PROVIDERS
Let’s travel!Jainagul Time to discover!
Alvina Let’s travel!
Gulzina Welcome
Yuliya Silk Road Tours!
Cholpon
Hi,
I’m Jainagul. My name is translated from Kyrgyz as “abundance of flowers”. Foreigners jokingly call me “bouquet” :)
I love Kyrgyzstan and I love telling about my country and helping people to organize exciting tours!
General information:
You just need your passport if you are a citizen of visa free country. (Please check it up here)
Be sure to make copies of all documents, because their loss is fraught with difficulties with further stay in a foreign country and with returning home. You can not only make paper copies of passports, driver’s licenses, tickets, hotel reservations, insurance, but also scan them, saving to a virtual disk. Then the documents will be accessed from anywhere in the world.
When meeting at the airport, you will be presented with an accompanying guide and get his contact information. The guide oversees you throughout a tour as well as arrives at the hotel if necessary or has certain hours of reception. If during a tour there are problems, first of all you need to contact the guide.
If you lose your passport, you should contact the local police. There you will be given a certificate with which you must go to the embassy or consulate of your country. The representative office will answer all your questions and issue a temporary certificate, according to which you can return home. To do this, you will be asked to fill out a questionnaire, take a picture and confirm your identity with an “internal” passport, driver’s license or any other document with your photo. Copies are also accepted.
You can change money at any exchange points in Kyrgyzstan as well as at banks. It should be taken into account that banks are open until 5 pm. You can also change money at the airport, at the bazaar and in the remote villages, but the exchange rate is very low there.
Mostly MasterCard and Visa are accepted in restaurants, shops and hotels. In regions it is better to bring cash. As for ATMs you can easily find them in big cities but not in villages.
Transportation of a passenger (tourist or business traveler) from the airport, railway to a hotel or other previously agreed place.
Manas International Airport is situated in 30 km from Bishkek city. It takes about 40-50 minutes driving if there is no traffic jam. But when you are leaving for the airport it is better to leave 1 hour in advance so you may be sure you won’t be late.
It is better to take money with a value of 50-100 $ or euros with you. So in exchanges you will not lose in money. When you exchanging 5-10-20 $ or euros, even in the city, you will exchange them at a much lower rate. And in the regions there is a high probability that they will not be exchanged.
If the tour is multi-day or involves relaxing in a guesthouse, hotel and recreation center, the price includes travel tickets (railway, air), then you need to contact the manager who confirmed the application, if possible the issues will be solved. Please note: there are several one-day tours, when booking which you must indicate the full name of all travellers and passport details. In this case, a change of traveller is available strictly until the moment the lists of travellers are sent to the receiving party. If in doubt whether it is possible to change a traveller on such a tour which must be consulted with manager.
Yes, some vaccines are recommended or required for Kyrgyzstan. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and WHO (World Health Organization) recommend the following vaccinations for Kyrgyzstan: hepatitis A, hepatitis B, typhoid, yellow fever, rabies, meningitis, polio, measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis), chickenpox, shingles, pneumonia and influenza.
Kyrgyz National currency is som. (To read more about currency click here).
Kyrgyzstan is a secular country but the majority of people are Muslim (85 %).
Kyrgyz – national language
Russian – official language
So people are mostly bilingual. In rural areas people use more Kyrgyz. Among foreign languages the most popular one is English.
An individual tour is a traveller tour, which is organized in accordance with the wishes of the customer.
Homestay is a host family’s house which is normally offered in rural areas and is cheaper than hotels. This is an ideal option for those who want to feel a real life of locals.
They are usually a member of CBT (Community Based Tourism) or Destinations (USAID project) so they try to correspond to all the needed requirements. But of course their conditions are worse than hotels and guesthouses. The concept is different. So it is up to you to choose the variant convenient for you.
Single supplement is a surcharge for travelers who don’t want to share their room with anyone else. For the calculation of tour packages cost double/twin rooms are taken as a basis. That is why the single supplement is given additionally.
ROH (run of the house) – accommodation in a room of any category at the discretion of the hotel.
SGL (single) – single accommodation.
DBL (double) – double accommodation; by default, a room can have either one double bed or two separate single (sometimes half) beds (twin).
TRPL (triple) – triple accommodation; a room can be both one double bed and one single bed, or three separate single beds (rarely).
QDPL (quadruple) – quad accommodation.
Ex. Bed (extra bed) – extra bed: folding bed or, more rarely, stationary.
CHD (child) – a child (usually up to 12 years old).
RO (room only) – accommodation without meals.
RR (room rate) – only accommodation without meals.
BB (Bed and Breakfast) – only breakfast is included.
HB (half board) – the price includes breakfast and dinner (sometimes breakfast and lunch).
FB (full board) – the price includes breakfast, lunch and dinner.
ALL, Al (all inclusive) – breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner, snacks, drinks, various additional services.
UAL, UAI (ultra all inclusive) – an extended version of “All Inclusive”: breakfast, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner, snacks, drinks, various additional services, an additional assortment of dishes and desserts, additional free food in a la carte restaurants.
Food:
In Bishkek you won’t have any problem with vegetarian food but in provinces it is more complicated. (You can find the detailed information here).
You need to inform tour operators in advance or tell to your guide on arrival. So we can make arrangements for your food. But even so, we will do our best so that you can follow your diet. You should also be prepared for the fact that it will be difficult to keep the entire menu.
Half board – dinners all along your tour
Full board – all lunches and dinners during your trip
You can choose any of these options or even choose the days when you want FB or HB.
Entertainments:
Kyrgyzstan is a country with an interesting culture. It is stil possible to find and see the features of the traditional way of life of the Kyrgyz people everywhere. If you lead your eyes to the right places, you can easily see them quite clearly. And such example is the village of Kochkor. In Kochkor village you can see how national felt carpets are made. It is also possible to make it with them. There you can see a lot of example of national decoration like coats made of wolves, horse saddle decorations, carpets and others. In Bokonbaevo village you will see the local eagle hunter that has mastered traditional way of hunting with the help of eagle. He hunts hares and foxes. Kyzyl Tuu village is well known due to the yurt workshop. Yurts are made of wooden skeleton, covered with felt coverings.
Horse riding games can be organized in different places such as:
Near Burana tower
At the Song- Kul lake
In Kyzyl Oi
In Chon Kemin gorge
The best option is the village of Kochkor where they will see masters and can buy souvenirs from them. If Kochkor is not included into the program then they can buy in Osh bazaar in Bishkek. Or in ZUM more expensive though.
Bazaar is a place where you can completely immerse yourself in the atmosphere of Eastern culture, but there are some peculiarities. You need to be very careful and do not forget about caution, since there is the opportunity to meet a pickpocket. Keep your money and documents in a safe place. But bazaars are also excellent places for creating colorful photographs, but before photographing people it is better to ask permission to shoot them.
14 holidays in Kyrgyzstan were approved:
January 1 – New Year;
January 7 – Christmas (Orthodox Christmas);
February 23 – Defenders of the Fatherland Day;
March 8 – International Women's Day;
March 21 – Nooruz;
April 7 – April Revolution Day;
May 1 – Labor Day;
May 5 – Constitution Day of the Kyrgyz Republic;
May 9 – Victory Day;
August 31 – Independence Day of Kyrgyzstan;
November 7 and 8 – Days of history and memory of ancestors;
Muslim holidays Orozo Ait and Kurman Ait are determined by the lunar calendar.
Transport:
We know that you want to travel comfortably during sightseeing tour in Kyrgyzstan. You will be pleased with the cars we use during our tours. All our cars are air-conditioned and have very comfortable seats. Our drivers are professionals with driving skills and route knowledge.
Transport:
02-03 pax – Mitsubishi Delica
04-11 pax – 1 Mercedes Sprinter
12-22 pax – 2 Mercedes Sprinters
23-33 pax – 3 Mercedes Sprinters or big bus
34-44 pax – 4 Mercedes Sprinters or big bus
Yes you can. Pets, cats, dogs and birds must be accompanied by a veterinarian health certificate with the seal of the local Board of Health. The certificate must be issued maximum ten days prior to arrival. Pets must have been vaccinated against rabies within 12 months and 30 days prior to arrival.
Other:
Yes, it is allowed as per your airline regulations.
You can buy alcohol if you are over 18 years old.
The power socket in Kyrgyzstan is European type – C. It has two round parallel contacts. It does not have a third ground pin. The voltage is 220 V.
You can take photos almost everything, but there are places where you have to pay or it is forbidden at all. If you are not sure whether you can take them, ask a guide.
In general it is safe in the evening. But it is recommended to avoid deserted and unlit streets.
No, but if you are afraid to drink it, you can boil it. Bottled drinking water can be bought all over the country.
You can take money with you or exchange it.
(This information can be found here).