KYRGYZSTAN
A LOKA JOURNEY
22nd - 30th Sept 2026
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ENTER KYRGYZSTAN
Kyrgyzstan's Moving Villages
About the host
Host
Amanda Draper
Amanda has spent six years living nomadically, and the whole time she's been collecting people rather than places. That's the actual skill: she can walk into a valley and find the family worth eating with, the guide who knows why the route matters, the person whose obsession is contagious.
Kyrgyzstan is a country that rewards exactly that approach. Go alone and you'll see mountains. Go with Amanda and you'll end up in someone's yurt at midnight, being handed tea by a man who has ridden these pastures his whole life.
About the trip
Kyrgyzstan is ninety percent mountain and almost entirely unguarded. There are no ropes around the good parts. You ride out of one valley and the next is empty, and the one after that, and somewhere in the middle of it there's a family who will feed you.
Over nine days we cross high alpine pasture on horseback to Song-Kul Lake, stay with local families in traditional yurts and shepherd homes, find the turquoise water of Kel-Suu, walk the red rock of Skazka Canyon, and finish in the natural hot springs at Altyn Arashan. Sore, sunburnt, and quiet in the way you only get after a week without a signal.
Three of the days are spent in the saddle and on foot, moving through country that has no road into it. The rest is slower: long meals, horses grazing, nothing on the schedule but the evening itself.
This isn't a trip you watch. Nomadic culture here isn't a performance put on for visitors, it's still how much of the country lives. We travel in a small group so we arrive as guests rather than an audience.
I've been living nomadically for six years, and I want to tell you how it started, because it explains why I'm taking you to Kyrgyzstan and not somewhere easier.
At seventeen I was about to sign for $300,000 of student debt. In the US that's normal, 77% of us are carrying it. My sister sat me down and made me actually think about what I was agreeing to. I listened. I took a gap year, worked three jobs, saved every cent, and flew to Costa Rica on a one-way ticket to volunteer at a healing community.
Then I came off a scooter, badly enough that I had to fly home. Everyone told me the same thing: nice holiday, now back to the real world. I knew that if I stayed, the part of me that wanted to live would quietly leave. So I went back out, and I followed the people who inspired me around the world, and I've been learning from them ever since.
Six years of that taught me one thing. It was never the places. Every experience worth having was shaped by whoever I was having it with, and I've become quite good at finding those people. That's genuinely the thing I do best. I can land somewhere and know within a day which family to eat with, which guide actually loves this valley, whose obsession is worth sitting inside for a while.
Kyrgyzstan is where that matters most. You could come here alone and see extraordinary mountains. But the country doesn't open up to you through its scenery. It opens up over tea in a yurt at midnight, with someone who has ridden these pastures their whole life and has opinions about every ridge on the horizon. That's the trip I've built, and it's the trip I want to be on with you.
Nine days. Small group. Horses, high pasture, and people worth crossing a country for.
Come with me.
Amanda
Every Loka production generates media. A documentary of what happened. Essays from inside the journey. Photography. The story of this trip will outlast the trip itself. As a traveler you are part of that production. Your experience becomes part of the record.
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English-speaking local guide throughout
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Horses for all riding days
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All accommodation: yurts, shepherd homes, and guesthouses
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All meals
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Private transport to and from Bishkek
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All permits, including the border zone permit for Kel-Suu
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International flights
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Travel insurance, which is required and must cover riding and hiking
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Visa, if applicable to your nationality
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Alcoholic drinks
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Personal tipping
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Personal gear and equipment
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Anything not listed above
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This trip suits you if:
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You're comfortable being active for several days in a row — riding, hiking, long days outside
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You're happy without wifi, hot showers, or a fixed plan for every hour
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You'd rather eat in someone's yurt than in a hotel restaurant
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You travel to be changed, not to be entertained
No riding experience needed. Horses are matched to ability and the local guides ride with you the whole way. If you've never sat on a horse, you'll learn in the first day.
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You'll be above 3,000 metres for several nights, in the saddle for days, and away from anywhere to buy what you forgot. Pack light, but pack warm.
The essentials
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Long trousers you can ride in. Not jeans. Riding tights, hiking trousers, or similar.
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Broken-in hiking boots with a small heel. Trail runners are fine for walking days but poor in a stirrup.
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Base layers, merino if you have it
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A proper insulated jacket. Nights at Song-Kul drop close to freezing even in summer.
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Waterproof shell, top and bottom
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Warm hat, gloves, and a sun hat. You'll want all three in the same day.
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Sunglasses and high factor sun cream. The altitude burns you faster than you expect.
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Headtorch
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Refillable water bottle
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Small daypack for riding days
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Personal first aid: blister plasters, painkillers, anything you take regularly
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Power bank. Charging is limited to non-existent in the yurts.
Worth bringing
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A riding helmet if you own one. Ask us about availability if not.
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Padded shorts or a gel seat cover. Your third day will thank you.
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Wet wipes and hand sanitiser
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Earplugs for shared yurts
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Swimwear for Altyn Arashan and Issyk-Kul
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Snacks you actually like. Kyrgyz food is meat and dairy heavy.
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A book, and something to write in
Leave at home
Hard suitcases. Your main bag travels between stops by vehicle, so bring a soft duffel or backpack, plus a small daypack for what you need during the day.
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Getting there. Fly into Manas International Airport, Bishkek (FRU). We handle everything from there.
Visas. Many nationalities enter Kyrgyzstan visa-free for up to 60 days. Check your own before booking.
Altitude. Several nights are spent above 3,000 metres. There's nothing to be nervous about, but arrive rested.
Insurance. Travel insurance is required for this trip and must cover riding and hiking activities.