomadic yurt camp at Song-Köl, 3016m
Kymyz tasting - Fermented mare's milk — the nomads' drink of hospitality
33 Parrots Pass - 3,400m mountain pass descent with panoramic Tien Shan views
Bishkek city tour - Historical Museum, Ala-Too Square, Asian Bazaar oriental market
Petroglyphs - 2,000-year-old rock carvings at Cholpon-Ata open-air site
Day-by-day journey
Eight days moving clockwise around Kyrgyzstan's greatest landscapes — each day building toward Song-Köl as the emotional summit of the journey.
Bishkek Arrival in Bishkek - city tour, bazaar and national cuisine evening
You land at Manas International Airport and your journey begins immediately — there is no wasted time here. A guided city tour takes you through Bishkek's contrasts: the Soviet-era grandeur of Ala-Too Square, the parliament and White House, the quiet dignity of Oak Park with its stone sculptures, and the National History Museum with its extraordinary collection of Kyrgyz artefacts and felt tapestries. Then the Asian Bazaar: a full-sensory oriental market with fruit, vegetables, meat, felted shoes, scarves, spices and handicrafts that tells you more about daily Kyrgyz life than any museum. In the evening, dinner at a restaurant where you taste national dishes for the first time — laghman, beshbarmak, samsa — the flavours that will accompany you for the next eight days.
🏨 4★ Hotel in Bishkek · 🍽 Dinner included
Bishkek city tourAsian BazaarNational History MuseumNational cuisine dinner
Transparent pricing by group size
Price per person decreases with group size. All tours are guaranteed from 2 participants — no need to wait for a large group. Prices below are for the base package including accommodation and breakfasts.
GROUP SIZE | PRICE PER PERSON | GUIDE | |
2 people | $1,580 | English-speaking driver-guide | |
4 people | $1,300 | Dedicated guide + driver | |
6 people | $1,020 | Dedicated guide + driver | Best value |
8 people | $870 | Dedicated guide + driver | Lowest per person |
Add-ons to the base package: Single room supplement +$250 · Full board (all lunches and dinners added) +$270 per person
Fixed departures — summer 2026
Departures every week from June through August. Join a scheduled group or request a fully private tour on your own dates.
7 – 14 July 2026 | 8 days · peak season · warmest lake | |
28 Jul – 4 Aug 2026 | 8 days · | |
11 – 18 August 2026 | 8 days · late summer · clearest skies |
28 Jul – 4 Aug 2026
8 days · post-Nomad Games glow
AvailableBook →
Private / custom dates
Flexible · Jun – mid-Sep · tailored itinerary
On requestContact →
What's included
✓ All accommodation (4★ hotels, guesthouses, yurt camp)
✓ Breakfasts throughout the tour
✓ All ground transport (4WD for 1–3 · minibus for 4–8)
✓ English-speaking guide (from 4 pax) or driver-guide (2 pax)
✓ Eagle hunting show (private, with berkutchi)
✓ Felt-making demonstration (Kochkor women's collective)
✓ Horse riding at Song-Köl (with horseman guide)
✓ All entrance fees to sites listed
✗ International flights
✗ Lunches and dinners (optional add-on: +$270)
✗ Single room supplement (+$250)
✗ Travel & health insurance (required)
✗ Personal expenses and souvenirs
✗ Tips for guides and drivers
OPTIONAL EXTRAS
🏇 Kok-Boru game $300 per group
Watch or commission a live Kok-Boru (horseback polo) match — the most dramatic sport you'll ever witness
📹 Photo & video service $600 per group
Professional filming throughout the tour — all raw footage + 1 edited video delivered to your group
🍽 Full board upgrade $270 per person
All lunches and dinners added to your package — worry-free eating throughout all 8 days
