Medeu and Shymbulak Day Tour

Overview:

Welcome to Almaty! Almaty is the cultural and economic centre of Kazakhstan. It is also a popular tourist destination with a wide range of attractions. Almaty is located in the south-eastern corner of the country at the foot of the Trans-Ile-Alatau Mountains. You can enjoy a variety of experiences in and around the city.

Almaty was the capital until 1997, when it moved to Astana. With a population of over 2.2 million, the city offers many historical sights, parks, museums, restaurants and the main tourist sites such as Medeu and Shymbulak.

Our Almaty day tour is based on visiting these places and enjoying the beautiful views of the Ile-Alatau mountains. The city of Almaty is situated at 700-900 metres above sea level and today we take a trip up into the mountains.

The Medeu ice rink is located in the Medeu valley at an altitude of 1691 metres. The rink was built in 1951 and has hosted many regional and international tournaments. It has a capacity of 8500 people and is one of the largest ice rinks in Central Asia.

Climbing up from Medeu you can reach the Shymbulak ski resort. Here you can enjoy great mountain views and fresh air at an altitude of 2200 metres. The resort is open all year round. In summer you can enjoy the surroundings and take the cable car up the mountain. Climb to the Talgar Pass and enjoy the Shymbulak Peak. In winter you can enjoy skiing and snowboarding. There are three lifts and the highest point you can be taken to is 3200 metres. There are also many restaurants where we will have lunch.

After our tour of the Medeu Valley we can optionally visit a Kok Tobe Hill or any other location according to your wishes. At Kok Tobe Hill you can enjoy a great view of the city of Almaty. This is one of the most popular places for city tours. There are many restaurants and souvenir shops at the top of the hill.

We will take you to one of our favourite restaurants in the city and hope you will like it too. Enjoy a traditional meal and drink. Our tour ends with a transfer back to your hotel. Thank you for joining us!

Pick up at 9:00 am

Our Almaty city guide will meet you at your hotel and take you on a city tour. First stop is the Medeu. If you fancy a challenging climb up a ladder with 842 steps, then let’s do it! Here you can enjoy the Medeu mudflow barrier. The ladder is also known as the Health Ladder. Next, take a taxi to the top of the valley where Shymbulak Resort is located.

Shymbulak is one of the main tourist attractions of Almaty. The resort was founded in 1954 and was used as a training base for Soviet athletes. The ski season starts in late November and ends in mid-April. In the summer we take a cable car up to 3200m and enjoy the magnificent views of the Ile-Alatau mountains. Optionally, we can take a short horse ride through the picturesque corners of the tract.

In the evening you will have the opportunity to visit Kok Tobe Hill.

This is also one of the best attractions for panoramic views of Almaty. In winter the view is not great due to pollution, but in summer you can enjoy the great view.

Dinner is served in a local restaurant. We recommend you to try the traditional food and drinks such as kymys or shubat (fermented horse and camel milk).

The end of the tour! We hope you enjoyed it!

Almaty is a big city and there will be a lot of traffic during your day tour. Please be patient.
If the any of attractions are not open, we will replace it with other highlights that are no less exciting.
The tour can be booked the day before. Please let us know your preferred date and wait for confirmation.
The tour can started with a picking-up from the airport.

Good to know:

This is one of the four Altmaty Day Tours that we offer. All four tours have different highlights. These tours can be combined and you can see the best of Almaty in 2-4 days.

We are flexible and always happy to offer the best. If there is a special event, concert or tournament, we are happy to include it as a highlight of the tour.

Medeu and Shymbulak Day Tour

Duration: Full day tour
Availability: Four seasons
Begin and end: Almaty city
Tour type: Almaty City Tour
Price from: 150 USD per person

Our highlights

Medeu skating rink
Shymbulak Ski Resort
Panoramic view from Kok Tobe

BOOK NOW

Tour Price Includes

Transportation + fuel
Experienced driver
English speaking guide
All permits and fees
Lunch and Dinner
All activities

Tour price excludes

Personal needs
Alcoholic beverages
Gratitude

Tour details:

The packing list is based on the time of year. Please dress according to the weather forecast. Make sure your camera and mobile phone are fully charged. Please also bring a day pack with the following items: sunglasses, fresh water, sunscreen, waterproof jacket, hand sanitiser, toiletries. And please have some cash in case you want to go shopping or buy souvenirs.

This is a city tour, not a wilderness tour. There are plenty of places to go to the toilet. But please let your guide know in advance. Sometimes in traffic it can be difficult to find and stop for the toilet, so please make sure you go to the toilet before you get in the car. Thank you very much.

This is one of the four Almaty Day Tours and is based on visiting the historical attractions of the city. During the tour you will visit the places that are famous to the locals and are an important part of the city’s culture. This tour is for those who want to experience a real Almaty city tour and meet the locals.

We are responsible for picking you up at the time we have arranged. We are responsible for visiting the places and seeing the attractions that we have mentioned on our itinerary. We are responsible for guiding you with pleasure and giving you a great city tour.

We are not responsible for any unplanned inconvenience during the tour. We are not responsible for the traffic in the city and finally we are not responsible for the bad weather conditions that you have to be prepared for in advance.

Our guide is a tour leader, we kindly ask you to follow his/her instructions and respect his/her job. Please do not hurt the feelings of the locals and respect their traditions.

Please be prepared for the trip and get ready on time.

Please remember that we are happy to meet you and it is our pleasure to guide you today. It is going to be a great day, so please enjoy your trip

The Almaty City Tour is available all year round. Please check the weather forecast once you have chosen your tour date. And try to pack an extra jacket for the evenings.

We kindly ask you to pay a deposit to confirm your trip.

The remein balance can be paid 7 days before the start of the tour (but we are very flexible with payment terms)

Here is our cancellation policy that we recommend our clients follow.

Cancelling the tour within more than 2 months, 50% of your deposit payment will be reinbussed

Cancelling the tour less than one month, the deposit payment will not be reinbussed

The Almaty Day Tour does not include accommodation.

This is a fully guided day tour where you will be accompanied by local guides. We take pride in showing you our beautiful city. We have an experienced driver and a comfortable vehicle.

During the tour you will have the opportunity to taste the traditional meals. If you are vegetarian or vegan please let us know in advance. There is a wide choice of meals so we hope you will enjoy the traditional meals. In the evening we will take you to one of the best restaurants in town.