Soviet Legacy Tour

Delve into Communist history of Bishkek and begin your journey by visiting the morning flea market. Once you’ve tracked down your treasure at the market we’ll make our way through the city to visit the main Soviet heritage sites - Ballet and Opera Theater, Museum of Fine Arts, The White House, the circus and many other. Few hours of the walking tour will be dedicated to the history and sights of “Interhelpo” cooperative. The cooperative was formed on the initiative of communist workers in the Czech city of Zhilina in response to Vladimir Lenin's call to the entire international proletariat for help to the developing Soviet republics. Finish the day with a dinner consisting of typical soviet dishes as well as snacks and drinks that are still produced to this day.

Draw your car’s type and model out of a hat for you and your friends to drive. Don’t worry - cars are swapped every day. Drive on to the day’s destination, your yurt camp. Once everyone is settled in, you can relax on the beach. End the day with a traditional Kyrgyz dinner and a folk concert, performed by a local family of musicians.

Start your morning with a trip to the derelict buildings, remains of an uranium processing plant of strategic importance during soviet era. Subsequently visit our winemaker friend to grab some homemade wine made from rose petals, cherries and various berries to have with dinner. In the afternoon, you will meet with fourth generation eagle hunters, hear their stories, and watch a demonstration of Salburuun. Next you’ll depart for an hour long hike to the panoramic viewpoint where you will watch the sunset over the lake.

Depart from the yurt camp at 8:30 and head for Karakol, with a few exciting detours along the way. Your first stop will be Fairytale Canyons. Keep your eyes peeled for the sleeping dragon of legend as you walk amongst the rocky pillars. Your next stop is Barskoon Waterfall. A short hike into the gorge will bring you to these astonishing cascades. Spend some time exploring the area before returning to your car for the next destination – Jeti – Oguz. These red sandstone cliffs, located just outside Karakol City are perhaps one of the most iconic images of the Issyk-Kul region. After lunch in Karakol, take a walking tour around the city to see some of its famous sites, including the Dungan Mosque and the Russian Orthodox Church.

Depart in the morning for Jyrgalan Valley. The village here was established in 1964 to house the employees of the local coal mine.  In the morning head to the Kok-Boru fields and watch a demonstration of this traditional Kyrgyz horseback game. Kok-Boru is often lovingly described  by foreigners as dead goat polo.  The game combines various elements of rugby, polo, and football as each team tries to carry a goat carcass weighing about 75lbs to their goal in an effort to score.  After your introduction to the game, saddle up your own horse for a much more leisurely ride through the valley.  In the afternoon, return to the village and take sometime to relax in a Russian sauna.  Once you're suitably relaxed, join the rest of your group and learn how to prepare traditional Kyrgyz snacks with some of the local residents.

The dissolution of Soviet Union meant major ambitious project being left unfinished across former territories. One of these is now the abandoned city of Enilchek derelict buildings of which meekly stand surrounded by magnificent mountains. Travelling to Engilchek requires 4x4s’ and a border area permit which will be provided by us. Equipped with permits you’ll hop on board of soviet military minivans and head to today’s destination through picturesque mountain passes. After a full day we’ll make our way back to Karakol to spend the night.

Today you will head to Issyk-kul’s famous resort town, Cholpon-Ata. Take the day to relax and soak-in the sun at the beach.  Finish the day, with a sunset cruise and a subsequent dinner party.

Start your day with a visit to Cholpon-Ata’s open air petroglyph museum after breakfast then travel to Balykchy.  There you’ll change mode of transportation from Soviet cars to a Soviet train for a joyful train ride with snacks and drinks back to Bishkek. Once in Bishkek we'll finish the tour with a pub crawl. End of Tour.