Recently Viewed
Big Almaty Lake: Scenic Mountain and Apple Tour
3.5
37 Ratings
Almaty
Explore Big Almaty Lake’s stunning alpine views and savor legendary Aport apples in Almaty’s iconic apple garden.
Explore Big Almaty Lake’s stunning alpine views and savor legendary Aport apples in Almaty’s iconic apple garden.
Duration:
6 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Big Almaty Lake - The first stop is Big Almaty Lake, located about an hour’s drive from Almaty City. Along the journey, travelers will enjoy the stunning views of majestic mountains, dense pine forests, and scenic landscapes. Upon reaching Big Almaty Lake, visitors will marvel at how this large lake was formed atop the mountain centuries ago. This…
- Big Almaty Lake - The first stop is Big Almaty Lake, located about an hour’s drive from Almaty City. Along the journey, travelers will enjoy the stunning views of majestic mountains, dense pine forests, and scenic landscapes. Upon reaching Big Almaty Lake, visitors will marvel at how this large lake was formed atop the mountain centuries ago. This natural alpine reservoir is situated in the Trans-Ili Alatau mountains, 15 km south of Almaty’s center in Kazakhstan, at an elevation of 2,511 meters above sea level. As the lake is explored, its color is observed to shift from light blue to deep dark, depending on the sunlight’s intensity.
- Almaty Region - The next destination is the Almaty apple garden. Aport apples are a significant symbol of Almaty, the cultural heart of Kazakhstan. The city is often associated with the large red apple. The “aport” variety, cultivated in Almaty at the base of the Tien Shan Mountains and nearby forests, is emblematic of the city. Visitors are treated to an engaging story about the origins of the Aport apple, set against the backdrop of beautiful landscapes.
What's Included
- Eco taxi to the end of the big Almaty lake
- All Fees and Taxes
- In-vehicle air conditioning
- Guide service
- Eco taxi to the end of the big Almaty lake
- All Fees and Taxes
- In-vehicle air conditioning
- Guide service
What's Not Included
- Lunch
- Lunch
Additional Information
Delight in the stunning views of Big Almaty Lake. Following this, explore the Almaty apple garden, set against the picturesque backdrop of the Almaty mountains, and savor the authentic and legendary Aport apple.
The adventure begins with a visit to Big Almaty Lake, located approximately an hour’s drive from Almaty City. En route, enjoy the breathtaking…
Delight in the stunning views of Big Almaty Lake. Following this, explore the Almaty apple garden, set against the picturesque backdrop of the Almaty mountains, and savor the authentic and legendary Aport apple.
The adventure begins with a visit to Big Almaty Lake, located approximately an hour’s drive from Almaty City. En route, enjoy the breathtaking mountain views, dense pine forests, and scenic landscapes. Big Almaty Lake is a natural alpine reservoir situated in the Trans-Ili Alatau mountains, 15 km south of Almaty’s center in Kazakhstan, at an elevation of 2,511 meters above sea level.
The next stop is the Almaty apple garden. The Aport apple is a significant emblem of Almaty, the cultural heart of Kazakhstan. Almaty is famously linked with the large red apple. The “Aport” apple, a unique variety cultivated in Almaty at the base of the Tien Shan Mountains and nearby forests, stands as one of the city’s iconic symbols.
Location
Zyliha Hotel
Baytursynova Street
Meet your guide and find your bus in front of the hotel Renion Zyliha from 6:00 till 6:15
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
3.5
(37 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Soojim_a
Oct 23, 2025
Big Almaty with Adam - The lake was so beautiful and the guide Adam made this tour so pleasant!
Visiting time was also perfect to take photo!
Review provided by Viator
Lucke_a
Oct 22, 2025
Lovely tour guide for Almaty lake + apple trees - Affordable price, best service and cleae explanation from time to time. We got 45 mins to take pic in the lake.
Review provided by Viator
Venumadhava_r
Oct 8, 2025
The guide was too good... - The guide was too good and patience to all of us. We went to big almaty lake and the apple garden. He actually helped all of us to get sweet apples.
Review provided by Viator
Mutalibova
Oct 2, 2025
Almaty is the city you should visit - The guide Abduhamid was incredibly kind and empathetic. His storytelling was engaging and made the tour truly memorable.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Abdukhamid
Oct 2, 2025
Great Lake with absolute beauty 🌞 - I’d gone there with Panda Travel. Big Almaty Lake is different from other lakes you can see in Almaty region. Unique beauty and scenery. Especially thanks to guide Adam, he is professional and Great Man. If you want feel some adventure and join interesting group of people DO IT. It is absolutely worth it. Hoping see you again Abdukhamid “Kop Rakhmet”.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
134nurr
Sep 29, 2025
Best travel in Almaty - It was a wonderful experience of Big Almaty Lake tour with our tour guide, Mr. Rustam. Big thanks for his friendly and impressive services. We got lots of beautiful photos as memories in Almaty.
Panda travel is truly the best
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Stefano_z
Sep 16, 2025
Good tuor with great guide - Today I took this tour and I have to say we really enjoyed it. This is a half-day tour, so it’s ideal if you don’t have much time. In particular the lake was beautiful and had a turquoise color, for sure it would deserve more time. A special thanks to our guide Adam, who was extremely kind, gave us many explanations about the attractions and, above all, about life in Kazakhstan. He even taught us a few words in Kazakh!
Review provided by Viator
Bhargabc2019
Sep 15, 2025
Wonderful Big Almaty Lake Trip – *Rakhmet*, AbHaKe! - We had an amazing day trip to Big Almaty Lake, all thanks to *GetYourGuide - Panda Travel* for organizing it so smoothly. A special shoutout to our guide **Abdul Hamid (aka AbHaKe)** – he was engaging, informative, and full of energy. He didn’t just guide us; he made the journey fun, taught us Kazakh phrases like "*səlemetsiz be*" (hello) and "*rakhmet*" (thank you), and shared great insights into local culture.
The views were *keremet* (perfect/gorgeous), the experience was unforgettable, and AbHaKe’s enthusiasm made it all the more special. Truly made the trip *zharasqan* (just right).
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nosferatutravelling
Sep 30, 2025
To avoid - We booked directly on their website, we paid, we got up at 5am to be at the pickup point at 6am, and then...nothing. Nobody came, we texted, we called, but no answer. There was a couple in the same situation.
Finally at 4pm a person picked up the phone. We were promised to be refunded, we kept in touch, put the pressure high, but the communication was slow and not proactive. Finally after 3 weeks we got our money back.
So in the end, we waisted money on exchange rates and taxis, we waisted an evening because we had to get up at 5am, and a morning because we got up at 5 am for nothing and went back to sleep and we did not see Big Almaty lake
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Davidandgary2
Sep 28, 2025
Disorganised- stay away - Shockingly bad. Not only is the time advertised as 8am but is in fact 6am, but it was very poorly organised. No idea why it started so early for a half day trip.
No commentary on the trip during the drive or at the sites. Some history of kazakstan or about the culture woukd be good. Instead we travelled in silence.
Waited over an hour for vans to collect us to travel up to the lake, from the pick up point. Apparently the fault of the national park, but as one of very few groups, it seems odd that this popular attraction is so badly run.
Had we gotten to the location sooner, I'd have seen the lake. But as I was part of the second car that waited ages, by the time I got there it was foggy. The first group saw it.
Highlight was the stop for coffee. Again, poorly organised as no time set so no idea what we had time to do or not.
Apple orchard- tasty but again, no info or commentary.
As the weather was bad, some advance advice would have helped or provide some umbrellas, as walking in the rain wasn't welcome.
Weather cant be planned, but trip was poorly planned and run.
Review provided by Viator
More activities from this operator
