7-Day Aral Sea Expedition from Kyzylorda: Aralsk, the Ship Cemetery & Korkyt Ata
Kyzylorda7 dni
- Bezpłatna anulacja
O tej atrakcji
The Aral Sea was the fourth-largest lake on earth until Soviet irrigation took its rivers, and its collapse is the most cited environmental disaster of the twentieth century. What is less known is that part of it is coming back. The Kokaral dam, finished in 2005, has raised the North Aral by several metres, brought fish back to Aralsk and shortened the distance from the town to the shore from a hundred kilometres to a few dozen. This seven-day private expedition takes you across the Kyzylorda steppe to see both halves of that story: the rusting trawlers still sitting on dry sand at Zhalanash, and the living water behind the dam.
Why you will remember this trip
Walk among the stranded trawlers of the Zhalanash ship cemetery, marooned on what was the seabed
Stand on the Kokaral dam, the engineering that brought the North Aral Sea partly back
Swim in the restored North Aral, which is again cold, deep and full of fish
Visit the Aralsk museum and the old harbour where the fleet was once tied up
Camp two nights on the dry seabed, under a sky with no settlement for fifty kilometres
See the Korkyt Ata memorial, raised to the legendary father of the Turkic kobyz
Your 7 days
Day 1 — Arrive in Kyzylorda, the regional museum and the Syr Darya
Day 2 — Korkyt Ata memorial and the long steppe drive north to Aralsk
Day 3 — Aralsk harbour and museum, then out to the Zhalanash ship cemetery
Day 4 — The Kokaral dam and the restored North Aral shoreline
Day 5 — Fishing villages of the North Aral and the return to Aralsk
Day 6 — The drive south to Kyzylorda with steppe stops on the way
Day 7 — Departure from Kyzylorda
Private from start to finish
The Aral is a genuine expedition. Roads give out, the last stretch is soft sand, and there is nothing to buy between towns. You travel in a private 4x4 with a driver who knows the seabed tracks, carrying your own fuel, water and camp. Your guide is with you from Kyzylorda to the shore and back.
Najbliższe dostępne terminy
Co jest wliczone
- Private air-conditioned vehicle with a professional driver for the whole itinerary
- Private English-speaking guide throughout the touring days
- 6 nights' accommodation with daily breakfast, as described in the itinerary
- Arrival and departure transfers at Kyzylorda International Airport (KZO)
- All fuel, road tolls, parking and driver expenses
- Bottled drinking water in the vehicle every day
- Private 4x4 with an experienced steppe and seabed driver
- Two nights of full-service camping on the former seabed, with tents, bedding and a camp cook
- All meals from Day 2 lunch to Day 6 breakfast
- Boat trip on the North Aral Sea, weather permitting
- All permits for the Aral district
Nie jest wliczone
- International flights to and from Kyzylorda
- Kazakhstan visa, where your nationality requires one
- Lunches and dinners, unless individually listed as included
- Travel and medical insurance, which we strongly recommend
- Personal expenses, laundry, minibar and telephone charges
- Gratuities for your guide and driver, which are at your discretion
Plan wycieczki
- 1
Arrival in Kyzylorda
Your driver meets you at Kyzylorda airport. The town sits on the Syr Darya, the river whose diversion emptied the Aral. Kyzylorda Regional Museum — the history of the lower Syr Darya, from the Oghuz Turks to the brief period when Kyzylorda was capital of Soviet Kazakhstan. The Syr Darya embankment — a walk beside the river that is the whole story of this trip. Aitbay Mosque — the town’s handsome early twentieth-century mosque. Expedition briefing — kit, water, camp arrangements and the plan for the seabed nights. Overnight in Kyzylorda.
- 2
Korkyt Ata and the road to Aralsk
North-west along the Syr Darya into emptier and emptier country. Korkyt Ata memorial — a modern monument of four concrete wings that sing in the wind, raised to the legendary bard credited with inventing the kobyz. Baikonur from the road — the closed cosmodrome city is passed at a distance; your guide explains what can and cannot be visited. The steppe — hours of saxaul scrub, camels and almost nothing else. Arrival in Aralsk — once a busy fishing port, now several dozen kilometres inland. Overnight in Aralsk.
- 3
Aralsk and the stranded fleet
The heart of the story, on the ground. Aralsk old harbour — the quay, the cranes and the mosaic at the railway station showing fishermen sending their catch to Moscow in the famine of 1921. Aralsk Fishermen’s Museum — photographs of the port when there was water at the end of the street. Zhalanash ship cemetery — the trawlers left sitting upright on dry sand when the sea withdrew, now rusting into the saltbush. The old seabed — the drive out onto it, where seashells still lie on the surface. Overnight camping on the former seabed.
- 4
Kokaral dam and the returning sea
The other half of the story: the water that came back. Kokaral dam — the thirteen-kilometre earth dam completed in 2005 that holds the Syr Darya in the northern basin. The sea behind it has risen several metres. The new shoreline — open water where there was salt pan twenty years ago, with gulls and reed beds. Boat trip — onto the North Aral with local fishermen, conditions permitting. Fish lunch at the shore — flounder and pike-perch, the catch that came back with the water. Overnight camping near the shore.
- 5
The fishing villages and back to Aralsk
A slower day among the settlements that live off the restored sea. Tastubek — a small village that emptied when the sea left and repopulated when it returned. Meeting the fishermen — nets, the day’s catch and a frank conversation about what the dam did and did not fix. Saxaul plantations — the shelterbelts planted on the dry bed to hold down the salt dust that blows off it. Return to Aralsk — a hot shower and a bed. Overnight in Aralsk.
- 6
Return to Kyzylorda
The long road back, with the stops there was no time for going north. Kamystybas lake — one of the Syr Darya delta lakes, good for birds in spring and autumn. Zhankent — the ruined medieval town on the old delta, a stop for anyone interested in the Oghuz period. Arrival in Kyzylorda — and a last dinner of the local fish and rice. Overnight in Kyzylorda.
- 7
Departure from Kyzylorda
Time in the morning, then the transfer. Free time — the bazaar, where Kyzylorda rice is the local speciality. Airport transfer — to Kyzylorda airport for your onward flight. End of the expedition.
Warto wiedzieć
- Poziom trudności
- Łatwy
- Przewodnik
- Zwiedzanie z przewodnikiem, język: angielski
- Godziny rozpoczęcia
- 12:00
Warto wiedzieć przed wyjazdem
- A clear copy of the passport of every traveller, at least 7 days before arrival
- Your inbound and outbound flight numbers and times, so we can meet you correctly
- Comfortable closed walking shoes; the itinerary includes uneven ground
- Sun protection: hat, sunglasses and a high-factor sunscreen
- A reasonable level of general fitness for the walking described in the itinerary
- Warm layers — Kazakhstan's temperature swings sharply between day and night
- A dust scarf or buff
- A sleeping bag liner if you prefer your own bedding
Zasady anulowania
Bezpłatna anulacja do 14 dni przed rozpoczęciem atrakcji.
- 14 dni lub więcej przed: pełny zwrot
- Od 7 do 13 dni przed: zwrot 50%
- Mniej niż 7 dni przed: brak zwrotu
Miejsce zbiórki
Zobacz na mapie
Kyzylorda Airport (KZO) arrivals hall
- Adres
- Kyzylorda International Airport (KZO), arrivals hall, Kyzylorda, 120000, KZ
- Sposób spotkania
- Spotkanie na miejscu
- Współrzędne
- 44.70690, 65.59250
Mapa poglądowa. Otwórz ją w Mapach, aby zobaczyć dokładne miejsce i aktualną trasę.
Opinie podróżnych
Bądź jednym z pierwszych, którzy ocenią tę atrakcję.
Najczęstsze pytania
Jak długo trwa ta atrakcja?
Trwa 7 dni.
Czy mogę anulować tę rezerwację?
Bezpłatna anulacja do 14 dni przed rozpoczęciem atrakcji. 14 dni lub więcej przed: pełny zwrot · Od 7 do 13 dni przed: zwrot 50% · Mniej niż 7 dni przed: brak zwrotu
Czy ta atrakcja odbywa się z przewodnikiem i w jakim języku?
Zwiedzanie z przewodnikiem, język: angielski
Czy odbiór z hotelu jest wliczony?
Nie — do miejsca zbiórki docierasz we własnym zakresie.
Gdzie zaczyna się ta atrakcja?
Start w: Kyzylorda Airport (KZO) arrivals hall, Kyzylorda International Airport (KZO), arrivals hall, Kyzylorda, 120000, KZ.
Od 17 800 AED za osobę
