kolsai lakes

离阿拉木图“比较近”的一个湖群，由三个湖组成。说“比较近”只是相对哈萨克斯坦东部其他几个湖泊而言。地图上看着差不多100公里，实际要走2-3倍远的路，而且路况不是很好，路上花费时间比较多。建议在民宿住一晚上，可通过EIRC联系。当然景色还是不错的，典型的高山湖泊。

We did not visited the highest lake because we were there at the end of season. But 2 other lakes were beautiful !!

Amazing lake view, wild nature, crystal clear water, mountains. Good for trekking. Живописнейшие озера, дикая природа, крастально чистая вода, горы

This lake is 2hr distance from Almaty city altitude of lake is 2100m High, Color of lake is really interesting because it is come from Melting water from everlasting snow. this lake is main source of Almaty city tap water

It is a must when you're in Kazakhstan! Quite long and bumpy road from Almaty, but definitely worth visiting. The hotel is quite hard to find and you'll have to pay "enter fee" about 2 times in the park, then mountains, so better go there with the daylight. Hotel is basic, bring your own food, drinks (there's a fully equiped kitchen) there, but you'll be fascinated by the nature. We took a trip to the highest lakes with a local guy and local horses.. somethining really extreme! Seriously, be very careful if doing that, horses are not well trained and rocky mountain path is quite slippery. And the temperature is pretty low once you reach the highest point, so take warm clothes with you (it was around +10C in the middle of June). But that feeling once you're back at the hotel with a glass of wine..:) Enjoy!

Kazakhstan's Kolsai high altitude lakes are great to have seen, but you do need to be a nature hound and prepared for arduous hiking and pretty basic accommodation. There are three lakes about 6 hours drive from Almaty. You stay in lodge style accommodation and bring your own food which you can cook or your tour people cook for you. It's all pretty basic. The lakes' height varies from 1700 m to 2650 m and you can walk from the bottom to the top lake. A walk from the bottom to the middle lake is pretty steep and about 5 km so it's about four hours up and three down. Important for timing to get back as the trail is not marked and you don't want to be wandering around steep woody slopes in the dark. The top lake is a further 4-5 km from the middle lake so unless you're super fit it's not possible to do all three in a day and get back to the bottom lake - where accommodation is. This is important as the Almaty tour guides seem to have no idea about distance and timing, no hiking skills, carry no first aid and have no maps or anything - at least ours didn't - hadn't even walked in the region. You do need a guide so make sure you arrange a local guide who knows the area in advance, otherwise it's not much fun. The lakes themselves are small mountain lakes in a remote region, but not fundamentally different from many others you might have hiked in other countries. The scenery is typical lake/alpine and is unspoilt in that there's not much built-up intrusion, but litter is a problem as local Kazakh visitors seem to like lighting fires to cook in remote places and leave their litter and empty bottles there. Once you could hike past the third (top) lake over the mountain and cross the mountain pass into Kyrgyzstan, but we were told that the border is now closed and it's illegal, therefore dangerous, to try and do this.

This lake is just outside the city of Almaty and is surrounded by mountains. It is a great place to just take in the views and relax. Like quite a bit of the countryside in this country you will see a bit of litter which is disappointing and part of the reason i cant give this place a 5 star rating. If you like the mountains you will love this, take a pick nick and spend some time there.I visited in late April and it was t shirt weather i suspect however that in the winter it must get a bit chilly.

Traveled here in the summer, left Almaty on a bus tour around 10.30pm on the Friday night. We arrived at a village close to the mountains about 6am Saturday morning. The lakes are only a few hundred km's from Almaty, but due to the poor quality of the roads it is a very slow trip. On our trip there appeared to be a new road under construction which may improve this in the future. we where billeted to rooms at different houses in the village. The rooms and beds where basic, but nice and warm (even though it was summer, it was still quite cool at night). The food was all local kazak food, absolute fantastic food. The walk to the mountains of the first day was challenging, but rewarding. The photos do not begin to do justice to how spectacular the country side was here. A great experience, well worth the trip. Can't wait to return to Kazakhstan and see more.

Not really worth the drive from Almaty...there are more accessible lakes in the world to visit. The surroundings around the lake are not really accessible.

When I arrived at Kolsai-1, the stunning views took my breath away. It is so beautiful that I took hundreds of pictures. Our guide organised horses for us to ride from Kolsai-1 to Kolsai-2 and I definitely recommend the horse ride as you can enjoy the views in a different way. The terrain was a little challenging for me as it was my first time riding on a horse back but the experience was definitely worth it!

Unbelievable lakes located in mountains. There are 3 lakes named as Kolsai-1, Kolsai-2, Kolsai-3. Every lake opens amazing view with mirror water and lots of fir-tree on mountains. You have to be patient and strong if you wish to achive every lake.Also there is one wonderful lake nearby named Kaiyndy. It formed after earthquake and you can see top of trees that were covered by water. You may rent a boat and take a little tour there.According residence, you may rent guest house from locals (fresh and tasty meals included) . If you wish you may stay in yurt, it's also possible to rent a yurt. I reccomend to take a warm clothes, it's very cold in the evening even in hot summer.

It's non peak season when I was there. Very tranquil. Lakes were still frozen. Ice sheets on top of the lakes! Lovely! Like what the other travellers here said, you need to walk to the second lake. It's beautiful there. It takes around 2.5 to 3 hours to walk there from the first lake.

My grandma at the moment of trip was over 70 yrs old and had some acquintances at the nearby village. So she took couple of her grandchildren and hopped on the bus towards our funny holidays. Very looong trip to the lake of a bus, recommend renting a car with gps or map. The the lakeside there was a nice hotel and people offering horse riding tours around the lakes( there are 3 biggest of them, if I am not mistaken). Or else ou can go on a two-day trip through mountains to the nearby country Kyrgyzstan. I took a horse and went by myself because I know how to ride a horse. Fantastic nature, so calm and peaceful! Loved everything about our stay there.

A very beautiful sightseeing place to visit around Almaty. You can breath fresh air and have a nice walk around.

Far from Almaty, but nature is amazing. beautiful mountains, hills, beautiful water, cant swim because it is cold. I love this place and I will come again.