From Wikitravel

Issyk Kul is in Kyrgyzstan. It both refers to the lake and the oblast region (state) within the Kyrgyz Republic. The region is centered around the massive Issyk Kul lake, which is the second largest alpine lake in the world. It is completely ringed by the massive snow-capped Tien Shan mountains that lie between 3000 and 4000 meters.

The Issyk Kul lake reaches to nearly 670 meters deep in the center. It was also once used as a torpedo testing site by the Soviet Navy, making the region off limits to foreigners until the

[edit] Regions

Issyk Kul is divided between the more populated and touristy North Shore and the more rugged and less populated South Shore.

[edit] Cities

Karakol is the largest city and regional capitol.

Balikchy is a small, dying industrial center on the western shore as you enter the pass from the Chui Valley

Cholpon Ata is the central city for tourism as most of the resorts are within 50 km of Cholpon Ata.

[edit] Other destinations

Jeti-Oguz

[edit] Understand

Issyk Kul is a slighlty saline deep water body. Years of over-fishing have decimated its fisheries and many of the smoked fish sold in it's cities actually come from other alpine lakes. Due to a lack of reasonable controls on tourism, many sub-standard and unfinished low quality tourism resorts ring the lake's north shore. Nevertheless, there still remain numerous places to appreciate the true beauty of Issyk Kul.

A mountain pass road being constructed between Issyk Kul and Almaty, Kazakhstan is set to increase tourists numbers in the coming years and without government controls on development, will only deplete the natural beauty of this lake.

[edit] Talk

Russian and Kyrgyz are the primary languages. Some hospitality staff may speak English, but it is much more helpful to know basic Russian.

[edit] Get in

The simplest way to reach Issyk Kul is via either Almaty or Bishkek and then to arrange a car or taxi to Issyk Kul. Arranged drivers from Bishkek will cost as much as $100 one way. You can also go to the Avtobezal (Autobus station) and can pay between 500 and 1000 soms per seat (4 seats for the entire car) to reach any portion of the lake. Avtavahkzal is Russian for bus station, avtabekat is Kyrgyz - to depart to Issyk Kol it is best to leave from zapidny avatvahkzal (western bus station). In 2003 one seat in a car shared with 4 people traveling to Cholpon Ata cost ~ 200-250 som, then you could buy 38 som with one U.S. dollar. In 2007, the same ride cost ~300 som for one of the four seats in the car, at this time you could buy only 30.5 som with one U.S. dollar. You could easily pay more, but rarely is there a need as the number of drivers and cars far outweight the number of travelers. Although most of these drivers are hoping to get significantly more for the fare, odds are in your favor. It is always a good strategy to team up with other travelers and negotiate as a coalition of travelers, often you will find yourself befriended by some locals who are pleased to ensure that you pay the same fare as they do. Friday night in the late summer can be an expensive time to leave Bishkek for Issyk Kol, but I've never paid anywhere near 500-1,000 som for a seat on that route. There is also a very scenic train ride from Bishkek to Balikchy that you can ride. It is much longer than going via car, but has amazing views through the pass. It will be a very hot ride in the summer.

[edit] Get around

All of the larger cities have bus and taxi stations where you can negotiate rides. If you are in a smaller city, you can just ask around for a car and driver and receive a reasonable rate.

[edit][add listing] See

[edit] Itineraries

[edit][add listing] Do

There are many routes for hiking into the mountains surrounding the lake. Issyk Kul is also ringed by hundreds of kilometers of beaches popular for swimming and sunning. Beware, as the lake sits at 1300-1600 meters, a few days in the sun can do more damage to your skin than a week at sea level.

[edit][add listing] Eat

Most of the restaurants serve "national and European" cuisine, which amounts to local and Russian food. There are few restaurants catering to western tastes. Most locals pack their own food and prepare in their hotel rooms and on the beach. You can find numerous shashlik stands in the summer serving marinated grilled lamb and beef.

• Radyga Resort This resort features a less than stellar restaurant, but does have a NY Pizza franchise.

• Four Seasons Restaurant The Four Seasons restaurant popular in Bishkek also has a restaurant in front of the Hotel Aurora. It served good Caucasian and European dishes and is the nicest restaurant on Issyk Kul lake.

[edit][add listing] Drink

Some locals believe drinking the slightly saline water of Issyk Kul has health benefits. But, there is a uranium tailing pond on the south shore, that likely runs off into the lake.

[edit] Stay safe

There are no lifeguards at any of the beaches.

There are no nudist beaches and women being topless is quite rare, but local custom has no adversion to extremely skimpy swimsuits.

[edit] Get out

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