Tulip tour to Kyrgyzstan
The nature of Kyrgyzstan is very abundant. Thanks to the mountainous landscape of the region one can find a huge variety of plants, starting from thorns growing in deserts to elfin woods in tundra. In total, there are over 4.1 thousand plant species in Kyrgyzstan, 89 of which are listed in the Red Book. A special place in the flora of Kyrgyzstan is occupied by rare tulips.
Considering the fact that there are only 80 tulips species on the whole planet, one cannot deny the importance of the fact that in Central Asia one can find 70 species of these beautiful representatives of the flora! Nowadays, most people believe that the homeland of tulips is Holland, but this is not so. Of course, it’s the Netherlands that elegant bouquets and bulbs of cultivated varieties come from, however, Central Asia is still the birthplace of the plants and it is the land that still keeps wild representatives of the species. Tulips are very ancient plants; they appeared about 10 million years ago. They only got to the Dutch at the end of the 16th century thanks to the diplomat Ogier de Busbeck, who served as an ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. He brought bulbs of the «red lily» to the Austrian Emperor Maximilian II, and from the capital of Austria, Vienna, Professor Carolus Klusius brought them to Holland. It was the “King” of flowers — Greig’s Tulip.
The Turks were the first to notice the beauty of tulips; traveling with caravans along the Great Silk Road, along Asian mountain regions and steppes, they brought them home, where even before the Dutch they began to plant them in their gardens and engage in breeding and selection of the elegant plants. A person plucking a tulip believes that he does not cause much harm, but it is not.
The life of a tulip can be compared with the life of a human being: It takes the flower from 12 to 15 years to gain strength for flowering, then it blooms for several decades, after which the bulb grows old, and its strength fades; interruptions in flowering are observed at this period. In total, the whole life span of the tulip lies within 50 to 70 years. The same thing happens with a person passing through childhood, adolescence, youth and aging, but without thinking of it, for the sake of several days of aesthetic pleasure, people ruin the life of a beautiful creation, so similar to human.
PROGRAM
Arrival in Bishkek. Hotel accommodation. Rest.
After breakfast we will go to Ala Archa National Park. We will walk along the gorge and see the beautiful ones: Greig's Tulips (Tulipa greigii), Tulipa zenaidae - Zinaida's Tulip. Other beautiful tulips grow here (Tulipa dasystemon, Tulipa kolpakowskiana and Tulipa zenaidae, Tulipa kaufmanniana). Return to Bishkek. Overnight at the hotel.
Departure to the city of Talas, through the Suusamyr Valley. At this time, the local nomads begin to establish yurts and drive cattle into the valley. On the way we will see: Tulipa greigii Regel - Greig's Tulip; Tulipa ostrowskiana Regel - Ostrovsky Tulip. In Talas, hotel accommodation.
Today we will drive around the Talas Range, along mountain gorges and foothills. And also we explore the Talas valley, where we will see tulips: Tulipa greigii - Tulip; Tulipa ostrowskiana - Ostrovsky Tulip; Tulipa talassica - Talas tulip. In the evening we will return to the hotel.
Transfer to the Chichkan gorge. In these mountainous regions, spring is just beginning. Trees begin to bloom, the slopes of the mountains are covered with spring flowers. On the way we will see: Tulipa tetraphylla– Four-leaf tulip. Accommodation at the hotel on the river bank.
Today our path will run along the Naryn River. On this site the Naryn river is very picturesque. The path to the Sary-Chelek Nature Reserve passes through a semi-desert landscape, as well as through the forests of the Chatkal Range, where various flowers can be found along the way. For example, Juno zenaidae - Juno Zinaida; Elisanthe fedtschenkoana - Elizante Fedchenko; Paeonia hybrida. - Peony hybrid and others. Overnight at the guest house.
We will spend all day on the lakes of the Sary-Chelek Nature Reserve - a natural heritage of UNESCO. Excursion to the lake Iri-Köl. At this time, the real spring is raging here, a sea of flowers: Tulips, Peonies, Iris, Eremurus and many others. Blossom of apple and cherry plum. There are a lot of different tulips and endemic flowers. Overnight at the guest house.
Our further path lies through the savannah of Kyzyl-Dzhar. Along the way, we will see endemic flowers: Sophora korolkovii Koehne - Sofora Korolkova; Hedysarum turkestanicum Regel et Schmalh. - Turkestan penny. In Arslanbob, overnight in a guest house.
Excursion to the waterfall. In these walnut forests we will see completely different types of tulips (Tulipa ferganica). Elisanthe fedtschenkoana - Elizante Fedchenko; Delphinium knorringianum - Larkspur Knorring; Chesneya quinata - Five Chesney; Hedysarum chaitocarpum Regel et Schmalh. - Hedgehog and others. Overnight at the guest house.
Today we will pass through the cities of Jalal-Abad, Uzgen and Osh. We will see the Uzgen minaret, which was built in the IX-X centuries, on the Great Silk Road. And then we will go to a new area to search for tulips in the Kyrgyz-Ata nature reserve. Along the way, we will see: Delphinium knorringianum - Knorring Larkspur; Colutea brachyptera - Bubble Wing; Astragalus duanensis Saposhn - Astragalus Duan and other endemic flowers. Accommodation in a guest house.
Today we will move to the Shevali gorge, where we will explore tulips. Overnight in tents.
In the morning we will head to the Osh city. Today we will make an excursion to the sacred mountain Suleiman-Too - the natural and cultural heritage of UNESCO. Perhaps there we will see rare species of tulips. Hotel accommodation.
In the morning we will deliver you to the airport of Osh. Arrival in Bishkek. Hotel accommodation.
Airport transfer.
- Meeting and seeing off at the airport
- Transport according to the programme
- Accommodation according to the programme in 3 * hotels, guest houses and tents (for two)
- Full board meals
- Entry tickets to reserves according to the programme
- Guide (more than 5 people in a group)
- Air ticket from Osh to Bishkek
- Bottled water
- Single occupancy at a hotel.
- International flights
- Expenses entailed due to any changes to the programme
- Tips for the staff
- Personal expenses at hotels (international calls, bar, etc.)
- Insurance
- Visa
Стоимость тюльпанного тура «Тюльпаны Тянь-Шаня» |
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| Группа (человек) | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 |
| На человека | 1350 | 750 | 630 | 570 | 510 | 460 | 430 | 400 |
Single supplement in hotels: $60 USD per person
The optimal number of participants is 2-15 persone
Our email: info@geoexplorersclub.com