Altay Mountain Lodge skitouring

In February 2023, I became a co-founder and a Lead Ski Guide at Altay Mountain Lodge & Yurts, a backcountry skiing company operating in Altay (Altai) Mountains, East Kazakhstan region. And I invite you to this entirely new skitouring destination on the world map.

Rudny Altay is a part of Altay Mountains system. This is one of those few places in Eurasia where the first snowfalls begin in November, and by the beginning of December, a stable snow cover forms at low altitudes. Historically, the primary industry in this part of Kazakhstan was the extraction of various minerals, primarily metal ores. Local mountains hide not only gold and other precious metals but something way more interesting for us - first-class terrain and powder. Skitourers and splitboarders have visited some local mountains for quite a few years, but the place where I invite you is very different from those. This is a new skitouring destination, deeper in the range, with only one company operating on 25 square kilometres of prime terrain. The camp location is the valley of Bogdanikha river, with an elevation of 700 meters above sea level and surrounded by mountains up to 1800 meters.

Welcome to Altay Mountain Lodge & Yurts, the region's first ever Backcountry Mountain Lodge.

Itinerary

Saturday: Transfer from Ust-Kamenogorsk on afternoon (upon your arrival); transfer to the lodge by bus and snowmobile.
Check in to Altay Lodge early evening. Dinner, Banya, rest time.
Sunday to Friday: Skitouring / splitboarding – 6 full days.
Saturday: Early morning departure from the Lodge to Ust-Kamenogorsk, where you will take an afternoon flight to your destinations.

Logistics

To get there, you should fly to Almaty (ALA) or Astana (NQZ). There are direct flights from Europe, including Frankfurt, London, Milan, and other cities, and many options with connections.
There are a few flights per day from Almaty or Astana to Ust-Kamenogorsk (UKK / Oskemen), giving a choice of arrival times. We recommend Air Astana flights which arrive in the early afternoon, and right after, we can take a ride towards the lodge.

Inbound transfer
Our standard inbound transfer time for single travelers is 14:00 (2 PM) from the UKK airport. If you arrive earlier, you may need to wait at the airport or book a hotel in Ust-Kamenogorsk. If you arrive after 15:00 (3 PM), we may not be able to transfer you to the lodge the same day on a shared transfer; please arrange a private transfer.
For private groups, we can arrange transfers from early morning through 17:00 (5 PM).
In any case, the latest transfer time from Ust-Kamenogorsk is 17:00 (5 PM)
Please contact our office before booking your flight to confirm the transfer time.

Outbound transfer
Our standard outbound transfer time for single travelers is 08:00 (8 AM) from the lodge, with arrival at the airport at 12:00 (midday noon). If your flight is earlier than 13:00 (PM), you should arrange a private transfer the evening before, with an overnight stay in Ust-Kamenogorsk.

The road from the airport to the lodge, or back, takes 3-3,5 hours, including a 15-minute snowmobile ride in a comfortable passenger sledge. Our standard buses are 18-seat Mercedes Sprinter, and for private transfer, we use minivans.
Logistics in the camp is based on modern utility snowmobiles with passenger and cargo sledges. We also use them to shorten the approach to the remote part of the valley and save time for powderskiing.

Visas
Kazakhstan offers a visa-free policy for most nationalities including EU countries, USA, Canada etc. See here for the full list of countries included in this visa-free policy.

The lodge consists of 3 yurts for guests and staff, one dining room/kitchen yurt, and one classic wooden Banya (bathhouse, similar to sauna). Yurts for guests are 50 square meters each, with 4 separate rooms and two beds in each room. Beds have mattresses and bed linen. Heated by a wooden stove, with enough space to store and dry the gear and clothes.

The dining yurt is 64 square meters, with tables, chairs, and some space for socializing. Electricity is available 24 hours. Internet is available.

Banya (bathhouse) is a separate wooden building. It also includes a heated sanitary block with wash basins and standard toilets.

Meals

We do our best to make the food and the skiing a remarkable part of your trip. Our menu is traditional Kazakh and Central Asia dishes with premium local ingredients and modern cuisine—nothing but an exceptional gastronomic experience.

There are three hot meals daily (breakfast, après-ski soup and snacks, dinner) and sandwiches/muesli bars for mountain lunch. You can purchase alcoholic drinks at the accommodation for a reasonable price (beer, vine, liquors).

2026-2027 DATES:

Price: 2 380€ per person

Discounts for group of 6 pax, contact me for details.

Price includes:

• Organization of the entire trip from Ust-Kamenogorsk airport and back.
• 6 full days of guiding service and skitouring.
• Accommodation in the yurts, 7 nights, TWIN.
• Daily Banya (bathhouse similar to sauna).
• All meals in the camp (breakfast, mountain lunch, aprés ski soup and snacks, dinner).
• Group transfers by bus and snowmobiles – airport Ust-Kamenogorsk – Camp, Camp – Ust-Kamenogorsk.
• Daily snowmobile support for the approach, if needed.

Extra expenses:

• International and domestic airfares
• Personal Insurance
• Alcoholic beverages
• Personal expenses

Prerequisites:

• Intermediate or higher level of skiing/boarding, including in deep-snow conditions.
• Previous skitouring experience, at least one week.
• Good physical shape - you should be able to skin up at least 1000 vertical meters per day.