5 or 7 Days in Almaty: Two Itineraries That Work

With five to seven days you can see almost everything the Almaty region is known for — as long as you respect one rule: the big landscapes are two to five hours away, and each costs a full day. The plans below alternate long trips with easier days so you are not in a vehicle for a week straight.

5-day Almaty itinerary

• Day 1 — City and mountains: Medeu, the Shymbulak cable car, Panfilov Park, the Green Bazaar and sunset on Kok-Tobe. A gentle start that also helps with the altitude.
• Day 2 — Charyn Canyon: the Valley of Castles trail down to the river, plus the Moon and Black canyon viewpoints.
• Day 3 — An easier day: Big Almaty Lake in the morning, or the Ayusai and Alma-Arasan gorges with the hot spring.
• Day 4 — Kolsai and Kaindy lakes: an early start for the emerald lake and the sunken forest.
• Day 5 — Assy Plateau or Issyk Lake: the high pasture and observatory in summer, or the lake and Bear Waterfall for something shorter.

7-day Almaty itinerary

Follow the five-day plan, then add a two-day trip at the end:

• Days 6–7 — Altyn-Emel: the Singing Dune on the first day, then the striped Aktau and volcanic Katutau mountains on the second, with an overnight in the park area.
• Or days 6–7 — Assy Plateau camping: sunset, a night under one of the darkest skies near Almaty, and sunrise over the pasture.

If you would rather avoid another long drive, spend one of the extra days at the ethno village with its nomadic show, or horseback riding in the Alatau foothills.

A winter version

Outside June to September the Kolsai and Kaindy lakes and the Assy Plateau are hard to reach, and our tours there do not run. A winter week works around the city instead: skiing at Shymbulak, skating at Medeu, Charyn Canyon on a clear day, the Alma-Arasan hot spring, the ethno village and horseback riding.

Tips for multi-day trips

• Put the city first — it gives you time to adjust to the altitude and a buffer if the weather turns.
• Never schedule a long trip on your departure day.
• Carry your passport on every trip outside the city; some routes pass checkpoints.
• Mix formats: group tours keep the long days affordable, private tours give you control where it matters.

Send us your dates on WhatsApp and we will turn one of these plans into a day-by-day schedule based on what is actually running that week.