Golden Man Tour
Itinerary name: Golden Man Tour
Day-by-day program:
Day 1: Nur-Sultan
You will arrive to International airport of Nur Sultan. You guide will show you the modern city of Nur Sultan together with historical background. You will start you city tour from Constitution Square. It is the place where N.A.Nazarbayev, president of Kazakhstan declared the change of the capital from Almaty to Astana. Next tour will be to the Museum of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, where you will have an opportunity to see the Golden Man, the most valuable archeological heritage of Central Asia. Further tour continuous to the Khan Shatyr shopping center. It is an extraordinary architectural work. Here you can observe the city’s life better. Later you take a lift to reach the top of monumental tower “Astana-Baiterek”. This building opens wonderful view to whole city. You will visit Kazakh Eli Square via the bridge on Ishym River. Nur Sultan is rich in modern architectural monuments; one of them is the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation. Later it is worth to see the glorious beauty of the Khazret Sultan mosque. Today’s important excursion will end at the National Museum of History of Kazakhstan. The exhibited long-term plans of Nur Sultan will make you imagine the development of Kazakhstan. Night in a hotel.
Day 2: Nur-Sultan – Almaty
The morning flight (1h 40 min on the way) will take you to Almaty, the largest city of Kazakhstan. City tour will start from Green Bazaar, where you can find different kind of things; from fresh fruits to national souvenirs. Later you will walk to central park-Panfilov, named for the honor of the soviet commander during World War II. There are many monuments dedicate the heroes of the Great Patriotic War. In the middle of the park, there is a wonderful building, the Zenkov Cathedral. It is the world’s most charming and tallest wooden construction. Before going to the Medeu gorge out of the town, you will explore more cultural sites of the city. Medeo Gorge on the south side of the city has the highest alpine outdoor skating rink in the world. Up on the gorge there is a ski resort Shymbulak. There is a big dam in the gorge protecting from cascading. Night in a hotel.
Day 3: Almaty
Today’s tour will take you to the famous highest mountain skating rink in Medeu gorge, which is located at the altitude of 1690 meter above sea level. This gorge has a huge dam protecting land from cascading. Here you will feel alpine air with the smell of fresh fir trees. After having short walk, you will travel to Shymbulak ski resort by cable car. The view from cable car to the whole gorge is stunning. Evergreen trees growing up to the 2260 meters above the sea level. This ski resort is kind of VIP resort for this area, it is surrounded by nice restaurants and cafes. One way of cable car takes 20-25 minutes. Travel back to Almaty and have another fun tour to Kok Tobe hill. It is well known with the highest TV tower in the world (counting from the sea level). The eco-cars of the park will take you to the best panoramic view of the city. There is a special deck to observe the city life, it is surprisingly beautiful during the sunset. Moreover, you will wonder having a look to souvenir shops and other places of interest. The days except Tuesday, you will finish your tour driving a cable car to the city. After enjoyable tour, transfer to hotel.
Day 4: Almaty – Tamgaly – Almaty
Today you will explore another amazing site Tamgaly, which is located in the north-west of Almaty in 170 km drive. It is one of the most significant historical sites of Kazakhstan. On the way, you will enjoy the charming beauty of the landscape. Tamgaly Gorge is famous with its extraordinary ancient rock paintings, which is called petroglyphs. Tamgaly petroglyphs has spectacular examples of ancient art. Nowadays, it is in the list of UNESCO World Heritage since 2004. There different pictures depicted on the stones: animals, hunters of some scene where they try to give the idea about the lifestyle of those people. According to the estimates, there are about 2000 drawings in the gorge. Here you can see the images of solar deities, clowns, soldiers, married couples, pregnant women, multi-figure compositions, scenes of hunting and sacrifice. Majority of the petroglyphs dating back to Bronze Age and in Saka animal style. It also said that a place where the rock paintings was used as a huge temple, where ancient tribes hold their ritual ceremonies, perform magic rituals, worship of the gods and the spirits of ancestors. Drive back to Almaty. Stay in a hotel.
Day 5: Flight
After having breakfast in the hotel. Transfer to the Almaty International airport for flight.