Fann Mountains in 5 Days from Dushanbe: Iskanderkul, Alauddin, Kulikalon and the Seven Lakes
Five days by private 4×4 through the Fann Mountains: Iskanderkul and its waterfall, a night camping by the Alauddin lakes, the hike to Kulikalon from…
Fann Mountains in 4 Days from Dushanbe: Iskanderkul, Kulikalon and the Seven Lakes
Four days by private 4×4 through the Fann Mountains: Iskanderkul with Snake Lake and the waterfall, the hike to the Kulikalon lakes from Artuch, and the Seven Lakes up to the seventh. Start in Dushanbe or Samarkand, finish in either. Rooms are added as you choose. June to September.
About this trip
The Fann Mountains are the most beautiful part of Tajikistan within a day's drive of Dushanbe or Samarkand: a cluster of peaks over 5,000 metres, turquoise lakes at every height, and valleys where the only road is a 4×4 track. In four days this trip links the places people come for: Iskanderkul with its waterfall, Kulikalon below the Chapdara and Bodkhona peaks, the Seven Lakes of the Shing valley and Panjakent, the old Sogdian town at the Uzbek border.
You travel by private 4×4 (a Grand Starex minivan for 5–7 guests) with a driver who knows these roads, and you choose where to sleep each night: the tour bases at Iskanderkul, Artuch and the Seven Lakes are added as options when you book, so you pay only for what you need.
The four days, either way
| Day | Starting in Dushanbe | Starting in Samarkand |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anzob tunnel, Iskanderkul, Snake Lake, the waterfall; night at Iskanderkul | Jartepa border, Panjakent, the Seven Lakes, 4×4 to Lake 7; night by the lakes |
| 2 | Artuch and the hike to Kulikalon; night at the Artuch camp | Artuch and the hike to Kulikalon; night at the Artuch camp |
| 3 | The Shing valley and the Seven Lakes; night by the lakes | Iskanderkul, Snake Lake, the waterfall; night at Iskanderkul |
| 4 | Lake 7, Panjakent; on to Samarkand or back to Dushanbe | Anzob tunnel to Dushanbe, or back to Samarkand |
Choose where you start at the top of the page and the day-by-day plan below changes to match. When you book, choose where you finish: in the other city, or back where you started.
Where you sleep
- Iskanderkul: the Zumrad tour base by the lake, twin room. Meals at the Zumrad café, paid there in cash.
- Artuch: the mountain tour base, with dinner and breakfast.
- Seven Lakes: the tour base above Marguzor, the sixth lake, private twin room with breakfast (dinner and lunch can be added); or the simpler Jumaboi guesthouse by the fourth lake, shared room with dinner and breakfast.
Good to know
- When: June to September, when the track to Artuch is clear of snow and the mountain camps are open.
- Walking: the hike from Artuch to Kulikalon takes about 2–3 hours up and a little less down, on a clear path to about 2,800 m. At Iskanderkul and the Seven Lakes the walks are short. Good shoes and a warm layer for the nights.
- Passports and visas: if you cross between Samarkand and Tajikistan, an Uzbek e-visa, if your nationality needs one, must allow the entries you make. Most nationalities enter Tajikistan without a visa; some need an e-visa, issued online. Read our Tajikistan visa rules and guide to the land borders.
- Your driver and guide: the drivers speak Russian. Add an English-speaking driver, or a professional guide in English, Spanish, Italian, German, French, Korean, Turkish or Chinese, as options when you book.
- Price: for the whole vehicle with driver and fuel, not per person. Rooms, meals and the guide are options.
- Longer or shorter: the 5-day version with a night at the Alauddin lakes, Iskanderkul in 2 days or a Seven Lakes day trip. Read our overnight guide to the Seven Lakes.
A longer trek, more guests, or a night in Dushanbe before you set off? Message us on WhatsApp.
Day by day
- Dushanbe to Iskanderkul, Snake Lake and the waterfall
Pickup at your hotel in Dushanbe at 08:00. The road climbs the Varzob gorge and passes under the Anzob pass through the five-kilometre tunnel, then down into the Yagnob and Fan Darya valleys and up a side valley to Iskanderkul, the lake named after Alexander the Great, at 2,200 m. In the afternoon walk to Snake Lake, small and green beside it, and to the Fann Niagara, the waterfall where the lake's river drops into a gorge. Night at the Zumrad tour base by the lake if you added it; dinner at the Zumrad café.
- Iskanderkul to Artuch and the hike to Kulikalon
An early start down to the main valley and west along the Zarafshan river to Artuch, the old mountaineering camp at the head of the Kazanok valley, about four hours. After lunch a path climbs through juniper woods to the Kulikalon lakes, about 2–3 hours up: a wide bowl of lakes under the walls of Chapdara and Bodkhona, one of the finest sights in the Fann Mountains. Back down to Artuch for the evening. Night at the Artuch tour base with dinner and breakfast if you added it.
- Down to the Zarafshan and up to the Seven Lakes
Breakfast at Artuch and down the valley to the Zarafshan river, west along it to the Shing valley and up past the Seven Lakes in turn, each a different colour, with stops at the best of them. Night at the tour base above Marguzor, the sixth lake, or at the Jumaboi guesthouse by the fourth, whichever you chose.
- Lake 7, Panjakent, and on to Samarkand or back to Dushanbe
In the morning the 4×4 goes on up the rough track beyond Marguzor to Hazorchashma, the seventh and highest lake, then back down the valley to Panjakent and its bazaar. If you finish in Samarkand, your driver takes you to the Jartepa border; you cross on foot and an Uzbek car takes you to your hotel in Samarkand, about an hour. If you go back to Dushanbe, a car takes you east along the Zarafshan and through the Anzob tunnel, about five hours, to your hotel in the evening.
- Day 1
Samarkand to Panjakent, the Seven Lakes and Lake 7
Pickup at your hotel in Samarkand at 08:00 and an hour's drive to the Jartepa border. You cross on foot in about twenty minutes; your Tajik driver is waiting on the other side with the 4×4. Through Panjakent and its bazaar, then up the Shing valley past the Seven Lakes in turn, each a different colour, with stops at the best of them. The 4×4 carries on beyond Marguzor, the sixth lake, up the rough track to Hazorchashma, the seventh and highest, then brings you back down for the night at the tour base above Marguzor, or at the Jumaboi guesthouse by the fourth lake, whichever you chose.
- Day 2
Artuch and the hike to Kulikalon
Breakfast by the lake and down the valley to the Zarafshan river, east along it to Artuch, the old mountaineering camp at the head of the Kazanok valley. After lunch a path climbs through juniper woods to the Kulikalon lakes, about 2–3 hours up: a wide bowl of lakes under the walls of Chapdara and Bodkhona, one of the finest sights in the Fann Mountains. Back down to Artuch for the evening. Night at the Artuch tour base with dinner and breakfast if you added it.
- Day 3
To Iskanderkul, Snake Lake and the waterfall
Down to the Zarafshan and east to the Fan Darya valley, then up a side valley to Iskanderkul, the lake named after Alexander the Great, at 2,200 m. In the afternoon walk to Snake Lake, small and green beside it, and to the Fann Niagara, the waterfall where the lake's river drops into a gorge. Night at the Zumrad tour base by the lake if you added it; dinner at the Zumrad café.
- Day 4
To Dushanbe, or back to Samarkand
If you finish in Dushanbe, the road goes down to the Yagnob valley, through the Anzob tunnel and down the Varzob gorge, about three and a half hours, to your hotel in Dushanbe in the afternoon. If you go back to Samarkand, the 4×4 drives west along the Zarafshan valley to Panjakent and the Jartepa border; you cross on foot and an Uzbek car takes you to your hotel in Samarkand in the evening.
What's included
- Private 4×4 with a Russian-speaking driver for all four days, fuel included (Grand Starex minivan for 5–7 guests)
- The 4×4 track to Lake 7
- The car at the end of the trip: to Samarkand via the Jartepa border, or to Dushanbe, as you choose
- Private car between the Jartepa border and your Samarkand hotel, if your trip starts or ends there
- Help at the border
- Bottled water
Not included
- Rooms at Iskanderkul, Artuch and the Seven Lakes, unless you add them as options
- Meals, except those that come with a room you add
- English-speaking driver or guide, unless you add it as an option
- Visas or e-visas, if your passport needs them
- Park or local fees, paid on site
- Tips for drivers
- Travel insurance — required for every traveller
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