What an incredible country Kyrgyzstan is. The scenery – stunning. The people – kind. The variety of activities – endless. Kyrgyzstan may still be a blind spot for many travellers, but it’s a must-visit for anyone seeking raw natural beauty, authentic culture, and a country still largely untouched by commercialisation. With tourism still in its infancy, however, you might well wonder how easy it really is navigating Kyrgyzstan.
The answer: travelling around Kyrgyzstan is surprisingly simple (with a dash of luck).
Our overview
Kyrgyzstan welcomed us with open arms and so too did its transport system.
We spent 12 days exploring key destinations: Bishkek, Kyzart, Kochkor, Bokonbayevo and Karakol.
Being first-timers, we often referred to online sources for guidance on travelling between regions. However, the internet seemed to be riddled with outdated information or routes which were just plain inefficient. Here we will set the bar straight and share how we were navigating Kyrgyzstan with ease.
Tools we used for navigating Kyrgyzstan
Route planning: WikiRoutes
Transportation: YandexGo
Travel insurace including horse trekking: Outbacker
Bishkek
Bishkek’s transport system relies on buses and marshrutkas and of course private taxis. There are no metros or trams.
Buses are easy to use and are super frequent across the city. Routes and stops are available on the WikiRoutes website. For even more simplicity, we recommend downloading the YandexGo app. Yandex helps users to find key bus routes, book taxis and order food. Think of it as Central Asia’s answer to Uber.
Most buses cost 20 KGS, paid directly to the driver. If you have a local SIM card, download the Tulpar app to pay slightly less via QR codes found on the bus. We found that we could not pay for our bus journeys via scanning a UK debit card.
Key transport links we took whilst in Bishkek
Ala Archa National Park is accessible via bus route 1.
The cash fee was slightly higher at 50 KGS for a one-way journey, with the bus stopping at the park’s entrance. The journey from start to end takes about an hour considering the city’s traffic.
Click here for the visual bus route.
Dordoi Bazaar, one of Central Asia’s largest markets, is accessible via bus route 226.
That said many public transport options go this way too, so catching the 226 bus isn’t the only choice. For example other transport lines, according to YandexGo, include, 30, 130, 230, 233 and 234. I’m sure there are others too.
The new bus station (Alma-Atinskaya, 1/1), is accessible via bus route 13.
In fact, this bus connects two bus stations together – the new station Alma-Atinskaya, 1/1 and the currently closed Western bus station (Zapadnyy avtovokzal). We drove past the Western bus station on 19th October 2025, enroute to our accommodation, and it didn’t look remotely close to opening. Be weary if any guidance tells you to take transport from there in late 2025.
Click here for the visual bus route.
How to get to Kyzart from Bishkek
Kyzart is a popular starting point for horse trekking, particularly to Song-Kul Lake. If trekking is on your itinerary, make sure your travel insurance covers horse riding, as not all policies do — we used Outbacker for this which gave me peace of mind when at one point my horse made me fear for my life.
Many online sources claimed there is no direct route from Bishkek to Kyzart. This is incorrect.
You can travel directly from Bishkek to Kyzart by taking marshrutka 534 from the new bus station (Alma-Atinskaya, 1/1). It departs daily at 11:00 and 13:00. A local on the bus said the one-way journey cost per person was 500 KGS, however, on arrival in Kyzart we were charged 600 KGS. We believe the higher charge was due to us carrying large luggage stowed in the boot.
Travelling from Kyzart to Bishkek the marshrutka leaves much earlier at 07:30 and 12:30 each day.
The journey is scenic between locations, so keep your camera ready.
Kyzart to Kochkor
You can travel from Kyzart to Kochkor by catching the early marshrutka that heads to Bishkek. It leaves Kyzart at 07:30 and 12:30.
We were not able to do this as our horse trekking finished midday. We were advised to hitchhike, which initially was scary, but turned out to be fun (not to mention pretty common across Kyrgyzstan). Our trekking guide drove us out to the next village, and by the 4th vehicle that passed by we were picked up by a Kyrgyz truck driver on his way to Bishkek.
Very little English was spoken, replaced by lots of charades and photo sharing. Not to mention a quick stop to snack on some orange buckthorn berries from the roadside.
Bokonbayevo to Karakol
From Kochkor to Bokonbayevo we took a shared private taxi with two other travellers. Total price for the journey was 4,000 KGS after a bit of haggling.
To travel from Bokonbayevo to Karakol was easy, and cheap. It didn’t seem like a marshrutka went between villages, but we were pointed to a shared taxi bus instead. It would depart Bokonbayevo at 07:40 and 08:20 in the morning each day.
As such, we took a shared taxi bus with five other people at 08:20 from the central bus station directly to Karakol. This journey costed us 500 KGS each.
Karakol to Almaty
Again we found a lack of information existed on whether it was possible to travel from Karakol to Almaty. What we found was a lot of advice stating we would need to travel back to Bishkek to then get a different coach to Almaty. Geographically, this didn’t make sense, given Karakol is closer to Almaty than Bishkek.
So, like a dog with a bone, I searched and searched until there was a glimmer of hope that a direct route from Karakol to Almaty existed. Thankfully I found that speck of hope.
I can happily confirm that a direct route does exist between Karakol to Almaty.
Everyday a coach leaves from Karakol Avtovokzaly at 10am arriving in Almaty Sayran bus station. The journey costed 1,200 KGS.
Navigating Kyrgyzstan: our conclusion
Overall, travelling around and navigating our way through Kyrgyzstan was simple and a lot easier than we first anticipated. For anyone looking to travel to this beautiful country, transport links are available and locals are always happy to help any lost souls looking to discover more.
