Oi-Qaragai: the all-season mountain resort near Almaty

Oi-Qaragai (Ой-Карагай in Russian; its adventure park is still known locally as Lesnaya Skazka, “Forest Fairy Tale”) is a year-round mountain resort in the Oi-Qaragai gorge, in Talgar district just east of Almaty. It is about 40 minutes by car via Beskainar village. In winter people come to ski — the 2025/2026 season opened on 13 December — and in summer for zip lines, a rope park, horse riding and hikes. The big change is Aqtas, a higher ski area with a gondola and a chairlift that opened in March 2025; by 2028 the resort plans to be almost ten times its current size.

Oi-Qaragai at a glance

Businessman Yerlik Balfanbayev has been developing the resort since 2007 (Forbes.kz). It covers 105 ha today; opening up the Aqtas plateau should take it to 1,000 ha and lift skiing to 2,300 m. The government approved an investment agreement for 2025–2028, and an Austrian firm was picked to equip the slopes (Bes.media, February 2026).

Older guides undersell it: in 2020 Tengrinews described a top point of 1,650 m and about 20 km of runs with a single drag lift. Use recent figures.

Getting to Oi-Qaragai

• By car — Kazakhstan.travel says to head for Beskainar village and follow the Oi-Qaragai signs; Sxodim puts the drive at about 40 minutes.
• By bus — as of July 2024, Sxodim listed bus 210 from the Palace of Sports every 40 minutes, about an hour’s ride. Check a transit app on the day.
• By taxi — the easiest option without a car.
• Around the resort — free shuttles run every 40 minutes between the main area and the Lesnaya Skazka park, about 2 km apart (Sxodim).

Lifts and the Aqtas area

The lower cable car station is at the main entrance, and the ride climbs to 1,820 m (Sxodim, 2024). Aqtas was built from April 2024 and opened in March 2025 with a 10-seat gondola and a 6-seat chairlift (Kapital.kz). For 2025/2026 it had 8 km of groomed runs (Forbes.kz). In February 2026 the government said a further cable car was nearly finished, the road to the plateau was built and station installation was under way.

Skiing in winter

The 2025/2026 season began on 13 December, a week after Shymbulak (Forbes.kz). All slopes have snowmaking: Kapital.kz counts 48 snow guns, over 10 km of main pipes, two pumping stations and two storage ponds of 20,000 m³ each, with guns starting at around −2 °C. Off the slopes, Forbes.kz lists electric moonbike snowmobiles, a “sky swing” and a catapult that launches you more than 15 m.

Summer at Oi-Qaragai

From Sxodim and Forbes.kz:

• the “Spirit of Tien Shan” zip line, which the resort bills as the longest in Asia;
• a rope park, a climbing wall, mountain karting and a bike park;
• a riding centre, including lessons;
• hiking trails, plus horse and hiking outings to Kabanye (Boar) Lake through Ile-Alatau National Park;
• a suspension bridge built for photos and the sky swing.

You can stay in cottages, treehouse cabins or glamping pods: 14 pods with panoramic windows and saunas stood at the end of 2025, with 63 more promised for spring 2026 (Forbes.kz). There are about ten restaurants and cafés.

What it costs

We don’t print prices, because they change every season; check the resort operator. What the sources say:

• lifts are paid, cheaper on weekdays, with a single-ride option (Sxodim, 2024);
• since March 2026 Kazakh citizens get an “Otan” rate on lifts, activities and lodging (Kapital.kz);
• in 2024 children and pensioners rode free (Sxodim) — check whether that still applies;
• season-pass holders get a free five-day ski pass when they book a hotel at another Eurasian Alliance of Mountain Resorts member (Forbes.kz);
• zip lines, riding and the Kabanye Lake outings are charged separately.

When to go

• From mid-December — skiing and snowboarding.
• Warm months — zip lines, the rope park, riding and hiking.
• All year — lifts, restaurants and lodging; the resort markets itself as all-season.

More near Almaty

• Shymbulak — the city’s main ski resort.
• Medeu and Kok-Tobe
• Butakovka — a waterfall gorge on the same range.
• Ile-Alatau National Park
• Where to go in winter