Tour Program

 

Excursion to UNESCO sites: Nookat settlement (Krasnorechenskoe ruins), Suyab settlement (Ak-Beshim ruins), & Burana Tower (Balasagyn ruins)

We will pick you up from whichever location is most convenient for you in Bishkek (e.g. a hotel, guest house, specific home address, etc.). Over the course of the day we will visit three of the four UNESCO World Heritage sites in Kyrgyzstan.

We will begin the tour by visiting the Nookat ruins. This site is located about 50 km outside of Bishkek.

Please bring good walking shoes as we will explore the site on foot. Your guide will fill you in on the history of this ancient settlement that existed along the Great Silk Road.

Transfer to the Suyab ruins (Ak-Beshim settlement is the modern name). The drive will take us about 30-40 minutes. After exploring this site, we will drive another half hour to Burana Tower– ruins of the Balasagyn settlement. To fully explore this site, we will be there between an hour and an hour and a half.

Burana Tower is a large minaret in the Chui Valley in northern Kyrgyzstan. The tower, along with grave markers, some earthenware, and the remains of a castle and three mausoleums, are all that remain of the ancient city of Balasagun, a city that was founded by the Karakhanids at the end of the 9th century. An external staircase and steep, winding stairway inside the tower allow visitors to climb to the top.

After visiting Burana Tower we will return to Bishkek (about 80 km/ 1.5 hrs). We will drop you off at any address within the city that we agree upon beforehand.

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9:00 – 10:00 Drive from Bishkek to the Nookat ruins.

10:00 – 11:00 Explore the ruins

11:00 – 11:40 Drive to the Suyab settlement ruins

11:40 – 12:30 Explore the ruins

12:30 – 13:30 Lunch with a local family in the town of Tokmok (This is optional and is available at extra cost.)

13:30 – 14:00 Drive to the Burana Tower site

14:00 – 15:30 Explore the Burana Tower site. Walk around the ruins of an important stopping point along the Great Silk Road and visit a little local museum with information about the ancient civilization that once thrived in that area. You will also get the chance to examine a large collection of Balbals (stones carved to resemble warriors) and some ancient Turkic tombs.

15:30 – 17:00 p.m. Return to Bishkek.

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