Red sandstone towers and walls lining a dry valley floor, with darker hills on the horizon

National park · Charyn National Park, Almaty Region

Charyn Canyon

Red sandstone towers and gorges carved by the Charyn River, with the Valley of Castles as its most visited section

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Ambient sound · similar settingStrong wind in open country

Photo: Yelena Vakker (@yelenavakker) / Unsplash

Discover Charyn Canyon

Charyn Canyon follows the Charyn River, which rises in the Tian Shan and is one of the larger left-bank tributaries of the Ili. Over a very long period water and wind have worn the red sandstone into walls, pillars and fins that resemble ruined fortifications. In places the gorge is 150 to 300 metres deep, and the official park description notes rock walls up to 370 metres high.

The most popular section is the Valley of Castles, where a track drops between rows of towers towards the river. The canyon system also includes the Temirlik, Yellow, Red and Bestamak canyons, while along the river grows the Sogdian ash grove, a rare relic from the ice age. The surrounding Charyn National Park covers 127,050 hectares and has four tourist routes totalling 30.5 kilometres.

Don’t miss

01Walking down the Valley of Castles between eroded red towers
02Viewpoints over the canyon from the rim near the car park
03The Charyn River at the bottom of the gorge
04The Sogdian ash grove, a relic of the ice age
05The quieter Temirlik canyon

History & culture

The story of Charyn Canyon

The current form of the gorge developed over about a million years, according to accounts of the Temirlik section, and in 2021 researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry used samples from the canyon to reconstruct a five-million-year record of the region's rainfall and climate. The naturalist P. I. Marikovsky called the Temirlik tract Nightingale Canyon.

The Sogdian ash grove was declared a protected reserve in 1964. Charyn National Park was established on 23 February 2004 to protect the canyon, the grove and the wider landscape, and it is now part of UNESCO's World Network of Biosphere Reserves. Plans announced in 2021 included eco-toilets, shaded areas, drinking fountains and observation decks.

Local life & traditions

The canyon lies in the dry steppe of eastern Almaty Region, close to the Chinese border, and is reached along the road through Shelek, Baiseit and Kokpek. The park reports free-roaming goitered gazelles (jeyrans) in its Kyzylkarasay and Bolshoy Bugyty sections, along with golden eagles, saker falcons and great bustards, and Red Book species such as the Turkestan lynx and Pallas's cat.

Things to do

Experience it like a local

Most visitors drive from Almaty for the day, leave the car at the parking area at the end of a signposted side road and walk to viewpoints over the canyon before descending the Valley of Castles route towards the river. The park has four marked routes: the Charyn Ash Grove, Charyn Canyon and Valley of Castles, a route past burial mounds, and Temirlik and the Small Canyon. Rafting, canoeing and fishing on the river are also popular.

When to go

The canyon is open steppe with little shade, so the cooler months of spring and early autumn are the most comfortable for walking. Low evening sun lights up the red rock, which makes late afternoon a good time for photographs.

Plan your visit

Verified information

Entry fee (2026): 0.2 MRP per pedestrian per day (about 865 tenge) and 0.6 MRP per car (about 2,595 tenge); higher rates apply to minibuses and buses. Source: tengrinews.kz ↗
Tourist routes: Four routes totalling 30.5 km: Charyn Ash Grove, Charyn Canyon – Valley of Castles, Burial Mounds and Barrows, and Temirlik – Small Canyon. Source: gov.kz ↗
Getting there: About 200 km east of Almaty; the road route via Shelek, Baiseit and Kokpek is around 190 km, followed by a 9 km signposted road to the parking area. Source: en.wikipedia.org ↗

Checked against the sources on 31 October 2026. Opening times and fees can change — confirm before you go.

Travel tips

Start early from Almaty: the round trip by road takes most of a day.
Carry plenty of water and sun protection for walking in the open canyon.
Wear sturdy shoes for the gravel track down the Valley of Castles.
Catch late-afternoon light on the red rock for the best photographs.
Carry tenge for the national park fee.

General guidance from our specialists, not official information.

Around Charyn Canyon: food, markets & places to stay

Within Charyn National Park are the Sogdian ash grove, about 20 kilometres from the main canyon, and the Temirlik, Yellow, Red and Bestamak canyons, as well as smaller areas such as Kurtogay. The park's Kyzylkarasay and Bolshoy Bugyty sections are known for gazelles and birds of prey. The canyon is a long day trip from Almaty, and the Kazakh–Chinese border lies close by.

Charyn Canyon & what’s nearby

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City

Almaty

Kazakhstan's largest city, home to about 2.35 million people, set at the foot of the snow-capped Trans-Ili Alatau. The former capital mixes Soviet-era avenues and parks with landmarks such as the wooden Zenkov Cathedral and the Green Bazaar, and has mountains and ski slopes on its doorstep.

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Sources & verification

This guide was researched from the sources below and reviewed by our team on 31 October 2026. Facts under “Verified information” link to the page they were checked on; travel tips are general guidance. Photos are credited on each image. The ambient recording’s author and licence are shown in the sound player.

Charyn Canyon — Wikipedia
Шарын — удивительное творение природы и времени — Forestry and Wildlife Committee, Government of Kazakhstan
Цены на въезд в нацпарки Казахстана в 2026 году — Tengrinews
Almaty — Kazakhstan Travel

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