Home / Tours / Family Tour: Lakes, Eagles & Yurts - 4 Days
Family Tour: Lakes, Eagles & Yurts - 4 Days
An easy four days for all ages: Chong-Kemin national park, the canyons and the shore of Issyk-Kul, a visit to an eagle hunter, and a yurt night up at Song-Kul. There is no trekking, and the riding is optional.
Why you'll love this tour
Good to know
- Accommodation: 1 night at yurt, 2 nights at guesthouse
- Activities: Horse riding - optional
- Departures from: Bishkek
- Best time to go: May to October
- Local certified English-speaking guide
- Private transport & airport transfers
- Small group or fully private
- 24/7 support team in Bishkek
What to pack
- Motion-sickness tablets, as mountain roads can be winding and bumpy
- A light blanket or extra layer for long drives at altitude
- Comfortable shoes with grip for the short walks at each stop
- Sun protection: a hat or cap, sunglasses, and high-SPF sunscreen
- Some cash in Kyrgyz som for villages, where cards are not accepted
Full packing list and arrival tips: Easy from abroad: visas, arrival and logistics
Before you go
- Visa: most Western and East-Asian passports enter visa-free for up to 30 days within any 60-day period (the rule changed at the end of 2025), so check your own nationality on evisa.e-gov.kg
- Money: the local currency is the Kyrgyz som; carry cash for villages and camps, as card payments mostly work only in towns
- Connectivity: mobile data is decent in towns, but there is usually no signal at high mountain yurt camps, so let people know you may be offline
- Altitude: camps sit around 2,500 to 3,900 metres, so take it easy on the first day and drink plenty of water
- Drinking water: stick to bottled or boiled water, and bring enough for stretches where none is available
Read before you go: Staying in a yurt: nomad culture & etiquette
Day-by-day itinerary
Tap any day to expand. Every itinerary can be tailored to your dates, pace and fitness.
You leave Bishkek and head into the countryside, stopping first at the Burana Tower, a thousand-year-old minaret left over from a Silk Road city, with old stone carvings scattered around its base. The kids can climb the narrow inner staircase for a view over the valley.
Lunch is with a Dungan family in Iskra Village, who serve homemade lagman, hand-pulled noodles that are a local favourite. From there it's a short drive on to Chong-Kemin National Park, where you settle into a guesthouse and can take an easy stroll through the village before dinner.
The morning starts at the Kok-Moinok canyons, an easy walk among ribbed red and ochre rock that's a good leg-stretch for the whole family. You then drive down to Balykchy for lunch at the western tip of Issyk-Kul, the great mountain lake that never freezes.
In the afternoon you follow the southern shore east and stop at the Skazka, or Fairy-Tale, canyons, wind-carved formations that really do look like castles and animals if you let your imagination run. You finish the day in Bokonbaev Village, where you stay the night.
Your day opens with a visit to a local eagle hunter, who shows how these golden eagles are trained and flown, a tradition passed down through generations here. From Bokonbaev you drive on to Kochkor Village for lunch and a short rest.
The road then climbs into the mountains over the Kalmak-Ashuu Pass at 3400 m, with alpine lakes along the way, and drops you at Song-Kul, a high lake ringed by summer pastures. You spend the night in a yurt camp by the water; bring warm layers, as the evenings up here turn cold quickly.
After a night under the open sky, there's the option of an easy horse ride around the lake, passing yurts and grazing herds, gentle enough for first-timers, with a longer mountain loop for anyone keen. Lunch is back at the yurt before you set off.
The drive home crosses the Tuz-Ashuu Pass, with stops at the Kilemche pastures and a few mountain viewpoints along the way. If anyone in the group isn't keen on heights, your guide can take the alternative Kalmak-Ashuu route back to Bishkek.
Sights visited on this tour
Bishkek
Kyrgyzstan's leafy, Soviet-planned capital and the gateway to the mountains.
Song-Kul Lake
A high alpine lake ringed by summer yurt camps and grazing horses.
Issyk-Kul Lake
A vast, warm mountain lake that never freezes, framed by snowy peaks.
Chong-Kemin
A long river valley and national park threaded with forest and meadow.Gallery
Common questions
It runs 4 days, starting and ending in Bishkek.
The season runs May to October. June to September brings the warmest days, and the high-pasture yurt camps are open.
It's moderately paced, with Horse riding - optional. Good general fitness is enough, and there is no technical climbing.
A mix over the trip: 1 night at yurt, 2 nights at guesthouse.
Tell us about your trip
Tell us your dates and we'll confirm availability and a tailored price within 24 hours. Free to enquire, no prepayment.
Enquiry received!
A local expert will email you within 24 hours about “Family Tour: Lakes, Eagles & Yurts - 4 Days”.
Other tours you might like
Road trip7 daysEasy Week: Song-Kul & Issyk-Kul - 7 Days
- Two nights in a yurt at Song-Kul, with an optional ride
- The south shore of Issyk-Kul
- Off-road up to Altyn-Arashan
Road trip4 daysKel-Suu Lake Express - 4 Days
- A yurt night at Song-Kul
- The 14 km walk to Kel-Suu lake
- Issyk-Kul on the drive back to Bishkek
Road trip10 daysKel-Suu to Chong-Kemin Road Trip - 10 Days
- Two nights in a yurt at Song-Kul
- Off-road to Kok-Kiya and the walk to Kel-Suu
- Cooking lagman in Kochkor, then a yurt by Issyk-Kul