Continuing my “stans” overland adventure, I made my way to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. The original plan was to do the Pamir Highway from Dushanbe, Tajikistan and cross the border to Kyrgyzstan, but because of the protests going on it didn’t work out. We had to turn around and book last second flights to Bishkek, but there weren’t any direct flights; the only one we could find had a full day layover in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Fortunately it was only a three hour drive from Almaty to Bishkek, so we got a taxi for $70 and crossed the border to Kyrgyzstan.
Everything was extremely last minute so we didn’t book a hotel in advance; we figured we could find something once we arrived — wrong. We didn’t have cell phone service to look up anything so we relied on our taxi driver, and he seemed to take us to every hotel that was way outside of our budget. We finally gave up and decided to take turns sleeping on a public bench until our tour at 8 AM started. Anyways, here were my favorite things to do in Kyrgyzstan!
Golden Eagle Hunters
By far one of the best experiences in Kyrgyzstan was seeing this ancient hunting tradition! You need to book a tour in advance; I highly recommend Asia Tours Kyrgyzstan. They were fantastic and took care of all the logistics.
Hot Springs
Check out the trek to Altyn Arashan — the best hot springs are about a ten minute walk from the manmade pools.
Stay in a yurt
Staying in a yurt is a great way to experience nomadic culture! You can find some beautiful yurts alongside Lake Issykkul. Again, if you go with Asia Tours Kyrgyzstan they can set everything up.
Burana Tower
Check out the beautiful architecture from the old Silk Road era! It’s on the way to Lake Issykkul if you’re heading in that direction.
Fairytale Canyon
The landscapes are incredibly diverse across Kyrgyzstan, and this canyon in particular almost reminds me of the southwest in the USA!
