RUSSIAEid al-Adha
Altai Tour for Kurban Bayram, 5 Days
Burial mounds, rock inscriptions and fireside evenings over five days.
A holiday in the heart of Altai
For travellers who want to spend the holiday in the centre of the Altai Republic, among valleys and passes held sacred by local people. Days are given to burial mounds and rock carvings, evenings to the fire at the hotel.
Read more
This tour runs on 15-19 May 2027, over the Kurban Bayram holiday, in the Onguday district at the centre of the Altai Republic. You are met at Gorno-Altaysk Airport. After a drive of about three hours you settle into a hotel in the village of Shashikman, where you stay for four nights.
Each day has one main subject. Day one covers the Seminsky Pass, the Balyk-Sook monument complex and the Arzhan-Suu spring. On day two you visit the burial mounds of Karakol Valley and the Uch Enmek mountain, and meet a local sage. Day three goes to Adyr-Kan and Kalbak-Tash. Day four brings the Chike-Taman Pass and an evening with a kaichi. On day five you return to the airport.
Breakfasts and dinners are cooked in the hotel kitchen and are included in the price. Lunches are paid by each traveller, at cafes along the road and at the stalls on the passes. Rooms sleep two or three people. A private room costs an extra 5000 roubles per night.
Important notes: The tour price is 950 USD per person. The tour is sold for a minimum of 2 people and there is no price for a single traveller. Half is paid at registration and the rest in instalments before you arrive in Altai. No cancellations or refunds are possible once registration is complete. Flights and the Russian visa are not included. We help with ticket choice and with the visa application, but we cannot guarantee that documents will be accepted or set a processing time. Bring your roubles from Turkey, because foreign currency cannot be exchanged in Altai. We suggest clothing suited to an Istanbul summer or autumn. The programme may change at the guide's direction and activities may move between days, but every stop on the list is still visited. Behaviour that disturbs local people, religious proselytising and anything that harms nature is forbidden during the tour. The Altai Republic lies within the Russian Federation. Please check current entry rules and your visa status before you travel. MBD Travel and the organiser accept no liability if a visa is refused or if a traveller is denied entry.
01
Karakol Valley
Burial mounds, rock carvings and the sacred Uch Enmek mountain in a single day.
02
Adyr-Kan and Kalbak-Tash
Bronze Age petroglyphs and the largest rock art complex in Altai.
03
An evening with a kaichi
Dinner with throat singing and ancient epics.
Planning your budgetThe tour price is 950 USD per person. The tour is sold for a minimum of 2 people and there is no price for a single traveller. Flights, the Russian visa and lunches are not included. Half of the price is paid at registration and the rest in instalments before you arrive in Altai. No cancellations or refunds are possible once registration is complete. See details →
OVER 5 DAYS
The route of the journey
01Arrival in Altai and the Seminsky Pass
night 1
You are met at Gorno-Altaysk Airport. We stop at a cafe early on for a short break. Each traveller pays for their own lunch.
The road to the hotel crosses the Seminsky Pass (Dyall-Menku), the highest pass on the route. Its name means 'Eternal Wind'. We stop here for clean mountain air and the first photographs. The drive takes about three hours.
We check in at our hotel in the village of Shashikman, in the Onguday district. We gather in a traditional yurt for a welcome talk, introductions and a short lesson on Altai beliefs and the world of spirits.
Next we visit the Balyk-Sook monument complex and the Arzhan-Suu spring, whose water is considered healing, where you can fill a bottle with clean mountain water. Dinner is at 19:00, followed by tea and conversation around the fire.
02Karakol Valley and a Meeting with a Sage
night 2
After breakfast we drive to Karakol Valley, a place full of petroglyphs and burial mounds. We see the Pazyryk and Turkic mounds and the sacred Uch Enmek mountain, and hear the stories attached to them.
During the day we meet a local sage. In the Altai language such people are called 'neme beler kiji', the one who knows. The sage gives a talk on the ancient Altai faith and performs the ritual of opening all roads, so that your journey and your path in life may be easy.
In the evening we return to the hotel for dinner and rest.
03Adyr-Kan and Kalbak-Tash
night 3
After breakfast we visit Adyr-Kan (the Chuya Deer Stone) on the Chuya road. This sacred site holds Bronze Age petroglyphs and has been held sacred by local people since very ancient times.
In the middle of the valley, on the right bank of the Chuya River, stands a stone warrior 2.1 metres tall, carved from grey-green slate. Scholars date it to the 8th to 7th centuries BC, the early Scythian period.
The main stop of the day is Kalbak-Tash, the largest rock art complex in Altai, where messages from the Bronze Age and the Scythian period are cut into the rock. We return to the hotel in the evening and talk by the fire after dinner.
04Chike-Taman Pass and a Kaichi Evening
night 4
After breakfast we climb to Chike-Taman, one of the most beautiful and sacred passes on the Chuya road. Viewing terraces at 1,460 metres give a wide look over the valley of the Bolshoy Ilgumen River and its cliffs.
A colourful market stands at the top of the pass. Local people sell medicinal herbs, honey, fruit, felt goods and souvenirs. You can browse the stalls and try fresh pastries and bread.
In the evening we have a special dinner with a performance by a kaichi, an Altai epic storyteller. Throat singing and ancient epics close the day.
05Farewell, Altai
After breakfast we pack and take you to the airport in line with your return flight times. If tickets are for different times, the earliest flight sets the departure.
You can go with the shared vehicle, or follow later at your own time by taxi, which costs extra.
Places visited
Included and extra costs
Included in the price
4
- All activities and visits listed in the programme
- Breakfasts and dinners (cooked in the hotel kitchen)
- 4 nights in the hotel in Shashikman village (rooms for two or three people)
- Meeting at Gorno-Altaysk Airport and a shared transfer back to the airport
Not included in the price
6
- Return flights (we help you choose tickets)
- Russian visa (we help with the application)
- Lunches
- Private room (extra 5000 roubles per night)
- A taxi to the airport at a different time
- Shopping and personal spending (bring roubles from Turkey)
Visa and passport
3
- The Russian visa is not included in the tour price.
- We help with the visa application. We cannot guarantee that documents will be accepted or set a processing time.
- Please check current entry rules and your visa status before you travel. MBD Travel and the organiser accept no liability if a visa is refused or if a traveller is denied entry.
Good to know
Cancellation and change conditions
Cancellation and change conditions are set out in the Online Sales Agreement.
Guiding
All of our guides speak Turkish.
DIFFERENT TOUR OPTIONS
All toursOther tours in the same region.
Separate tours · Different programmes and inclusions.
2 adults1,900.00 USD
Edit your selection