ALMATY REGION – The Almaty region’s unique mix of natural beauty and resorts attracted a total of 167,000 tourists last year, according to records, and the services offered to them amounted to 2.8 billion tenge.
Zhetysu (Seven Rivers) region, the unique landscape rich in nature reserves, parks and resorts is a leader in the domestic leisure and travel industry. There are nearly 500 hotels, resorts, campsites and other tourist sites in the area, plus 118 developed routes passing through Charyn Canyon, Kolsai Lake, old-growth ash forests, Altyn-Emel Nature Park, the Tamgaly Tas mountain region and Turgen Gorge.
This summer, tourist services will be offered to thousands of tourists at Alakol Lake, and new tourist facilities with sports grounds, children’s playgrounds and comfortable cottages have appeared on its shores.
In addition, the construction of the Zhana Ili tourist centre (“New Ili” in Kazakh) on Kapshagai Reservoir, recreational facilities on the shores of Lake Balkhash and ski resorts in the Kaskelen and Tekeli districts will be launched in the near future. Another tourist cluster and roadside infrastructure will be created along the old Silk Road which is recreated today as a transcontinental road corridor Western Europe – Western China.
The ethnographic and ecological routes “Along the Silk Road”, “To the Mountain Lakes of the Tien Shan” and “In Ancient Times” have gained popularity, as have rafting on the Karatal and Charyn Rivers, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, biking and cross-country skiing tours.
