There were an interest and a demand in tours to Kel Suu lake. For a tour operator, it is a good opportunity to attract more customers by providing tours to various locations, such as this lake. Besides, Kel Suu is often included in other tours which are quite long – 10 days, 14 days, or at least more than a weeklong tours.

However, it takes some local knowledge to organize a trip there, so independent travelers might struggle to do that. Mostly for this type of travelers we decided to arrange a short 2-day tour to Kel Suu, starting from Naryn and ending in Naryn – a town that is situated the closest to this stunning location.

By we, I mean me and my partner – Cynthia from Journal of Nomads, an owner of a very informative website about travel in Central Asia and other locations. Check out her blog, you will find very interesting articles and information for your future trips.

So, together with Cynthia we decided that it could be a good idea to provide a tour to Kel Suu lake. We discussed how to arrange a tour there, calculated the costs, and she launched this new project on her website – journalofnomads.com

Initially it was not obvious how this project would go. There were almost no bookings before summer season 2025, but closer to June we started to get first bookings. I went as a guide myself on one of the first tours to Kel Suu, to check out how it would go in general.

I went with one of the groups to Kel Suu lake in early July. It was a small group – only 2 people, friends from Germany, who turned out to be almost the same age as me. We had fun and interesting conversations, discussed many things and explored the region. I haven’t visited Kel Suu lake since 2022 (even though I was organizing several trips a year there by arranging guides from my team), so it was a good reason for me to go there again to see it myself.

Weather was generally good. There were a short storm and a hail once we reached our yurt camp. But other than that, it was really nice. On the first day we left Naryn in the morning, did our shopping in a local supermarket called Globus to have something to eat for lunch, and took our border zone permits to be able to enter the area where Kel Suu is situated. It is crucial to have your permit arranged, otherwise it is not possible to get to that place.

With everything ready, we left the city and went to Kok Kiya valley. We went there just after a machine made the road smoother, so we arrived at the destination approximately 4 hours from our start, with a short stop at a beautiful canyon and the bridge, to have nice photos.

Once we arrived at the camp, we got some hot tea, ate our lunch and had a break to relax and settle in our yurts. Since we had some free time, we went to explore the valley and went along the river. Suddenly the weather changed (as happens often in the mountains) and it started to rain. By the time we reached our camp, there was hail. We waited in the yurts, and then weather began to clear.

Our dinner was ready, we had eaten some meals of the traditional Kyrgyz cuisine, and after chatting a while, we went to sleep. That was the end of Day 1.

On the next day in the morning the weather was clear. We started our hike to Kel Suu lake. The camp where we stayed is the last one (also the closest to the lake), and it is on the other side of the river. Most of the travelers who stay at Kok Kiya valley in different yurt camps go by another shore, but we didn’t have to go there, as there is another road – left side of the river. It gets a bit swampy from time to time, but it can be avoided when going a bit higher on the hills. After couple of hours, we reached the lake, which was amazing – blue color of the water, high cliffs surrounding it, and general ambiance of this place is something out of this world. You should definitely visit this place if you have a chance.

Locals provide boat rides on the lake. We took a ride for about 30 minutes, the views got even better.
By the time we arrived at the shore from our boat ride, it got very windy. We put on all the clothes that we had with us and started to go back to our camp. Another couple of hours, and we are having lunch at the camp.

We packed our things to the car and drove back to Naryn. As my own initiative, I suggested to our guests to visit one extra location – a lake called Kol Tor. There are many lakes with this same name in Kyrgyzstan. When looking up this lake, always add “At Bashy” to its name, so you have the precise location. Generally, it is not a very common and popular place with tourists, but it will become one day. I only heard about this place and never saw it, so it was a great opportunity to visit it. Guests agreed on visiting another place, so we took a detour to see it.

Kol Tor lake in At Bashy is another pearl of this region. It isn’t a strenuous hike to get there, and this hike is worth the view that you will get at the end of it. We arrived there in late afternoon, there were almost no people there, and we got rewarded with wonderful views of the lake.

We came back to our car and continued our drive to Naryn. We arrived there quite late, when it was already getting dark. Tour was successful, our clients were satisfied with the service provided, and I was also happy to see Kel Suu once again and discover another beautiful lake – Kol Tor.

After this tour I decided to add Kol Tor lake as a bonus for all the next travelers who would join Kel Suu tour. We didn’t add a description of it to Cynthia’s website, so people who signed up would know about this extra location only when they are already driving there! Also, timing-wise, it was better to add Kol Tor lake in At Bashy before reaching Kok Kiya valley, because the first day is not so busy, so people get the time to visit this lake and not be in a rush and get to the yurt camp closer to evening.

Later, this tour got more popular, and we organized 7 editions (in total) of this tour during summer season 2025.

If you are looking for a place to visit in Kyrgyzstan, you should have Kel Suu lake in your list. If possible, take a detour and see Kol Tor lake (At Bashy) as well, it is worth it. You can go there by yourself, without a guide, or you can contact us and join one of the tours that will be available 2026: https://www.journalofnomads.com/kel-suu-lake-tour/