Kyrgyzstan's two most famous lakes are only a day's drive apart, but they could hardly be more different: one a warm inland sea with beaches and canyons, the other a high, wild pasture with yurts and horses.
On this page
Kyrgyzstan's two most famous lakes are only a day's drive apart, but they could hardly be more different. Issyk-Kul is a warm inland sea at 1,607 m, with beaches, orchards, canyons and towns. Song-Kul lies almost twice as high, at 3,016 m, in a treeless bowl of summer pastures where herders live in yurts with their horses.
Most of our travellers see both. Here is how they compare, and how to make the most of each.
The two lakes at a glance
| Issyk-Kul | Song-Kul | |
|---|---|---|
| Altitude | 1,607 m | 3,016 m |
| Size | About 180 × 60 km, 6,236 km² | About 29 × 18 km, 270 km² |
| Deepest point | 668 m | About 13 m |
| In winter | Almost never freezes | Frozen until late May |
| Best months | June to September | Mid-June to mid-September |
| Where you sleep | Hotels, guesthouses, yurt camps | Yurt camps only |
| Swimming | Pleasant from late June to early September | Too cold for most people |
| Phone signal | Good around the shore | Little or none |
Issyk-Kul: the warm lake
Issyk-Kul is the second-largest mountain lake in the world after Titicaca, and its name means "warm lake". It is deep, slightly salty and fed by warm springs, so even in hard winters it hardly ever freezes. More than a hundred rivers and streams run towards it, but nothing flows out.
The north shore is the holiday coast, with Cholpon-Ata, sandy beaches and a field of some 2,000 boulders carved with petroglyphs between about 800 BC and 1200 AD. The south shore is quieter and wilder: the red clay towers of Skazka Canyon, the waterfall in Barskoon gorge, yurt camps on the beach and families who keep golden eagles for hunting. At the eastern end, Karakol is the base for the red rocks of Jeti-Oguz and the hot springs of Altyn-Arashan.
Song-Kul: the high pasture
Song-Kul is a different world. The road from Kochkor climbs over the Kalmak-Ashuu pass at 3,446 m, and suddenly a wide green bowl opens up, with the lake in the middle and the white dots of yurts along its shore. There are no villages and no trees; from June to September this is a jailoo, a summer pasture, where families from the valleys bring their horses, sheep and yaks.
Life here is simple. You ride along the shore with a herder, walk up a hill for the view, help bring the animals home and share tea, fresh bread, butter and kymyz, fermented mare's milk, in the family yurt. At night the temperature drops close to freezing and the sky fills with stars. Since 2011 the lake has been a protected Ramsar wetland for its birds.
One lake, or both?
- Short on time? Three or four days are enough for Issyk-Kul from Bishkek, with Burana, Skazka and Karakol.
- Want the nomadic experience? Add Song-Kul. It needs at least one night, and two nights are much better: the drive in is long, and the second day is the one you spend on horseback.
- The classic loop goes Bishkek – north shore – Karakol – south shore – Kochkor – Song-Kul – Bishkek in about a week.
Interesting facts
- Issyk-Kul has been a UNESCO biosphere reserve since 2001.
- Song-Kul's ice can be 1.2 m thick in winter, and it lasts until late May.
- One of the roads to Song-Kul climbs the mountainside in 33 hairpin bends.
- The explorer Nikolai Przhevalsky asked to be buried on the shore of Issyk-Kul, and his grave is near Karakol.
Important notes
- Altitude: spend a night or two lower down before sleeping at Song-Kul. Drink plenty of water and avoid alcohol on the first evening.
- Cold: nights at Song-Kul fall to 0–5 °C even in July and August. Yurts have stoves and thick blankets.
- Comfort: Song-Kul camps have no mains electricity, only small solar panels, and long-drop toilets. Showers are rare.
- Signal: plan to be offline at Song-Kul.
- Cash: carry som for eagle shows, entrance fees, horse rides and drinks; there are no ATMs at the lakes.
- Sun: at these altitudes you burn quickly, even on cool days.
What to pack
- A down or fleece jacket, a hat and gloves.
- Swimwear for Issyk-Kul and sandals for stony beaches.
- Long trousers and closed shoes for riding.
- Sunscreen, sunglasses and lip balm.
- A headlamp and a power bank.
- Wet wipes and a quick-dry towel.
Plan it with TravelX
- 6-day tour with Issyk-Kul and Song-Kul
- 8-day tour with two nights at Song-Kul
- 9-day tour with Song-Kul and Tash-Rabat
- 4-day Issyk-Kul tour with Burana and Barskoon
New to the country? Start with our Kyrgyzstan travel basics.
Photos: Ninara, CC BY 2.0 · Bernard Gagnon, CC0 · Ninara, CC BY 2.0 · Ninara, CC BY 2.0
