CELESTIAL MOUNTAINS

10 Nights | £2,495 | Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

RIDE THE ANCIENT SILK ROAD

OVERVIEW

This is a true Silk Road adventure starting from the remote hillside valleys where the horses are born and raised, passing through mountain valleys towards Kok Kiya valley with its famous twin peaks, then opening up to the steppe.

Guests will encounter thousands of free-roaming horses in the summer mountain meadows, ride through valleys few tourists see and ride past many soviet relics that tell the story of the recent past.

The ride finishes at Tash Rabat, one of the oldest buildings in Kyrgyzstan. Orignally a Nestorian Christian monestray, it was also used as a caravanserai - a Silk Road hotel. Teams of camels would be tied outside as wheelers and dealers of the past ate their hot meals and took respite in the domed stone building.

LET’S RIDE

TRIP HIGHLIGHTS

Explore two mountain-scapes that feel like Switzerland and the Steppe
Ride along the Silk Road very near to the ancient pass to China
Stay near Tash Rabat, the best preserved caravanserai in Kyrg
Venture to Kel-Suu close to the Chinese border
Fast riding across mountain plateaus
Visit Chartyr Kol, the last lake before the border crossing with China
Spot Ibex, Marco Polo Sheep and large herds of Yaks
See the Milky Way with your own eyes at night
Stay at a boutique hotel in Bishkek
Relax in a stove-fuelled mountain sauna
Benefit from an air-conditioned transfer and support vehicle

OVERVIEW

RIDE GUIDE

Duration: 11 Days / 10 Nights / 9 Days Riding

Cost: £2,495 pp sharing

Max Riders: 8

Arrival / Departure: Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Riding Level: Our rides are for experienced riders who are balanced on their horses and in control galloping in open spaces. We only accept advanced riders for social reasons. Most of our guests are life-long riders.

Weight Limit: Maximum of 85kg/187lbs

Time in the saddle: 2 to 7 hours a day

HORSES

Kyrgyz ponies typically smaller and perfectly adapted for the high altitude however it’s now fashionable to have larger horses and most of our horses will be above 15hh.

You will ride stallions (who don’t realise they’re still intact). The horses are typically very docile though some can become forward in gallop. Our guides will assign your a horse to match your need for speed.

Tack is a lower quality that what we are used to in the west but very comfortable. A metal or wooden saddle tree is balanced on layers of thick felt saddle pads and covered with a cushion for comfort. Bridles are simple canvas or leather and bits sit loose in the horses mouth.

ACCOMMODATION

Night 1: Kamandy Jailoo – Yurt Camp. Small, private family yurt camp. Guests sleep between two yurts.

Nights 2,3,6,7,8: Tented Camps. Three-man tents per two riders. There is s shared mess tent for dinning.

Nights 4 & 5: Golden Moon Mountain Base. Humble but charming and atmospheric twin rooms with real beds, separate loos and a sauna.

Night 9: Tash Rabat Yurt Camp. Ensuite fixed yurts with beautiful furnishings. A separate yurt for dinning.

Night 10: Bishkek - Ambassador Hotel 4*

WHAT'S INCLUDED

All meals, accommodation, horses, guides, support vehicle and transfers, entry for landmark sights, banya, bottled water and permit for Chinese border.

WHAT’S EXCLUDED

The price does not include international or domestic flights, alcohol, mandatory travel insurance, or staff tips (which are optional but appreciated).

ATMs are available near the two markets on the tour where you can buy souvenirs. It’s a good idea to carry about 2,000 soms in small notes for buying incidentals and paying for public toilets at rest breaks during driving sections.

RIDING

You must be an experienced, confident rider to join this ride. Because of the mountainous terrain most of the ride is at walk with some opportunities to gallop. You should be an accomplished horse rider, balanced in the saddle, able to keep a confortable contact with your horse at all times to ensure stability and have a general ‘horse-sense’ to know how to ride in a group side by side without putting yourself or your horse in danger.

You will ride over uneven terrain at altitude. This prospect should be exciting and not terrifying if this is the right holiday for you. The highest point on the ride is on the final day at 4,000 meters.

The horses work hard at high altitude and so we only accept well balanced, experienced riders that will not push them unnecessarily and ride in a long loose rein on the mountain.

TRAVEL & VISAS

Since 2012 British, USA and most European nationals don’t need a visa to enter and stay for up to 30 days.

As you will ride in the border zone region with China you will require a border zone permit. This is different to a visa to enter Kyrgyzstan. We will organise the border permit on your behalf. We will need a photo go your passport to apply for this. It’s important that the passport details submitted for the permit match the passport you will bring to Kyrgyzstan with you.

TRANSFERS

Transfers from Manas Airport in Bishkek are included if arriving and departing on arrival and departure dates.

If arriving a day early as recommended you can catch a taxi into town. Manas Airport is a 30-40 minute drive from the city. A reasonable price for a taxi from the airport is 1000 som ($11), your hotel will charge around 2000 som ($25). There is an atm at airport.

MEALS

Kyrgyz food includes a lot of bread, soups, meat dumplings served with buckwheat and vegetables.

Breakfast on trail always includes hot green tea that the locals drink instead of water. You will eat porridge (rice and oat), yogurt, crepes, small pancakes, eggs and fresh bread.

Lunches and dinners are picnic style with cold cuts, breads, and canned fish while on trail and fresh cucumber and tomato salads, hot soups, pasta, dumplings, and meat on potatoes.

You will have an opportunity to drink kumis - fermented mares milk. It’s an acquired taste for foreigners but a daily drink for locals. You might have the opportunity to drink fresh mares milk too. It’s surprisingly sweet!

Vegetarians: while vegetarians can be catored for in the remote mountains it might not be possible to prepare a separate meal, especially if weather conditions are bad and access for the support vehicle is limited. If you are very strict with your diet this likely isn’t the ideal holiday for you.

Kyrgyzstan is a muslim country though alcohol is readily available to purchase at supermarkets. This is a dry trip though you are welcome to bring your own alcohol.

WHAT TO PACK

Refer to our FAQ for what to pack on a horse riding holiday.

The key to packing well for riding in the mountains, even in summer, is layers. We recommend you pack:

A down jacket, a warm jumper, a very warm sleeping bag effective to 0 degrees, silk sleeping bag liner, rain gear (waterproof trousers should have an opening on the outside at the bottom of the leg in order to put on and take off without removing your trekking boots), 2-3 pairs of warm socks, waterproof trekking boots, underwear, gloves, sunglasses, sun cream with high UV-protection, lip balm with UV-protection, torch, personal medicine, metal water bottle (0.75 L), riding chaps, Micropure (or any other water purification).

We always recommend you wear hiking boots and half chaps when on a riding holiday. Always wear boots you are happy to walk in.

The weather can range from 40 degrees in Bishkek to almost zero at night on the mountain. The mountains are usually 10 degrees cooler than Bishkek.

INTERNET

You will be out of cell range for portions of the ride. We recommend purchasing a O! sim card on arrival at the airport. The store is located to the left after customs. Unlimited internet for two weeks will cost around €15.

If your phone doesn’t take sims, or if you would prefer to organise a sim ahead of time, download an e-sim from Airalo and install before you arrive to be connected at all times.

Use our code BLACKS3976 to receive $3 off your e-sim credit.

Your guest houses will have wifi.

DATES + RATES

2027

All departures are £2,495 per person sharing. As the balance is less than £2,500 the full amount is due to reserve your saddle.

18 - 28 July 2027

02 - 12 August 2027

To make an enquiry you can fill in an obligation-free Rider Profile and we will get back to you with loads of information and availability.

GET IN TOUCH

Fill in an obligation-free rider form and we will share information on the ride

APPLY NOW

KYRGYZSTAN

Kyrgyzstan sits at the heart of Central Asia, shaped by mountains, migration, and the long memory of the Silk Roads. For centuries it lay on the edge of empires, Persian, Turkic, Mongol, and later Russian. Until the Russians arrived it’s Turkic people remained largely nomadic, moving with the seasons through the high pastures of the Tien Shan. Soviet rule forced sedentarisation in the 20th century, but independence in 1991 marked a return to cultural self-definition rather than a break with the past. Now most families live in the citires and villages and return to the mountains for three months over the summer to take air and take advantage of the mountain jailoos (meadows).

The landscape is overwhelmingly vertical. Snow-covered peaks rise above 7,000 metres, feeding alpine lakes, wide valleys, and rolling jailoo summer pastures. Much of the country remains roadless, accessible only on horseback, and the rhythm of life is still governed by altitude, weather, and grass. On our rides we often summit passes at 3,000-4,000 meters.

Horses are central to Kyrgyz identity. They are transport, livelihood, and symbol—woven into epic poetry, competitive games, and daily life. Horses are still commonly eaten in Kyrgyzstan though usually at special occassions like weddings. Horse meat is never served on our rides. The local Kyrgyz horse is typically smaller which is perfect for climbing mountains as the heart is relatively bigger and works more effeciently to pump blood around the body, making climbing easier. Think Lance Armstrong’s fitness and unusally large heart! Larger horses have become more fashionable and local horses are often mixed with Russian Don, Quarter Horses and English Thoroughbreds. There will be a mix on types available on the rides. Horses are usually allocated based on weight with larger guests assigned to larger horses to make it easier for the horses.

The Kyrgyz are famously hospitable with their guests and the cities are very safe. You can safely walk around Bishkek at any time of the day or not without fear of crime.

While Muslim, their pre-islam belief of Tengrinism, sky and ancestor worship, still has significant meaning. Women are choosing to wear hijab more often though religion isn’t as noticeable as it is in other muslim countries.

ITINERARY

Rides are intended to be run as shared but Kyrgyzstan is mountainous and weather can be unpredictable. Your guide may need to adapt your itinerary according to weather conditions.

As 90% of flights arrive around between 2am and 5am we recommend arriving a day early to rest from the flight and enjoy exploring Bishkek.
We will organise an optional dinner the night before where you can try local cuisine, visit a supermarket and meet other guests.
The first day of the tour starts with a transfer directly into the mountains, leaving the city behind as the landscape opens into wide valleys and high summer pastures.
The journey takes you deep into rural Kyrgyzstan, where nomadic life continues much as it has for generations.
On arrival at the Kamandy jailoo (summer pasture) you will be matched with a horse and enjoy an easy introduction ride as the sunsets.
That evening guests will sleep in two shared yurts at the summer guesthouse owned by your guide’s family. There is a separate kitchen yurt where you will have your first taste of traditional shepherd dinner.
Driving distance/time: 400km, 7 hours. Riding time: 2 hours.
Ascent/Decent: 150m
Overnight in a yurt. Altitude: 3,000m
Your first full day’s ride hugs the At-Bashy mountain range, you follow routes used by local herders, passing scattered yurt camps and grazing livestock along the way.
The route climbs steadily through open mountain terrain towards Lake Köl-Tör, a remote alpine lake set at around 3,000 metres. You’ll enjoy a picnic lunch on the shore of the bright blue glacial-water lake. It’s completely private but has a similar feel to the famous Kel Suu lake which you will ride to in a few days. Many guests say they prefer it.
In the afternoon you will ride along flat land on river plateaus that allow for some fast canters and gallops.
In the late afternoon you will arrive to your first camp, tucked away near a forest and surrounded by excellent grazing for your horses.
Dinner is enjoyed under the sky at the long table.
Riding distance/time: 30km, 7 hours.
Ascent/Decent: 1,110m
Overnight in tents. Altitude: 3,100m
After a filling breakfast, you’ll begin your ride past shepherds yurts and begin your ascent with the shepherds and their herds to the high summer grazing.
You will pause with your horses at the military post where border guards will check your passports and border permits. Both sides of the border are still in Kyrgyzstan but the goverment likes to keep a record of anyone entering the border zone near China. Your horses will be tied up to doze while your documents are being checked. It’s an administrative process and stree-free but avoid taking photos at the military post.
Shortly after the checkpoint you’ll meet the support team for a hot lunch with plenty of time for a nap if you need one.
By afternoon, you arrive at the Kabyrga Bulak pastures, set at around 3,100 metres. This is a working summer grazing area, where families move seasonally with their herds, offering a rare insight into Kyrgyz pastoral life in one of the country’s most remote regions.
The yurt camp is run by school friends of your hosts and they will prepare a dish of lamb served family style on a tablecloth set up on the floor of their yurt in the traditional way. You’ll have the chance to see horses and cows get milked and have a go if you wish to!
Riding distance/time: 30km, 7 hours.
Ascent/Decent: 840m
Overnight in tents. Altitude: 3,400m
Today’s ride takes you into the Kök-Kiya Valley, a high mountain corridor known for its rich alpine flora and wildlife. The terrain here is completely different from previous days.
As the wide steppe valley opens, you’ll see the twin peaks of Kok-Kiya valley in the distance. Passing an old soviet house, you’ll cross a wide braided river, before climbing onto a plateau where you will enjoy a picnic lunch with incredible views of the mountain ridgeline.
After lunch you will ride through terrain where huge boulders have been left by glaciers. There are excellent galloping spots for some fast riding.
Arriving to Kok-Kiya from the north, there is a steep decline down the mountain before an easy ride on the grassy verge of a river.
You arrive in the Kök-Kiya Valley by afternoon, where you are welcomed into a traditional guest house the night. Kok-Kiya is popular with hikers as they arrive to visit Kel Suu Lake, expect to reenter society and with that you’ll have access to starlink wifi (for access you can pay a small fee to the guesthouse owner), other tourists, and a small shop where you can buy unnessary things like cigarettes and energy drinks.
Dinner is served in the guesthouse dinning room and is typical of Kyrgyz mountain cuisine, usually a hot soup followed by meat and carbs (buckwheat, potatoes, noodles).
The guesthouse has a sauna where you can enjoy a hot bucket shower.
Riding distance/time: 32km, 7 hours.
Ascent/Decent: 1,045m / 941m
Overnight in Golden Moon Guesthouse. Altitude: 3,500m
Today is an easier day spent exploring one of Kyrgyzstan’s most striking landscapes. Riding out from the Kök-Kiya Valley, you cross high ground towards the remote basin that holds Kel Suu Lake, set close to the Chinese border.
The lake and it’s turqiose waters are sometimes descried as the most beautiful in Kyrgyzstan. Its waters contained by sheer limestone cliffs that rise directly from the shoreline.
You have the option to take a short boat ride across the lake.
After time at the lake, you return the guesthouse where you will have free time to explore the valley and meet other travellers.
Riding distance/time: 15km, 4 hours.
Ascent/Decent: 250m / 250m.
Overnight in Golden Moon Guesthouse. Altitude: 3,500m.
Leaving the Kök-Kiya Valley, you ride out across a wide, open landscape framed by rugged peaks and grazing yak herds. The terrain first rises gently and then opens back up to the wide flat steppe of Ak-Sai valley.
The support team will prepare a hot lunch for your around 1pm.
By mid-afternoon, you arrive at a former Soviet-era cultural centre in the Valley. Long since abandoned, it is now home to just a handful of nomadic families. Time is spent here with the residents, offering rare insight into a way of life shaped by remoteness, self-sufficiency, and the seasons.
Take the time to explore the old soviet houses in the village in the afternoon. Some now house horses and cows. A few homes are lived in and you may be able to charge your devices from a multiplug.
Dinner is served at the long table either under the sky or in the mess tent.
Riding distance/time: 30km, 7 hours.
Ascent/Decent: 500m / 200m.
Overnight in tents. Altitude: 3,100m.
Today you will follow the valley towards the border entry point the China. Some sections allow for longer, faster riding where conditions permit.
You will come across large herds of yaks and free roaming horses that may look wild but a shepherd will be watching from a vantage point not too far away.
Lunch is prepared hot by the support team in the middle of the day.
As the afternoon unfolds you’ll ride long the no-mans-land area within 15km of the border with China that is decorated with a barbed wire fence and look out posts. Some have hilariously badly stuffed fake soldiers propped up ‘on watch".
You will arrive at the Karool Dobo pastures in the late afternoon, making camp around an old soviet wagon.
Riding distance/time: 35-40km, 7 hours.
Ascent/Decent: 200m
Overnight in tents. Altitude: 3,200m.
Leaving Karool Dobo in the morning you will spend the morning gradually gaining altitude as you ride towards Chartyr Kol.
Lunch is preprared by the support team and served hot during the middle of the day.
By early afternoon, you reach the shore of Chatyr-Kul, a vast, isolated lake set at over 3,500 metres. Yurt camps are always set up away from large bodies of water and so your day will finish with a short ride to camp.
Camp is set up in the foothills of the At-Bashy range at the base of the climb you will undertake tomorrow.
Dinner is served in the yurt of the local family that are spending their summer in the valley. You’ll have one last opportunity to watch the donkey’s herd up the yaks and sheep and night.
Riding distance/time: 32km, 7 hours.
Ascent/Decent: 150m
Overnight in tents. Altitude: 3,500m.
Your final riding day is a momumental one! You will follow a historic route once used by traders moving between Central Asia and China.
Leaving camp, you climb steeply up the mountain side, sometimes on shale. Your horses were turned out on these mountains when they were foals so are extremely sure-footed and used to the terrain. You’ll read the saddle about an hour after you set off. This is high above the grass line, dramatically rocky, with pyramid-like peaks and incredible views if visibility is good. This is the perfect spot to take some epic photos to remember this trip.
You’ll descend down the mountain, the first section is shaly and steep. Once you reach grass and a small stream there is time to rest the horses.
The ride continues down the valley as it turns ever more green and lush. You’ll ride through the gently flowing river at points as it spans almost the entire valley.
Just when you think you must be in the middle of nowhere, Tash Rabat, a well-preserved stone caravanserai dating back to the Silk Road era, appears and civilisation with it. There are tourist yurt camps (not the authentic shepherds yurts you’ve experienced thus far) dotted around the structure.
You tie your horses outside and enter the stone building. One of the oldest structures in the country, some believe it was originally a nestorian christian monestry. Inside the building there are high ceilings and a feeling of gravitas.
Your final five kilometers meanders around the valley road before your arrive to your very comfortable twin-share, ensuite yurts.
There is wine and beer for sale in the dining yurt. Time to celebrate a wild adventure!
Riding distance/time: 14km, 4 hours.
Ascent/Decent: 500m / 900m
Overnight in Ak Sai Yurt camp. Altitude: 4,000m.
The morning at Tash Rabat is unhurried, offering time to take in the setting before leaving the mountains behind. After breakfast, you depart by road, travelling back towards Bishkek through a changing landscape that gradually gives way to wider valleys and settlements.
A lunch stop is taken en route before arriving in the capital in the late afternoon.
The journey concludes with time to settle into the hotel, followed by a farewell dinner with the team, marking the end of the expedition.
Overnight in Ambassador Hotel in Bishkek.
No Riding Today.
Driving distance/time: 430km, 7 hours
Depending on your departing flight, enjoy a final breakfast at the Navat hotel before transferring to Manas Airport in Bishkek (40 km) and catching your international flight.

PRICES & AVAILABILITY

2027

All departures are £2,495 per person sharing. As the balance is less than £2,500 the full amount is due to reserve your saddle.

18 - 28 July 2027

02 - 12 August 2027

To make an enquiry you can fill in an obligation-free Rider Profile and we will get back to you with loads of information and availability.

HOW TO BOOK

As the balance is less than £2,500 the full amount is due to reserve your saddle.

Cancellation Terms

If you need to cancel we will aim to replace you and return your funds to you less bank fees and an administration fee of £250.

If we cannot replace you the following conditions will apply:

More than 90 days in advance 30% of the full balance is forfeited.
90 - 0 days in advance 100% of the full amount is forfeited.

APPLY NOW

WEATHER + CLIMATE

Kyrgyzstan is 85% mountainous and for more than half of the year the alpine meadows and mountain passes we ride through are covered in snow. We time our rides to make the most of the good weather. Riding in the mountains can bring any weather at any time of year and you should bring many layers to make sure you stay warm and dry on your holiday.

Bishkek lies at 800 meters above sea level and can reach temperatures of 40 degree celcius in summer. It’s much cooler in the mountains, usually not exceeding 25 degrees.

July: By July most of the animals have been moved up to Song Kol and you will see thousands of horses living by the lake. There are less rainy days in July and the warmest temperatures for the year.

August: August has the lowest rainfall. There may be the odd storm but it never lasts long. The animals have grazed the grass down and shepherds are preparing to take their animals back down to the villages for the start of winter.

ACCOMMODATION

GOLDEN MOON GUESTHOUSE

**Night 4, 5**
Golden Moon is a rustic guest house and yurt camp located in the remote Kok-Kiya Valley near Lake Kel-Suu, one of Kyrgyzstan’s most striking high-mountain lakes. Set against the dramatic backdrop of the Tien Shan mountains, the property offers simple but comfortable accommodation with a strong sense of place, close to the natural landscapes you’ve travelled to experience.
We stay in basic twin rooms with a nearby dining room hosting meals and providing charge points.

SIMPLE DOME TENTS

**Night 2, 3, 6, 7, 8**
On the trail you will sleep in simple dome tents on camping mattresses. A short drop loo will be dug.
Camp is close to a steam for water for a face wash. You guides will boil water for drinking though we recommend you also bring micropure tablets or a filter water bottle for drinking water.
Biodegradable wipes can be used for washing and disposed of in the campfire.

AMBASSADOR HOTEL

**Night 10**
Offering a restaurant, Ambassador Hotel is located in Bishkek, a 5-minute walk from Ala-Too Square and Bishkek Train Station. Free WiFi access is available.
Single rooms are available subject to availability. We will confirm the cost at the time of your request.

MEALS

Meal times in Kyrgyzstan start with decadent table-scapes of sweets, dried fruit, nuts, bread, fruit, jams and cream. In nomad times everything available was put onto the table and offered to guests.

Main meals usually consist of meat and onions over potatoes, buckwheat or rice with carrot, tomato, cucumber, peppers or cabbage. Often you are served meat and vegetable soup as a starter.

Plov is a very popular buttered rice served with vegetables and meat dish. Also popular is pasta with cabbage and steamed or fried dumplings stuffed with meat or stir-fry noodles with meat. Watermelon is often served as dessert.

They are not that familiar with making vegetarian dishes though are learning to adapt. Vegetarians be beware that sometimes they think that picking meat out of the group dish will be acceptable to you!

The meals are typically carb-heavy. Gluten-free diets might want to bring their own bread to supplement meals as yurt camps will typically only make one dish for all guests.

Hot chai (black tea) is served at every meal. We provide bottled water every day.