Before you go
- Vehicle
- 4×4 required
- Permit
- Required — No advance border permit is needed for Charyn, Lower Kolsai, or Kaindy as of 2026, but rules can change — verify before travel and carry passports for the Kolsai/Kaindy border-zone checkpoints. The upper Kolsai lake (not on this route) does require a propusk arranged weeks ahead in Almaty.
- Entrance fee
- Charyn National Park entry fee covers both the Valley of Castles and Moon Canyon; the Kolsai/Kaindy lakes charge separate per-person park fees.
- Peak altitude
- 2000 m
- Cell coverage
- Patchy
- Fuel
- Fill up at Shelek/Chilik on the way out and again at Kegen; there is no reliable fuel past Saty. Plan for roughly 660 km round trip.
- Road status
- Moon Canyon (Uzunbulak) is a short off-road spur, roughly 10 km from the Valley of Castles, rough enough to strand a sedan, so it is the 4x4 part of Day 1; skip it and the rest stays high-clearance-friendly. The final 12 km of the Saty-Kaindy track is forded and runs high in June snowmelt, and is impassable during the early-spring melt, so the route typically opens in May. Want the same lakes without the off-road canyon? See the Charyn-Kolsai-Kaindy Loop. Just the canyons, no lakes? See Charyn: Valley of Castles and Moon Canyon.
- Closed months
- Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Nov, Dec
About this trip
Most Charyn day trips stop at the Valley of Castles and turn around. This weekend keeps going: a rough spur to Moon Canyon (Uzunbulak), where the rust-red sandstone gives way to pale, lunar clay, then a night near the canyon before crossing to the lake country. Day two strings together Kaindy — a turquoise lake of standing dead spruce, dammed by the 1911 earthquake — and the lowest of the Kolsai Lakes, ringed by Tian-Shan forest. It is the same lakes as the Charyn-Kolsai-Kaindy Loop with the off-road canyons added on, so it asks for a capable 4x4 and two full days behind the wheel. Want the lakes without the off-road canyon, or just the canyons without the lakes? Both lighter versions already exist in the guide.
Route
Skip map, jump to step listWhere to sleep
- Night 1 of 1Charyn Visitor Center CampCampingPremium
Budget · ~8–15k KZT/night. Mid-range · ~15–40k KZT. Premium · ~40k+ KZT.
Itinerary
Stop 1
Almaty
Leave the city early on the A351 heading east. The road is paved and fast once past the Kapchagai turn-off; fuel up at Shelek before the long, quiet stretch into the canyon country.
Stop 2
Charyn Canyon — Valley of Castles
- From previous:
- 200 km · 210 min drive
- Stay:
- ~2.5 h
The Valley of Castles is a 2 km corridor of rust-red sandstone towers rising up to 150 m from the canyon floor. Allow 2-3 hours to walk the bottom and climb back to the rim.
Tip: Walk the canyon floor in the morning or late afternoon; it bakes past 35 °C at midday in summer.
Stop 3
Moon Canyon (Uzunbulak)
- From previous:
- 12 km · 30 min drive
- Stay:
- ~1.5 h
A roughly 10 km off-road spur from the Valley of Castles to Uzunbulak, where the red sandstone gives way to pale ochre-cream clay eroded into soft, lunar folds. The track is rough enough to strand a sedan, then you return to the Charyn area to overnight.
Tip: This is the 4x4 leg of Day 1. Skip it and the rest of the trip stays high-clearance-friendly.
Stop 4
Saty Village
- From previous:
- 125 km · 150 min drive
- Stay:
- ~0.5 h
The gateway village for both lakes, at 1,448 m. Cross from the Charyn area via Kegen and the valley road. Arrange a local 4x4 driver here in the evening if your vehicle is not up to the Kaindy fords.
Tip: Book the Charyn campsite or a Saty guesthouse ahead - both fill on summer weekends.
Stop 5
Kaindy Lake
- From previous:
- 12 km · 60 min drive
- Stay:
- ~2 h
A turquoise lake of standing dead spruce, dammed by the 1911 Kebin earthquake, the pale trunks still rising from water that barely reaches 6 °C. The final 12 km of track in is forded and runs high in June snowmelt.
Tip: Hire a UAZ in Saty if you are not in a capable 4x4, and go early for the light on the water.
Stop 6
Lower Kolsai Lake
- From previous:
- 27 km · 75 min drive
- Stay:
- ~2.5 h
The lowest of the three Kolsai lakes at 1,818 m, ringed by dense Tian-Shan spruce. An easy 2 km shoreline loop; the middle lake is a 3-4 hour hike beyond and not compatible with driving home the same day.
Tip: Lower lake only - the upper Kolsai lake needs a border permit arranged weeks ahead.
Stop 7
Return to Almaty
- From previous:
- 285 km · 270 min drive
Head back west via Saty, Kegen, Shelek, and the Kapchagai road, roughly 285 km and 4.5 hours. Leave the lake by mid-afternoon to reach the city in daylight.
Night 1 of 1 · after Step 3: Moon Canyon (Uzunbulak)
Charyn Visitor Center CampЧарын
The canyon-rim lodging and camping zone at the Charyn Visitor Center, inside the national park. It turns a long out-and-back into a true sunset-and-morning stay with almost no repositioning. Expect a park-style overnight rather than a full-service town hotel.
- Cafe
- Park access
- Restaurant
- Toilets
Mixed camp and cabin-style options at the visitor-center complex; seasonal availability varies.
Also featured on: Charyn Canyon, Charyn: Valley of Castles and Moon Canyon
Also nearby
Farukh Hotel ChundzhaHotelBudget· Private rooms
Farukh Hotel ChundzhaФарух
A straightforward Chundzha hotel on Al-Farabi Street, used as the low-friction fallback when park lodging is full or weather makes a town night more sensible. It still keeps both Charyn trips within a manageable morning drive while offering a more conventional room than the canyon camp.
- Private rooms
- Town-center access
Simple town hotel; contact ahead for availability.
Also featured on: Charyn Canyon, Charyn: Valley of Castles and Moon Canyon
What to bring
- 3 L water per person
- sun protection
- warm layer for cool nights and Kaindy (~2,000 m)
- cash in KZT for park fees and a Saty 4x4 driver
- passport for the border-zone checkpoints
- recovery basics and a tyre repair kit for the Moon Canyon and Kaindy tracks
Sources
Researched from English and Russian sources. Inaccuracies are mine.
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