How many people visit Kazakhstan's national parks: visitor statistics

In 2025 Kazakhstan’s specially protected natural areas received 3.7 million visitors — 900,000 more than in 2024, according to the ecology minister. Over four years the flow grew almost 2.5-fold: for 2021 the deputy minister cited 1.5 million. The busiest parks are Burabay, Ile-Alatau and Kolsai Lakes. Charyn Canyon had 117,793 visitors in 2024. Complete, comparable series for every park are not public, so below we show only what has been published.

Key findings

• Protected areas nationwide: 1.5 million (2021) → 3.7 million (2025), a 2.5-fold rise; 2025 alone added 900,000.
• Kolsai Lakes: 244,733 (2023) → 600,026 (2025), up 2.45 times in two years — the fastest among parks with published 2023–2025 data.
• Charyn: 115,000 (2023) → 117,793 (2024), up 2–3%. First-half growth was 1.8%, against 67% at Kolsai.
• January–July 2025 leader: Burabay (over 600,000), then Ile-Alatau (507,541) and Kolsai (over 350,000).
• There is no full 2025 figure for Charyn in any official source we found.

Nationwide: how many people visit the parks

There is no single statistical series. National totals were announced by different agencies in different years, with different wording — “national parks” in one place, “protected areas” or “parks and reserves” in another. We put them on one chart, but they are not one methodology.

The latest data point is from 9 June 2026: ecology minister Ye. Nyssanbayev told a government meeting that protected areas had 2.8 million visitors in 2024 and 3.7 million in 2025. The same statement mentions 13 national parks under the ministry, 179 tourist routes and 42 ecological trails.

The 2021 figure of 1.5 million was given by deputy minister A. Shalabekova in November 2022, citing national statistics for 14 national parks; she added that ten months of 2022 had already exceeded 1.7 million. The full-year totals for 2022 and 2023 (about 2 and 2.4 million) came from the ministry in reply to a NewTimes request in September 2024.

Interim totals: how the flow spreads across the year

Besides annual totals, agencies sometimes publish interim figures. They show how much of the year’s traffic falls into the warm season.

Nine months of 2024 accounted for 75% of the annual flow; seven months of 2025 for about 54%. These are different years and different agencies, so the conclusion is cautious: a noticeable share of visitors comes after July.

The sources say little about how people are counted at the gate. In June 2026 the ecology minister said 14 checkpoints in six national parks had been automated, with work continuing at another 11. Almaty region uses the e-Qonaq system, which the akimat drew on for its half-year figures.

Charyn Canyon: growth that stalled

The series is incomplete and stitched from several sources, so read it carefully. The 20,640 for 2019 counts visitors on four park routes, not the whole park. The 16,105 for 2020 comes from the Uygur district akimat, in a year of pandemic restrictions. The 115,000 for 2023 is a Ministry of Ecology figure. The 117,793 for 2024 is again the akimat’s, including about 17,500 foreigners from 52 countries.

Between 2020 and 2024 the flow grew 7.3-fold. But the last two published years are almost level. Half-year e-Qonaq data agree: 53,965 visitors in the first half of 2023 and 54,955 in the first half of 2024.

The sources give no reason, and we will not guess. Routes and practicalities are in our Charyn Canyon section.

Kolsai and Kaindy: the fastest growth

The Kolsai Lakes National Park covers both the Kolsai lakes and Lake Kaindy. For 2023 the park directorate counted 244,733 visitors. According to the regional tourism department, there were 395,386 in 2024 and 600,026 in 2025 (+52% in a year). In summer 2026 the park director reported more than 330,000 visitors since January, and more than 200,000 at Kaindy alone in 2025. Whether the pace holds in 2026 is unclear. For January–July 2025 the Tourism Industry Committee cited more than 350,000 Kolsai visitors, while the park director gave more than 330,000 for 2026 as of 17 August. The periods and sources differ, so this is only a hint of a possible slowdown, not a conclusion. There is no full-year 2026 figure yet.

Trails are covered on our Kolsai Lakes and Lake Kaindy pages.

First half of 2023 vs 2024: the e-Qonaq comparison

The only direct like-for-like comparison was published by the Almaty region akimat, from the e-Qonaq registration system.

The percentage change is our calculation. Only parks with both figures in the same publication are included.

Which national parks are the most visited

According to the Tourism Industry Committee, as published by Inbusiness.kz, Burabay ranked first in January–July 2025 (over 600,000), Ile-Alatau second (507,541) and Kolsai third (over 350,000). Charyn and Bayanaul made the top five, but no figures were given for them. Ile-Alatau also has an annual figure: more than 800,000 in 2024, according to Kazpravda.

Other parks have only isolated data points. Bayanaul: 159,000 in 2023 per the Ministry of Ecology. Altyn-Emel: “over 6,000” in the first half of 2023, and that is the visitor centre only. We found no annual figures for Altyn-Emel for 2023–2025.

Burabay, Bayanaul and Ile-Alatau: isolated data points

For the northern parks there are hardly any series, only scattered figures. In August 2024 the deputy director of Burabay National Park reported 578,000 visitors for the season as of 10 August. For Bayanaul the Ministry of Ecology gave 159,000 for 2023, Kazpravda, citing the authorities, 161,000 for 2024, and in summer 2026, according to 24KZ, the park received 200,000 people. Ile-Alatau, which includes Big Almaty Lake, had more than 500,000 visitors by 2 August 2025.

Foreign visitors at Charyn

Only Charyn has a published share of foreigners. In 2024, about 17,500 of its 117,793 visitors came from 52 other countries — roughly 15%. We found no such breakdown for other parks. If you are planning the trip, see how to get to Charyn Canyon from Almaty.

What this means for your trip

The numbers show where the crowds are: Burabay in the north and the parks around Almaty. Kolsai has grown faster than any other park with published series over the last two years. Charyn sits at around 115,000–118,000 a year — roughly a fifth of Kolsai’s 2025 total. To compare destinations, start with our national parks guide.

Why figures for one park disagree

2022 is a good example. At a government meeting on 1 June 2022 the ministry reported growth: Charyn from 16,000 to 35,000, Kolsai from 83,000 to 160,000, Ile-Alatau from 212,000 to 430,000 (as relayed by The Astana Times). Which periods were compared was not specified, so we keep these pairs off the charts.

The same goes for what is counted. The Charyn visitor centre had 49,332 visitors in the first half of 2023, while the whole park, per e-Qonaq, had 53,965. Both are correct but describe different things. When a news item says “N people visited Charyn”, check who counted: the district akimat, the park, the ministry, or a TV channel citing no agency.

Finally, national totals are labelled differently. In February 2025 the Tourism Industry Committee spoke of 2.8 million “national park” visitors; in June 2026 the ecology minister cited 2.8 million “protected area” visitors for the same year 2024. The numbers match, but formally they describe different sets: protected areas include more than national parks.

Methodology and limitations

We used only published figures with a date and a named source: statements by the minister and deputy minister, ministry replies to media requests, and data from akimats and park directorates. Every figure was checked against the text of the page. Years without a confirmed full-year figure are left off the charts; nothing was interpolated.

Even the agencies have no single counting method yet: according to the Almaty region tourism department (Kazinform, 3 April 2026), the Committee for Forestry and Wildlife set up a working group to develop a method for counting visitor flow at Kolsai and Kaindy.

The main caveats:

• Different things are counted. “Protected areas”, “national parks”, “park”, “visitor centre” and “routes” are not the same. For example, 49,332 visitors to the Charyn visitor centre and 53,965 park visitors in the first half of 2023 are different measures.
• Different sources for the same year. For Charyn in 2024 the akimat gives 117,793, while the 24KZ channel, citing no agency, gives 127,000. We use the akimat figure.
• Rounded values. “About 2 million”, “over 600,000” and “more than 350,000” are plotted as 2, 600 and 350.